Looking for bookshelves with a "laid back" top end..

[hemiram]

I got a pair of SVS SBS-01 speakers yesterday to replace the crappy little Optimus 77's I was using (Inherited from my PC) for my front speakers. I hung them on the wall, and had a listen. Well, I thought the 77's were hot on the upper mid and high end, but the SBS-01's are way over the top. On music, with the treble flat, in 2Ch mode, they are almost painful. If I back the treble down to where the high end is tolerable, the midrange is affected and It sounds very bizzare. I took them into my really dead living room, and they are still too hot, for me anyway. I figured with the soft dome tweeters, they wouldn't be anything like this.

I'm pushing 50, and my hearing is way above normal for a guy my age (past 20K on the right side, 18K on the left), but nothing like it used to be. I used to hear watches ticking across a room, and would hear trains coming long before they arrived.


What, if any decent bookshelf speakers are out there that are known to have a softer high end, prefereably inexpensive ones?

 

[deftech]

Wow, thats a tough one. With your hearing what sounds smooth to others may sound harsh to you. I have onix x-ls from av123, they sound fine on the top, to me. You will probably have to listen to any recomended speakers and judge for yourself. Have you thought about using an equilizer?

 

[Nick250]

Six years back when I was shopping for new speakers the Boston Acoustics bookshelves (not the towers) seemed fairly laid back to me. I am certain there are many more. I would go out and start demoing if I were in your shoes. It took me about a month of demoing before settling on the Paradigm Studio 20s. For me the demoing process was 50/50 fun and being a pain in the butt.

Nick

 

[Tomorrow]

IMHO ACI speakers will give you that sweet, natural, and open topside without the glare or ear-whipping, tiring, piercing sound. They are quite gentlemanly and laid back...and beautiful. They aren't cheap, but they are a great value. Look at both the Protege V line and the more musical Sapphire XL. They come highly recommended.

 

[Gatorchong]

Have you tried going with a full range speaker? Take a look at omegaloudspeakers.com. You can often find these on Audiogon and I've read a lot of good things about them.

 

[hemiram]

Well, I have been listening to quite a few speakers and it seems like the ones I like at all are insanely expensive. Even some of the expensive ones sound horrible, even after I sat there and played with the tone or EQ for about an hour. I never heard any that really grabbed me that were small enough for the room (12'X12'), and most were insanely hard sounding. I heard one pair that was a bit too laid back, can't remember the brand even, but at $599 each, it wasn't going to happen. Besides, that place annoys the hell out of me.

I kind of figured that a lot of it was due to the store set ups, most of which are pretty sad, at best. I thought since I was able to tolerate the Optimus 77's, anything would sound better, and in a lot of ways they do. I toed them out, and raised them up above the TV to get them off axis, and it helped somewhat, but on music they really annoy me. On movies and TV, they aren't that bad, hot, but tolerable at least so far.

An EQ might help, and I have two old Sonex sheets in a box someplace, and maybe, if they havent fallen apart, I will put them behind the speakers and see what that does. I bet they are gone though, the other sheets I bought at the same time have basically disintegrated.

Just as a goof, I just took a couple of old black socks and put them in between the cabinet and the grills, like a blindfold over the tweeter. I may be on to something here. With the socks, I don't have to run so much treble cut, so the midrange sounds pretty decent. At normal volume, I can still understand dialog on the other side of the house without any problem, so the highs are still there in force. It actually sounds good, too good.

Well, thanks for the replies..

 

[annunaki]

PSB may have what you are after. They have always been just on the Darker side of neutral.

 

[Sheep]

How much do you want to spend?

These bad boys are the most laid back bookshelfes I've heard.

SheepStar

 

[silversurfer]

Really? the Energy Veritas 2.2i? I have heard the previous version, the 2.2, and though it was very well balanced...no rolled off highs. Maybe they made a change with the "i" versions.

 

[Sheep]

Really? the Energy Veritas 2.2i? I have heard the previous version, the 2.2, and though it was very well balanced...no rolled off highs. Maybe they made a change with the "i" versions.

They're not rolled off, but very laid back.

This is the Anechoic response graph for the 2.4i.

SheepStar

 

[silversurfer]

They're not rolled off, but very laid back.

SheepStar

Ahh....as in 1st row vs 5th row.

I don't remember that being the case either with the non "i" version. Could it have been the environment?

 

[Sheep]

Ahh....as in 1st row vs 5th row.

I don't remember that being the case either with the non "i" version. Could it have been the environment?

Doubt it. It was a carpeted show room at a local B&M store.

SheepStar

 

[hemiram]

There's an Energy dealer about 10 minutes from my house, I'll have to check them out. Right now, with the sock between the grills and tweeters, toeing them out and having the treble about 3 clicks down, they (SVS) arent bad. I was watching something yesterday morning, and walked out and went to the kitchen and, even though it wasn't set all that loud could understand the narrator perfectly over 100' away, around two corners, and could barely hear the birds chirping in the background. Voices sound very natural on them, outside the room anyway, much better than with any previous speakers (Mostly PC speakers) I have used in the same room.

I still want to find some Sonex or something to put up on the wall to try to deaden the room up, not that it's all that lively to start with.

 

[3db]

Whats your budget?

I got a pair of SVS SBS-01 speakers yesterday to replace the crappy little Optimus 77's I was using (Inherited from my PC) for my front speakers. I hung them on the wall, and had a listen. Well, I thought the 77's were hot on the upper mid and high end, but the SBS-01's are way over the top. On music, with the treble flat, in 2Ch mode, they are almost painful. If I back the treble down to where the high end is tolerable, the midrange is affected and It sounds very bizzare. I took them into my really dead living room, and they are still too hot, for me anyway. I figured with the soft dome tweeters, they wouldn't be anything like this.

I'm pushing 50, and my hearing is way above normal for a guy my age (past 20K on the right side, 18K on the left), but nothing like it used to be. I used to hear watches ticking across a room, and would hear trains coming long before they arrived.


What, if any decent bookshelf speakers are out there that are known to have a softer high end, prefereably inexpensive ones?

I highly recommend PSB if your hearing is still that good. Of all the big Canadian speaker manufacturers, PSB is noted for their warmer high end. I have a pair of towers and everythng in the highend is revealed but gently, not an in your face brightness. Depending on budget and the power behind your current amplifier/receiver, I would recommend;

http://www.psbspeakers.com/product.php?pId=15&sId=3

or

http://www.psbspeakers.com/product.php?pId=9&sId=2

I own the tower version of the top series and am very pleased with their perfromance.

 

[jcPanny]

Bookshelf options

The SVS speakers are noted as perfroming better for HT than for 2 channel music. The previously mention Onix X-LS speakers are a great budget option.

Also, keep in mind that the room can have a big impact on the highs of any speaker. Highly reflective sufaces like bare walls, windows, and wood floors cause reflections and make the high frequencies harsh like you describe.

 

[j_garcia]

GR Research A/V-1s or A/V-2s (see sig). Neutral, and quite laid back. Soft and smooth highs, yet with all the detail is there. Exceptional midrange is their forte.

 

[STRONGBADF1]

The Totems I've heard were laid back. Expensive and maybe some snakeoil but nice sounding.

SBF1

 

[silversurfer]

The Totems I've heard were laid back. Expensive and maybe some snakeoil but nice sounding.

SBF1

I have heard the Totem Rainmaker. A tad laid back...but very nice.

 

[hemiram]

The SVS speakers are noted as perfroming better for HT than for 2 channel music. The previously mention Onix X-LS speakers are a great budget option.

Also, keep in mind that the room can have a big impact on the highs of any speaker. Highly reflective sufaces like bare walls, windows, and wood floors cause reflections and make the high frequencies harsh like you describe.

I don't think the room is the big probem, as they were still too hot in my really dead living room. My old AR's are a tad too laid back in there, but when cranked up, still sound pretty good. Besides, the speakers I was using in the same room sounded a lot less intense when I hooked them back up. Sometimes I wish my hearing was as bad as most guys my age, I think I would love a lot of the speakers I've heard lately. I have a friend who has a huge high end loss, due to working around jet aircraft, and he would love the SVS speakers without any treble rolloff at all. His car stereos are painful to listen to.

At work, I use a cubicle where someone on day shift, and sometimes someone on second shift use it too. I set the phone volume on 2 or 3 MAX, but some of the 20 somethings working here will set it at 8 or 9, and I about jump out of my chair when I forget to check it before I put my ear next to the receiver! I can hear the quartz crystal humming in most watches if I put it up to my right ear too, and nobody else, except one 18 year old girl, could hear it. I have to admit though, my hearing sucks compared to what it was even 10 years ago. I have some problems understanding people talking in a noisy environment now, and before I didn't. The imbalance I have between my right and left ears annoys me too, everything really high pitched tends to be skewed right..

 

[dhoffack]

I would recommend either spendor S3E or the S3/5se. Both are extremely accurate and with smooth hi's and no loss of detail, but never fatiguing in the slightest.

If you want warm rolled off highs, without a doubt, vienna acoustic is the way to go.

Dan