Recommend a forward speaker

i've also been listening to a lot of different cds, and the recordings really vary alot in how they present the soundstage

Isn't that what an audiophile quality system supposed to do? Are you trying to make records that sound one way sound a different way?

hi onhwy61:

you raise a basic question as to the purpose of a stereo system. should a stereo system be as linear as possible or should it reflect the taste of the owner and change the sound of the recording to suits one's preference ?

which type of stereo system is better and why ?

i believe this issue has been and will be debated forever.
there is no answer. he who has the bucks can do what he wants. thus, if someone wants to take a recording with a deep soundstage and move it forward and color the sound, so be it.

Update... I heard both the Wilson Sophia and Audio Physic Avanti. I didn't feel either outperformed the Parsifal. The Wilson's were more forward, and detailed, and I liked that, but they were also very artificial, they had a very unnaturally truncated decay... every sound felt like it was being produced in a vacuum. The Audio Physics were much more natural, but the bass was too heavy for my taste, and the high-end was lacking air and transparency. That, and the Audio Physics didn't really sound that much more forward, though I wonder if how they presented the soundstage was mostly due to the electronics. Associated electronics were all top of the line Audio Research gear... which was nice, but I wasn't left really wanting to make a change. I've got more auditions setup... ATC, Usher, hopefully Piega, and if I can make it up to NJ, Duke's Jazz Modules.

(Wilson Sophia) they had a very unnaturally truncated decay

What were you listening to? Are you sure it was not the recording? Could it be the setup or room? I find this observation surprising on such respected speakers.

FWIW: It is impossible to truncate the signal. Over damped designs (such as infinite baffle) tend to sound light in the bass but very musical. Under damped designs (more common) have a "bass hump" but tend to oscillate or resonate like a bell long after the sound stops (these do not sound musical as they add their own timbre or "puddingy" sound to the music and have a poor transient response...you can spot these designs from the frequency plot - just look for a bass hump or bump prior to where bass roll off begins)

=> What I am trying to say is that a lack of a resonant decay is actually something to aspire to in a speaker as it means it is highly accurate. The only difficulty with these designs is in getting enough bass output to please people who are accustomed to prodigious bass.

This "clinical" sound may take getting a lot of getting used to as it not common in most modern speakers which tend to favor light weight cones with small magnets and under damped designs that have prodigious bass for a smallish box (great value for money with warm prodigious bass but lacking refinement).

Suggestion => Demo the Sheffield labs drum tracks disc if you get another opportunity to compare these speakers. The "resonant" designs will add their own coloration to the sound whilst the "damped" designs will not. Spend a bit more time auditioning the Sophias if you can - they may be more accurate than you think on a first impression! Another test is to try many different types of music and see which speaker gives you the greatest difference in bass sound => this speaker will be adding the least of its own coloration whilst the "one note bass" or resonant speaker will have a tendency to sound quite similar in the bass on most tracks.

If after a while/more experimentation you still find Wilson Sophia has an "artificial truncated decay" sound that simply does not suite your tastes - then save yourself some trouble and do not go to any lengths to audition ATC (a critically damped type design).

IMHO, you should check out Watt Puppys as they may be more in line with your tastes...a very good dynamic and forward sounding speaker with a lot more warmth in the bass than the Sophias.

I actually liked the bass on the Sophias, it wasn't exaggerated, unlike the Audio Physics which felt too large for the room. I also liked the presentation of the Sophias. But there was definitely something unreal about the decay. The Parsifals don't exaggerate the bass, have nice detail, but also have a much more natural decay. I told the dealer what I thought about the Sophias, and he told me that Wilson actually intentionally de-emphasizes the decay in their crossover. I'm hoping the ATC have a lighter, tighter bass like the Parsifal, but push the soundstage forward without making it sound artificial.

There was something not quite right about the Sophias, this was what I heard, maybe I'm not communicating it correctly.