PSB Stratus Gold i

hochpt21

Going to look at a pair this weekend. Seem to be very well reviewed. Looks like they are around 15 years old. Reviews say they are power hungry, but I think the Parasound hca 1500a would be ok to start.

Does anyone have experience with this model?

Thanks,
Paul

dromunds

My college roommate bought a pair new, not sure the iteration but he loves them.

pglbook

I have the original PSB Stratus speakers (precursor to the Stratus Bronze, Silver, and Gold models). They are great speakers. The Stratus Gold is the best of the Stratus series. The Stratus Gold is the preferred model, then the Stratus Gold i, but both are fantastic speakers (I cannot tell you the difference between the Gold and Gold i at present because I researched it years ago). They are not hard speakers to drive and the Parasound HCA 1500A amp will be a great match for them and will be plenty of power to drive them. I believe you will be very impressed with the Gold i. I love my PSB Stratus speakers and the Gold i speakers are a few steps above them so, if the price is right, I'd fully recommend getting them.

hochpt21

I'm driving 2.5 hours each way to audition them, so I really hope I like them

I want something slightly more forward/detailed than the Polk LS90's I currently have. Although, the 90's with the grilles off are much closer to what I was looking for. I considered getting new grill cloth, but didn't end up doing that, and I can't keep the grilles off.

The reviews on the PSB's seem mixed. Some saying they are incredibly detailed and some saying they are just warm and relaxed. By golly, if they are both wouldn't that be something LOL

hochpt21

The 10" woofer is also intriguing. I have a VERY large space to fill, so that was my main concern with the Parasound, but I think it will be fine.

FTGV

The Gold (i)is a very good sounding speaker following the NRC philosophy of design.Cosmetically the boxy look is not everyone's cup of tea but on the technical side are well engineered.

hochpt21

FTGV wrote: »

The Gold (i)is a very good sounding speaker following the NRC philosophy of design.Cosmetically the boxy look is not everyone's cup of tea but on the technical side are well engineered.

Cool, thank you. From the pics they are similar in size and appearance to the LS90's currently in my living room and they are both oak, so we should be good there.

I've agreed in principle on the purchase, so I hope they check out when I audition them.

Jhayman

I own a pr of Goldi's a very nice speaker and contrary to pglbook's post the Goldi's were made to correct the port chuffing of the Original Goldi, really the only difference was a larger bass port..
On that note I love my Goldi's I feed them with a McCormack DNA-500 more than enough for for them to dig in real low, Great Detail and midrange, using my gear.
I do not think I will ever sell mine..

hochpt21

Great to hear. Thanks for the feedback.

erniejade

If they sound anything like the imagine T2 or T3, I think you will like them.

pglbook

Jhayman wrote: »

I own a pr of Goldi's a very nice speaker and contrary to pglbook's post the Goldi's were made to correct the port chuffing of the Original Goldi, really the only difference was a larger bass port..
On that note I love my Goldi's I feed them with a McCormack DNA-500 more than enough for for them to dig in real low, Great Detail and midrange, using my gear.
I do not think I will ever sell mine..

pglbook

Jhayman, per my post, I had only stated that the Gold model is the preferred model according to all of the reviews I had read while researching the PSB Stratus series years ago prior to getting my PSB Stratus speakers. I stand by my comment.

Jhayman

No problem pglbook..
I did not mean any disrespect, I've always wanted the Originals way back in my 20's but could not afford them then but loved them..
Many many years later I was able to find a pr but noticed they now said Goldi so I started my research trying to find out why the name change, and read that the port was increased and I believe a small crossover adjustment..
But each to there own I love mine whether they are the Gold or Goldi..

FTGV

There were some minor cosmetic changes as well .rThe aluminum corner pieces are more rounded on the i version vs beveled.Top and bottom plates are a bit different.

Jhayman

Yes should have mentioned those changes as well! solid Oak Top too, I personally like the Goldi look better.

adb3da

I've not owned them but did come close to buying a pair several years ago. If I'm not mistaken the cabinets on the Goldi are slightly more narrow. I think this was a marketing thing to try to meet the trend in the HT market of the time.

hochpt21

Just got them home and hooked them up. I'm liking what I'm hearing. I'll give more impressions once I dial them in, but they may be my last speakers for quite some time.

Here's a hurried pic.

voltz

Wow Those do look sweet Paul! The wood trim just set's them off.

Been a PSB fan since I got some of there Bookies.

FTGV

Congrats.Hopefully they surpass your expectations.

hochpt21

They're a little bigger in person than I expected them to be, but they sound full at all volumes which is important to me.

Wife made a passing comment about the size which I turned into a dirty joke, so I think I'm in the clear. I think...

erniejade

Nice and congrats!!!

scottyboy76

I auditioned a pair years ago, they were very big, I agree.

So was the sound that came out of them, however the guy had lied about the cosmetic condition, a big chunk was off the top corner and part of the base trim was broken off.

After a 2 hour drive to Atlanta and seeing this I was none too happy about being lied to, and he would not take a dime off the price, so I bought some big boston acoustic towers from him that I eventually sold to TNHANDYMAN along with a matching center speaker, they sounded great, but nothing like the PSBs wish I had just handed him the 350 and swallowed my pride.

Many hours of enjoyment for you I hope.

dromunds

Congrats Paul! I think your wife will get used to the size issue after a little more time. Lol

hochpt21

scottyboy76 wrote: »

I auditioned a pair years ago, they were very big, I agree.

So was the sound that came out of them, however the guy had lied about the cosmetic condition, a big chunk was off the top corner and part of the base trim was broken off.

After a 2 hour drive to Atlanta and seeing this I was none too happy about being lied to, and he would not take a dime off the price, so I bought some big boston acoustic towers from him that I eventually sold to TNHANDYMAN along with a matching center speaker, they sounded great, but nothing like the PSBs wish I had just handed him the 350 and swallowed my pride.

Many hours of enjoyment for you I hope.

$350 wow, I wish you would have also I paid more than double that.

hochpt21

I planned to use the Parasound 1500 because a lot of the reviews said they need tons of power.

The Musical Fidelity is no slouch, but I thought the Parasound had more (although looking into the specs they are similar in WPC when rated at 4ohm. Parasound has 60 peak current, MF has 48)

So maybe the Parasound has a touch more power, but they sound really outstanding with the Musical Fidelity.

I may try them with the parasound, but then I have to hook up the dared and the wife doesn't like the way it looks in the living room.

So, I'll probably rock them with the current set up for awhile.

erniejade

The parasound might have a little more current but, the few musical fidelity pieces I have heard have a wonderful sound to them. I would also run the MF vs the 1500.

scottyboy76

hochpt21 wrote: »

scottyboy76 wrote: »

I auditioned a pair years ago, they were very big, I agree.

So was the sound that came out of them, however the guy had lied about the cosmetic condition, a big chunk was off the top corner and part of the base trim was broken off.

After a 2 hour drive to Atlanta and seeing this I was none too happy about being lied to, and he would not take a dime off the price, so I bought some big boston acoustic towers from him that I eventually sold to TNHANDYMAN along with a matching center speaker, they sounded great, but nothing like the PSBs wish I had just handed him the 350 and swallowed my pride.

Many hours of enjoyment for you I hope.

$350 wow, I wish you would have also I paid more than double that.

I know, I just hated handing money over after the guy flat out lyin to me and costing me 4 hours round trip time, wish I coulda swallowed my pride.

hochpt21

scottyboy76 wrote: »

hochpt21 wrote: »

scottyboy76 wrote: »

I auditioned a pair years ago, they were very big, I agree.

So was the sound that came out of them, however the guy had lied about the cosmetic condition, a big chunk was off the top corner and part of the base trim was broken off.

After a 2 hour drive to Atlanta and seeing this I was none too happy about being lied to, and he would not take a dime off the price, so I bought some big boston acoustic towers from him that I eventually sold to TNHANDYMAN along with a matching center speaker, they sounded great, but nothing like the PSBs wish I had just handed him the 350 and swallowed my pride.

Many hours of enjoyment for you I hope.

$350 wow, I wish you would have also I paid more than double that.

I know, I just hated handing money over after the guy flat out lyin to me and costing me 4 hours round trip time, wish I coulda swallowed my pride.

I hear you. That would have pi$$ed me of also.

I got lucky and the guy was a super nice audiophile who took good care of his gear. We listened and chatted for 45 minutes about a lot of different audio-related stuff. It was a very pleasant transaction.

Jhayman

Congrats they look in very nice shape.
I hope you enjoy yours as much as I do mine.

hochpt21

hochpt21