Need help choosing Brand/Towers

AcuDefTechGuy

AcuDefTechGuy

Audioholic Jedi
Yeah I don't put amps in my diy subs for sure. OTOH if done well it shouldn't be a particular issue. I think there is an external option?
I have not heard of any options on the Legacy speakers for Active External Amps.

But that why I recommend to bi-amp the dual 12” woofers using an external sub amp. It wouldn’t be 100% true active bi-amp because the internal XO is still there, but you get independent control of the dual 12” woofers with the sub amp - the sub amp volume will control how much bass is being output - independent of the midrange and tweeter.

This was the reason I was going to get a pair of the Focus SE for my HT room - to bi-amp those dual 12” woofers. But my wife decided to spend money on something else.
 
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P41NE

Junior Audioholic
Which one's you thinking?

Song3 Encore
Veracity HT3 ✔

I'd also ask Salk his Recommendation
I was thinking of the SS9.5 but do you think I'll be more than happy with the Song3 beats? I really wanted to go all out.
 
everettT

everettT

Audioholic Spartan
Will do bro! Can you DM that electric blue picture ?
Here is two blues, Ryan's look different IIRC.
ST-bluemaple-cu.jpg
ST-maple-electricblue-cu.jpg


You can explore finishes on the website as well. These are from the standard veneer section. Jim can do any finish you can think of. A while back I remember I guy got his wife to approve the purchase because he got Jim to do the finish from her Mercedes

 
ryanosaur

ryanosaur

Audioholic Overlord
Phil3-midnightbluemaple.small.jpg

These are a little darker than I think he usually does as electric blue... I had hoped to get darker still, but likely would have had to pay more for the extra time shooting dye. Super stoked with how these turned out!

This Veracity ST photo is what I fell in love with when I was shopping...

...well, that and a whole lot more, too, but... ;) this was my inspiration for going blue.
 
ryanosaur

ryanosaur

Audioholic Overlord
FWIW, the Song 3 BeATs or the Encores would be where I aim. The SS9.5 are stunning, though. I got to hear them at the CAS last year. Just don't know how much more you get up there than you would with either of the others featuring the Satori Be Tweet up top. The Encore uses the same Satori 9.5" woofer as the SS9.5, too.
Based on my experience, though, I think most of those speakers will sound more alike than not, only being distinguishable by very subtle elements. At more than double what I payed for the Phils, what I heard in the 9.5 could best be described as a distillation of my Phil 3s. All the qualities of Dennis Murphy's work was present, but the 9.5s were slightly more 'refined,' maybe.
 
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P41NE

Junior Audioholic
FWIW, the Song 3 BeATs or the Encores would be where I aim. The SS9.5 are stunning, though. I got to hear them at the CAS last year. Just don't know how much more you get up there than you would with either of the others featuring the Satori Be Tweet up top. The Encore uses the same Satori 9.5" woofer as the SS9.5, too.
Based on my experience, though, I think most of those speakers will sound more alike than not, only being distinguishable by very subtle elements. At more than double what I payed for the Phils, what I heard in the 9.5 could best be described as a distillation of my Phil 3s. All the qualities of Dennis Murphy's work was present, but the 9.5s were slightly more 'refined,' maybe.
So maybe start with the beats and upgrade to the 9.5 later ?.
 
P

P41NE

Junior Audioholic
FWIW, the Song 3 BeATs or the Encores would be where I aim. The SS9.5 are stunning, though. I got to hear them at the CAS last year. Just don't know how much more you get up there than you would with either of the others featuring the Satori Be Tweet up top. The Encore uses the same Satori 9.5" woofer as the SS9.5, too.
Based on my experience, though, I think most of those speakers will sound more alike than not, only being distinguishable by very subtle elements. At more than double what I payed for the Phils, what I heard in the 9.5 could best be described as a distillation of my Phil 3s. All the qualities of Dennis Murphy's work was present, but the 9.5s were slightly more 'refined,' maybe.
Which would be better if I ended up getting the pb16 ultra, with the SS8C Be center and SS6m monitors as my rear left and right. Should I get the Beats,encore or just say f*** it and save money and go for the 9.5? Trying to have a amazing 5.1 starting out. Then gonna upgrade to a 7.2 then 9.2 slowly.
 
everettT

everettT

Audioholic Spartan
Which would be better if I ended up getting the pb16 ultra, with the SS8C Be center and SS6m monitors as my rear left and right. Should I get the Beats,encore or just say f*** it and save money and go for the 9.5? Trying to have a amazing 5.1 starting out. Then gonna upgrade to a 7.2 then 9.2 slowly.
What type of music do you listen to?
 
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P41NE

Junior Audioholic
What type of music do you listen to?
Mostly rock,jazz,rap but all kinda and sorta buddy. Its gonna be a movie/music/game setup trying to make it sound the best possible. Not trying to have more bass than sq. I'm going for excellent soundstage, detail and such more than heavy sound.
 
everettT

everettT

Audioholic Spartan
Mostly rock,jazz,rap but all kinda and sorta buddy. Its gonna be a movie/music/game setup trying to make it sound the best possible. Not trying to have more bass than sq. I'm going for excellent soundstage, detail and such more than heavy sound.
The Atlantic Technology midrange would be my choice in whichever line you go with. The subs will handle the lowest notes so the BeAT and SS9.5 in those two lines.
 
Swerd

Swerd

Audioholic Warlord
FWIW, the Song 3 BeATs or the Encores would be where I aim. The SS9.5 are stunning, though. I got to hear them at the CAS last year. Just don't know how much more you get up there than you would with either of the others featuring the Satori Be Tweet up top. The Encore uses the same Satori 9.5" woofer as the SS9.5, too.
Based on my experience, though, I think most of those speakers will sound more alike than not, only being distinguishable by very subtle elements. At more than double what I payed for the Phils, what I heard in the 9.5 could best be described as a distillation of my Phil 3s. All the qualities of Dennis Murphy's work was present, but the 9.5s were slightly more 'refined,' maybe.
I agree with ryanosaur. Most Salk speakers share a common sound, a clear and natural sounding mid-range, with an overall neutral balance, not bass or treble heavy. What you get when you pay more is better performance at the very low and high ends of the audio spectrum. Better bass gets especially expensive as you go below about 30-35 Hz.

The SS9.5 and the Song3 Encore share the same woofer and have similar bass performance, as low as 25 Hz. The cabinets are different – the Encore cabinet is simpler to build and costs less.

Another major difference between the two is the SS9.5 has an open back chamber for the mid-range driver, and the Song3 mid-range chamber is closed. The stuffing in the open back chamber can be removed, added, or closed, as you wish. It changes the apparent 'depth' to mid-range sound. It allows the owner to vary the mid-range depth according to his room and speaker placement. That seems to matter for some audio junkies, especially for music in two channels. Of course, this costs more to build. If you want a sound system mainly for movies, it might be that it doesn't matter for you. That's why I think one of the Song3s would be good for you. You should definitely ask Jim Salk about all this.
Which would be better if I ended up getting the pb16 ultra, with the SS8C Be center and SS6m monitors as my rear left and right. Should I get the Beats,encore or just say f*** it and save money and go for the 9.5? Trying to have a amazing 5.1 starting out. Then gonna upgrade to a 7.2 then 9.2 slowly.
I'd go for the Song3 BeATs and a suitable Salk center channel speaker up front. For the center and rear channel speakers, I'd ask Jim Salk for what he recommends.

I would avoid using a center channel speaker that is a different brand than the front left & right speakers. Voices and dialog are important in the center channel. Just how the mid-range sounds will greatly affect how natural voices sound. If you buy Salk towers, stay with Salk for the center and rear speakers too.
 
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ryanosaur

ryanosaur

Audioholic Overlord
The best advise I can give, and which I always see in terms of "which Salk is right for me," is to reach out to Jim and discuss with him.
I can't convey the minima of degrees of difference, here.
Frankly, unless you just want to spend the most money, I think the BeAT might be the way to go.
Hell, with Subs in the mix, you don't need the speakers to reach super low unless you like listening in Pure Direct. The 33Hz of the BeAT would win again. If you want a very pure experience in Pure Direct, then go for that 9.5" Satori Woof in the SS or Encore.
(You can see the minutia in this, I hope. :) To be clear, just short of Pipe Organ, 25Hz is enough to clear the full keyboard of a piano, 33Hz will miss some of the lowest fundamentals there, but still be enough to cover Upright/Electric Bass.)
In terms of Centers and Surrounds, I've heard Jim may be working on some new gear to update and match his existing driver selections better.
Which again leads back to a conversation with Jim.
Beyond all that, keep in mind that the difference between the Encore and the 9.5 is not very much, for example. A different Mid, and some Passive Radiators. The BeAT uses a smaller version of the Satori Woofer. The sound quality here is not going to be significantly different, rather just degrees of subtlety.
 
M

mtrot

Senior Audioholic
Mostly rock,jazz,rap but all kinda and sorta buddy. Its gonna be a movie/music/game setup trying to make it sound the best possible. Not trying to have more bass than sq. I'm going for excellent soundstage, detail and such more than heavy sound.
I recently had a conversation with Jim Salk about the decision between the SS9.5 vs the SS8 for a mixed movies/music setup. He seemed to feel that the SS9.5 would be a better choice because of the Be tweeter of the SS9.5. It might be hard to find a set of SS8 with the Be tweeter. He also said that the SS9.5 was easier to drive because of the better and more efficient woofer they use. OTOH, some posters have told me that if you have ample amplification for the SS8, it should be hard for the SS9.5 to match the bass output of the SS8, but with subs involved in a multi-channel system that may not be as important to you. Jim did state that the manufacturer of the SS8 woofers had discontinued them, so it might be an issue if one of them ever failed. I did hear the SS9.5 at RMAF, and they sounded incredible on symphonic classical music.
DSC_0089 by MDTshots, on Flickr
 
P

P41NE

Junior Audioholic
The best advise I can give, and which I always see in terms of "which Salk is right for me," is to reach out to Jim and discuss with him.
I can't convey the minima of degrees of difference, here.
Frankly, unless you just want to spend the most money, I think the BeAT might be the way to go.
Hell, with Subs in the mix, you don't need the speakers to reach super low unless you like listening in Pure Direct. The 33Hz of the BeAT would win again. If you want a very pure experience in Pure Direct, then go for that 9.5" Satori Woof in the SS or Encore.
(You can see the minutia in this, I hope. :) To be clear, just short of Pipe Organ, 25Hz is enough to clear the full keyboard of a piano, 33Hz will miss some of the lowest fundamentals there, but still be enough to cover Upright/Electric Bass.)
In terms of Centers and Surrounds, I've heard Jim may be working on some new gear to update and match his existing driver selections better.
Which again leads back to a conversation with Jim.
Beyond all that, keep in mind that the difference between the Encore and the 9.5 is not very much, for example. A different Mid, and some Passive Radiators. The BeAT uses a smaller version of the Satori Woofer. The sound quality here is not going to be significantly different, rather just degrees of subtlety.
Thank you all. You have cleared alot up for me. I'll post some sick pictures and videos of the gear when I get it up and running may be a little bit but. I'll still do it. Love this forum peace.
 
mazersteven

mazersteven

Audioholic Warlord
Thank you all. You have cleared alot up for me. I'll post some sick pictures and videos of the gear when I get it up and running may be a little bit but. I'll still do it. Love this forum peace.
And just like that his Journey Ends. Audio Nirvana on the Horizon. :p
 
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