Switch to conventional speakers?

[Claus]

Hi guys,
As many of you know I have had the LFT-8 speakers for quiet a while now. I have been very happy with them but I (and my wife especially) think I am ready to try out a more conventional (and perhaps smaller) speaker. My room is a large 3x9 meter rectangle combined dining and living room either end. I have the option of placing the speakers along the long wall or at the end of the room at the short wall. I have contacted Gerry with a view to demo his Spendor A5 and he has kindly agreed. Keeping in mind that my amplification is a 250 watts Nu-Vista M3, is there any reason the Spendors shouldn't work? Also if you have any other recommendations please let me know. I am going to contact Cloney and Kronos to see what they suggest for demo. Is there any other dealers in Ireland that I am forgetting? My taste lean towards the warmish sound yet detailed with as holographic soundstage as possible ;)

Thanks,
Claus

[Claus]

I have received a great offer from Denmark on a pair of Focal Electra 1028BE Speakers. Does any of you have any experience with these? According to the dealer the match is great with my current amp, but my fear would be too much brightness.... Hmmm... Might try Kronos and see if they can match the offer ;)

[Ken Moreland]

Hi Claus, I have Focal Electra 927Be speakers, the Be tweeters are superb, excellent sound and well balanced. The 1028Be speakers are similar but better looking. Snap them up.
KM

[Claus]

Wow Ken they look impressive! How do you place them? Also how good are they at "disappearing"? According to the dealer they are very easy to place and don't suffer from the brightness that some older Be models did....
He is to get back to me with a shipping quote. Anyone know someone who does freight to Denmark? ;)
Thanks for your input Ken. What is your amp?

[Diapason]

Hi Claus. I'm a bit sorry to hear you're thinking of getting rid of those speakers, because they're kind of unique. Still, I understand the lure of the "other".

Now, the one thing I will say is that I think you should tread carefully, don't just jump! I'd sample everything before making a decision, because speakers define the sound of your system so much. More than any other component, I could never buy speakers based on reviews or on the opinion of others. Personally, I wouldn't even consider buying a set of speakers I'd never heard.

All that said, Sonus Faber still have a magic for me that other speakers can't always match, and I think they'd respond well to your amps.

[Ken Moreland]

Claus, I'm using them with Music First pre and Gamut 200W poweramp(purchased from an esteemed member of this forum) but I previously used them with a 15W Unison Research S2K and they are well able to handle both. The sensitivity is 90dB .
I have them positioned equilaterally from the listening spot and almost facing directly down the room. Three out of four walls are glass so I spent some time with REW room equalisation to find the spot in the room with minimum bass resonance (this is no relation to the speakers performance just the walls. When I used the UR amp bass was weak but that's not an issue with the Gamut.
KM

[Fran]

They're no bargain if you get them home and don't like them....


I'd second Si's advice and try and get a listen first.


Fran

[DaveF]

As Simon has already said, I'd tread very carefully Claus. If you are very happy with your current speakers then maybe you should leave well enough alone.
Believe me I went through a frustrating and sometimes comical situation last year when I took the opportunity to purchase an Airtight amp. It upset the balance of the system initially and I spent the next few months blaming everything from speakers, cables, the room and CDP's until I narrowed it down to what the issue was.
That said, an initial listen to my hifi in my new place has left me pleasantly surprised but that's for another thread.

[Seán]

Claus, I would NEVER buy a set of speakers without first hearing them in my own home. They might sound great in a showroom but lousy at home so tread carefully.

[Diapason]

I spent some time with REW room equalisation

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until I narrowed it down to what the issue was.
That said, an initial listen to my hifi in my new place has left me pleasantly surprised but that's for another thread.

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