What are the best speakers you've ever heard ?

[Audiophile666]

Regardless if you own them or not ?

 

[AMR / iFi audio]

Regardless if you own them or not ?

Oh, that might have been the TAD Compact Reference One with their system. Magic, pure Magic...

 

[christoph]

I think there is already a thread about that

 

[Argonaut]

I think there is already a thread about that

And that is one too many

 

[christoph]

And that is one too many

I think we both contributed there, iIrc

 

[Argonaut]

I think we both contributed there, iIrc

Twas but a jest my friend

 

[bonzo75]

Regardless if you own them or not ?

most of the ones listed on this thread will be pretty bad for suspending disbelief

 

[amadeus]

- Alsyvox Raffaello
- Cessaro Beethoven
- Rockport Arrakis

 

[AVphile]

Regardless if you own them or not ?

I wish that question could easily be answered. The problem is that the speakers interact with the pre/main amplifier(s), the source components, the room environment, the cabling and power, and the quality of the original recordings. If I play on my system an album from the 1960s which has been digitally recaptured, dynamically compressed, and impressed on a mediocre CD, a person could likely conclude that my speakers sound awful. If, however, I then on my system play an "18" dynamic range 24/192 CD, say the London Symphony recording of Scheherazade, I am confident that same person will say my speakers sound awesome.

Let's face it, putting together a great sounding system is an art as well as a science. I guess that is why being an audiophile is so much fun!

 

[hongkongfoufou]

I prefer my Magnepan 3.7i...LOL...I can't buy 20.7 because my room is not big, but just enough fory my Magnepan.

I like JBL Everest DD65000, the only JBL I like.
I like Wilson Audio Sasha 2 but not the others WA....
I like Vienna Acoustic The Music and the others...
I like the Trenner & Friedl ISIS and not the others..


That's all..

 

[audiopro92]

My speaker preference = accuracy is king

TAD Reference One MK1
TAD M1
TAD TSM-2201-LR
TAD TSM-300
ALPINE/LUXMAN S-102

The S-102's are very, very, impressive given their pint size footprint.
With a good amplifier, they sing - and sound more like large bookshelf speakers; not nearly floorstanders.

- DMK

 

[germinal]

This is ofcourse a very personal question.

I have listened to a lot of speakers and I like listening to most actually. I want to upgrade my speakers but I ve come to the conclusion that a demo in one’s own room is the only way to compare.

Maybe a better question would be : what are the best speakers for a certain budget ?

and related to this : Can brands like ATC, Harbeth, Tannoy, KLIPSCH, JBL, brands with a long legacy, still compete with all those new brands using exotic materials..

it seems they can, otherwise they wouldn’t be in business anymore

 

[hongkongfoufou]

Hello,

I can choose for you your future loudspeakers. I had Cabasse, Infinity.
I listened Tannoy (don't like), klipsh ( only 2 models I like), JBL (only one model I like)....I have now Magnepan.
I like Marten Audio Coltrane 3... but it's out of my budget....
It depends what you listen, what you prefer, what you listen: cd , vinyl, MP3 ?
The best is to listen in a good store.

Regards

 

[Sampajanna]

Tidal’s Flagship
Marten Mingus Orchesta

 

[Audiohertz2]

Best i have ever heard were all bespoke , so it would be best commercially available loudspeakers..

There in lies the difficulty

 

[Kjetil]

Yup. Bespoke. I haven’t heard “showroom” speakers that come close to bespoke. Of course these bespoke speakers are integrated with amps and dsp, and full range capable of 112 dB in the listening position so that there is adequate headroom for Mahler.

 

[Lagonda]

The best i have ever heard are Martin Logan Statement E2, but that does not mean much as i have not heard many of todays top contenders ! I am sure i would love MikeL' s 4 tower Evolution Acoustics system, Gryphon's Kodo and Pendragon, MBL X-treme, Aries Cerat Contendo, Avantgarde Trio with bass horns if set up in the proper room with complimentary equipment !

 

[Mcsnare]

Acora Acoustics VRC.

 

[Wavetouch]

I like my speaker sound.

 

[Hear Here]

What are the best speakers you've ever heard ?​

Possibly not the "best", but certainly the most impressive speakers I'd heard until that time was at CES in the early 1980s.

Big, beautiful speakers built by "The Kind Horn Company" were delivering astonishing sounds and the room was always full. I suspect their price was such that the number of buyers was insufficient to keep the business going and I've never heard of them since.

A Google search draws a blank, apart from a Patent the designers took out in 1981 - https://patents.justia.com/assignee/the-kind-horn-company.

I picked up a flyer that featured a photo in a very Japanese setting, but I was under the impression they were more likely of US origin, particularly as the patent holders are Spencer Frazer and Steven P Soibelman - both American as far as I can establish.

If anyone else heard these speakers, or knows anything more about them or the company, please get in touch.