My experience with the 7b has been quite good and should work for you if the power is adequate. (250 per minimum). I would say that the naut 803 is another valid choice, different voice and more dynamic than the Aerial, although I find the Aerial easier to listen to consistently. You need to try the 803, especially given your rock tendencies. (Same power issues.) |
No money. I owned the 6s for about a year. They are very nice. They do need power to open up. They could sound lifeless without it. I agree with Emster, 250wpc. I found this to be frustrating and limiting when choosing or changing amps. I now own Meadowlark Heron i's. I suggest you try to give them a listen. They are much nicer speakers in my opinion. Transparency, dynamics and sweetness. They are also much more efficient and would have an easy time filling a large room. |
Thanks for the response. The proceed is a dual mono 250 watt per side @ 8ohm, 500 @ 4ohm amp that I think should do fine for now. Emster, I have a set of 601 s2 in a bedroom sytem that I have been happy with so the 803 is also in the picture. I wonder if they might be a little bright in the long run though, like you said the aerial seems a little easier on the ear during long sessions. As far as the Meadowlark I am sure they sound great, it's just with a purchase this size I really want to stay local. Thanks again for the input. |
Hi No Money,
I have owned both the 6 and 7B; both driven by a Classe 300. I had downsized my system and attempted to combine the listening space with a rec-room for the kids. This forced a need to place the speakers nearer to the front wall than I had ever done before. The results were unexpectedly good. Both sets of speakers performed very well, with better bottom end from the 7B. I agree that power is essential to open these babies up. I have no familiarity with the Proceed, but if it offers clean power it may produce the music you are looking for. If at all possible, audition speaker cables. As with most systems, much improvement can be eked out. Good luck. |
hi no money!
i have used the 7b for about 8 months with my bryston 7st and works wonderful (the only reason i sold it is to upgrade)other than that, it did really works wonder on my set-up, the bass is quick and well defined, (but not a real gut sucking one, though it can be thought at times that it does have a powered sub..especially with a medium size room)
and what i really love with these beast is the WONDERFUL,
SWEET SOUNDING MIDRANGE AND CLEAR AIRY, REFINED UPPER END...i actually missed it since i still don't have a replacement for them since i am still waiting for a good deal on a b&w, the 10t's or the thiel 7.2...anyways, i think the proceed would work well with the 7b's as well...good luck and i hope this helps...by the way, the 7b has been the longest that I KEPT for a while, others i sold them right away after 2-3 months... |
Hello there No money.
I've owned 7Bs for about 7 or 8 months now. My listening room is smaller (14'x11') and I'm running them on the low end of the recommended wattage, a little over 100 watts from a Threshold t200. But they sound great man! I listened to the 6s at the dealer but when he took me into the room with the 7Bs I fell in love on the first CD (I swear). Big difference in the way they sounded to me. 7B ported on back, 6 is ported on front. According to dealer the 6 could go closer to wall than the 7B. Heavy 2" thick cabinet. Seemed like the best value out there for my money. By the way, I listen primarily to rock as well. Happy hunting! |
Aerial gets good at the 8b and 10t models, the lower models have too much compition to be a reccomendation. The Vandersteen sub is a great idea with something like Audio Physics Vergo's, Merlin VSM or even Vandersteen- just my oppinion but I have owned the Aerial 5 and 8b and just thought if you are going to spend that much money you should get a more musical speaker. |
Lots of good feedback from 6 and 7b owners. I auditioned the Model 6 and 7b, primarily for HT use. The 6 is appealing for its size, integration of its drivers, and it produces surprising bass from one 7" bass unit. The 7b is much larger, and puts out quite a bit more bass. I didn't feel that the mids were as well integrated with the bass on the 7b. I would try and audition these speakers in your room if possible where you plan to place them. One other option you might consider is the Aerial LR3. It uses the same mid and tweeter as the 6 and 7b, and two 7" bass units from Aerial's CC3b. Its relatively compact, 24"h x 8.5"w x 12"d, and works well on a 24" stand. Same price per pair as the Model 6, but capable of higher output, more efficient, and has better power handling then the 6. Its a sealed enclosure with bass cutting off sharply around 50hz, so a sub is necessary and can be easily integrated. It also has environment controls that compensate for shelf, in wall, or stand mounting. I ended up with the LR3s, and use it with Aerial's CC3b center. If you do end up with one of the Aerials they respond well to biwiring. Good Hunting. |
Thanks again for all of the input. It looks like either of these will work where I want to place them. The dealer offers a 1 year trade up program on speakers so I plan to purchase and then evaluate at the end of the first year on if I can or feel the need to make the move to 8b or 10t.
Tom_munro, thanks for reminding me about the new monitors, they will also be on the hit list but I will want to be able to bolt them to the stand and fill that with lead/sand, whatever to make it nearly impossible to knock over. You know how paranoid us audio fellas are about this stuff. I just wish I could afford to swing the Aerial sub at the same time ! As it is if I go for something like that I would have to be happy with the Vandersteen. This also brings up the second option of sinking the whole budget into the Aerial sub to go with the ML Aerius I have right now, and ultimatley get some mains to match later but given the room size I just don't think the ML can output enough volume to do justice to that level of sub. Sure would be nice to try though.... Thanks again to everyone, this puts my mind a little more at ease as far as knowing they can be placed that close to the wall. |
Although I preferred the midrange of the Aeriel 8 over the 7b, it was clear that they were WAY to bass-heavy in my similar room. I didn't like the incoherence of the N803 at all, but was mightily impressed with the Revel F30!
I would seriously consider them over the 7b, especially for their remarkably good midrange. Helluva value at $3k net too! They also may be more efficient than the Aeriels, and thus perhaps save you $ on amplification. They're a no-brainer at the price if you like what they sound like IN YOUR ROOM! Good luck. Ernie |
Suburuguru, Actually the dealer carries Madrigal products so I will make sure and put that one on the list also. Thanks. |
