I've actually demoed some speakers

[plasticpenguin]

Last week, due to downsizing, I had a junket to Richer Sounds in Guildford. Due to erratic stocks some brands they didn't have while others were fine.

So I took in the Leema & PMCs on a wet and grotty day. The two heard:

Monitor Audio Gold 100
Dali Rubicon 2

I won't go into boring detail, but I was disappointed by the Golds. That's quite a confession given I've always been a MA fanboy. They were okay but compared to the Rubis, the MAs weren't as natural or detailed. The Rubis just brought out the subtleties and were better balanced all-round. The Dalis are easier to live with.

Have a number of other speakers on my hit list, incl Amphion, ATC, Totem, Q Acoustics, Dynaudio and a few others.

 

[hifinutt]

look forward to how you get on. as you know big fan of the amphion. q acoustics have a lot of fans too

 

[plasticpenguin]

Will do

 

[plasticpenguin]

look forward to how you get on. as you know big fan of the amphion. q acoustics have a lot of fans too

Just a quick update. I've found a local ish dealer for Amphion Argon 1. He's currently on holiday but when he comes back next week, he is going to bring a pair up for me to demo.

Meantime.... later this week I'm going to demo some Metas, even though I'm not struck on their aesthetics.

I've had the TB2s so long I don't really know what sound I want until I hear it.

 

[hifinutt]

great . well currently using the argon one as left and right speakers but not sure if its overkill as the 607s2 were good there

heard them with the very capable norma 70b last week [which strangely found its way back for a demo !! ]

P1070857 by https://www.flickr.com/photos/158267783@N02/, on Flickr

 

[plasticpenguin]

Good stuff.
Booked an appt at Infidelity Hi-Fi on Thursday afternoon to demo Neat speakers. Like Dali, I've not heard Neat before. Read good things about them over the years.

 

[hifinutt]

often hear neat at the shows like the mf5 and always sound great

 

[Pedro2]

often hear neat at the shows like the mf5 and always sound great

Once owned a pair of Motiv2s and they were very engaging.
I believe their latest models are pulling in some praise from the reviewers - I read somewhere that they are tweaked carefully by ear more than measurements (although they probably measure well - no idea).
If I were looking for a pair of new passives, I’d definitely listen to Neat and Acoustic Energy.

 

[TheFlash]

Good stuff.
Booked an appt at Infidelity Hi-Fi on Thursday afternoon to demo Neat speakers. Like Dali, I've not heard Neat before. Read good things about them over the years.

I suppose it's quite a clever play on words for a hifi dealer: In Fidelity. Maybe it's just me, but Infidelity also seems incredibly apt, given the number of boxswappers they probably have through their doors!

 

[plasticpenguin]

I suppose it's quite a clever play on words for a hifi dealer: In Fidelity. Maybe it's just me, but Infidelity also seems incredibly apt, given the number of boxswappers they probably have through their doors!

I guess the name is just a play on words. I tend not to think too deeply when it comes to names.

 

[TheFlash]

I guess the name is just a play on words. I tend not to think too deeply when it comes to names.

That makes sense, @plasticpenguin !

Enjoy your auditions and do report back.

 

[DomT]

They are a good dealer and Carl knows his turntables.

 

[plasticpenguin]

That makes sense, @plasticpenguin !

Enjoy your auditions and do report back.

They are good guys. Purchased my first ClearAudio cart and my old Arcam CD73 from them.

Yup, I'll tell you my thoughts, good, bad or ugly.

 

[plasticpenguin]

They are a good dealer and Carl knows his turntables.

I'm not familiar with Carl. Derek used to be the turntable specialist there.

 

[plasticpenguin]

They are a good dealer and Carl knows his turntables.

Nopiano said he recommended to you the Iota Alphas. What was your impression of these quirky looking speakers?

 

[DomT]

Yes indeed and I bought a pair of Iota Alphas secondhand. I specifically bought them as we needed something a lot smaller than our Harbeth SHL5s but bigger sounding than our Harbeth P3ESRs They are amazing for their size. They put out a lot of bass and the tweeter is very clear and detailed but not fatiguing. They have a bit of a Proac sound. I compared them to some Regas and B&Ws etc and they were the best of the lot. Clearly speakers are a very personal choice but they are a great sounding physically discrete and easily portable speaker and was just what we wanted at the time.

 

[DomT]

I'm not familiar with Carl. Derek used to be the turntable specialist there.

Indeed. Derek was Obi Wan and Carl is young Luke. Carl has worked there for years initially under Derek but Derek became part time and also worked at KJ West One. Sad that he is no longer with us as he was extremely knowledgeable.

 

[TheFlash]

They are a good dealer and Carl knows his turntables.

Just to be clear, as they say… I wasn’t having a pop at the dealer, just amusing myself at the choice of name for the business.

 

[plasticpenguin]

Just to be clear, as they say… I wasn’t having a pop at the dealer, just amusing myself at the choice of name for the business.

Don't think anyone thought you were having a pop.
Clever name if you look at the definition of the word.

 

[plasticpenguin]

Indeed. Derek was Obi Wan and Carl is young Luke. Carl has worked there for years initially under Derek but Derek became part time and also worked at KJ West One. Sad that he is no longer with us as he was extremely knowledgeable.

Sorry to hear about Derek. He and I had a good rapport in the mid-late 2000s. Not only was he extremely knowledgeable but really helpful without being pushy.

I remember when he fitted the ClearAudio cart he inadvertently broke a wire on the Pro-ject. He called the Henley rep and they rewired the arm the next day.