Vienna Acoustics Haydn Grands

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I strongly RECOMMEND Outlaw Audio's $700 RR2150 Stereo Receiver for your pair of Vienna Acoustics Haydn Grands speakers.

Supplies 160 w/c at 4 ohms in stereo mode at <0.3 % THD, from 20 Hz to 20 kHz range, both Channels driven.

http://outlawaudio.com/products/rr2150.html

mdaudioguy

Congrats Stan! Your patience paid off, huh? They will sound bigger than they are right out of the box, but I'd say the break-in is considerably longer than the Polks I've got. However, they seem to become more open, the more I listen to them. Will you be using a sub with them?

skrol

For now the old Denon DRA-835R will have to do. Apparently it will drive 4ohms but just don't know how well. It has pre-outs so eventually I'll get an amp. A sub may be in the future. I think I'll miss the depth that the RTA's produce.

KrazyMofo24

blueboxer wrote: »

Anyone think $2400 for a pair of Mozart Grands is a good price?

In normal circumstances yes. I believe brand new at Magnolia they would go on sale for $2500 new from time to time. I was able to get a new pair for $1100 at my Best Buy. However I think at this point it'll be hard to find a pair. Here is the SKU: 7032383 for the Mozarts. If you call a best buy give them that number they can check inventory for all the stores in your area, and price some stores are priced differently.

Haydn Grand
SKU: 7032392

skrol

Call me crazy but I am not sure the Haydns are going to work for me. It may just be lack of adequate amplification but they are VERY laid back. On the plus side, they seem larger than their physical size, silky smooth on the highs and very good bass. They just seem contained and don't really fill the listening area anywhere like the RTA11TLs. Probably isn't fair to compare but the RTA11TLs are so open and fill the room effortlessly and have a deep, rich bass that is well balanced. I suspect the Haydns have a emphasis in the bass that gives the illusion of going deeper than they actually do. However, this may be because they are sitting on top of the RTA11TLs and not on stands. I'll play with position more and try to come up with a decent amp.

Are the LSi7 and 9 as laid back as the Haydns?
Stan

KrazyMofo24

skrol wrote: »

Call me crazy but I am not sure the Haydns are going to work for me. It may just be lack of adequate amplification but they are VERY laid back. On the plus side, they seem larger than their physical size, silky smooth on the highs and very good bass. They just seem contained and don't really fill the listening area anywhere like the RTA11TLs. Probably isn't fair to compare but the RTA11TLs are so open and fill the room effortlessly and have a deep, rich bass that is well balanced. I suspect the Haydns have a emphasis in the bass that gives the illusion of going deeper than they actually do. However, this may be because they are sitting on top of the RTA11TLs and not on stands. I'll play with position more and try to come up with a decent amp.

Are the LSi7 and 9 as laid back as the Haydns?
Stan

I know what you mean about the depth. When I listened to Keith(suckstobeme) Hale's bookshelves that was the main thing I noticed when I compared those to the Haydns. I think the Haydn's would benefit from a stronger amp, I think they are harder to drive since they are rated at 4ohms. The Lsi7's are similar in depth to the Haydn's.

I would say the Lsi's aren't as laid back/warm. Vienna Acoustics are really laid back.

skrol

I played them some more and found that with proper positioning they image very nicely and almost disappear sonically. The bigger thing that I found is that if you the volume up a bit (30% on my DRA-835) they really spring to life sounding more open, very natural and with very good impact (I won't say slam). Previously, I been playing them at conversation level as not to annoy my wife. I maintained them for about 20 min at 30% volume and I was surprised that the DRA-835 stayed fairly cool (no smoke).

So, at our normal listening levels (able to carry conversations) they seem anemic but at higher volumes they sound very nice. The RTA11TLs fill the room nicely at low volumes. Would an amp fix this?

Is there a bookshelf speaker that someone could recommend that might serve me better?

Stan

Monster Jam

skrol wrote: »

Call me crazy but I am not sure the Haydns are going to work for me. It may just be lack of adequate amplification but they are VERY laid back.
Stan

That was my assessment after hearing the Viennas. I like a more forward (i.e. Bright) speaker, and the Vienna speakers were definitely NOT my cup of tea. They sounded like Boston Acoustic speakers to me.

While the LSi speakers may sound tame compared to the Polk RTi or Klipsch speakers, they are definitely not as "laid back" as Vienna speakers.

This is just my listening preferences; others may prefer this type of speaker.

mdaudioguy

Stan - I think an amp and some break-in time would do wonders. I had these on the same amp as the LSi7s and I prefer these. IMO, they require more than most receivers can give them. I never tried running either of these speakers off an AVR.

Ed

EDIT: I see your receiver is 4 ohm capable, but it still might not be enough.

skrol

Since these were a store demo pair, I may be falsely assuming that they have been broken in. I wouldn't think of running them off an AVR either. The DRA-835R is a husky 2-ch receiver from the early 90's. The specs indicate that it will drive 4 ohm but that may just mean that it won't smoke.

I actually have another issue that means that they will likely be going back to BB. My wife had given the OK (yes, we consult over purchases over $100) it was apparently in a moment where she really wanted me to get rid of the RTA11TLs. The Haydns were $729 at the time. They dropped the price further and I snagged them (much to the dismay of several sales guys there). When I brought out the Haydns to show her, she was instantly thrilled but did a 180 when I told her the price, in spite of approval at a higher price. Since then she has been asking me when I am going to return them. She also didn't like the laid back voicing and was even more put off when I suggested that I needed an amp to make them sound right.

On the plus side, I get to keep he RTA11TLs a while longer:biggrin: and I can say, "I tried to find a replacement but..."

mdaudioguy

Yeah, I did some follow-up on that receiver and it does seem at least adequate - at least as good as what I've used with them, which has been a Cambridge integrated (120w into 4 ohms) and an old Pioneer integrated (150w into 4 ohms). But, it sounds like they're history to you now anyhow... My guess is that if the little old lady thought they cost $200, she'd have found them much more pleasing to her ears!

skrol

Unfortunately, she would also find a B*s@ Wave system pleasing to her ears although that is $500. Aaah, it is so hard not to be understood.

skrol

The Haydn's went back to BB today. The salesperson was overjoyed. He had been watching them when they were $720 and I got them on his day off when they dropped to $499. He had me bring them to his register instead of customer service so he could handle the refund personally .

The Haydn's are truly nice speakers but I think he will enjoy them much more than I would. Besides, they had some minor issues. The one that had the scratches on top also had a woofer that was slightly scraping. I don't think I heard it while playing them, though I didn't drive them very hard, but if I pressed the cone evenly it would scrape. Even for $499, I didn't feel I could flip them with these issues.

Overall, I'm happy I got to try them and that I still have my RTA11TL's.
Stan