I am looking foward fot the Argos as well, I live in Mexico,so its impossible to audition either of them here. They are 13K and seems a no brainer... |
For "naturalness" go with Daedalus |
I agree with Daedalus and there very good value. I have had the DA-Rama for 3 years, the large monitor version of the Athena. It's the one component, I can be sure is'nt going to change. Very accurate, fast transparent and also very musical. Lou the designer, is a musician and his aim is to sound like a live performance, I think he has done it.
That is not to knock the other speakers, which are very good, though I personally, am not keen on the Magico sound.
There are no dealers for Daedalus, but there are a number of users around the world, happy to dem for you. Ask lou for anyone near you, after the holidays, or look at the audiocircle site, where Daedalus has it's own circle. Put a request on there, for anyone near you. |
Magico best sounding great cabinet,xover&drivers great musical speaker #1.Its up to you its your money!! |
Your electronics would work very well with the Daedalus. You probably know that Dan Wright uses them as his references. All these are fine speakers, but the Daedalus have all the detail, yet are very comfortable and... well, natural. The sound more like real music than anything I've heard. I've never heard of anyone regretting their purchase. |
Another happy Daedalus owner here. Would be worth arranging an in home demo with Lou. |
The speakers you listed are all very different, so you really need to hear the candidates in person before making any decision. I have had Spendor SP-100 speakers for over 10 years so I am partial to the Spendor sound, especially the Classic series like the SP-100. I have heard the Daedalus Athena and Ulysses at audio shows but never in my own system. Each time I heard Daedalus speakers they tended to be rather lean in the midbass, but I don't know for sure if this was due to the small hotel rooms or is an inherent quality of the Daedalus speakers. That is something I would want answered before making a purchase decision. |
You are spending a significant amount of money so really you must hear them even if it means doing some travel to a place that stocks them.
I would also look into Rockport speakers as well - personally I think they are better than those on your list especially Magico which IMHO are way overpriced for what you get. By this I mean they are nine times the cost of building them.
Thanks
Bill |
As you probably know, choosing speakers is the most important of all in putting together a satisfying system. It is also a highly personal one since we all hear differently and have unique preferences when it comes to great sound. You also have a listening room that has its own acoustic qualities which will have a big impact on what sound you actually end up with. Also, it is highly unlikely that anyone will respond to your post who has heard each of the speakers you list in a controlled environment. So, (sadly) little that is posted in response to your question will be of much help with your decision. Having said that, JMBATKH is correct regarding the synergy between Dan and Lou's gear and I can personally attest to this since I am a Modwright/Daedalus client. Since the amplifier-speaker match is quite critical, if you are confident and happy with your Modwright electronics and in the absence of a demonstration of each speaker this might give the nod to Daedalus. But as Bhobba suggests, demo you must if you are really determined to find long lasting peace. I don't know about the other brands but Lou does have a trail purchase option that would allow you to hear his speakers in your room on your equipment. This is IMHO the best way to make a truly informed choice. If you do go Daedalus, I would suggest the Athena's given your room size. The larger Argo will likely over power a space that small and will limit your ability to position the speakers away from the room boundaries. Though I have not heard them I am quite familiar with Lou's "house sound" having owned the DA-1.1's for several years and heard the Ulysses at a friends house many times. As such my experience does not correspond with Salectric's, as I find the Daedalus sound to be slightly to the warm side of the spectrum overall and pretty darn full through the midbass. Salectric may be influenced by the sound of his SP-100's, which I owned some time ago and which to my ear have a slight boost in the midbass characteristic of the BBC "house sound". This is not a knock on the Spendors (the S-100's are one of finest speakers I've owned) or Salectric. However, compared to the Spendors the Daedalus (particularly the Athena) will likely read slightly lean when compared to the full midbass bloom offered by a BBC style speaker. Again, when all is said and done you really do need to do some listening (preferably in your own room) to make the right choice for you. |
Check out the Green Mountain Audio EOS-HX - |
I have a similar setup, GE trition2 with KWA100 & LS100. I was at RMAF2012 and got to check out alot of other setups. I was not really won over in the Daedalus/Modwright room. I think for me it crossed that off my list as a combo for myself.
Now some other speakers that impressed me were the Dupuy Bongo monitors which i thought sounded pretty good for the money. The Eficion f250 was really a nice sounding room and that falls in your budget as a full range. I never got to hear the magico up till couple days ago with the S5. Great sound but I dont know what the V3 will be in relation. The magico sound to me was clean, nice tonality, great imaging and quite alot of things going for it. Was I impressed: sure, instantly won over: no. I can think of a few other makers that i am considering as my own step up.
For me, I remember the room that had the avalon mixing monitors as what I thought was the OMG that was good. unfortunately that will be just abit going over your budget. I remember talking to someone randomly about those monitors, for the money I could buy a full range speaker instead.
Even Living Voice had a nice involving sound that i liked.
I cant compare with the others you mentioned. I have no basis for Marten or Spendor, but hopefully you gained something from my thoughts. |
Eventhough I love the Django XL I think your room is far to small. Maybe the Spendor would be better suited for such a room. |
Given your room size, I might add my recommendation for the Daedalus Athena. I was fortunate enough to acquire Lou's first pair of these (as displayed on his web page), that were touted to RMAF and N.E.W. a couple years ago. Though you can never say never in this crazy hobby, as a professional musician, I have not heard a better transducer in reproducing the authentic qualities of an instrument, partic. acoustic guitar and pno. |
Have you asked Dan what he uses to voice his amps with? You may find your answer right there. |
