Decisions, decisions....

TroyD
TroyD Posts: 13,077
in Speakers
So, looks like the AR9 deal is going to fall through.......and the deal was, a guy messaged him before me, but said he couldn't come until this past Saturday. So, then he went incommunicado so the seller messaged me, I said I'd take them can pick them up Monday. Well, I guess at the 11th hour the other guy messaged him...some family issue...and that he couldn't make it until this coming Saturday. So, the seller messaged me and felt compelled to placate the other guy. So, it is what it is.

So, here is my conundrum. I've got a buyer for the Thiel's (which I've had for quite a few years now).....I've got a nice pair of B&W Matrix802's which are sentimental but I just can't get next to them. I really am not looking to plunk down the cash to repair the Quads and the Amazings need a ribbon which has it's own host of issues not the least of which is I get them repaired and I still have a ticking time bomb on my hands.

So, the AR9's are (and those who have been to PF 2009) a pretty good match for the Shane Mann Memorial Auditorium (my stereo room).....so, I can look for another pair and there are some out there but I'm balking at anything north of 1K if they aren't pretty darn pristine, refoamed and recapped.

NHT 3.3's and possibly 2.9's have my interest.....but they are more scarce than AR9's. There are a few Bozaks that I've been toying with but, I dunno, vintage is one thing but they scream Monkey Coffin.

So, I'm looking for suggestions.....I'd like a full range floor stander. Something capable of scale and dynamics.

Thoughts??
I plan for the future. - F1Nut
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Comments

  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 50,647
    How about the Acapella Sphaeron?
    ebyoasx8tq6a.jpg
    Political Correctness'.........defined

    "A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."

    President of Club Polk

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  • treitz3
    treitz3 Posts: 19,136
    Genesis Prime?

    1vqszbu56o7o.png

    Tom
    ~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~
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  • VR3
    VR3 Posts: 28,741
    There's a pair of Wilson Witt in Virginia
    - Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit.
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  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 25,560
    Legacy's are a good bet as well Troy.
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  • daddyjt
    daddyjt Posts: 2,547
    edited June 2020
    I can whole-heartedly endorse the NHT 2.9. Until last week, I was running a pair of NHT 2.5i. They sounded way better than they had any right to in just about any system configuration I put together. My regular speaker rotation consists of SRS 1.2 (modded), Kappa 9, and Legacy Focus 20/20. But I kept coming back to the NHT 2.5i. Even though they produce excellent bass, they could not quite keep up with the bigger speakers - especially the Legacys.

    While browsing CL a couple weeks ago, I spotted a nice looking pair of NHT 2.9 in Cameron MT (about an hour south of Bozeman, and about 5 hours north of me). I packed the family up and we made a mini vacation of going up and getting them. They were being sold by the original owner, a very nice couple that summer in their ~7,000sq’ house/mansion that sits on about 80 acres on the Madison River, and they winter in NC. Quite possibly the most stunning house I have ever been in.

    Anyway, got them home and hooked up, and been listening for about a week now. The sound is superb - liquid mids, delicate yet accurate highs, and tight controlled bass. The bass took a couple hours to get used to, as the 2.5i has a ported low end, utilizing an 8” woofer. The 2.9 uses a 10” in a sealed compartment. At first I was missing a little bit of the low end “slam” that the ported 8” had, but now I would not trade the accuracy of the sealed 10”.

    The 2.5i in my setup:
    ovfc0f5cns0r.jpeg

    The new 2.9 in place:
    q3zabffpbijm.jpeg


    Just my .02
    "Conservative Libertarians love the country, progressive leftists love the government." - Andrew Wilkow


    “Human beings are born with different capacities. If they are free, they are not equal. And if they are equal, they are not free.”
    ― Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

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  • TroyD
    TroyD Posts: 13,077
    F1nut wrote: »
    How about the Acapella Sphaeron?
    ebyoasx8tq6a.jpg

    Those remind me of the picture of RuSsMaN sent me when he had an infection on his ball bag....
    I plan for the future. - F1Nut
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  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,601
    Maybe something like this?

    https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/ele/d/portland-rare-angstrom-obbligato-v1/7136922475.html
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
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  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,601
    Here you go. Only 3000 miles away...

    https://portland.craigslist.org/clc/ele/d/oregon-city-ar-9-speakers/7121290157.html
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
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  • TroyD
    TroyD Posts: 13,077
    Wanna ship them to me? Lol
    I plan for the future. - F1Nut
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  • txcoastal1
    txcoastal1 Posts: 13,302
    So what’s your budget on ready to run speakers
    2-channel: Modwright KWI-200 Integrated, Dynaudio C1-II Signatures
    Desktop rig: LSi7, Polk 110sub, Dayens Ampino amp, W4S DAC/pre, Sonos, JRiver
    Gear on standby: Melody 101 tube pre, Unison Research Simply Italy Integrated
    Gone to new homes: (Matt Polk's)Threshold Stasis SA12e monoblocks, Pass XA30.5 amp, Usher MD2 speakers, Dynaudio C4 platinum speakers, Modwright LS100 (voltz), Simaudio 780D DAC

    erat interfectorem cesar et **** dictatorem dicere a
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  • audioluvr
    audioluvr Posts: 5,601
    TroyD wrote: »
    Wanna ship them to me? Lol

    Yikes! Can't imagine what that would cost! The dreadnought I sent you cost me $62! They'd have to be palletized and shipped freight.
    Gustard X26 Pro DAC
    Belles 21A Pre modded with Mundorf Supreme caps
    B&K M200 Sonata monoblocks refreshed and upgraded
    Polk SDA 1C's modded / 1000Va Dreadnaught
    Wireworld Silver Eclipse IC's and speaker cables
    Harman Kardon T65C w/Grado Gold. (Don't laugh. It sounds great!)

    There is about a 5% genetic difference between apes and men …but that difference is the difference between throwing your own poo when you are annoyed …and Einstein, Shakespeare and Miss January. by Dr. Sardonicus
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  • TroyD
    TroyD Posts: 13,077
    Damn man, I can’t let you eat the shipping on that!
    I plan for the future. - F1Nut
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  • TroyD
    TroyD Posts: 13,077
    Really, I’m of a couple minds here...

    One is the AR9. There are a couple pair that are within reasonable distance...

    Two, there is a NICE pair of one owner Bozak Concert Grands about 10 mins from here. Drawback being other than I’ve never heard them and they are at the outer edge of what I want to spend....is the are freakin HUGE. People I trust dig them BUT if I don’t like them, not like I can stick them in a closet.

    The NHT’s interest me but they are pretty rare...

    Who the heck knows
    I plan for the future. - F1Nut
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  • daddyjt
    daddyjt Posts: 2,547
    Where are you located? I may have a line on a guy selling 3.3 AND 2.9 NHTs...
    "Conservative Libertarians love the country, progressive leftists love the government." - Andrew Wilkow


    “Human beings are born with different capacities. If they are free, they are not equal. And if they are equal, they are not free.”
    ― Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

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  • txcoastal1
    txcoastal1 Posts: 13,302
    S Carolina ...Polkfest thread
    2-channel: Modwright KWI-200 Integrated, Dynaudio C1-II Signatures
    Desktop rig: LSi7, Polk 110sub, Dayens Ampino amp, W4S DAC/pre, Sonos, JRiver
    Gear on standby: Melody 101 tube pre, Unison Research Simply Italy Integrated
    Gone to new homes: (Matt Polk's)Threshold Stasis SA12e monoblocks, Pass XA30.5 amp, Usher MD2 speakers, Dynaudio C4 platinum speakers, Modwright LS100 (voltz), Simaudio 780D DAC

    erat interfectorem cesar et **** dictatorem dicere a
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  • TroyD
    TroyD Posts: 13,077
    Do tell....
    I plan for the future. - F1Nut
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