gava
Prominent Member
I have been on a mission to choose a speaker upgrade for the last few months, and thanks to many helpful suggestions from forum members have tried many different speakers. All of which have been auditioned in dealers' demo rooms, not in my home.
My overall budget was between £4,000 and an absolute maximum of around £10,000, but didn't really want to go over £8,000. That budget could include a subwoofer upgrade.
The fist thing that I have discovered is that my current system is absolutely fantastic for the price, and seems to have a beautiful synergy. I have listened to systems that cost £25,000 that honestly didn't sound any better that what I currently listen to every day.
The second thing I have discovered is that the room is so crucial that I cannot be totally confident that my subjective impressions of the overall systems are totally reliable.
The third thing that I have discovered is that there really isn't anything horrible (with one possible exception) in that price range. If I was not allowed to choose my own speakers and had any of the ones below forced upon me it wouldn't exactly be a great hardship.
Because it's what I have my current system is my reference: NAD C399, QAcoustics Concept 300 speakers, REL T5i subwoofer X2. Dirac Live running.
I will set my current system at a reference level of 6/10 and keeping the amp constant and say how I think the other speakers I have auditioned would fare in my living room, and to my personal taste. As I said above, I would want to upgrade the subs for some of them, but assuming for the scoring I would do that if necessary.
Amplifiers/streamers included: Linn, Naim, NAD M33, McIntosh, Mola Mola, my C399 - everything the dealers threw at them was pretty high end.
In chronological order of what I listened to:
Wharfedale Elysian 4 (£7,000)
Nice speakers. Quite big and heavy. Very competent performers. Would be happy enough with these. Would likely want a sub but not critical to have one. Likely not much of a real upgrade over what I have now though. Estimated score: 6/10 or 7/10.
JBL Synthesis S3900 (£9,000)
Pretty good. Liked the compression drivers for the upper frequencies. Bass was also good, capable of filling very large rooms. Bit boomy from the port, but I'm sure Dirac Live would tame it just fine. No sub required. Estimated score: 7/10.
KEF R7 (£2,600)
Listened to these as they were in the demo room and they didn't have any R11s, and it was mostly just for comparison to the Wharfedale and JBL. These are nice speakers, nothing to object to here, but not an upgrade. Estimated score: 5/10 or 6/10.
KEF Reference 1 Meta (£7,000)
The only speaker I listened to that could compete with the C300s in soundstage and ability to vanish in the room. They were actually even better at that than the C300s, so definitely an upgrade in that respect. However the treble was way too sharp for me in a weird way. I'm sure a FR graph wouldn't show it, but I get fatigue from my LS50s too, and this was like that but more so. Bass was weak, but it was a big and well damped room. Definitely would need a sub, but I'm sure the bass would be fine in my room and certainly be better than the C300s. This is an excellent speaker, but not for my taste. Estimated score: 8/10 for the first 15 minutes, then 4/10 as my head starts to pound.
Focal Sopra 2 (£13,000)
Very impressive speaker. I liked these a lot. Easy to see why they seem to be something of a reference for their price point. Beryllium tweeter very nice - clear and detailed without the fatigue I got from the KEFs. Mids and bass both impressive. Would not need subwoofer. Unfortunately too expensive though. Estimated score: 9/10.
Spendor D7.2 (£5,600)
Very nice. Wanted to hear the D9.2 but these were available to demo and apparently have a similar sound character. Nothing to object to here. The 7.2 would certainly need a sub. Didn't strike me as an upgrade compared to my current system. Estimated score: 5/10 or 6/10.
PMC Twenty6.24i (£5,700)
Very nice. TL bass quite startling and fun. Could easily live with these. Put a big smile on my face - just a fun speaker - seemed especially good for rock and folk music. I think if you like speakers like the big Klipsch speakers then these are a great alternative. Wanted to hear the 26i, but they are really stretching the budget. Wouldn't need a sub with these. Estimated score: 7/10, wild estimate for 26i: 8/10.
Gold Note A3 Evo II (£3,500)
Nice speakers. Quite similar to the C300s. Possibly a slight upgrade. Was hoping to hear the floorstanders. Estimated score: 6/10 to 7/10.
ATC SCM40 (£4,000)
Absolutely stunning. Hard to drive but I loved these speakers. Listened to every song on my playlist from start to finish and went back and listened to some of them again. How could they be so cheap? Will definitely need upgraded subs, and to match their quality will likely need £2,500 to £3,000 for the subs. Estimated score: 9/10
Dynaudio Confidence 20i (£9,000)
Listened to these after the SCM40. Very competent speakers. Fairly similar sound signature to the C300. Just a straight upgrade, but I wasn't totally blown away - especially considering the price. Estimated score: 8/10.
Goldenear Triton One.R (£7,000)
Massive disappointment. Treble fine, not as nice as silk domes though - similar to the Wharfedales, good by not particularly to my taste. Mids shouty and fatiguing and astonishingly lacking in detail. Bass flabby, soft and poorly integrated. Really not good. Sounded like a very big bluetooth speaker. Managed to simultaneously be too loud and too soft. Estimated score: 3/10
Final conclusion:
Firstly the C300s are amazing at their price and I am loathe to get rid of them. Great synergy with my C399 and Dirac Live combo. If I hadn't been so blown away by the ATC I would be seriously considering simply upgrading to the C500s.
However, I definitely see the ATC SCM40s in my future, fortunately they are at the bottom end of my price range, so will also be going for a sub upgrade too.
Phew, I'm finally exhausted now. I feel like I have listened to enough speakers to have figured out what I like.
My overall budget was between £4,000 and an absolute maximum of around £10,000, but didn't really want to go over £8,000. That budget could include a subwoofer upgrade.
The fist thing that I have discovered is that my current system is absolutely fantastic for the price, and seems to have a beautiful synergy. I have listened to systems that cost £25,000 that honestly didn't sound any better that what I currently listen to every day.
The second thing I have discovered is that the room is so crucial that I cannot be totally confident that my subjective impressions of the overall systems are totally reliable.
The third thing that I have discovered is that there really isn't anything horrible (with one possible exception) in that price range. If I was not allowed to choose my own speakers and had any of the ones below forced upon me it wouldn't exactly be a great hardship.
Because it's what I have my current system is my reference: NAD C399, QAcoustics Concept 300 speakers, REL T5i subwoofer X2. Dirac Live running.
I will set my current system at a reference level of 6/10 and keeping the amp constant and say how I think the other speakers I have auditioned would fare in my living room, and to my personal taste. As I said above, I would want to upgrade the subs for some of them, but assuming for the scoring I would do that if necessary.
Amplifiers/streamers included: Linn, Naim, NAD M33, McIntosh, Mola Mola, my C399 - everything the dealers threw at them was pretty high end.
In chronological order of what I listened to:
Wharfedale Elysian 4 (£7,000)
Nice speakers. Quite big and heavy. Very competent performers. Would be happy enough with these. Would likely want a sub but not critical to have one. Likely not much of a real upgrade over what I have now though. Estimated score: 6/10 or 7/10.
JBL Synthesis S3900 (£9,000)
Pretty good. Liked the compression drivers for the upper frequencies. Bass was also good, capable of filling very large rooms. Bit boomy from the port, but I'm sure Dirac Live would tame it just fine. No sub required. Estimated score: 7/10.
KEF R7 (£2,600)
Listened to these as they were in the demo room and they didn't have any R11s, and it was mostly just for comparison to the Wharfedale and JBL. These are nice speakers, nothing to object to here, but not an upgrade. Estimated score: 5/10 or 6/10.
KEF Reference 1 Meta (£7,000)
The only speaker I listened to that could compete with the C300s in soundstage and ability to vanish in the room. They were actually even better at that than the C300s, so definitely an upgrade in that respect. However the treble was way too sharp for me in a weird way. I'm sure a FR graph wouldn't show it, but I get fatigue from my LS50s too, and this was like that but more so. Bass was weak, but it was a big and well damped room. Definitely would need a sub, but I'm sure the bass would be fine in my room and certainly be better than the C300s. This is an excellent speaker, but not for my taste. Estimated score: 8/10 for the first 15 minutes, then 4/10 as my head starts to pound.
Focal Sopra 2 (£13,000)
Very impressive speaker. I liked these a lot. Easy to see why they seem to be something of a reference for their price point. Beryllium tweeter very nice - clear and detailed without the fatigue I got from the KEFs. Mids and bass both impressive. Would not need subwoofer. Unfortunately too expensive though. Estimated score: 9/10.
Spendor D7.2 (£5,600)
Very nice. Wanted to hear the D9.2 but these were available to demo and apparently have a similar sound character. Nothing to object to here. The 7.2 would certainly need a sub. Didn't strike me as an upgrade compared to my current system. Estimated score: 5/10 or 6/10.
PMC Twenty6.24i (£5,700)
Very nice. TL bass quite startling and fun. Could easily live with these. Put a big smile on my face - just a fun speaker - seemed especially good for rock and folk music. I think if you like speakers like the big Klipsch speakers then these are a great alternative. Wanted to hear the 26i, but they are really stretching the budget. Wouldn't need a sub with these. Estimated score: 7/10, wild estimate for 26i: 8/10.
Gold Note A3 Evo II (£3,500)
Nice speakers. Quite similar to the C300s. Possibly a slight upgrade. Was hoping to hear the floorstanders. Estimated score: 6/10 to 7/10.
ATC SCM40 (£4,000)
Absolutely stunning. Hard to drive but I loved these speakers. Listened to every song on my playlist from start to finish and went back and listened to some of them again. How could they be so cheap? Will definitely need upgraded subs, and to match their quality will likely need £2,500 to £3,000 for the subs. Estimated score: 9/10
Dynaudio Confidence 20i (£9,000)
Listened to these after the SCM40. Very competent speakers. Fairly similar sound signature to the C300. Just a straight upgrade, but I wasn't totally blown away - especially considering the price. Estimated score: 8/10.
Goldenear Triton One.R (£7,000)
Massive disappointment. Treble fine, not as nice as silk domes though - similar to the Wharfedales, good by not particularly to my taste. Mids shouty and fatiguing and astonishingly lacking in detail. Bass flabby, soft and poorly integrated. Really not good. Sounded like a very big bluetooth speaker. Managed to simultaneously be too loud and too soft. Estimated score: 3/10
Final conclusion:
Firstly the C300s are amazing at their price and I am loathe to get rid of them. Great synergy with my C399 and Dirac Live combo. If I hadn't been so blown away by the ATC I would be seriously considering simply upgrading to the C500s.
However, I definitely see the ATC SCM40s in my future, fortunately they are at the bottom end of my price range, so will also be going for a sub upgrade too.
Phew, I'm finally exhausted now. I feel like I have listened to enough speakers to have figured out what I like.
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