Any speakers that do what my Paradigms and Polks each do well?

[steelglam]

So, I've got a pair of rear-ported Paradigm 3SE's and a pair of Polk RTA12a's that I've been rotating in and out for about six months now. I like both sets of speakers, but for different reasons. And they each also have their drawbacks.

Paradigm's: very accurate and all instruments in the mix are clear and present, but the music sounds recorded (rather than "alive") and the bass can be boomy (I assume the latter is because of the rear port).

Polk's: very "alive" with nice soundstaging and forward mids/highs (you can really hear the croakiness in the vocalist's throat and it sounds like you can hear the guitarist's fingers and pick hitting the strings), but less accurate overall and the low-end can be a bit lacking.

My girlfriend is not an audio geek, but is a huge music fan, and she actually described the differences quite well: the Polk’s project a band that sounds like it’s in the room with you, with a live sound that naturally has a less than perfect mix of all the instruments, while the Paradigm’s project the band as if it was well-recorded, with an accurate and balanced mix of all the instruments.

I really like each pair of speakers for what they do best, but I'd love it if I could have one set of speakers that does all of the above well. Is that impossible...is it just the nature of speaker design such that having a pair of speakers that are both accurate and "alive" is incredibly difficult? Or can someone recommend a speaker that does both well?

Thanks in advance for any insight.

[chadnliz]

Thiel or maybe Vandersteen may be worthy of looking at, both are accurate but Thiel is a bit more lively than Vandersteen, both do great bass and are accurate even offering both first order crossovers and are time and phase accurate aswell. Both speakers offer a long history so used speakers are reasonable and also offer state of the art, bth also have large product choices from the humble to balls out expensive.

[steelglam]

Originally Posted by chadnliz

Thiel or maybe Vandersteen may be worthy of looking at, both are accurate but Thiel is a bit more lively than Vandersteen, both do great bass and are accurate even offering both first order crossovers and are time and phase accurate aswell. Both speakers offer a long history so used speakers are reasonable and also offer state of the art, bth also have large product choices from the humble to balls out expensive.

Thanks! Any particular models of Thiel or Vandersteen that you'd recommend? I don't have experience with either brand. And I'll definitely be looking for reasonably priced used models.

[Tedrick]

The 2ce is the sweet spot of the Vandy line, and is their most popular model for good reason.

[karlo]

i'd suggest Boston a-150 or Mirage 750,sm-2.5 or Snell D type or E type....

[Ski]

What are you driving them with?

[juniorJBL]

If your into DIY then I would try an Econowave with a good woofer. (I use an JBL LE14H-1) Give the Ewave thread a read.

Not finding your budget in your post I would also try to find (not made anymore) a pair of B&W CM4's. These are quite amazing and very pretty.

Do a search for B&W CM4 and you will find some.

[BMWCCA]

Sounds like playing a bit with placement of what you already have could offer you some improvement in either pair and get you closer to what you're looking for, especially for the rear-ported systems. Unless you've already tried that and I missed the mention.

[skiaddict]

Originally Posted by chadnliz

Thiel or maybe Vandersteen may be worthy of looking at, both are accurate but Thiel is a bit more lively than Vandersteen, both do great bass and are accurate even offering both first order crossovers and are time and phase accurate aswell. Both speakers offer a long history so used speakers are reasonable and also offer state of the art, bth also have large product choices from the humble to balls out expensive.

My only words of caution with Thiel relates to your upstream components. I once heard someone say: "Don't be fooled by the used prices of some Thiel products." They require QUALITY amplification and source components to sound their best. If you don't already have high-end upstream components and are not interested in upgrading, then it probably isn't going to be a path you want to take.

For example, an amplifier up to the task of driving the Thiel's is essential if you choose to go that way. A good example of this would be a 100wpc+ Bryston, Krell or McIntosh amp that can provide adequate current into ~4 ohm loads. Any amplifier which doubles its 8ohm power output into 4 ohms would be a good choice. Or, any amplifier with autoformers (McIntosh) will also be adequate.

[chadnliz]

Originally Posted by skiaddict

My only words of caution with Thiel relates to your upstream components. I once heard someone say: "Don't be fooled by the used prices of some Thiel products." They require QUALITY amplification and source components to sound their best. If you don't already have high-end upstream components and are not interested in upgrading, then it probably isn't going to be a path you want to take.

For example, an amplifier up to the task of driving the Thiel's is essential if you choose to go that way. A good example of this would be a 100wpc+ Bryston, Krell or McIntosh amp that can provide adequate current into ~4 ohm loads. Any amplifier which doubles its 8ohm power output into 4 ohms would be a good choice. Or, any amplifier with autoformers (McIntosh) will also be adequate.

Thats what my "lively" caution was in reference to, yea you gotta watch Thiel or they can sound harsh, Vandersteen is a more universally easy option, and the 2C or used 3 is a great choice.

[steelglam]

Thanks for all of the responses so far. Lots to look up here.

For those who asked:

I'm powering them with a rotation of two amps: a Yamaha MX-1000 and a Bryston 3B.

I've tried fiddling with room placement, and it doesn't make a significant difference. The same deficiencies in each set of speakers exhibit themselves to a significant enough degree--i.e., noticeable to the point of being irksome--no matter which position or room that I have them in.

[barredowl]

JBL 4430 studio monitors are said to be both very accurate to the timbre of instruments, and to reproduce the full range of frequencies loudly and dynamically. I would certainly believe that as my JBL 3413bs from around the same period sound quite nice but being smaller roll off in the bass. Be prepared to shell out about 1500 clams for 4430s.