HP Caravelle Monitor V/S Manger Zerobox109

I am in the midst of breaking in a new pair of Caravelle's. They really are that good...I could go on and on. Email me if you would like. They are worth far more than their asking price. They do things that other speakers I have owned don't do...I have owned Maggie 3.6, Hales 5's, spendor s100's, diapason adamantes. These really are amazing. I can't encourage you enough to try a pair. I will post a review after further break in. But as far as detailed and musical they will more than fit the bill. Scott

Thanks Scott,

I'm eagerly awaiting your review on the Caravelle's, I’m finding it really hard to make my decision as the Caravelle's are not cheap and to buy without a audition is extremely hard, but surely has got me very interested in the product.

Also I find it surprising that no one else has much interest in the Manger Zerobox speakers if anyone has heard them please give me your opinions.

Thanks,
Sataym

Sataym, I have only heard the Mangers at a show, in show conditions and it was awhile ago, so I really don't have an accurate point of reference. I wasn't really sure what the model was either. Sorry, not much help here. I will post a review after more break-in and experience with the Caravelle speaker. Scott

hello,

The Caravelle looks like it uses a Danish-made Peerless CSX line woofer, which is around $50. Not sure about the tweeter.

It is basically a speaker following the time-aligned 1st order school of thought like Thiel or Meadowlark speakers. There is nothing special about it beyond that. Moreover, the drivers used in Thiel speakers are VERY impressive. The drivers in teh Caravelle are fairly mundane.

The Manger is in another leauge. It is the most advanced driver in existence right now, and the ONLY driver that can reproduce any input waveform (when combined with a suitable woofer). No other driver can do this - period. The Manger driver's, raw, are $900 each. This is for good reason. There is no better time alignment then the Manger. It has a stable acoustic center at all frequencies, save for the low end. All sound arrives from one-point in space time.

There is absolutely no comparison between these speakers. Whatsoever.

Also, if you're really hung-up on cone dynamic drivers (and all the energy storage/damping problems associated) then check out the Earthworks Sigma speaker. Similiar to the Caravelle, but with much much better drivers. Should sound MUCH better. Has been well reviewed in both the professional world (it's a professional nearfield monitor) and the silly audophile world.

cheers,

-tal