LSi9's VS. LSi15's?

LuSh

I started an earlier thread about replacing my LSi9 fronts with perhaps Totem or Dynaudio....I've had a few suggestions on Audiogon as well with regards to Dynaudio. But somebody also posted about replacing my amp, to a Passlabs X150, continue to use my source with the same speakers. I've only briefly compared the LSi15's to the 9's...realize that the system is in a smaller room... 12x14...Ideally I'd like to hear better kick drums when I'm listening to the likes of Nirvana, Radiohead, meticallica...and I'd like to hear better separation of cybmols in all forms of rock I listen too. Could somebody perhaps compare the LSi15's with the 9's and perhaps even Dynaudio Contour 1.3's? Could you please fill me in on what electronics you're using as well. Two channel is my only interest.

Also please realize that I can upgrade my integrated amp to a Simaudio i-5, Classe or Krell down the road.

Early B.

Ideally I'd like to hear better kick drums when I'm listening to the likes of Nirvana, Radiohead, meticallica...and I'd like to hear better separation of cybmols in all forms of rock I listen too.

If you really want to hear the closest sound to real instruments, consider tube gear. The speakers are a secondary consideration.

phuz

Originally posted by Zero
However, I just cant get used to the bass of the LSi-15 for stereo. I've yet to find any real way to get the utmost control over those drivers. No, Sim Audio, Plinius, Classe, wont do the trick. Krell? Perhaps a bit better, but at what cost?

Dude, I'd like to know what LSi15s you've been listening to.

I think the LSi15 bass is on point. I just don't get some of the current audiophile trends, such as low frequencies are bad or should not be heard. The lowest note on a bass guitar has a near full tone at 20hz, and some other classical instruments go even lower, naturally. Those things are meant to be heard, and felt.

Sorry bout the rant, I just had to comment. I remember a year or two ago when a lot of folks were saying the 15's didn't have enough bass. Frank even made a demo CD for the 15's and their bass capability to show that they had it in em. Now it's otherwise?

The 15's are a little fuller, more rich overall with the nearly full extension. That's all I can say bout em. If you want to go with current audiophile trends and a steep roll off at about 45-50hz, the 9 is eager to please. If you want a more true, full sound... the 15s have it.

Frank Z

I think he's been smokin' the Heathen Devil Weed.:rolleyes:

LSi15's bass is fantastic.

Phuz,
Still using the CD?

polkatese

In my experience, overall, I like my 15 more than my 9, on both HT and two-channel, even more so in two-channel application. Having said that, I think part of the issue is variation in recording quality. With great recording, the 15 kick ****. With hi-rez recordings, it is a wonderful experience. Having said that, I have to say pairing a 15 with a REL is the magic combo for me (for two channels). Sometimes I wonder if the trick of getting the most of your speaker lies with the electronics that goes with it, even more so than the quality of the speaker itself. Btw, I paired my 15 with a Krell 400xi.

pjdami

Bass from a speaker, like the LSi 15 is extremely room dependant I have found. In some of my setups in different rooms the 15s bass is much better defined and very articulate. In my living room, where they currently reside and are positioned along a wall where the speakers are on plane with a wall that extends out to my foyer at the entrance of my house, the bass is weaker and need augumentation of a separate sub. In the smaller rooms, the bass is more pronounced. Most of us (including me) are limited with speaker positioning and placement in rooms due to furniture and asthetic layout. This dramatically affects the bass output of a speaker and this can be objectively defined with bass test tone sweeps (nulls and humps are different).

I find the LSi 15s to be more musical for me than the LSi 9s. Clearer midrange and more details. Others may disagree but that is my firm opinion.

Lush, it is unfortunate that you live far away from me because I have most of the setups that you seek to explore. You are going to get a gazillion opinions on what to do with the advice you seek. You may like the LSi 15s and they may suit your needs just fine. You may like the Dynaudios too. It is best to demo in your system with the current placement that you have. I know, easier said than done but that is the reality of the situation.

As far as tube gear goes, my personal experience with tube gear (on a 60 watt Rogue 88 tube amp) on LSi's and the Dyn's has been less than thrilling. The LSi and Dyns like solid state amplification and the "red carpet" treatment with that. On my Spendors that is an entirely different story. Tubes and those speakers are like peanut butter and jelly.

SDAs with the new Polk tweeters and a tube pre with a good solid state amp, my CRS+ have huge soundstaging, voicing, bass detail and slam.

Lots of choices here but very listener, gear, and room dependant unfortunately.

Personally, with the gear and music that you listen to, I would be surprised if you didn't like the Dynaudios. I find that they play all gendres of music very well, including Jazz, rock, classical, etc. They are very "true" sounding and have a very nice soundstage that extends far beyond the speaker boundaries (not as much as SDA though).

Amazingly (to some), the SDA CRS+ do this very well too with the gear mating that I have. They are very adept at playing different styles of music.

scottnbnj

uhg, i feel like a flippin' hobo in this thread,.. with my carver receiver and ca 540d. anyway, raising my 9's up to the height of lsi25's (like, 34-36" stands) and harder treatments turned up the tonal balance a few notches in the direction you're looking for.

of course, my uh,box has no wall to wall padded carpet or sofa type furniture either, so that ~might~ give my 9's a bit of an air and impact advantage to work with too.

)

phuz

Originally posted by Frank Z
I think he's been smokin' the Heathen Devil Weed.:rolleyes:

LSi15's bass is fantastic.

Phuz,
Still using the CD?

Must be the tweed.

Frank I have to be honest and say I haven't even heard the CD on my LSis yet. My gear was all in storage at the time that you sent it out. I did listen to it in my truck at the time, and I dug it. However, it was a very fluid or dynamic time in my life... and shortly after I went overseas. I'm back now, and the CD is still in the case that was in my truck at the time. I will pull it out and listen to it when I have the chance.

Thanks for sending it, and I did enjoy it for a brief moment before I went overseas (it was quite a workout for the IDQ10v.2 sub in my truck) - I'll try to do a write up on it when I can play it through my 15s.


Zero: I could be wrong about the bass note. I did some research years ago that lead me to believe that a bass guitar partially makes frequencies at 20hz, and that a tempany (sp?) drum went even lower. The info I found could have been flawed or wrong, or it could have been related to a 5 or 6 sting bass. I don't remember. From my own experiences of playing with a subsonic filter at 30-40hz on a sub, I can say that in my opinion frequencies below the usual 40 or so hz standard are important to me.

You are correct sir. It is about preference and opinion, and just from personal experience I've had a hard time accepting a speaker that at least won't give a nice full response at 30hz, just because to me that is a "full sound." - And I do agree that an improperly setup sub will take away from the sound. I've always been of the idea that a sub should not be noticable. It should blend perfectly with the entire spectrum, which is a difficult task these days especially in 5.1 or higher channel systems. Hence my choice of the LSi15 for my main speakers. I really don't need a sub with them.

On that note (pun intended) - I'll leave ya'll with the Mythbusters In Search Of The Brown Note.

One of my favorite South Park episodes is about the brown note.

9hz at 120db. If that doesn't loosed your bowels, I don't know what will. heheheheheh

mantis

I owned Both the Lsi9's and Lsi15's . I sold the Lsi9's.

There nice sounding bookshelf speakers but there not as good as the Lsi15's. I find better clarity and smoother bass from the 15's.

The Lsi9's do kick **** untill you compare them side by side to the Lsi15's.

Dan

Kevinvb11

Not to be funny or anything but, isn't it a bit skewed to compare a floor staning model to a bookshelf model? Personally, I wouldn't compare bass notes of those without atleast adding a sub to the LSi9, just to make it fair. Maybe I missed something...

Kevin

jmierzur

Originally posted by mantis
There nice sounding bookshelf speakers but there not as good as the Lsi15's. I find better clarity and smoother bass from the 15's.

I agree with Dan; my 9's sounded 'clearer' when relieved of bass duties. Would not have kept them to this point if I did not use subs. Is this something you can test at home?

Originally posted by Zero
However, I just cant get used to the bass of the LSi-15 for stereo. I've yet to find any real way to get the utmost control over those drivers. No, Sim Audio, Plinius, Classe, wont do the trick. Krell? Perhaps a bit better, but at what cost?

You're kidding, right. I just upgraded to a Sim W-3 amp from Rotel, no other changes. The difference was night and day. The amp rules the speakers like a tyrant and sounds 100% better.

Also, my subs are 'tuned' to 16Hz to play everything on the recording. I prefer to listen (95% two-channel) full range to hear everything on the recording. It sounds more natural and realistic this way; like going to live performances of the local symphony orchestra.

Originally posted by Zero
If you want to step into truly good stereo sound - sell the LSi's and go SDA.

:rolleyes:


Lush, your Dynaudio post contained '… I Like the rich warm flavour of the LSi's but I lack dynamics in the mid band. If I could get more out of a kick drum when listening to rock and have better definition from cymbals without losing warmth …'.

Will book shelf speakers give you more from a kick drum. You may be expecting too much from them. I hate to keep saying this as it appears to fall on deaf ears, but do you need to review the acoustics of your room. Your system is capable of being very dynamic with precise imaging.

If planning on speaker changes, my choice would be to upgrade to something else instead of moving to the 15's.

Edit: wrong word in sentence - "deaf" for "deft"

jmierzur

Zero,

Thank you, I am completely happy with the Sim Audio amp.

Totem Acoustics make some great speakers. I was looking at them when I purchased the LSi series. I decided on the LSi series as, dollar for dollar, the LSi was a better purchase for my budget. I also liked the Totem series at that time because they used Dynaudio drivers in some of their speakers.

We do not have LSi dealers locally anymore so I can not listen to the 15’s at this time. I selected the 9’s as I was going to have powered subs in the system. I do not recall the quality of bass from the 15’s. My apologies for questioning your comments regarding the 15’s capabilities.

SDA? Yes, they were a good sounding series of speakers. I remember listening to the SDA SRS with a high power Carver amp. Very nice. But, I do not think it is the solution to get “truly good stereo sound”. I learned about, experimented with and demonstrated that the acoustical environment is just as important as the electronics for sound reproduction. But what do I know.

As well, my prior speakers where RT20p’s. I will assume you mean RT2000p’s. Yes, it was different listening to other speakers after these. For the better I might add.