The two most common mistakes are bass and treble


OK, so I know many of you will have a knee jerk reaction to that with something like "well you've just covered most of the spectrum!" but I mean to say more than what I can fit in a headline.

When first purchasing speakers the biggest regrets, or sometimes bad choices without regret, is looking for a speaker that is too detailed. In the store over 10 minutes it mesmerizes you with the resolution of frequencies you thought you would never hear again.  You take the speakers home and after a month you realize they are ear drills.  High pitched, shrill sounding harpies you can't believe you listened to long enough to make a choice.

The other mistake, which audiophiles life with far too long is buying too big a speaker for the room.  The specmanship of getting 8 more Hertz in the -3dB cutoff is a huge factor in speaker purchases.

What do you think the biggest mistakes are when buying speakers?
erik_squires
Jacked up fake leading edge detail and loud continues to sell a lot of gear to the treadmill crowd.... Roger Modjeski ( RIP ) was a stickler for level matching....


What do you think the biggest mistakes are when buying speakers?
Never try them before at your home (not easy but always the same mistake), i know some will demur.
Not knowing well enough your amp/amps or your spouse. 

G
There are a lot of potential mistakes those new to the audio world. Yes, there is a natural propensity to mistake too much treble for detailed and therefore better. It was the first rule I learned in the late 1970’s. I certainly have heard my share of ear drills. However, If they are really good speakers the drill experience can come from the electronics driving them.

Yeah, the quest for bass can drive us to make dumb decisions on speaker size. It is guys and speakers... pretty predictable... bigger is better.
Two very common mistakes.
I have a pair of Martin Logan Motion 60 XT driven by an Parasound A21+. The ML are 4ohm. The paring makes awesome bass even at 65-75 dbl.
Nowadays the biggest mistake is not looking at as many measurements as possible including klippel NFS so you have a good idea where your problem areas will need to be addressed.