Joseph Audio RM-33LE vs DeVore Gibbon 8, my experience.

As some will know by now I do have a habit of changing my equipment fairly regularly, sometimes buying an item and then selling it very quickly. This is usually because to me I just did not like the SQ, and I am not of the belief that give it time it will grow on me, that is more likely just being accustomed to it, not actually growing to love it! My mindset is that if I do not like it right away well I am likely NEVER going to like it period.

With that being said here goes with two sets of speakers I own.

First, and the longest owned, the Gibbons.
Nothing really much to fault with these stunning 2 way compact floorstanders. Obviously they do not go super low on bass but do run down to 40hz or so in usable output and as I listen to mostly rock and acoustic rock where the low E on the bass guitar is about 40hz I am not lacking in much. Saying that I did augment them with a small 10" sub just to fill in that bottom octave which it did very well indeed.
Their best attributes imho are their absolutely clear and neutral presentation of vocals and female vocals especially. Acoustic guitar and piano are also portrayed very vividly, not in your face but distinct, clear and easily picked out of any mix. They are non fatiguing in any way and I listen to them for hours on end.

So why look elsewhere, well grass is always greener on the other side!

Enter the Josephs.
Obviously these win hands down in bass output as well they should, not bloated in any way just solid tight fast punchy bass all round.
But to me they did not quite have what it takes in the mids to rival the vocal presentation or acoustic instruments of the Gibbons, not bad but not quite as drawn into the music as with the Gibbons. And they may have the tweeter from the Pearl but cymbal splash was very noticeable and slightly tizzy compared to the Gibbons.

So is this is case of David beating up Goliath?

Not quite, read on.

The above was reviewed at levels of 78 to 82 db on average, once I cranked up the juice to higher spl around high 80,s to low 90,s db then Mr Hyde crawled out of the Josephs and grabbed the music in a deathgrip and would not ease up!

Now the bass was truly visceral, feel it in your gut quality, not bowel inducing but much more palpable all round.
The mids took on a new quality and vocals and acoustic instruments shone like they should ( for my tastes), soundstage and the feeling of being with the music took over and I listened in a near dream state for a LONG time.

Does this make the Gibbons bad? Heck no but at the elevated spl the Gibbons did not really change nature much which is actually a very good thing and probably more a reflection of their ability to sing at lower spl rather than a failing at higher spl.

This makes it a very tough decision as both have outstanding qualities and if I really want to rock then the Josephs win out, but for more mellow sessions I prefer the Gibbons as they just do everything right seemingly no matter what the spl or subject material.

For now I am keeping both sets as it is too close to call right now.

Just some thoughts......