Been a while since I posted here but just thought I'd share my experience. I was able to go to CES this year with Mark Sayers, one of the owners of
Meniscus Audio. I actually got into building speakers thanks to you guys here
; one evening (years ago) I was searching for some info on a new Yamaha HT receiver I purchased, and while on the forum I saw the DIY section and it was all downhill from there for me (in a good way!). I used to be a custom cabinet builder, and I had been hugely into audio my whole life but never considered that I could build my own speakers. At this point I don't even know how many I've built anymore
.
So, while I very much enjoy building speakers, I also still very much love to listen to what's out there. There have been many arguments about which is better or which is cheaper... manufactured vs DIY speakers. I won't tap into that too much except to say I think it's kind of a silly argument, and the answer is incredibly subjective and could only be answered on an individual basis. I've heard DIY speakers that blew my audible senses away with acoustic nirvana, and I've heard manufactured speakers do the same. I've also heard terrible speakers from either end of that spectrum as well. I'm not sure if there's a limit here on pics, but I'll post the highlights from CES.
TAD Reference One, $78k; and the compact TAD CE1, $18k (these sound absolutely amazing and we got a demo from Andrew Jones himself)
My personal favorite. These weren't the absolute best to my ears, but pretty close and I love the design and look of MBL speakers, so sexy!! The MBL representative was incredible as well; when we entered the room he asked what we preferred to listen to, which was a nice change of pace from the smooth jazz or classical we'd been hearing for the better part of the day. I was able to hear Talking Heads Burning Down The House, Pink Floyd Money and Time, as well as Black Sabbath Iron Man at insane volumes and these gorgeous speakers took every inch of that abuse. The soundstage from these is the nothing short of amazing, and the depth and clarity is what you would expect from a pair of speakers that run $70k.
Radialstrahler MBL 101 E MK II...
Look at those curves!!!
My second favorite is the YG Acoustics Sonja. I can admit these sound a little better than the MBL, they offer that extra "ring" that tickles your spine. My only reason for going with the MBL (if I was ever able to go to fantasy land and actually could afford them) would be looks. Say what you want, but that's important IMO if you're grandstanding speakers this size.
We actually were able to hear these in YG's private room, doors closed, all alone with nothing but acoustic bliss filling my ears from Stevie Ray Vaughan. As far as sound quality and I are concerned, these are the best speakers I've ever heard in my life, hands down (and I've heard many). But, at $108k (I think??) I would hope so
. Sorry for the bad photo
Edit: Just thought I'd add... I'm pretty sure the Boulder amplifier on the floor is north of $40k too
Another shocker (closer to the realm of reality as far as price goes) was the Bryston Mini-T. These speakers are stand mount, IIRC they're 22" tall. The sound radiating from these was absolutely stunning and very full range for a more a more compact loudspeaker, I believe they're about $3500.
PSB Imagine T3. These are amazing, and if I wasn't building my own would probably be what I owned. Superb voicing in these, they broadcast everything I look for in a speaker, without manufacturing unwanted or over-pronounced acoustics. Close to perfection IMO. $7600
I have a lot of other pics as well if anyone is interested, but one I don't have that I wish I did is a pic of the ATC SCM40 speakers. These sounded incredible, but what stands out most to me is that when I first heard them, I wasn't a fan; they almost sounded too bright or maybe too forward. But after I listened for a while, I very much warmed up to them. Incredibly natural, realistic sounding speakers. The ATC reps were great guys as well, and another shocker for me was the difference in SQ between the active and the passive versions of those speakers. Both speakers were identical, except one was active crossover/amplifier and the other was passive crossover hooked to an amp with the same power. He flipped back and forth between the 2, and the active speaker's soundstage was immensely larger. The beauty of that is that it wasn't snake oil, ATC had nothing to gain from it because they were both ATC's speakers.
A lot of amps, $100k record players, $80k CD players, etc. All I'll say about those is the Dan D'Agostino was my personal favorite amplifier/preamp. Not only did they aid in broadcasting incredible sound, but I very much love steampunk and these have that feel to them, the designer is truly an artist. Sorry again for the blurry pics, they don't do these justice.
We were at CES for 4 days, and I spent almost everday in the Venetian where the home audio was. As I said earlier, I've been an audio nut since I was old enough to manage a volume knob. I need to thank Mark Sayers (Meniscus Audio) for allowing me the opportunity to hang out and see such an incredible event; Mark, you guys are truly awesome
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