Perlisten Expands Reference Series Loudspeakers for a More Affordable THX Dominus Experience

S

shadyJ

Speaker of the House
Staff member
Perlisten Audio’s introduction made a big splash in the high-end AV world with their acclaimed Signature loudspeaker series. In our in-depth reviews of their S7t , D215s, and S4b speakers, they did everything right; they had looks, brains, and brawn. The only problem is that they were expensive and were priced out of reach for the majority of loudspeaker buyers. With that in mind, Perlisten decided to launch a more affordable loudspeaker line that kept the core technologies of the Signatures but used less exotic and therefore less expensive components. They called this line the “Reference” series, and they have recently expanded it so that almost every Signature product has a Reference series counterpart. The Reference series promises a large fraction of the same performance as the Signature series but at roughly half the cost. Read our preview article to learn about what Perlisten's Reference speakers may bring to the table...

READ: Perlisten Expands Reference Series Loudspeakers for a More Affordable THX Dominus Experience
 
XEagleDriver

XEagleDriver

Audioholic Chief
MSRP: $4,995 each - R7t, $3,495 - R5t each, $4,995 each - R5m, $2,995 each - R5c, $2,495 each - R4b, $1,995 each - R4s, $2,995 each - R5i, $2,495 each - R4i, $4,995 each - R212s, $3,995 each - R210s
First Impression: Gotta Have It!
With the "each" MSRPs listed above, you must live in some rarified air to conclude: "Gotta Have It". across a manufacturer's entire speaker line.

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H

Hetfield

Audioholic Samurai
Yeah I'm positive these are insanely awesome but affordable I would not describe them exactly. They are quite expensive.

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S

shadyJ

Speaker of the House
Staff member
Most people have a spare kidney that can bring in a few extra thousand, so getting these speakers shouldn't be that big of a deal, You can also sell segments of your liver as well as one of your lungs. I don't get what the big deal is!
 
H

Hetfield

Audioholic Samurai
I should say though affordable is different for everyone. There are people out there that think this is a bargain. I always have to keep that in mind but often forget. Again I'm sure they are absolutely fantastic.

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highfigh

highfigh

Seriously, I have no life.
Most people have a spare kidney that can bring in a few extra thousand, so getting these speakers shouldn't be that big of a deal, You can also sell segments of your liver as well as one of your lungs. I don't get what the big deal is!
I had big plans for that kidney! Thanks. Thanks a lot. :)
 
Eppie

Eppie

Audioholic Ninja
Some interesting options there as a pair of S4b bookshelves is only $1k more ($8k) than the R5t towers ($7k) yet the R5m monitors are $10k. I hope you get the R5t and R4b in for review as I'm curious what they have to offer at the lower price point.
 
ryanosaur

ryanosaur

Audioholic Overlord
Exciting to see. Cool preview. Definitely still too rich for many, but comparable in price for what I might consider an extravagant flagship tower that could be affordable to many without pushing the bounds of decency. :)

(We can discuss what's decent some other time... suffice it to say, this isn't 1% territory... but it's also not my territory, either. :p )
 
j_garcia

j_garcia

Audioholic Jedi
LOL, I wouldn't call them affordable either, but I do have to say they look pretty impressive and would love to hear them.
 
Eppie

Eppie

Audioholic Ninja
Exciting to see. Cool preview. Definitely still too rich for many, but comparable in price for what I might consider an extravagant flagship tower that could be affordable to many without pushing the bounds of decency. :)

(We can discuss what's decent some other time... suffice it to say, this isn't 1% territory... but it's also not my territory, either. :p )
Is it just me, or does that boundary inch its way up as you get older? I spent double on my current bookshelves compared to what I was expecting going into the store and didn't foresee an upgrade afterwards. Then last year started looking at BMRs, then Arendals, Paradigm Founders. Even looked at Focals and KEF Reference. The older I get, the more tempted I am to splurge on that final shot for audio Nirvana. Might be tough to find a place to audition Perlisten though.
 
ryanosaur

ryanosaur

Audioholic Overlord
Is it just me, or does that boundary inch its way up as you get older? I spent double on my current bookshelves compared to what I was expecting going into the store and didn't foresee an upgrade afterwards. Then last year started looking at BMRs, then Arendals, Paradigm Founders. Even looked at Focals and KEF Reference. The older I get, the more tempted I am to splurge on that final shot for audio Nirvana. Might be tough to find a place to audition Perlisten though.
That, and as prices for everything creep higher, it seems to justify spending an additional amount on getting what you used to be able to get below $5K per pair. ;)
 
j_garcia

j_garcia

Audioholic Jedi
BMRs are still on my radar too. I've heard them already and know they sound great. If the car wasn't so pricey to fix right now, I would have bought them already.
 
ryanosaur

ryanosaur

Audioholic Overlord
BMRs are still on my radar too. I've heard them already and know they sound great. If the car wasn't so pricey to fix right now, I would have bought them already.
C'mon... Dennis still has some Piano Black Towers waiting on a new owner... ready to ship! ;)
 
j_garcia

j_garcia

Audioholic Jedi
C'mon... Dennis still has some Piano Black Towers waiting on a new owner... ready to ship! ;)
Believe me, I would like to have the towers as well :) For what I spent on the car so far, I could have bought them.
 
Eppie

Eppie

Audioholic Ninja
C'mon... Dennis still has some Piano Black Towers waiting on a new owner... ready to ship! ;)
Band-Maid is playing at the Fillmore in DC in October. Might be a good opportunity to sneak a pair of towers back home. "Oh honey, I just happened to meet Dennis while I was down there...." :)
 
Pogre

Pogre

Audioholic Slumlord
Exciting to see. Cool preview. Definitely still too rich for many, but comparable in price for what I might consider an extravagant flagship tower that could be affordable to many without pushing the bounds of decency. :)
You're touching on something I'm wondering too. How does this budget-friendly, entry level Perlisten Reference line sound/perform compared to other companies' flagship speakers for ~the same price?
 
ryanosaur

ryanosaur

Audioholic Overlord
You're touching on something I'm wondering too. How does this budget-friendly, entry level Perlisten Reference line sound/perform compared to other companies' flagship speakers for ~the same price?
I think the THX Dominus rating says a lot:
High output at low distortion.

I think you will find many other offerings still won't come close to the possibilities these may offer.
 
Pogre

Pogre

Audioholic Slumlord
I think the THX Dominus rating says a lot:
High output at low distortion.

I think you will find many other offerings still won't come close to the possibilities these may offer.
Ah, yes. Good point. That Dominus certification alone is pretty big. I wasn't taking that into consideration at all.
 
Pogre

Pogre

Audioholic Slumlord
That Dominus certification alone is pretty big.
Provided that's what's important to any prospective buyers, but then they're not targeting average Joe either...

I'd like to check out an all Perlisten system sometime and get a taste of the Dominus experience.
 
H

Hetfield

Audioholic Samurai
Yeah I used to chase THX certified equipment until I got a THX processor and it was awful. I honestly don't care at all if that stamp is on anything.

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