square_wave
Well-Known Member
This is a brand you could look at.
Vienna Acoustics - high end speakers and loudspeakers for your home theatre
Vienna Acoustics - high end speakers and loudspeakers for your home theatre
No, it wasn't a joke actually. Most well to do audio software stores are adding on 'stocking-fee' to the price of their western classical CDs as most of the stock actually has been sitting idle for almost half a decade! So, where are the buyers? Other genres are moving fast but classical is another story, hence this genre's section that's usually isolated in good stores away from other genres is getting smaller & smaller.
Cheers!!
Hi Trinanjan,
Our respected and highly experienced members have given some very valuable suggestions on speakers. However, I still feel that since you are sort of beginning this journey and your experiences are hugely dominated by listening to headphones, you need to hear first as many speakers as possible which are far better than your wharfdales. This has no direct relation to your purchase. But what this will do is that this will give you valuable experience in terms of what you want in terms of good electronics and good speakers.
I posted today in the 'hifi journey' thread. While writing, I again realized how fortunate I was to have listened to many many very good systems well before I bought my first decent system and knew what sonics I wanted for the kind of music I listen to. I also developed a fair sense regarding matching of equipments. This is very important because you ideally want the whole system to sing in unison.
There are a fair number of audiophiles in Kolkata having various kinds of decent installations and there are also the stores, however good or bad they may be. You have to invite yourself to these places (I'm sure most will be very accommodative). This way you will have a fair idea of what's possible at what sort of budgets and you shall be in a better position to get fruits from all these excellent suggestions and build a system where every part will complement every other and will give you pleasure for many many years. I am sorry if I sound a bit patronizing (that is NOT the intention), but unless you hear a few reasonable installations, it is very difficult to have an idea.
Regards.
:lol:
So many people at my workplace haven't heard the name of Mozart...
This is a brand you could look at.
Vienna Acoustics - high end speakers and loudspeakers for your home theatre
I again realized how fortunate I was to have listened to many many very good systems well before I bought my first decent system and knew what sonics I wanted for the kind of music I listen to.
@Dr bass.
Which Glennair did you like the 10" or the 15"?
How much did they cost in singapore?
Also what was the cost of the mira & the atc's?
although it could be long list, which other speakers did you audition?
TIA
Cheers
Hi,
It is interesting to note that so many audiophiles prefer tube amps. Don't tubes artificially enhance or colour the sound?
I have read elsewhere that the dryness of SS amps is due to dry and sterile sounding CD players.
Very few CD players have 'Vinyl' sound, due to all the digital to analogue conversion going on. (The output stage after the DAC is to blame for this dryness)
So, why don't we fix our sources first and stick to high end SS pre-power amps?
Hi Neo,
I heard the 10" version driven by 3 different amps and 2 CDPs.
The amps were Cyrus Mono X, Marantz PM-11S2 and PM-15S2
The Cd players were Cyrus CD-8SE and Marantz SA7-S1
The cost was around 8500 Singapore Dollars. I was being offered the demo piece for 7000.
The Mira again cost 8500 Sing Dollars.
ATC SCM-11 : 2200
ATC SCM 19 : 3800
ATC SCM 40 : 6000
Well, I may not be able to list all the speakers with their respective model numbers as I do not remember all of them but I would try to list as I recollect:
1. Harbeth P3ES and SHL5
2. Spendors (all the models)
3. Cabasse
4. Focus Audio
5. Tannoy
6. Kef (Reference series)
7. Thiel
8. Living Voice
9. Rockport Technologies
10. Revel Audio
11. Xavian Audio
12. Opera Audio
13. Avant Garde
14. Avalon Acoustics
15. Neat Acoustics
16. Eminent Technologies
17. Dali (Helicon)
18. Dynaudio (Confidence and Evidence)
19. Proac (Response D2)
20. WLM Acoustics (LaScala)
21. Totem
22. Audium Comp
23. Wilson Benesch (Arc)
24. Vienna Acoustics
25. Isophon Audio (Germany)
26. Usher Audio
27: ATC
These are just the brands, I tried auditioning as many from each of these brands as possible except for those explicitly mentioned.
I do remember quite a few other speakers that I heard but dont remember their names because they were either too expensive or too big or I didnt care for their sonics.
I was there for 5 days. 10 AM to 7 PM, I was doing just this
So, my dear friend, set out to audition speakers, taking your classical tracks with you and you'll soon have a small list of ones you like and the ones you don't. Till you go about doing this, no amount of discussion will help.
Good luck on your expedition!!
Hi Suri,
The ones I liked and gave multiple listens:
Tannoy Glenair,
Rockport Mira Monitor,
Living Voice (was nice but too big for my room)
WLM LaScala
Neat Acoustics,
Cabasse,
Opera Audio,
Dali Helicon 300 MK2,
ATC,
Avant Garde ($40000 ).
This is as true as the fact that the variety of speakers one gets to listen to even in a big city in India is extremely limited (except may be Mumbai). It is ironical :sad:.
Very true, Dr. Bass. Actually Kolkata would be even far behind Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai in this regard, even though officially there are dealers here for some big brands. But they do not get the stuff you'd like to audition. If you want to buy for sure, only then they'd get it for you. Last year when I wanted to audition amps at around 1L-1.5L lakh range, I could audition only 3 amps here in Kolkata, at the stores.
But listening to good equipments is essential before one undertakes a major project like you undertook (going to sgp and all). That's why I have been making a suggestion of our TS to go around and look for decent installations at people's homes, in addition to what he can manage at the stores here. Without this, one of two things usually happens: 1) One buys the first thing with the wow factor in sight, 2) One gets confused with so many options (no offence here, Trinanjan. I've seen very mature people making similar mistakes at times, including of course myself).
For example, Dr. Bass, if you did not have appreciable experience of hearing decent stuff already, I'd say you'd have been completely confused by all those speakers (what an effort though, I must say).
Now a bit more on the tube/SS and your genre (Westren Classical). This is not really my territory, this is an area for the experts, but nevertheless I'll go ahead and see if the experts take notice and say something to benefit my understanding.
The absolutely very best recordings (probably will cost you an enormous amount) of Western classical recordings may have a dynamic range of 25 db (is really a guess, can anybody confirm?). Usually found good recordings may have upto 15 db of dynamic range. Now to be able to swallow a dynamic range of that kind may not be easy for low-powered tube amps. I have not tested this with my system, because I do not have that much of good quality Western clssical on CD, I have a few though on vinyl and my TT is not working. I'd like to see how such a huge dynamic range is handled in my system. We have tried the Coaltrain, and it passed with distinction (most recently when Pratim came, no strains and absolutely smooth even at quite a high volume). This is the reason why I commented in my last post that perhaps a SS amp would suit the TS better, but to withstand such dynamic range, even the SS amp has to be great. I'd really like the experts to comment on what I have written above.
Well Trinanjan, you also said something about your current source, the CA 640c CDP. It's not my favorite in that price range. I myself own a CA (740c), but there is a day and night difference between these two. Yes, sources are very important. But take it up later as audio_engr suggested; first up: the speakers .
Regards.
@ bhanja_trinanjan
As Asit has explained very well about the importance of listening to many systems and then yourself coming to some conclusions about your liking, I wish to stress that the speakers comes first - it is the closest component to your ears and a very critical item of the entire audio chain.