Upgraditis part 1: Subwoofers

[Diapason]

Good Lord, so much for lack of forum participation! Seems I've a lot to catch up on after a couple of days.

Okay, off the top of my head:
1) Room
Moving to another room would only be interesting as an experiment, not a long-term solution. Paper thin walls in a semi-d mean that the current man-cave (an extension at the gable end) is the only realistic option. No matter its faults we have to live with it until I move house. I've been complaining about the room for years, but now it's time to work with it rather than complain about it. The sound treatments really do work wonders, and the allow a certain amount of tuning of the sound. I'm confident the right setup could sound good in there, it's just a question of finding it.

As regards rearranging it, that's certainly an option, but as a general rule I hate the feeling of sitting right on top of speakers, so going across the room will require the speakers go very close to the back wall. I'm going to try it anyway, it might work. Room is 9' wide but 21' long, so there's actually quite a lot of volume to fill. Smaller speakers can sound a bit lost (I've had one or two in there) but experimentation is definitely in order.

Oh as regards the 57s in here, they don't suffer the same way, but they're much more directional (so reflections less of an issue) and not really full range (so bass modes less of an issue). I wish I liked them more really, they'd be perfect if I really liked them!!

2) Sonus Faber
Extremas aren't going to happen, like trying to buy an Enzo as your first Ferrari, but from what I've read I'm certainly intrigued. I really like the SF sound, they're definitely on my mental list with a variety of other options (although I'm concerned that having heard the Amati Futuras I'm basically ruined). I have a pair of Signums in the sitting room which I love, so I'm already a fan. As always, the problem is waiting for the right thing to pop up at the right price, but at least I have the chance of getting to hear various models in the line. This is good.

3) Harbeths
Almost certainly not for me. Partly because I don't like what I've heard before, partly because I don't like how they look, and partly because I'm a shallow, shallow man, and they just don't float my personal pride of ownership boat.

4) Estelons
Lovely looking, by all accounts great sounding, but I can't imagine affording them nor getting the chance to sample them.

Now, before I close the door on the sub option, the last few days of listening (coupled with some more room treatment and speaker moving) have been really fun. I found myself again yesterday wondering whether I'm just nuts. Perhaps I am, but one way or the other, the sub addition is a fantastic baseline to work from.

So where next. Well, Steve has already mentioned the Kharma DB7 that are due in to Cloney soon, and I definitely want to give them a go. My sense of them at the show was that they were much warmer and bigger and, ultimately, a lot of what I'm looking for. Whether I can afford them or not remains to be seen, but it would be really interesting to see how they compare to the 3.2FE in situ. Ivan reckons they're a serious step up from my ones, and they may be what I'm looking for.

As a slightly leftfield alternative, a very very very long time the teenage me was COMPLETELY blown away by a pair of Martin Logan CLS speakers in the front room in Cloney. For a long time, the memory of those was a reference for me, it was the most "open window" kind of presentation I'd ever heard, I still remember just being transported to the venue, and the purity of the sound was shocking. They had zero bass, even then I knew they were severely compromised, but my God that clarity and scale. They were and are also a complete pig to drive, dropping down to basically the impedance of a copper wire at some frequencies, and by all accounts are a bitch to get right. I definitely need to sample them again at some stage to see if the teenage me was onto something. They'd definitely need a high quality (and fast) sub to match them, and would require a completely different amp (the GRAAFs don't play nicely with low impedance speakers) so it's a ridiculous idea really. But I'm still intrigued.

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions and discussion. It's really great!!

[jaybee]

Have you tried Si Treatments?

A good slosh of Hendricks just before listening really increases wow factor and effectively numbs the critical part of the brain ala beer goggles?

[jaybee]

Also totally with you on the position the Harbeth... I'd love to hear them, but for the money I couldn't forgive dirty great plugs in the baffle for grills.....

[Gerry D]

I love Harbeths. Have heard a few in different set ups and always think they're so musical. And there's great honesty, I believe, in their approach to design, build quality and pricing.
Possibly my 2nd favourite loudspeaker manufacturer.


I can't help feeling that some of the mega bucks brands, SF, Estelon, Magico and so on are charging an awful lot for bling, marketing and fancy packaging.
But I get that the aesthetics are vital in some situations and maybe that does affect the sound in some peoples minds.
The balance of priorities between form and function can sway things for some.

[mick]

Have you considered Quad 989s. They should suit your room as they can be sited close to side walls and about 1m from the rear wall. They would have a fuller sound with a lower bass than the 57s. Similar in size to the Martin Logan speakers,which I thought they were a little bright when I heard them in Cloneys.

[Diapason]

Anyone heard of a speaker manufacturer called Harbeth? You never read anything about them, but maybe some of you have come across them?

:-D

[Gerry D]

Anyone heard of a speaker manufacturer called Harbeth? You never read anything about them, but maybe some of you have come across them?

:-D

No. Are they new ?

[DaveF]

Not even if they were gold plated would he want them. Difficult child I'd say.

[Adrian]

I was perusing British speaker manufacturers and I came across an old stalwart... Castle.

They state on their website that everything is done under the one roof.. including the veneers. Apparently they are the only speaker company in the UK to do this. http://www.castle.uk.com/

They make a speaker called the Castle Howard S3... which has a top firing driver... based on the older S2.

Here is an article which I pulled of the site

http://www.castle.uk.com/LinkClick.aspx ... uage=en-US

and it mentions the top firing driver. In fact I quote...

"The effect of the upward-facing extra main driver is immediately obvious in the way it radiates sound into the room, increasing the
reflected/direct sound ratio compared to forward facing drivers, and so adding spaciousness at some expense in stereo focus"

So Simon... I am not suggesting you ditch the Kharma's for the Castle's.... but a top firing driver may assist with with the room acoustics.... or maybe your room demands an alternative speaker arrangement???

Who knows???

Still I think the Howard S3 in Mahogany and Rosewood are just to die for.....look great!!!

[Gerry D]

Simon I have a pair of Castle Howard S2's that you're welcome to borrow to test That concept.