those speakers do look nice. I was hoping to just buy the tube amp. I don't need more speakers. The amp looks far better than one of those t-amps, which a completly different and I'm not even sure if they make those anymore anyway.
IMHO, if you plan to use with a sub, the 41-SE/B beryllium cone speakers have
obviously better sound quality than any $1000 speakers I have heard (and I auditioned several including PSB, Totem, and Paradigm). If these had come out about 4 months earlier, I would have found the sound I wanted without going to $2000+ speakers to get there.
The detail of the mid/bass driver beats out both, the Paradigm S-2's and Salk SongTowers. It is not quite as quick as the Focal Solo6's. I don't know if the beryllium is the source of this performance, as I have never heard an RBH 41-SE speaker (without beryllium), but the performance is there.
In the high frequencies, the 41-SE/B's soft dome tweeter beats out any soft dome I have ever heard. Not quite the extension of the Beryllium or ribbon tweeters in my other speakers, but much better and clearer than any other soft dome I have heard.
I'm not saying the 41-SE/B is better than the Paradigm S-2 or Salk ST, but it is closer to them than to the $1000 speakers I've listened to. But I am saying it is decisively superior to anything I listened to with a MSRP of $1000 or less.
If you can afford the $750 give them a shot, you'll never look back. I'd figure the amp, with warranty, is easily worth $200 (I sold mine used, without warranty, for $175 and it disappeared very quickly with people lining up in case the deal fell through). $550 for this pair of speakers is an opportunity not to pass up!
You've got to figure, with all of the speakers Gene has listened to, when he decides these are the speakers he wants to own, they are really good. I quote from his article to reinforce my statement about these soft-dome tweeters:
"The imagining characteristics and openness in the top end of the 41-SE/B’s really reminded me of my cherished Status Acoustics Decimo reference bookshelf speakers that retail for more than five times the price of these little gems."
As enthusiastic as I am about these speakers, they do have limitations.
1) Bass. They are bookshelf speakers with 4" drivers. They are accurate and do not seem to have any low end hump in the frequency response (which, if properly done, can provide a fuller/warmer sound). A subwoofer is in order, if you want full range. I use a MartinLogan Dynamo (the sealed model), Gene uses a Velodyne Mini-Vee, and Majorloser uses an EMP E10s.
2) Size. No matter how great the sound is, these are small speakers. I have a modest home and with the sub and a good solid state amp, they fill my largest room (21X27X12) with great sound. However, I just don't know how much farther you could push them. If you buy these and depending on what other speakers you have and how large your rooms are, you may end up with your best sound quality in your bedroom or office.
3) Appearance. These are about as "wall flower" as a speaker can get, there is absolutely nothing noteworthy about their appearance. They are neither ugly nor beautiful, just small with black oak sides, a black cloth grill, and shiny black laminate on the top and bottom. Personally, think it is kind of cool to have such potent sound coming from such a nondescript and inconspicuous package; but if you are into a system that impresses before you even turn it on, these speakers will not deliver.
Dman4383, if you can go the $750, you might consider losing your worst pair of speakers and shuffling them all around to make room for these.
Sorry for the "hard sell". I have no ties to EMP. If these speakers weren't so phenomenally good, I wouldn't bother. As is, I want to share!
