I recently have been into classical, I was surprised how dynamic the music is, The amp and speakers (HPM 100), Really get a work out, Even more so then most of the classic rock I listen too. These speakers do very well for strings and piano
Asking those who primarily listen to strings... your favorite speakers?
- Thread starter biscuithead
- Start date
biscuithead
Me likes the eargasm retroplasm...
I have been through a 1 year purge... I only own two pieces of pioneer... a PL61 and a PL61. I have sold all my Pioneer speakers. I do remember liking piano on mine though.
Justgotohm
Super Member
I built this set of small slot port towers using four Tang Band titanium cone W4-1337SDF 4's and a Fountek Neo 3.0 ribbon tweeter. They are crossover at 4K, I came up with using four woofers gives me 95db 1w 1m on the woofers, the tweeter is 96db. The attack is very fast and have found these to be very good at playing acoustic guitar. I built these a few years ago and I believe they are tuned to 50hz. The bass is more than you would think and is kind of studio monitorish, not to much but definitely present. I never did finish them as you can see, still test mules. These are what I prefer for strings.
bowtie427ss
Lunatic Member
"Idiot" is a word of your choosing.
I am very real.
Get some ears.
I made ZERO mention of any brands or individuals in my post, mostly out of respect for those who own or would otherwise be offended. The point of my post was pretty obvious to anyone fluent in the English language, simply to suggest that the OP not paint all horn systems with the same brush.
Are you just looking for trouble?
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RGA
Super Member
Audio Note AN K, J, or E.
Cellist Vincent Belanger often demonstrates with the speakers playing the back track. Here is the AN J playing strings at 2:10 (The speaker will rock as well as most too). I had the speaker for 13 years and went to the bigger E model.
It will be tough to beat at the price IME.
My other suggestions tend to cost significantly more money and aren't necessarily better. More bass but not necessarily better. Teresonic Ingenium for instance - but $20,000. We all have to consider budgets.
Personally I feel the AN J and E sound better than the Quad (enter any model number) on any music. Largely due to the dynamic contrasts - ESLs have a fundamental advantage in the microdynamic and holographic quality but to me that's where the strengths end.
Cellist Vincent Belanger often demonstrates with the speakers playing the back track. Here is the AN J playing strings at 2:10 (The speaker will rock as well as most too). I had the speaker for 13 years and went to the bigger E model.
It will be tough to beat at the price IME.
My other suggestions tend to cost significantly more money and aren't necessarily better. More bass but not necessarily better. Teresonic Ingenium for instance - but $20,000. We all have to consider budgets.
Personally I feel the AN J and E sound better than the Quad (enter any model number) on any music. Largely due to the dynamic contrasts - ESLs have a fundamental advantage in the microdynamic and holographic quality but to me that's where the strengths end.
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biscuithead
Me likes the eargasm retroplasm...
I got it... but my Horny Journey has not been limited to Klipsch. I also have Altec, University, Jensen, Emilar, EV and JBL. My brush is just my opinion. ... but I am willing to give ground on the "properly executed" part.
.biscuithead
Me likes the eargasm retroplasm...
The sensitivity at ~87db is a concerning point with my small amps... but I have heard these before at RMAF .... I heard their new 700 series their also. Wonderful for strings, agreed. I just need to go back to SS to afford the watts needed.
bowtie427ss
Lunatic Member
Execution MUST include the room. Because of the more directional nature of horns reflective surfaces tend to redirect more energy. Controlling those reflections becomes a bit more critical.
One of the bigger challenges a lot of fellas face in getting horns "right" is doing so with an acceptable level of WAF.
I wish Tom Brennan would post(with a pic) as he has an acquaintance with a very well sorted horn system with cosmetics that would keep about 99% of us from ever owning anything like it. I trust Tom's evaluation that the system sounds superb.
One of the bigger challenges a lot of fellas face in getting horns "right" is doing so with an acceptable level of WAF.
I wish Tom Brennan would post(with a pic) as he has an acquaintance with a very well sorted horn system with cosmetics that would keep about 99% of us from ever owning anything like it. I trust Tom's evaluation that the system sounds superb.
Freddymac2
Super Member
I also agree that Quad's are the best for strings and jazz, but the small sweet spot is a real problem for me. I have never heard stacked Quad's, but that may help. The do require good tube amps though.
ghamilton
Super Member
This should be helpful with your little vandys.
http://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/vandersteen-one-change-over-time.751358/
bhunter
The Spherical Cow
ESLs would be my first choice followed by Magnepans. That said, I also like chamber works on stand mounts like Spica TC50s, PhaseTech PC60s, ProAcs, and the LS3/5As. Vandersteens and Yamaha NS1000s would also be great. There are actually numerous speakers that can reproduce strings well IMHO.
edwyun
Super Member
Agree. But why not choose the speakers before the amps (rather than vice versa)? Just some food for thought. And BTW, the Matrix 802s are at 90dB/W.
Justgotohm
Super Member
That was pretty funny on a couple levels. One being people that own islands don't (work for a living). The other being the blue color bargain basement offering of 20k excluding TT and stands. Don't get me wrong I would enjoy a listen and at less than 4K for the speakers it does seem like a relatively good deal in this category. One of the largest selling (yachts) in the world was a 38 Bayliner so I assume it's kinda the same thing, the lest expensive of the best not the most expensive of the worst.
bigaltx24
Super Member
Never heard the ANs, but they are based on Peter Snell's designs. I had a pair of Snell KIIs for about 3 years. They do strings very well. The mids had a nice weight / richness that works well with classical music. I really regret selling them, but they went to a good home and I get to visit them a couple of times a year. Have to agree with mkane about open baffles. My Zenith 49CZ752s in open baffles do strings as well as any speaker I've heard.
shelly_d
Not An Audiophool
I am partial to domes, mylar or fabric. Just about any speaker with Philips Domes or even better Peerless domes. Early Polks used the peerless and had the best treble I have heard yet. Second to that were the Philips. They were used in a number of speakers including a couple of McIntosh models (don't know which) and Grafyx speakers.
Never did like horns.
Shelly_D
Never did like horns.
Shelly_D
RGA
Super Member
The AN J/D speaker is actually $2990 and the same speaker but with hemp woofers instead of paper is $3,200. Dave must have been thinking of the AN E/D which is $3,900 and $4,200 for the hemp.
When I reviewed a pair the company gave me the price list which is how I know.
Well I think it is clear what Dave meant when he said working for a living which implies people who are forced to work or starve to death - unlike a guy who can afford a $300million dollar island - he may work but he probably COULD retire and not die of starvation.
The system there is about $26,000 and there isn't much I can say about prices because high prices rub people the wrong way no matter what you say to peopl. Especially when you imply that $26,000 is for the common audiophile.
All I can say is that lots of companies have high price tags - considerably higher - and do not for example hand build most of the parts inside their products or hand make products to order - instead most companies buy other companies' products and relabel it. And in those instances that Audio Note does it they tell you what parts they buy and and use. This does drive the costs up which drives the retail price up. If you want a finely crafted Swiss watch made in Switzerland entirely from one company it is simply going to cost more than a watch where they buy a Casio movement and put their own name on the front. While those fancy watches may not necessarily be better - they will be when you try and sell it down the road.
Further Audio Note makes well over 700 products and offer various versions of the same amplifier. There is literally no other company in the entire audio industry that is even close to this level of top to bottom product offerings offering as much choice.
Here is an example. Let's say you go to B&W or Magnepan or KEF or (enter any speaker brand here). Or any amplifier maker on the market - Bryston, Ayre, etc etc. Now B&W offers a speaker like the N802D. It is a floorstander and runs around $15k. They give you 3 colour choices. Most every company operates something like that. The more you pay they add another woofer to extend the bass but within a series line like the 800 series whether you buy the 805 standmount or the 800 - the speaker is larger and adds a woofer.
Audio Note in contrast sells the Audio Note AN E speaker as their flagship. And they offer you the speaker in 15 different versions. Starting at $3,900 and topping out at $191,800. Now almost everyone gets on their case for such an outlandish price but ignore the utterly stunning value offered by the lower end models - the AN E/Lx that I had I much prefer to the $15,000B&W. And considering that B&W basically only makes speakers (and lately a few other things) for a no name company that makes speakers as a tertiary business that makes me a fan. The guy who owns the island can drop $191,800 as easily as you drop $5.
And not only are there 15 versions of the speakers but you get the choice of 20 real wood finishes (the cabinet isn't some plastic mold but 15 ply No Void Russian Birch, hand built in Austria. There is also the option to get the speakers in a high gloss option and you can pay more and go beyond the finishing options for solid colors and slate.
As an example - the amplifier in the video I believe he says is $6,350 for the OTO Phono SE Signature.
The price is actually $5084. (The prices came down due to the pound and US dollar/Brexit and AN eliminating importers and going dealer direct. Being that most of it is made to order anyway there is not need for importer mark-ups). But there are Six versions of the OTO starting at $2490 and topping out with the one in the video at $5084.
Even their website is woefully lacking the sheer number of products on offer. I recently saw a tuner in an audio shop and asked the owner of the company why it's not on the website - his reply "then someone might order one and then we'd have to make it" - It's a mild joke but their order book is so long that they can't keep up with the stuff they're already making. They have opened three more plants but long backlogs. If you ordered a speaker it would take 3-6 months. With B&W they only make speakers, they make em fast in China and they only have 3 colours so dealers can stock all three and you walk out that day with the speaker.
Audio Note has been going since 1978 and the OTO has been selling for more than 20 years. It's the king of the EL84 output stage and recently won amplifier of the year in Asia's Hi-Fi Review - not bad for 20 year old design - where most companies replace their amp in 4-6 year review cycles.
It's just an old school different sort of company that sounds different than most of the mainstream and if you buy in to the sound then you will probably buy into the philosophy of what they're doing and then the prices don't seem as unjustifiable as they do when just glancing. They have speakers for a little under $800 and a great DAC for $1450 and cables that are $15 meter and CD player for $2k and Amp at $2k. $4800 can get a complete system.
This reviewer covered them and has a video with the owner of the company and Andy Whittle who is the LS-3/5a guru and speaker designer formerly for Rogers (LS-3/5a fame) and Celestion. There is a video showing the speaker plant - one at a time hand made.
https://parttimeaudiophile.com/2017...nd-life-in-the-fast-lane-with-peter-qvortrup/
ScooterMcTav
I know less than I think
Just my limited 2 cents.
Although they have left my home to their poor performance on rock, my Soliloquy 6.2 were the absolute finest speakers I have heard for string heavy classical and opera. The tweeter had exceptional performance, and as a coated silk dome, could be precise, airy, sharp, and detailed, without harshness or stridency. They were also very mid-dominant speakers, so they returned much of the great strings texture below the tweeter's crossover point. All this in a rock-solid, non-resonant 90 lb cabinet.
Generally, they are available for a reasonable price used, mainly due to an unfamiliarity with the brand. Tim Shea from Soundstage! had bought himself two different sets of Soliloquy at various times to use as his reference speakers.
If all I listened to was classical, these would still be in my home.
Also, no problem driving them with my 60W/ch Jolida tube amp. The have a very benign load.
Although they have left my home to their poor performance on rock, my Soliloquy 6.2 were the absolute finest speakers I have heard for string heavy classical and opera. The tweeter had exceptional performance, and as a coated silk dome, could be precise, airy, sharp, and detailed, without harshness or stridency. They were also very mid-dominant speakers, so they returned much of the great strings texture below the tweeter's crossover point. All this in a rock-solid, non-resonant 90 lb cabinet.
Generally, they are available for a reasonable price used, mainly due to an unfamiliarity with the brand. Tim Shea from Soundstage! had bought himself two different sets of Soliloquy at various times to use as his reference speakers.
If all I listened to was classical, these would still be in my home.
Also, no problem driving them with my 60W/ch Jolida tube amp. The have a very benign load.
Justgotohm
Super Member
Given I worked on super yachts early in my career and having friends who among other things make what appear to be solid surface vanities to the gram for Gulfstream Jets Im a fan of high ticket items. I would love to hear some strings on the system shown. I went for a ride in a F40 around Roebling Road in 1990, it would be the same feeling (I'll never own this but holy shit that was fun).
