cribeiro
Prominent Member
Hi!
This weekend I went to audition some speakers, because I want to have something balanced with my receiver, Yamaha RX-V530.
The guy in the shop was very nice, and sounded profesional... Now I share with you my experience, so you can tell me wrong, right, good or bad
First of all, he said that if I have the place, floorstanding was the way to go.
Then he showed me the following (supposed to match with my amp, and not so good that I will be thinking "I'd get better sound if I change my amp"):
Klipsch RF 15
B&W DM 603, 602.5
Kef Q3
Infinity Alpha 30
And also another from B&W, he said DM303, but I think he mistaked because these are not floorstanding... Ok, if you think I aim too high with this speakers to go with my receiver, please tell me... I am also thinking about a Yamaha s-540 dvd player to complete the set, because now I have a cheap dvd player...
I also want to audition (but they didn't have them in this shop) Wharfedale Diamond, Magnat Vector and something from Canton... These are cheaper than the ones I said before, so tell me what you think about it...
Ok, now impressions about the speakers (all by comparing with each other the speakers in the list) [amp and cd player were Yamaha's, in the range of my setup]:
The infinity Alpha 30 is the last in my ranking... The high frequencies are very peaked and the bass didn't sound strong enough, neither with enough definition. At first, I liked the sound, but after a while and comparing with the B&W (for example), I realized the sound was worse.
At position 3, the Kef Q3's. Funny that I didn't like them at all in the beginning, thinking that the sound was muffled and unclean, not well defined. I very much preferred the Infinity's... but after a while listening, the Infinity's went down in my ranking, while the Kef's gave me a quite better impression, although still far from the B&W. It is interesting to note that I was kind of biased with the Kef's, because I liked them very much "on paper"... Maybe I expected too much from them in the beginning, so I was disappointed. But in one hour listening there, I could be completely impartial. Actually, I didn't check prices or names, I only wrote the label numbers down to identify them (But the Kef's and Infinity's were easy to identify)... The grills were on, so it was not that easy with the others.
Then come the B&W, they had 3 different models, one of them unknown for me (as I said, they could not be the DM303, which is what the guy said...). I was very pleased with theses speakers, the sound was even and clear, I could hear some details I hadn't before! Specially with the 603. They were able to build a good soundstage even in the strange set up in the shop, which I could not get so good from the former ones. The sound became wider and cleaner. Balanced and clear high freq, and good bass response without overwhelming. Sound was detailed and defined. I very liked them!
In the top of the ranking I have the Klipsch, which were not much better than the B&W, but the sound image was wider and deeper. Maybe a little enhancement of the high freq was noticeable, but never annoying... Only with respect to the B&W's. All comments about B&W are also truth for the Klipsch.
This is my ranking, let's see what you think about it... And most important, if you think I aim too high or not... As soon as I can hear the second list of speakers I wrote here, I will let you know.
Oh, btw, also some Dynaudio and T+A were there, but I didn't like the sound... I think they are oriented to classical music... I mean, the sound was very good, but very laid back, serious and tight. As someone told me already, Dynaudios are a difficult load for the Yamaha amp, that can also be the reason.
This weekend I went to audition some speakers, because I want to have something balanced with my receiver, Yamaha RX-V530.
The guy in the shop was very nice, and sounded profesional... Now I share with you my experience, so you can tell me wrong, right, good or bad
First of all, he said that if I have the place, floorstanding was the way to go.
Then he showed me the following (supposed to match with my amp, and not so good that I will be thinking "I'd get better sound if I change my amp"):
Klipsch RF 15
B&W DM 603, 602.5
Kef Q3
Infinity Alpha 30
And also another from B&W, he said DM303, but I think he mistaked because these are not floorstanding... Ok, if you think I aim too high with this speakers to go with my receiver, please tell me... I am also thinking about a Yamaha s-540 dvd player to complete the set, because now I have a cheap dvd player...
I also want to audition (but they didn't have them in this shop) Wharfedale Diamond, Magnat Vector and something from Canton... These are cheaper than the ones I said before, so tell me what you think about it...
Ok, now impressions about the speakers (all by comparing with each other the speakers in the list) [amp and cd player were Yamaha's, in the range of my setup]:
The infinity Alpha 30 is the last in my ranking... The high frequencies are very peaked and the bass didn't sound strong enough, neither with enough definition. At first, I liked the sound, but after a while and comparing with the B&W (for example), I realized the sound was worse.
At position 3, the Kef Q3's. Funny that I didn't like them at all in the beginning, thinking that the sound was muffled and unclean, not well defined. I very much preferred the Infinity's... but after a while listening, the Infinity's went down in my ranking, while the Kef's gave me a quite better impression, although still far from the B&W. It is interesting to note that I was kind of biased with the Kef's, because I liked them very much "on paper"... Maybe I expected too much from them in the beginning, so I was disappointed. But in one hour listening there, I could be completely impartial. Actually, I didn't check prices or names, I only wrote the label numbers down to identify them (But the Kef's and Infinity's were easy to identify)... The grills were on, so it was not that easy with the others.
Then come the B&W, they had 3 different models, one of them unknown for me (as I said, they could not be the DM303, which is what the guy said...). I was very pleased with theses speakers, the sound was even and clear, I could hear some details I hadn't before! Specially with the 603. They were able to build a good soundstage even in the strange set up in the shop, which I could not get so good from the former ones. The sound became wider and cleaner. Balanced and clear high freq, and good bass response without overwhelming. Sound was detailed and defined. I very liked them!
In the top of the ranking I have the Klipsch, which were not much better than the B&W, but the sound image was wider and deeper. Maybe a little enhancement of the high freq was noticeable, but never annoying... Only with respect to the B&W's. All comments about B&W are also truth for the Klipsch.
This is my ranking, let's see what you think about it... And most important, if you think I aim too high or not... As soon as I can hear the second list of speakers I wrote here, I will let you know.
Oh, btw, also some Dynaudio and T+A were there, but I didn't like the sound... I think they are oriented to classical music... I mean, the sound was very good, but very laid back, serious and tight. As someone told me already, Dynaudios are a difficult load for the Yamaha amp, that can also be the reason.