Upgrading speakers...Legacy Focus 20/20???


I want to hear as many opinions on Legacy Focus 20/20 as possible. I listen mostly to rock, blues, some jazz/fusion.
e.g. Dream Theater, Allman Bros, Jon Butcher, Liquid Soul. I am actually home demo'ing a pair of 20/20 right now for two weeks, but they are not broken in yet. My setup...speakers about 11' apart, 22" from rear & side walls(I know, not good), listening position about 11' from speakers, 10' high ceiling. My gear...Audio Research SP16L, Pioneer Elite pd-65, Aragon 8008bb on woof's, Manley Neo-Classic 250's on mid's/tweet's, PSB Stratus Gold's(not i's), Nordost Blue Heaven interconnects, Harmonic Tech's Fantasy speaker cables. I have loved my Gold's for seven years, but as my income increase's over the years... So far I'm pretty impressed with the 20/20's, the bass slam is really something(albeit a little boomy due to placement) and the soundstage is quite a bit larger than the Gold's. But at this price point, $6,800 in cherry, I'm not 100% convinced yet. And again, keeping in mind that the Foci are not broken in yet. Also, Phoenix area lacking wide selection of higher-end audio at this time.
Let me hear from 'ya...Thanks in advance
perfectionist
I agree with WarrenH. There are SOOO Many better speakers out there. I am just not a Legacy Speaker Fan. I am not trying to start a holy war here but they have way too many drivers to do what a good speaker should. Dissapear.. I would personally take the VS VR-411 SE's or look at a higher end pair of Audio Physics, Sonus Fabers, or even JM Labs for that matter. Just my oppinion and nothing more.. Good luck!

Chris
I, too, agree with Chris. It's hard enough to get a couple of (tweeter, woofer, etc,) speakers to work beautifully with each other, considering the complexity (the brain of the speaker) of a killer crossover. Imagine how difficult with a multi driver system. For me, simpler is better, and that is why I go the monitor route. Mabe it's me, but an Audiogoner with a great resume, would make me feel comfortable about purchasing used. That's what the 'gons all about. Ain't it?
I just went to visit several other audiophile friends to listen to their various systems (and these guys have some serious equipment). At one point we all went by the local high-end store and heard the 20/20's (right out of the box with only 24 hours on them), the Whispers and the JM Lab Divas. Driven by top-of-the-line BAT equipment, there were some surprising differences.

All six of us sat there surprised at how damn good the 20/20's sounded. I was extremely skeptical about the Leagacy's after all the bad posts I had read here, but let me tell you; everyone in the room had nothing but great things to say about what we were hearing. I will say this, if you can hear the multiple drivers in these speakers, then you have better ears than anyone in the room that day! Imaging, coherence and soundstage was simply excellent.

Up next were the Divas. Nice and polite, had a certain refinement to them, but sorely lacking the musicality and weight of the 20/20's.

Last but not least were the Whispers. Unfortunately, they were set up in a home theater demonstration as the front speakers. But let me tell you....what a demonstration it was. A 120 inch screen with some sort of German projector, and excellent speakers all around, we were dodging all kinds of crap flying at us in the opening battle scene of Master & Commander. And the bass was concussive.

One guy in the group has since bought a pair of the 20/20's. He sold his Rosante Dulcineas as soon as he got home from the demo. And he has gone to CES for several years and has heard most everything out there.

Granted this was only one listening session, but I certainly did not hear anything from the Legacy products that day that would support the negative posts I have read here about Legacy. I think it is entirely possible that some of the bad rap that Legacy gets may be from days gone bye, but IMHO, from what we heard, that dog won't hunt today.
The Focus 20/20 are too big for this width room and that type of speaker placement to work optimally. In the grander scheme of things, your PSB's are probably more accurate speakers, but won't play as loud or deliver the same specific sonic signature. If your personal preference leans towards a speaker like that of the Legacy's, have at it. I don't think that they are a good match for your room and i won't go into my thoughts / experiences with the 20/20's or other Legacy products here. If interested, you can search the archives here or at AA. Sean
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Sean, I've had the 20/20's here for almost two weeks now and I couldn't agree more with you on the room placement. These speakers are simply too big for this room. And pulling them out further into the room and out of the corners is simply not an option. I also agree with you on the PSB's. I have done in home demo's now with PSB Platinum T8's, Tannoy Dimension TD12's and now the 20/20's, and the Gold's hold their own everytime and it makes me realize just how good they really are, for my room/setup. I will gladly demo the Von Schweikert VR-4 SE's if they ship them to me, but at this point I'm really leaning towards hanging on to the Gold's. A good friend who is my audio adviser told me that my front end is still not up to snuff and that I shouldn't even be entertaining different speakers at this time. You see, I'm still not doing any line conditioning at this time. He recommends first running one dedicated 20amp line to my system with upgraded outlet and he likes Equitech line conditioners and recommends the 1.5Q or 2Q for the gear I'm runnin'. I thought these line conditioners were just a bunch of voodoo designed to further take advantage of audiophiles, but my friend has much more experience in this area than myself and therefore I feel I should heed his advice. Also, the only power cord I have upgraded is for the Aragon amp, more voodoo? I welcome further commentary on any or all of the above, thanks.