Best Proac monitor

I've owned both the Response 1SC and Tablette 50 Signature for over three years.

Generally, speaking the Tab 50 Sig is a faster, livier speaker than the 1SC. I think it images better as well. The 1SC is more settled and less likely to get ruffled during complex passages, and it has slightly better bass.

As to which is the best, I think it comes down more to which you'd prefer. A lot also has to do with your associated equipment and your taste in music and presentation.

Rub, I voted with my $1,700 plus tax and got new Tablette 2000 Signatures when they first came out in 1999. My dealer carried Proac but didn't have any Sigs on display. Compared to the Response Series' specification the Sigs seemed to offer everything they did but at a lower price. It was like discovering a marketing error. I listened to the 1.5's and the regular Tablette 2000. I ordered the Sigs unheard and unseen.

Proac's introductory blurb for them says: The Ultimate in Compact Loudspeaker Design. By comparison, the pricier Response One SC blurb reads: An Exciting Breakthrough in Miniature Loudspeaker Performance. The 2000 Sigs are bigger, have the same tweeter, same binding posts and only come in veneers that cost extra in the Response Series. But here's the real testimonial: when I'm online I never look for speakers. Six years in and I'm still happy. If you're looking to join a cult you could pick a worse one.

Rockvirgo, that IS interesting.

While the Response and Studio lines seem to have greater differences, the Tablette line seems like an odd offshoot in that lower price wasn't associated with lower performance.

Hi Rubherenow,

" I'm sorry for being the odd man out here. But I must agree with Gunbei. ~ Hi Gunbei. I recall trying to obtain the Tablettes from you several years ago. I just really wanted their ebony verion of said speaker more. Which I own the Tablette Reference 8 Signature versions in Ebony by the way.
Anyways ~ As someone whom has been in Audio Retail from 82 - 1992 as a buyer for our stores. I was asked by several of the owners a the time to attend as many CES shows and the likes as possible to find interesting products for our 3 stores. I remember in 1986 hearing the ProAc Tablettes for the very first time in my entire life & must add I loved them for the things they offered vs things that they did not. The store owner were at this time die hard Linnies. So whom was I too recommend something which I truthfully believed was way more musical then the Linn Kans. Since that moment until this date, I still own a pair & have come to know more about these speakers inner most qualities then some whom have never taken the chance to research them to their fullest abilities. Yes, I too have listened to Response One & One 'SC's and I love them as well & thought that they were better then the Naim SBL's that I'd been listening to as reference. But to my ears & Heart the smaller Tablettes offered something which I found lacking in the more expensive Response One ' SC's'. At first I couldn't quite put my hands on it until of late. These things can communicate the very essence of the messages within recordings which have allowed me to better understand what these artist not only felt while doing these recordings, but also what they felt. I mean think about this statement for a moment !!!!!!!!!!!!!. Isn't the relationship one has with the artist more important then the sound of coming from said speakers in a Hi Fi 'sh manner of speaking?. I've listen to a lot of friends systems & have often come away thinking these guys have no ideal at all what music should sound like. ~ Okay ~ More bass here ~ A litle more refinement there. Yet something was always lacking !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.That something is something that I've come to realize is called: " The Means To Communicate The Messages Hidden Within." These same guys upon visiting my home are quoted as saying: " Damn that sounds real !!!!!!!!!!!!!!. Who is that? ~ What's that recording? ~ Where can I find that recording? ~ If it sonds like this on your little system , I can only imagine what it's going to sound like on my bigger ........Mag...s or Mart.. Lo...s or Sou.. L..s - You know the drill . Well quess what ?????????????. It didn't sound better - only different."

Reading one of the Hi Fi+ magazines of late, and I think that Roy Gregory related his opinions of these speakers in a manner that I must again agree with. ~ Given the right Sources & Amplification Built around them. These little Mini - Monitors are very capable of relaying the truth."

Isn't that the purpose of any given speaker?.
Best Wishes to you all.

Hi El34eh,

Really did we talk about you wanting to buy my Tab 50 Sigs? When was that? Your memory is much better than mine, heheh, but you're right, they were and still are ebony! How are you liking the Tab Ref 8s? I understand they carry on the Tablette legacy very proudly.

I agree, there is something special about the Tablette line. The Tab 50 Sigs seem to convey more LIFE to me than the 1SC. I've always likened the the tab 50 Sig to a person in their late teens while the 1SC is that same person, but in their early 30s. Same person, just different priorities.

These days I'm running a pair of Response 2.5s. I plan on putting my near mint 1SCs up for sale soon, but I can't bear to part with my slightly beat up Tab 50 Sigs.

Very interesting.

ahh memories, have had ebs (no 1),tablets both first and sig (sig no 2),response 2s(no 3)and response 4 (what comes before no 1(legend)),dont know about newer stuff but loved 2.5 and enjoyed future ones,very musical stuff that led me to monster horns,monster altecs ,ls35a on my computer and bedroom
they are a real musical experience

Hi Gunbei,

" It was around December 16th. 2002.

I had a posted a wanted ad here for a pair of Tab. 50 Sigs in which I recieved several offers. One for the Bird's Eye Maple versions which i never much cared for. Yes I've been following your responses - pun intended - both here and @ Audioasylum on our babies. I still love them & feel that I shall never outgrow them in the least. Their to my ears a little more extended in their higher freq. but not to the point of being bright. Just more extension on top over the older versions.

Have you ever considered mounting yours atop Sound Anchors 3 Post Monitor Stands??????????????. Man you've have to hear these two together. For an in - depth view of my opinions on this matter simply look at Audioasylum under my tag in inmate systems - [email protected] - See if we share views on all things ProAc in general. let me know?.

In the mean time Rubherenow ~ Don't sleep on these. They've been one of the most popular & best sellers in The Asian Culture for every since the came into production. Yes, I know there listening rooms are much smaller then ours on average. But I believe it's easier to fit a smaller speaker into a larger room - then putting a larger speaker into sometimes this very same room.
It's nothing more then balancing said speakers to obtain proper soundstage & depth within said soundfield. - In this case these are indeed MAGICAL."

Peace, EL34EH

My wife has non-audiophile but superbly musical ears. The Tab Sigs drove her from the room after 1 minute ("Like finernails on a blackboard") but the Response 2.5s caused her to stay up until 1:00am on a work night - we kept the 2.5s for over 7 years.

I have heard some of the larger ProAc models in various audio stores, but in-store the Tablette Reference 8's definitely tripped my fancy the most. Based upon this, I bought a pair of Tablette Reference 8 Signatures (in birdseye maple), and I have thoroughly enjoyed them. In fact, I am listening to them right now! In my office system, I have a set of Arcam FMJ electronics driving them, and the system is visually and aurally quite elegant.

Tom.

I have a question for you Tab Ref 8 owners. Do you know if those are available in Yew Wood?

No, they are not available in yew, according to the website:

http://www.proac-loudspeakers.com/tabref8.php

Gunbei, may I know if you have listened to the Proac Tablette Reference 8 Signature? If you have, how do they sound in comparison to the Tablette 50 Signature? I do know that you have listened to both Tablette 50 Signature and the Response 1sc.

I currently have a pair of Tablette 50 Signature as a 2nd pair for evaluation purposes and was struck by its immediate and lively presentation albeit a bit bright in the upper registers(which may be associated with electronics and cables). This is the first time I am exposed to Proac speakers. They have more detail and are more forward-sounding in comparison to the PMCs and B&Ws but I am beginning to like the sound signature of the Proacs. I am just wondering if the Tablette Reference 8 Signature or Response 1sc will offer more refinement over the entire spectrum. I may be considering the Tablette Reference 8 Signature as the main speakers in near future and push the 50 Signature to the rears in HT as I find the Proacs to sound quite spectacular with their immediate and life-like presentation when watching a DVD of Antonio Forcione performing live in concert. The sound of plucked strings of the guitar and the cheers of claps from the spectators are so real that I feel like I'm in the concert itself.

Thanks in advance.