What Are Your Primary Speakers?

Cpyder

I wanted to start a poll-like thread discussing what speakers everyone uses on this forum, as well as some other specifics. I'll start us off. List your primary 2 channel rig speakers. Also post whether they are bookshelves or towers, whether you use a sub or not, the audio format you listen to the most, and what you like best about them.

Speakers: Polk Audio LSi9s
Type: Bookshelves
Sub: No
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: Digital lossless from computer
Most Favorable Aspect: I really like the realistic highs. Not to bright, not to soft.

Cpyder

BlueFox wrote: »

PSB Synchrony One towers, replaced my old SDA-2s. Source is 97% iPod Classic (Apple lossless), Wadia iTransport, Bryston BDA-1 DAC. Sony XA5400ES SACD is the other 3%, primarily to audtion CDs to determine if they are iPod worthy. I am auditioning a CD now. I love everything about these speakers and system. It is so clear, revealing, precise, etc., etc., etc.

HT is 4 LSi15s and PSB Synchrony One center. Sony NS9100ES SACD for multi-channel SACD, and Oppo BD83 for movies. Sub for movies, not music.

That's a very nice setup. Good work! How do you like the Bryston?

I should probably add that I'm using the DAC in my Marantz SR5003.

comfortablycurt

Speakers-SDA 2A's
type-floorstanders
sub-Not currently, though I'd love to try some stereo subs eventually
Audio format-50% CD, 50% vinyl
favorite aspect-SDA effect!! Excellent low end output, liquid midrange, smooth highs...I guess I just love everything about these speakers.

samnor

Speakers: wharfedale diamond 9.6
Type: floorstanding 3 way
Sub: Yes, wharfedale sw250
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: CD
Most Favorable Aspect: warm sound, tight bass

Hawkeye

Speakers: Martin Logan Spire
Subs: A pair of JL Audio F112's

I have three sources: 98% of listening is by CD or XRCD
1% is vinyl
1% is XM Radio by the better half.

I've found the Spire and JL subs are a great match. The transparency and accuracy of the panel combined with the solid bottom provides a combination that I find quite pleasing. Of course, room treatments are a large factor in the room sounding as good as it can.

Gordon

Knucklehead

Speakers: baby Advent ii ....slightly modded
Type: Bookshelves
Sub: No
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: Digital lossless from computer and standard CD's
Most Favorable Aspect: Nice clean neutral sound with very good low end.

doctor r

Speakers: Aurum Cantus Lesiure 3 SE
Type: Monitor
Sub: No
Audio Format: Vinyl 65%, CD 45%
Favorable Aspect: clear extended highs (ribbon tweeter) with a realistic stage presentation.

skipf

I'm using Carver ALS Platinums in my main rig. No sub required with these, the 4 12" woofers in each do just fine. Full range speakers with incredible soundstage, crystal clear highs, warm midrange and bass you feel as well as hear. Their only downside is they require massive amounts of power and headroom to drive properly if using SS amps like I am. Tube amps in the 180 watt range do even better than my 575 watt monoblocks.

TNRabbit

Hawkeye wrote: »

Speakers: Martin Logan Spire
Subs: A pair of JL Audio F112's

I have three sources: 98% of listening is by CD or XRCD
1% is vinyl
1% is XM Radio by the better half.

I've found the Spire and JL subs are a great match. The transparency and accuracy of the panel combined with the solid bottom provides a combination that I find quite pleasing. Of course, room treatments are a large factor in the room sounding as good as it can.

Gordon

Gordon, I've got to get over there & hear your setup soon!



My setup:

Speakers: Carver Amazing Loudspeakers-III (AL-III)
Type: Full-range, 6 feet tall!
Sub: Klipsch RT-12d
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: SACD/CD
Most Favorable Aspect: Imaging is phenomenal. I've done some customizing with the woofers on mine & they have a great low end. :cool:

Dawgfish

Speakers: Polk Audio SDA-1Cs with RDO-194 tweets
Type: Full Range
Sub: No
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: Lately it's been about 50% Vinyl, 50% CD
Most Favorable Aspect: I think Curt really summed it up well the way I feel about my SDAs. I love the SDA effect with it's wide and deep soundstage, great bass and midrange, and good highs. These speakers really get me emotionally involved with my music.

erniejade

For me, primary speakers depends on what I am listening to...


For rock or dance, Polk 1.2 Carver C-19 tube pre, Jolida cd100, Technics 1200 with a denon DL160 on a McIntosh 2105.

For Jazz or classical, the same as above except the speakers are Carver Amazing 0riginal, with a Sunfire Sig. II 625 X 2.

If I just want pure volume or just want to rock out, I add in the polk 2.3 1.2 at the same time on the McIntosh, and Integra amps. I put the cable on the 1.2's on the outside and the 2.3's on the inside. OMG the place just shakes.

Timothy Smith

Currently Dahlquist DQ-10's.

The only mods are that I removed the Piezo "screecher" supertweeter and replaced the stock tweeter with Vifa ring dome radiators like those in Polk Lsi series.

I supplement the low bass (just a little) with a HSU STF-2 sub through a Dahlquist outboard subwoofer crossover.

I am amazed how good this early/mid 70's speaker still sounds.

wayne3burk

Speakers: Polk Monitor 10bs
Type: Full Range (speaker stand - standing)
Sub: JBL PW10
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: Vinyl 50% - Streaming Internet Radio (128bk MP3 or Flash) 50%
Most Favorable Aspect: Smooth mids and highs, excellent bass - Listen primarily to Jazz

-- wayne --.

nooshinjohn

Polk Audio SDA-SRS 2.3TL's
Rogue Audio Perseus Tube Pre
Sunfire Cinema Grand 425~5
Yamaha PX-3 Turntable (80%) Carver SDa-490t cd player (20%)
Most favourable... shear power, clean mids/highs with tight accurate bass, and the soundstage is MASSIVE.

concealer404

Speakers: Paradigm Esprit V.3
Type: Floorstanders
Sub: No
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: CD
Most Favorable Aspect: Everything. What now?

madmax

Speakers: Avantgarde Duo
Type: Big **** Horns
Sub: DecWare
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: Vinyl
Most Favorable Aspect: Dynamics/High efficiency

muncybob

Speakers; Vandersteen 2CE
Type; floorstanders
Sub: Mirage
Format: mostly cd
favorite aspect: detailed mids, good soundstage but I'm sure would be better if the room allowed it!

steveinaz

Speakers: Fritz Speakers Carbon 7 monitor
Type: Stand mount monitors
Sub: No (2-channel only)
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: Digital from CD Transport to DAC
Most Favorable Aspect: Seamless integration, tonal balance

thuffman03

Speakers: Carver ALIII's
Type: Full Range 6' tall floor speakers
Sub: Sunfire True Sub MkII
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: CD and streaming audio through Rhypsody.
Most Favorable Aspect: Will get very loud and sound great at any level and has lots of base.

yepimonfire

Speakers: Sony SF-5000
Type: 3-way Floor standing
Sub: Polk PSW10
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: AAC from an Ipod
Most Favorable Aspect: Covers the entire audio range, system is a 4-way meaning each driver is only required to cover 3 octaves. Like the timbre of the Kevlar drivers in the mains, sounds tight, produces awesome mid-range that i have not been able to get from paper cones.

mhardy6647

Speakers: Altec Santiago
Type: High-sensitivity two-way, sealed box LF, Horn HF floorstanders
Sub: Atlantic Technologies powered 10"
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: Redbook CD and vinyl
Most Favorable Aspect: Outstanding midrange reproduction

Three pairs of loudspeakers are in regular rotation on the real hifi in the living room: the Santiagos (which replaced a pair of 846A Valencias because the Santiagos were in better cosmetic shape), Quad ESL-57s, and DIY mass loaded folded, tapered quarter-wave tubes loaded with Radio Shack 40-1354 twincone fullrange drivers (equipped with Dave Dlugos' phase plugs). All three of these loudspeakers "get the midrange right".

Here's the scoop on the ML TQWTs, designed by Bob Brines, for anyone interested: http://brinesacoustics.com/Pages/Proposals.html

I have a pair of purchased-new Polk Audio Monitor Series Model 7A in our family room that are in regular use for radio and TV/noncritical listening. They sounded great in 1978 and still do.

zingo

Speakers: Klipsch Forte

Type: 3-way Floorstanders with horn highs and mids

Sub: Don't need one

Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: SACD and PC based 96khz/24bit

Most Favorable Aspect: High sensitivity for use with tubes and powerful presentation

Cpyder

I'm seeing a lot of sweet designs here. I'm interested in knowing how electrostatic speakers work and even more interested in how they sound.

HHStuart

See my sig for speakers.
I am only listening to SACD's right now.
Sound can be outstanding.
Variety is quite limited though.

mhardy6647

Cpyder wrote: »

I'm seeing a lot of sweet designs here. I'm interested in knowing how electrostatic speakers work and even more interested in how they sound.

There is a thin film of conductive plastic (Saran, in the case of the Quad ESL-57s) suspended between electrodes. The whole shooting match is in an electrostatic field (ca. 5 kV at minuscule current); application of an offset voltage derived from the input music signal makes the membrane "flutter" within the field, thus producing sound. It's similar in action to a ribbon or planar driver, but the "motor" is an electrostatic field instead of a magnetic field.

They sound great!

(EDIT: Those who know the vintage Quads well will recognize that mine are footless! They are carefully propped up to the correct angle for my listening chair in the photo... and I do have a pair of aftermarket stands for them)

98Badger

Speakers: Paradigm Signature S8's
Type: Floorstanders
Sub: JL Fathom F112
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: Redbook CD or WAV from the computer
Most Favorable Aspect: Female vocals from the Be tweeters

hearingimpared

Cpyder wrote: »

I wanted to start a poll-like thread discussing what speakers everyone uses on this forum, as well as some other specifics. I'll start us off. List your primary 2 channel rig speakers. Also post whether they are bookshelves or towers, whether you use a sub or not, the audio format you listen to the most, and what you like best about them.

Speakers: Polk Audio LSi9s
Type: Bookshelves
Sub: No
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: Digital lossless from computer
Most Favorable Aspect: I really like the realistic highs. Not to bright, not to soft.

B]Speakers:[/B] Polk Audio SDA/SRS 1.2TL RD0198s, upgraded xovers with Sonicaps & Mills resistors, Dynamatted, drivers sealed, Myesound spiked and Cardas posts.
Type: Huge Monkey Coffins
Sub: I don't need no stinkin' sub!
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: Vinyl/SACD
Most Favorable Aspect: I can only say, EVERYTHING!

jm1

Speakers: Dynaudio Confidence C1 (mass loaded Stand 4)
Type: monitor
Sub: (2) SVS PC-Ultra
Crossover: Bryston 10B – Sub (1st/1st @80Hz)
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: digital cable, CD, LP
Most Favorable Aspect: The latest phase of room acoustic optimizations has ended with redistributing/refining the tube trap placement, then designing and implementing an enhancement to another treatment. The latest enhancement realized more benefits than expected which forced me to once again, more precisely locate the monitors (and subs) as well as refine the monitor/sub interface. I had to resort to a shadowing technique to visually see the small increments necessary for the gain and phase adjustments. Anyways, the acoustic refinements have provided startling results while attaining a new level of coherence. It will be interesting to hear the results of the next phase of treatments once the designs are finalized and construction completed.

hearingimpared

jm1 wrote: »

Speakers: Dynaudio Confidence C1 (mass loaded Stand 4)
Type: monitor
Sub: (2) SVS PC-Ultra
Crossover: Bryston 10B – Sub (1st/1st @80Hz)
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: digital cable, CD, LP
Most Favorable Aspect: The latest phase of room acoustic optimizations has ended with redistributing/refining the tube trap placement, then designing and implementing an enhancement to another treatment. The latest enhancement realized more benefits than expected which forced me to once again, more precisely locate the monitors (and subs) as well as refine the monitor/sub interface. I had to resort to a shadowing technique to visually see the small increments necessary for the gain and phase adjustments. Anyways, the acoustic refinements have provided startling results while attaining a new level of coherence. It will be interesting to hear the results of the next phase of treatments once the designs are finalized and construction completed.

John, if I post the longitude and & latitude of my home would you come here and help achieve the above?;):D

jmwest1970

Speakers: Totem Rainmaker
Type: Bookshelf
Sub: None, but I'd love to try a Totem Storm.
Audio format most commonly listened to: CD/SACD/FLAC
Most Favorable Aspect: No fatigue. When listening to SACD I have to ask myself if I'm in the room with the artist during the recording.

jimreeves

Speakers: Infinty Quantum Linesource
Type: Monoliths
Sub: yes, but not for two channel
Audio Format Most Commonly Listened To: Vinyl
Most Favorable Aspect: Effortless BIG soundstage:D