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Speaker audition: a novice’s journey

I am no expert at audio. But I like to listen to music, primarily classical and then a little bit of everything else such as jazz and soft/alternate rock, both at home and concerts. I am looking for speakers that can play classical well, can represent the ‘body’ of a full scale orchestra. That can soundstage and image well. And that can isolate different instruments. Oh yes, my budget is 10-15K.

On this forum I got tremendous help from several folks. Now I have a list of speakers that I need to check out.

So, sooner the better and I decided to take a plunge. Along the way I’ll also learn how to really audition speakers. It’s a little dummy’s guide to myself. I wouldn’t get into technicalities, my head rings when a dealer tries to explain first order network and phase-time coherence. After all it ain’t matters how sophisticated the science is. The speakers need to sound good. Period. My evaluation is purely by how it sounds, caveat being on untrained ears. I am planning to use the same set of music so that I can get a fair comparison.

I decided to write down my experience (coming in the response links below); hopefully someone, someday will be benefited by it. I welcome your inputs/suggestions.
neal1502
stevecham
3,340 posts
 
Based on your stated preferences, please explore products by Thiel and Vandersteen. If preservation of musical timbre is important to you and it sounds like it is, then phase and time accuracy would be a goal of yours in auditioning speakers.
onhwy61's avatar
onhwy61
5,132 posts
 
A word of advice. It's not the speaker, but how the speaker is setup and interacts in YOUR listening room. As a hypothetical example, a $5k speaker properly setup in a good sounding room will out perform a $15k speaker in a bad room, say 12' x 12' with the speakers too close the the rear wall.

You need to find a dealer who will work with you and if you're willing to spend up to $15k, it should be worth your while to get on an airplane or otherwise travel distance, if necessary. And by work with you I mean a dealer who will listen to what you want, guide you and then let you listen for hours, or ideally even take products home, and then setup your final purchase.

Finally, regarding your budget. Expand it to $5k to $15k. Product pricing has a large degree of marketing input. If a designer can't produce a really good speaker at $7-9k, then it's unlikely that they can produce one at $12-15k. Within any product line the cheaper speaker may be better suited to your tastes and your room.
rhljazz
1,249 posts
 
ESP speakers match your preferences. I have the Bodhran SE and the soundstage and imaging are naturally superb. They project a lot of energy into the room, which in my case required some acoustic applications but the time and money were well spent. The bass extends into the lower 30's and is sufficient rather than crushing as with most ported designs, more akin to what one actually experiences in a concert hall. Price wise they are slightly over your budget but sometimes it's better to spend a little extra. Take a look at the website www.esploudspeakersna.com
4musica44107
520 posts
 
Neal1502:

If you can stretch your budget just a little, the DeVore Fidelity Silverbacks at $16800 would be my first recommendation. Within your stated budget, my other recommendation would be the Vandersteen Wood Quattro's.

My listening preferences (in terms of what I listen to and where) have changed and are causing me to make a major change. I will be getting the Silverbacks for my primary system where I tend to listen mainly to classical and occasionally to other things - the same as your stated preferences. The Verity Fidelio Encores will move from my primary to my secondary system.

Again, the reason for this change is to maximize my enjoyment of classical music where I listen to it most - my primary system. Both the Silverbacks and the Wood Quattro's excel in this regard (In my room, in my system, to my ears, etc. etc.).

BTW, thank you for starting this most interesting post. I look forward to your follow-ups and the comments by others!

Enjoy the process!
tobias
1,534 posts
 
What Onhwy61 said.

Also... I liked this review, it was fresh and easy to read. I still had a question when I reached the end, though.

The impressions are nicely detailed, and they refer to specific aspects of the reproduced performance, specific instruments. But I don't know if the music moved you. Where's the emotion?

Maybe if you didn't mention it, that's because it didn't happen.
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