Towers with dual 10" Woofers

AcuDefTechGuy

AcuDefTechGuy

Audioholic Jedi
Driver size isn’t everything. It’s the whole package (cabinets, drivers, XO, design) and implementation that counts.

Some cabinets alone (like the B&W 802/800, KEF Blade, etc.) cost more than most speaker systems combined.

Some drivers (like a single synthetic diamond tweeter) cost more than many speaker systems.

But cost doesn’t guarantee the best performance at the end of the day. There is a lot of diminishing return. How sweet is “sweet”? How smooth is “smooth”? How fast is “fast”? How warm is “warm”? How airy is “airy”? How chocolaty is “chocolaty”? :D

So for folks who just want a pair of towers with dual 10” woofers without additional subwoofers, what are their options? Street prices will vary, so let’s look at MSRP.


Dual 10" Woofer Towers:
  • Hansen Audio Emperor E $80,000
  • Focal Maestro Utopia Evo $50,000
  • Acoustic Zen Maestro $43,000
  • B&W 800D3 $30,000
  • Focus Audio Master II $27,000
  • Linkwitz Orion-4 $15,000
  • JBL S3900 $10,000
  • XTZ Divine Alpha $9,200 (7,800 euro)
  • Canton Reference 2.2 $8,100
  • RBH SX-T2N $8,000 (discontinued)
  • Legacy Audio Signature SE $7,800
  • Polk L800 $6,000
  • JTR 210RT $5,000 + Shipping
  • Klipsch RF-7-III $3,600

Dual 12" Woofer Towers:
  • Canton Vento Reference 1.2 $12,000
  • RBH SVT $9,572
  • Legacy Audio Focus SE $10,615
  • JTR 212RT $5,600 + Shipping

What other towers can you think of that have dual 10" or 12" woofers?
 
Last edited:
vader540is

vader540is

Full Audioholic
JTR 210RT have two 10inch drivers. Spend a lil more and get the 212RT it's the same price as the L800.
 
slipperybidness

slipperybidness

Audioholic Warlord
Driver size isn’t everything. It’s the whole package (cabinets, drivers, XO, design) and implementation that counts.

Some cabinets alone (like the B&W 802/800, KEF Blade, etc.) cost more than most speaker systems combined.

Some drivers (like a single synthetic diamond tweeter) cost more than many speaker systems.

But cost doesn’t guarantee the best performance at the end of the day. There is a lot of diminishing return. How sweet is “sweet”? How smooth is “smooth”? How fast is “fast”? How warm is “warm”? How airy is “airy”? How chocolaty is “chocolaty”? :D

So for folks who just want a pair of towers with dual 10” woofers without additional subwoofers, what are their options? Street prices will vary, so let’s look at MSRP.

Dual 10" Woofer Towers:
  • B&W 800D3 $30,000
  • XTZ Divine Alpha $9,200 (7,800 euro)
  • RBH SX-T2N $8,000 (discontinued)
  • Legacy Audio Signature SE $7,800
  • Polk L800 $6,000
  • Klipsch RF-7-III $3,600
Dual 12" Woofer Towers:
  • RBH SVT $9,572
  • Legacy Audio Focus SE $10,615


What other towers can you think of that have dual 10" or 12" woofers?
I tend to find for general public (i.e. not audioholics), the people that are looking for these 12" to 15" drivers in tower speakers are the people that are most familiar with the old designs from the likes of JBL etc, that used to have those big honking woofers.

I have a hard time getting these people to believe that you can have "better bass" with smaller drivers today as compared to the large drivers of yesteryear. Of course, by better bass I tend to be saying it is more linear, tighter, less boomy, and better controlled bass. It may not dig as deep, but "better" overall in my subjective opinion.

There are also some advantages to having several smaller drivers covering the bass vs. a large driver. On the other hand, there are different advantages to a single large driver.

So, what are your goals and your priorities? That's the real question to me.

I personally do like the large drivers, but don't really own any of that right now either.
 
M

Movie2099

Audioholic General
The Martin Logan Neolith has a 15" in the back and 12" in the front. It only costs $100k for the pair. What a steal!
 
afterlife2

afterlife2

Audioholic Warlord
RF-7-III Cause it’s the cheapest one that I could never ever offered.
 
slipperybidness

slipperybidness

Audioholic Warlord
The Martin Logan Neolith has a 15" in the back and 12" in the front. It only costs $100k for the pair. What a steal!
I heard these at RMAF several years back. They had them in one of the large conference rooms, and they still rocked with authority in a very large room.

I think the highlight of the show for me was the KEF Blade, but the ML is a sight to behold and hear.
 
K

Kleinst

Senior Audioholic
WOW! I would just love to hear some of these kinds of speakers in my house to compare to what I have. I have mid level speakers (some might call entry level) and they are good in my eyes. No idea how incremental the next level is. I passed on a deal that would have got me Klipsch RF7 iii and center for around $2,700 and kind of wish I'd taken that one as I hear great things (and I'm all home theater). But I wouldn't pass on a sub anyways even with the 10s in the RF7. Got to have the subs

In my main area where we watch most all our shows, I only have room for speakers that are about 9 inches wide so that limits my towers unfortunately.
 
M

Movie2099

Audioholic General
I heard these at RMAF several years back. They had them in one of the large conference rooms, and they still rocked with authority in a very large room.

I think the highlight of the show for me was the KEF Blade, but the ML is a sight to behold and hear.
I've heard the KEF Blades and B&W 800 D3's. I thought Blades sounded Ok. I don't think they were broken in yet. The BB that had them setup don't run them for a very long time. Just quick demo's. They had all $15k McIntosh mono amps hooked up to them. Now the B&W 800 D3's, they were on another level. Loved their sound. They too were hooked up to McIntosh Mono's. Those have been broken in for a while since they've had them out for well over a year and a half. If I had $30k burning a hole in my pocket I would purchase a pair immediately.
 
slipperybidness

slipperybidness

Audioholic Warlord
I've heard the KEF Blades and B&W 800 D3's. I thought Blades sounded Ok. I don't think they were broken in yet. The BB that had them setup don't run them for a very long time. Just quick demo's. They had all $15k McIntosh mono amps hooked up to them. Now the B&W 800 D3's, they were on another level. Loved their sound. They too were hooked up to McIntosh Mono's. Those have been broken in for a while since they've had them out for well over a year and a half. If I had $30k burning a hole in my pocket I would purchase a pair immediately.
Geez, if I worked there and had the opportunity to run some KEF Blades, that's all anybody in that entire store would be hearing! :) :) :)

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T

txbonds

Full Audioholic
The best 2 channel setup I ever heard in person in a store included a pair of large Wilson Watt Puppy speakers with a mixture of Audio Research and Conrad Johnson electronics. They were tube amps and preamps. Can't remember the store name, but it would have been in Houston, TX in the late 1990's.
 
T

txbonds

Full Audioholic
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