Urge to upgrade again - For the LAST TIME :)

[John Parks]

Would love to own the Utopia (was my top 3 or 4 speakers if I had the budget) but yes, I am trying to find a place to demo. Trying to find the Katana 3 to demo but I don't think I can find any places near Chicago that do.

Music Direct? Here are some other Chicago area dealers:

Store Locator

Focal Store Locator

store.focal.com

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

The funny thing is I have listed the ability to bi-wire or bi-amp as a con in some speakers that I have reviewed. It's far more likely to cause problems than help anything.

You ever "actively" or "partial-actively" bi-amp the woofers of a tower?

It turns the woofers into active subwoofers so you can control the bass level without using tone controls.

For example, let the mid/tweeter get the usual AVR/amp, but then send the LFE to a subwoofer amp then connect to the woofers.

Or send a 2nd L/R outputs (or Splitter) to a sub amp to power the woofers.

The RBH SX-8300 and SV-6500 (per Shane Rich) and NHT Classic Four (per NHT & S&V Magazine) have been bi-amped this way.

So If I had towers with dual 10" or 12" woofers that can be bi-amped, I would partial-active bi-amp.

 

[Verdinut]

I think it is funny that in What Hi-Fi's review, the "Against" column lists "No bi-wiring". Gee, do you think Focal, the designer of these fine speakers, just may know something y'all don't? Then again, I agree about the grills as my (hopefully outgoing) Choras have the same - they have to be oriented pretty much perfectly or they drop right to the ground! No a huge issue, though...

What Hi-Fi Reviews are not among the more reliable and someone shouldn't commit to buying stuff based on their opinion.

 

[Mikado463]

You have a nice size room, check these Logan's out ...........

 

[shadyJ]

You ever "actively" or "partial-actively" bi-amp the woofers of a tower?

It turns the woofers into active subwoofers so you can control the bass level without using tone controls.

For example, let the mid/tweeter get the usual AVR/amp, but then send the LFE to a subwoofer amp then connect to the woofers.

Or send a 2nd L/R outputs (or Splitter) to a sub amp to power the woofers.

The RBH SX-8300 and SV-6500 (per Shane Rich) and NHT Classic Four (per NHT & S&V Magazine) have been bi-amped this way.

So If I had towers with dual 10" or 12" woofers that can be bi-amped, I would partial-active bi-amp.

While you can do that, and there are advantages to that approach, there are also hazards. I would only do that if I felt sure the woofers could handle it. Given the excursion demands of deep bass, for most speakers deep bass is best left to dedicated subs.

 

[Beave]

What Hi-Fi Reviews are not among the more reliable and someone shouldn't commit to buying stuff based on their opinion.

That's the understatement of the year. The real statement is this: "What Hi Fi" is total garbage and should be ignored entirely.

 

[Cos]

Was able to demo the Paradigm Persona 5 yesterday, I have ruled those out. Great sounding speaker but felt the tweeter was a little harsh and the bass a bit on the boomy side and not as tight as I would have expected on a 17k Speaker.

While there are may Focal Dealers, non had the Kanta 3 as I spent a bit calling around. I also called accessories4less less about the pair they had for sale. Even if they are sold as Factory Refurbished, they could have been just demos and it's normal to expect a little cosmetic wear on the speakers, so even as good as a deal that it is, I can't pull the trigger. I still want to hear those speakers. I also did not like the Revels. So the search goes on LOL. At this price point I will take as much time as I need

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Was able to demo the Paradigm Persona 5 yesterday, I have ruled those out. Great sounding speaker but felt the tweeter was a little harsh and the bass a bit on the boomy side and not as tight as I would have expected on a 17k Speaker.

While there are may Focal Dealers, non had the Kanta 3 as I spent a bit calling around. I also called accessories4less less about the pair they had for sale. Even if they are sold as Factory Refurbished, they could have been just demos and it's normal to expect a little cosmetic wear on the speakers, so even as good as a deal that it is, I can't pull the trigger. I still want to hear those speakers. I also did not like the Revels. So the search goes on LOL. At this price point I will take as much time as I need

It wasn't the cabinet color you wanted anyway.

Which Revel speakers did you audition?

 

[shadyJ]

Was able to demo the Paradigm Persona 5 yesterday, I have ruled those out. Great sounding speaker but felt the tweeter was a little harsh and the bass a bit on the boomy side and not as tight as I would have expected on a 17k Speaker.

While there are may Focal Dealers, non had the Kanta 3 as I spent a bit calling around. I also called accessories4less less about the pair they had for sale. Even if they are sold as Factory Refurbished, they could have been just demos and it's normal to expect a little cosmetic wear on the speakers, so even as good as a deal that it is, I can't pull the trigger. I still want to hear those speakers. I also did not like the Revels. So the search goes on LOL. At this price point I will take as much time as I need

The upper treble on the Persona speakers is a bit hot, but the bass is probably a matter of room acoustics rather than the speaker itself. The placement of speakers in-room makes a huge difference in the bass sound.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

While you can do that, and there are advantages to that approach, there are also hazards. I would only do that if I felt sure the woofers could handle it. Given the excursion demands of deep bass, for most speakers deep bass is best left to dedicated subs.

Good point about the woofers handling - probably safer if the tower had dual 12", instead of dual 8" woofers.

 

[Cos]

Yep, did not like the cabinet color on the Kanta 3 at Accessories4Less
I auditioned Revel PerformaBe F228Be. Not the prettiest speaker, but sounded very good, just not enough to to make me want to upgrade.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Yep, did not like the cabinet color on the Kanta 3 at Accessories4Less
I auditioned Revel PerformaBe F228Be. Not the prettiest speaker, but sounded very good, just not enough to to make me want to upgrade.

Yeah, $10K/pr Revel speakers w/ 1” tweeter, 5” midrange, & dual 8” woofers doesn’t seem very impressive.

 

[Cos]

Yeah, $10K/pr Revel speakers w/ 1” tweeter, 5” midrange, & dual 8” woofers doesn’t seem very impressive.

I found this on Audiogon.com

Focal Sopra 2 - White For Sale | Audiogon

Focal Sopra 2 Full-Range for sale. Focal Sopra 2 in excellent condition. Speakers in highly desirable white with little sign of use. They have been...

www.audiogon.com

I emailed the person selling, they are three y ears old, but looks like they were well taken care of. Its a step above the Kanta 2/3. Its about a 3 1/2 hour drive if I wanted to pick them up and save on shipping + I can demo them first.

 

[John Parks]

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I found this on Audiogon.com

Focal Sopra 2 - White For Sale | Audiogon

Focal Sopra 2 Full-Range for sale. Focal Sopra 2 in excellent condition. Speakers in highly desirable white with little sign of use. They have been...

www.audiogon.com

I emailed the person selling, they are three y ears old, but looks like they were well taken care of. Its a step above the Kanta 2/3. Its about a 3 1/2 hour drive if I wanted to pick them up and save on shipping + I can demo them first.

1” tweeter, 6.5” mid, dual 7” woofers.

I don’t get why the lower model Kanta 3 has bigger dual 8” woofers, but the Sopra has smaller dual 7” woofers.

The Kanta is 50” tall vs 46” on Sopra.

I guess quality over quantity.

 

[Kvn_Walker]

Don't know if you're close enough to the seller to listen to these..

T+A Elektroakustik Criterion TCD110S Floor... For Sale | Audiogon

T+A Elektroakustik Criterion TCD110S Full-Range for sale. Selling my pair of T+A Criterion TCD 110S floor standing speakers and matching 510C cente...

www.audiogon.com

He even has the matching center. (I'm also jealous of that walnut finish since mine are matte black). I have to shamelessly plug these since I own a pair. It cured my upgradeitis because I probably won't ever be able to afford anything better!

The bass on these things has be heard to be believed... but it's the midrange that always takes my breath away. To me the highs were a bit hot (and I put a resistor inline per recommendations from T&A tech support), but I haven't had a very large room. House 2.0 will provide me with a 16x14 office space so I can finally sit back a little bit more. If I could change anything it would be to add a tweeter adjustment knob like a lot of speakers have.

 

[Cos]

I found this on Audiogon.com

Focal Sopra 2 - White For Sale | Audiogon

Focal Sopra 2 Full-Range for sale. Focal Sopra 2 in excellent condition. Speakers in highly desirable white with little sign of use. They have been...

www.audiogon.com

I emailed the person selling, they are three y ears old, but looks like they were well taken care of. Its a step above the Kanta 2/3

1” tweeter, 6.5” mid, dual 7” woofers.

I don’t get why the lower model Kanta 3 has bigger dual 8” woofers, but the Sopra has smaller dual 7” woofers.

The Kanta is 50” tall vs 46” on Sopra.

I guess quality over quantity.

From what I read the tweeter is essentially the same between the two, but the cone material of the mids and woofers is different. I have watched some comparison videos. Granted this is the Sopra 2, not the Sopra 3, which would have the bigger footprint. Everything I have read on the Sopra 3s suggest my room might be a tad on the small side for it at 18x25

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

From what I read the tweeter is essentially the same between the two, but the cone material of the mids and woofers is different. I have watched some comparison videos. Granted this is the Sopra 2, not the Sopra 3, which would have the bigger footprint. Everything I have read on the Sopra 3s suggest my room might be a tad on the small side for it at 18x25

I don't think an 18'x25' room is "small" for most speakers under 62" tall, unless the ceiling is only 8FT.

Tall Ceiling height can definitely make some speakers appear small, but short ceilings can make some speakers appear bigger.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

No used Revel Salon2, B&W 802D2, KEF Reference 207/2 towers near you?

Any local Legacy dealers near you?

Ever since @Gmoney talked about owning his "dream" Legacy towers a couple of years ago and Audioholics/Gene talked and interviewed Legacy Audio, I've been thinking on/off about the Legacy Focus SE towers (1" + 4" Tweeter, dual 7" Midrange, dual 12" Woofers). I wish it had dual 8" Midrange, though.

Only things I have against Legacy in general:

1. @Irvrobinson used to own Legacy Focus a long time ago, and he preferred the Salon2. But he did say this was a long time ago, and Legacy has made changes since then.

2. Legacy speakers' RF is mostly +/-3dB to 4dB like B&W, GoldenEar, DefTech, not +/-2dB to +/3dB like RBH, KEF, Revel, and Focal.

3. I think the Legacy Focus looks great from the FRONT view (like in that picture I posted), but it's still mainly a little bit boxy, not curvy like Salon2, B&W 802Ds, RBH SVT, older KEF Reference like the KEF 207/2 tower, and Focal, etc.

BTW, Gmoney also started a thread on 10K-20K systems:

What gear would you choose to put together with 10k or upt to 20k?

ADTG and I where having a Discussion on putting together a setup of a in home audio and video setup. That Discussion between the two of us went on for days closer to a week with cellphone texting back and foruth. He and I came up with a Foundation of a really good setup for around 10k. Even...

forums.audioholics.com

 

[Mikado463]

I don't think an 18'x25' room is "small" for most speakers under 62" tall, unless the ceiling is only 8FT.

Tall Ceiling height can definitely make some speakers appear small, but short ceilings can make some speakers appear bigger.

Agreed and if ceiling issues come into play there are plenty of acoustic treatment options out there.

IMO your width (18') is great, requiring less worry about first point of reflection issues as well.

As a very satisfied Revel owner (Studio2's), for what they can be had on the used market you should take a listen if available.