Speakers for music

[iaudio]

My Bluemnhofer Acoustics Genuin FS 5 were delivered this morning.

This speaker shook me the first time I heard it. For those who have visited The Listening Room, it takes something to shake a room as large and I was not expecting this from a bookshelf. The FS5's are bigger than the usual book shelves and I will need new speaker stand for them. The Genuin sound is to be experienced. Though it was nowhere as good an experience with my Av receiver (Compared to the Trigon Energy), I don't have the dough to fund a Integrated right now. An integrated will come at a later stage.

Thank you for your guidance.

Congrats!
You are being quite patient in building up your system.

 

[mpw]

wow.. thats nice.

pics would be better )

njoi the sound and yes - just like the speakers.. please save up and select a high quality integrated. Look out for good deals on HFV and elsewhere.

mpw

 

[gobble]

Along with the best high end sound, they probably also represent the best high end value available in our market today. The price that these are available at right now is virtually a steal.

What price bracket are we talking about here?

G0bble

 

[john_k_antony]

Sandeep congrats on your new setup. Just one quick question. How doubt you compare the low end response of Genuin FS 5 to a floor stander like KEF Q900? Do you think you need a Sub to complement them?

Thanks
John.

 

[sandeepmohan]

What did you like about them? DId you compare them to the other floor standers?

For one, how is so much sound pressure possible from such a small enclosure. I've heard the KEF Q900 and Usher N 6361 and after the Genuin experience, both these speakers can't hold a candle to the Blumenhofer. In all honesty, the KEF is junk. The Q900, in my opinion is nowhere as good as the previous generation iQ9.

The first thing that hit me with the FS 5 was the bass. My music requires lots of this. It hits you so hard and remains tight even as you go up on gain. I am not talking about just drum bass, even a bass guitar sounded precise. You could hear every note being played. It was not getting muddled with the rest of the frequency spectrum.

Switch to some mellow music and the tonal quality is beautiful, sounds natural. You connect with the artist, you want to sing along. These speakers are flexible with a wide range of music material.

Those horns will make your ears bleed if the recording/artist voice is too bright but my music is not.

These speakers are not demanding on power too. They sound decent even with my run off the mill AV receiver. This was one huge hurdle for me with the Usher.

I landed up buying a serious loudspeaker. The original plan was not to head down this road. Once you hear something so good, there is no looking back.

 

[reignofchaos]

What price bracket are we talking about here?

G0bble

Under 200k - actually quite a bit under that.

 

[sandeepmohan]

Just one quick question. How doubt you compare the low end response of Genuin FS 5 to a floor stander like KEF Q900? Do you think you need a Sub to complement them?

Yes the KEF's do play lower. If you want earthquake bass, then it is the KEF. However; in the correct environment, you are not going to miss any of this with the Genuin FS 5. They play lower than what the specification suggest. At least that is what my ears were telling me. After the Genuin experience, I was asking myself, am I looking for just ear splitting, stomach hitting bass or good quality bass. I now prefer good quality bass.

I would try those KEF's with better equipment. I don't think the Denon was bringing out the best from the speaker even though it cost well over 200k.

 

[sandeepmohan]

Congrats!
You are being quite patient in building up your system.

Ah well I don't have a choice. I really wish I was rolling in cash. He he.

 

[sandeepmohan]

Is your room big enough for these ?

Yes but unfriendly in layout though.

 

[square_wave]

Sandeep congrats on your new setup. Just one quick question. How doubt you compare the low end response of Genuin FS 5 to a floor stander like KEF Q900? Do you think you need a Sub to complement them?

Thanks
John.

That is an orange vs apple comparison. Although both are loudspeakers, they would appeal to completely different type of listeners. This would be a quality vs quantity thing.

Pitch perfect layered undistorted bass to whatever the speaker is speced at is what you will hear from the Blumenhofer. A bigger wall of so called bass with plenty of speaker artifacts is what you usually get with multiple driver floorstander speaker at 1 k $ ( new retail ). I have not heard the Q 900 , so you can go with what Sandeep says above

At one point when I was into metal, I used to like the wall of sound. Artefacts were the last thing on your mind those days.

 

[sandeepmohan]

A bigger wall of so called bass with plenty of speaker artifacts is what you usually get with multiple driver floorstander speaker at 1 k $

I have to say that at 88K, which was how low Pro Fx went to sell a Q900, it is a steal and I won't buy any other floor stander at this price.

As you said, it is also down to what you want. Unfair to compare the two. The Blumenhofers are on another planet.

 

[john_k_antony]

Thanks Sandeep and Square_Wave.

I currently have KEF iQ7 (2008 model) and AP Power Amp (I have a strong feeling that this is the same amp used by Square_Wave once. I got this amp from a FM named Bharathana in Banaglore ). I am using a DIY Pass-B1 buffer pre-amp. I have all this setup in a dedicated room with acoustic treatment. The setup sounds fine. But I have been craving and saving for a stereo upgrade for a while and I am really getting intrigued with Blumenhofer speakers. I am planning for a serious audition of Big Fun 17. However, I am curious to know whether the Genuin FS5 can fill my room. My room is 24'x16'. I am also looking for quality bass and I think I am done with the "chest thumping" bass for music .

BTW, what are the major sonic difference between Big Fun 17 and Genuin FS5?

Thanks,
John.

 

[square_wave]

@ John,

From what I remember, Bharathan had an older model power amp which was not the same as the cpa 3. The older amp is similar to the Swara range from AP and they are quite good and more than enough for any speaker from blumenhofer. I have an LFD ( 60 watts ) which do an awesome job.

24 x 16 is a big room. The FS5 can fill this room with wonderful music but the big fun will give a bit more bass extension. But then again, it depends on how you are using this room, if the entire room is a listening room, having the fun 17 is a good idea. On the other hand, if this is a multipurpose room and you are using one end of the space as a listening area and listening near field, the FS5 will suffice.

Quality-wise, these speakers are pretty similar.

 

[john_k_antony]

Square_wave,

My room is a dedicated listening room with acoustic treatment. So it seems like an FS like big fun would be appropriate. BTW have you listened to Tempesta 20? It's similarly priced to big fun 17, but with a bigger 8" woofer. I think the bass cabinet is not horn loaded as big fun. So it may produce same kind of bass response.

Thanks
John.

 

[reignofchaos]

Tempesta is primarily built for HT. For music, the Fun 17 would probably be better.

The woofer in the tempesta is paper cone unlike the Big Fun 17 which has their patented p2c material.

Actually even the Genuin FS5 might be better than the Tempesta. Personally though I've not heard the FS5 or Tempesta for that matter.

 

[square_wave]

@ John,

The tempesta seems to be a floor ported bass reflex design. So the bass will be different from the horn. However, from what I have heard so far, all blumenhofer speakers have a certain magic to it so you will need to listen yourself and take a call. I do not have much experience with the tempesta so Jochen is your best guide.

 

[sandeepmohan]

My stereo setup is complete. My Blumenhofer speakers are hooked to a Trigon Energy Integrated amplifier. The same amplifier used during audition. A Trigon Recall II cd player is my cd source, Trigon Vanguard II paired with the Volcano III battery power supply does phono stage duties. I also have a second cd player, an Ayon CD1s which does DAC duties too. If there is a weak link now, it is my turn table. The Rega RP1 with the stock Ortofon stylus is ordinary compared to the rest of the rig. Besides; the phono stage is far too much for the Rega and I don't think I am hearing anything more with the Trigon phono stage paired with Rega's starter turntable. For cabling, I've got two pairs of WSS interconnects and speaker cable for test. A DAC digital and analog interconnect hooks up the Ayon to the amplifier and laptop. The stereo rack is the Alpha series and Monitor Gold speaker stands by soundfoundations. It is too early for me to comment on the sound as the speakers need a really long 70 hours to sound their best. Initial impressions with cd are really good. The speakers were in their box all this time after my little boy punched the dust caps. It was luck that I could pop them out. The conditions for placement are far from ideal as the rig is setup in my bedroom. There is plenty of damping but not much distance from me to the system. I am glad I did not buy a pair of monster floor standers. These Blumenhofers are quite capable of playing low if they are setup right. Close to six years in the making, I finally have a rig that should keep me happy for a really long time.

 

[Razzler]

Marantz have now become a very mainstream brand to even consider. I don't know if what they make today for stereo, is as good as they once used to be. I won't rule it out. If they can effortlessly drive a difficult speaker load and sound great, why not.

NAD has retarded pricing in India.

No interesting Cambridge Products in India. Besides this I don't know what they sound like.

I am past that phase to enjoy Wharfedale and Polk sound. They are not for me. They appeal to a different audience. I have not heard a B&W extensively enough to judge.

The title of my post reads Speakers for Music. I already have a dedicated HT set up. Why would I want another one.

Bel Canto Class D but stable to 3 0hms.. Great stuff.. I have the Ushers with a 2.7 DAC and REF500S power amp.. Amazing sound.. I also use a pair of Focal 826 speakers. Great space and clarity but the 91db rating comes at the expense of Bass as they drop to 2.6 ohms a little outside of my amps specs ' but not a serious issue.