Sonus Faber surprise


After years with my current speakers (gallo nucleus reference 3) I decided to try something different. Didn't really have a chance to audition a bunch of speakers nor the budget to go crazy. I've always thought that Sonus Faber sounded like something I would like so I found an old but maybe never used pair of Concerto homes. They came with the proper stands for these speakers. So I get them all set up and was really surprised to find they are substantially brighter and more energetic than my old gallos. They make a surprising amount of bass for there size but mids and highs are much brighter than I was expecting. They are not irritating in any way but not what I was expecting.  I'm still working on placement but I'm not sure what to think. Does this sound familiar to you other SF users? Any suggestions on something I can try?

emiliop

Showing 3 responses by douglas_schroeder

emiliop, yes, of course you are getting adjsted to their sound. Speakers do not appreciably change their sound with use. We adapt to their performance. As you get used ot their sound the acoustic memory of the other will fade and you will increasingly appreciate the newfound resolution. The situation is typical, and everyday thing. 

Have some fun with it and learn something in the process by conducting my Imbalanced System Test. Only run 1 speaker for 100 hours as though breaking it in again. Then, play them both. Suppposedly because the one is not broken in the sound should be off, skewed, unlistenable due to artifacts that differ between them. The center image should become shifted, the tonal balance not even, etc. It should be immediately obvious that something is wrong, not a "I thnk I hear something that is different," situation. If break in is a significant phenomenon there should be differences in tonality, dynamics, resolution, etc. - you know, the typical "huge" or "big" change that people claim happens.

Supposedly cables need to be broken in, too. So, you will be testing both purported break in of speakers and cables at the same time! Bonus, double test! 

What you will find, imo, is that there will be no skewing, no divergence between the performance of the two speakers. Switch the speakers from R to L. Are major issues, problems moving across the sourndstage with the movement of the speakers? Is it like throwing a blanket over one speaker, or does it sound like before? I suspect you won't hear performance variances between them. Then you will have learned firsthand that the entire break in misnomer is a waste of time and that you should just play your gear. You will also learn how arrogant people are to think their hearing is more consistent than electronics. i.e. thinking that the sound changes over time and they can hear it. 

You will have poroven to yourself how much nonsense there is in the audiophile community. I will not have cost you anything but a bit of time and effort.  :) 

So, it wasn’t the speakers? Imagine that! ;)

Emiliop, congratulations on your discovery. Yes, you are learning that within reason, i.e. operation limits, every variable is to be tried. Gain switches can be very effective in contouring the sound. I presume that if you have triode mode, you also have an alterntive mode. Also try Ultralinear vs. Triode modes. Be sure you check the Owner’s Manual for any possible combo that is not recommended, i.e. certain speakers that are less efficient in combination with settings of the amp.

I’m sure you are having fun now! It’s terrific fun to explore the different setups and to hear the outcome! Remember what I said, the performance spectrum is enormous! You still are playing in a very small slice of it. Actually, any of the types of condifgurations done with one set of gear is de facto playing in a very small portion of the performance spectrum. There are dozens upon dozens of steps in sound quality improvement available to the audiophile.

Oh, BTW, get in the habit of reading Owner’s Manuals before you use products.