Upgraditis part 1: Subwoofers

[DaveF]

.....some experimenting with standmounters might be an option......

Harbeth. No seriously Simon, before you close this thread and curse me, they are surely worth an audition. I mean practically every review, every user experience of them have been very very positive. Maybe they dont float your boat lookswise but it might tell you a bit more about your room.
Audioplans are a speaker that arent very sensitive to room placement in general, but new they cost in the region of 7-8k Euro I think. The older models can be picked up much more cheaply though and sound great.

[cybot]

.....some experimenting with standmounters might be an option......

Harbeth. No seriously Simon, before you close this thread and curse me, they are surely worth an audition. I mean practically every review, every user experience of them have been very very positive. Maybe they dont float your boat lookswise but it might tell you a bit more about your room.
Audioplans are a speaker that arent very sensitive to room placement in general, but new they cost in the region of 7-8k Euro I think. The older models can be picked up much more cheaply though and sound great.

I would tend to agree with Dave. I know for a fact that the SHL5's would sound sumptious with my Crofts or anything that veers to the lean side. It's just I have a mental block with stand mounts though these are massive. Pity....

http://hifipig.com/harbeth-super-shl5-loudspeakers/

[Steve]

Obviously coloured by my current positive experience with the brand (although I know Simon also has leanings towards Sonus Faber), what about the new Extrema's.... I haven't heard anything about them yet... But always nice to hear new things.

[jaybee]

Sonus Faber standmounts are total cheaters in the type!

Their stands are so fantastic that they're really just two-piece floorstanders of reduced cabinet volume!

ps Steve: totally jealous of the new speakers!

[terrybites]

Hi Simon,

I see Harbeth have just unveiled a '+' version of their SHL5. I auditioned a pair of Harbeth M30.1s a while back. Admittedly the room wasn't great and the dealer noted that they were only two weeks into burning in. I was disappointed - couldn't get past a distinct 'boxiness' and the imaging was poor. As I was leaving I spotted a pair of Sonus Faber Auditor M's and they were swapped in with the same components, same tracks etc. I was blown away! So musical with an incredible 3d soundstage, warmth and intricate detail. The deal was done. They get 30 watts of Croft valve power so there's lots of slam and taut bass. My room is 4 x 4 metres and the stand mounts suit perfectly. I did however put in a PV1 sub to see what it would bring. Not a lot to be honest. Ivor and Pearse have been over for a listen and either liked what they heard or lied through their teeth!

Regards,

Terry

[Ivor]

Ivor and Pearse have been over for a listen and either liked what they heard or lied through their teeth!

Oh I liked it a lot and I'd say those would perform well in a bigger room too.

[terrybites]

Cheers Ivor. Wrap two of my usual... I'll be down shortly.

Simon, you mentioned the length of your room being a tad shorter than Devin Toner with his arms raised. It's been mentioned here already that a change of room could be the way forward. I'm inclined to agree. You could flog the shoehorn and build from there!

T

[Steve]

So after reading up a little on the new Sonus Faber "Ex3ma", I can see that a home demo might be quite a challenge... Apparently only 30 have been made and the price for each pair is not actually released.. If you wish to buy, you have to contact Sonus Faber directly to enquire if any are left and then they give you the price.... So perhaps not an option...

Looking forward to hearing this behemoth of a REL sub this evening.....

[Sligolad]

Ivor and Pearse have been over for a listen and either liked what they heard or lied through their teeth!

They left a very big impression on me Terry and particularly that deep controlled bass which left me gobsmacked from such a small speaker....was telling Tony about them at a recent meet up as they are still rattling around in the back of my head. Best bang for buck I have seen in a speaker in a long while as I always perceived Sonus Faber as expensive beasts but not these for what they deliver!
Cheers, Pearse.

[DaveF]

+1 on the Sonus Faber Auditor M's. I had a demo with them vs the Spendor STs. Both different presentations but the SF's had a much more open and airy sound. Fast and agile too. These new M models from SF are definitely different from the warmer, laid back SF's of old.

Simon, it has been mentioned several times now that a rearranging of the room is the first call or moving to a different room, if just temporarily. One thing to ask though, did the 57's have any issues in the room?