Mellow speakers


I'm on the hunt for a mellower sound.  I've traced my dissatisfaction to my speakers (I think).  I've got PMC TB2i monitors on good stands.  Occasionally they provide sonic bliss...letting me peer in to the music, great sound stage, etc.  But other times they are just too piercing (for lack of a better adjective).  I also find myself concentrating more on the gear rather than the music.  I'm blaming my speakers.

So, I'd like to put a mellow pair of floorstanders next to them.  I want full, warm, mellow speakers...something I can swim in and just enjoy the music.  My local shop has a super clean pair of KEF 104.2.  And, they're going to redo the woofers while they have them in the shop.  I understand the woofers can be a bit of a bear and that they have an odd proprietary KEF technology that makes them a little difficult to repair (what's with the rod between the woofers?).  With that said, I heard them, and I thought they sounded like anti-PMCs.  Perfect, no?  Why not bring home some old school, rolled off, mellow speakers as a foil to my PMCs.  So...my question...are there modern speakers that have a mellower sound, or other older speakers that I should consider?  Any consensus on the KEFs? 

My gear:
VPI Classic TT
Digital via Mac and Mytek DAC
Ayre pre
Prima Luna tube power amp or Primare solid state

Thanks.

Ag insider logo xs@2xeduceus
Mapman. 

Good to know about fullranges on my 1926 wooden floor.  My PSB Imagine T2s sit on a concrete floor in my basement (AV), and they sound fantastic with their associated gear.  My PMCs are on sand filled stands on spikes/discs.  I can definitely feel the room vibration, even without the sub. 

And, I'm a little embarrassed to say that I'm back to where i started with my PMCs.  After all the great information from this forum, I've switched things around a little (and questioned assumptions!), and right now I'm really enjoying the setup.   What did I do?

Well, first of all, I had set my Rel Stratus III sub using Room EQ Wizard. I had it crossed over at about 35Hz, so as to blend with the 40Hz lower limit of the PMCs.  Resulted in a fairly smooth transition according the room analysis.  I bumped up the Rel crossover significantly...maxed out in fact...95 db, I think, and I turned it up!  Way too much bass....and I love it!  Seems to have leveled out the room, perhaps.  Female voices backed off a bit, it seems.  I'm backing off the bass now, to see where I miss it. 

Second,   I borrowed a pair of 6 meter XLRs interconnects... Tara Labs RSC Master Gen2s from my local shop, Echo Audio.  Ran them around the corner to the Red Dragon Class D amps and put them next to my speakers.  i found some old heavy and short copper speaker cable, and voila!  I think the balanced Tara Labs might have taken some of the edge off.  Or perhaps it's the old cheap speaker cable.  Now, I think the sound is "warmer" with this set up than with the tube amp running through 6m speaker cable.  I'll have to spend some more time with it, but if I'm feeling satisfied all of a sudden. 

I'm going to turn The Dead Weather up a bit now, and have a listen....
 
JohnK makes a great point. I too have found that the relative tonal balance from top to bottom can give the impression of brightness and cause fatigue, when what is really wrong is lower mids suckout and/or lack of lower frequencies to balance the presentation.

Psag: i respect your opinion and each person should listen to whst gives them the most enjoyment, but I am in the opposite camp after 35 years as an audiophile (started when i was 16!). Neutrality to the recording doesnt matter at all to me because most recordings are flawed and do not represent the original musical event. I want components that provide the best illusion that the recordings of music I love seem real to my brain. It is a very personal experience and subjective. Enjoyment, for me, trumps (these days i should find a different verb) any notion of accuracy or neutrality. So i pick music i love, amd build a system that plays it best, rather than the reverse.

Well, adding significantly to the bottom end in this case, seems to have made a difference.  I notice in my post I say "96 dB".  I meant 95 Hz.  So the Rel is now adding some serious bottom end below 100 Hz, and I perceive that the highs have settled down a bit.  A fuller sound from top to bottom. 

That whole neutrality thing is interesting.  I see Psag's point, and I originally set up my rig to be neutral.  But there is equal validity in having a sound that works with my ears and makes me enjoy my listening experience.  I feel like I've been listening to the gear more than my music.  So...I returned the KEF 104/2s today, and I'm going to give my old rig a new listen.