Speaker Recommendation up to 70K

Best speaker for the new system ?

  • Wilson

  • Magico

  • Zellaton

  • Rockport

  • Tidal

  • Stenheim

  • Dynaudio

  • Focal

  • Vandersteen

  • Vivid


Results are only viewable after voting.

bryans

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Dec 26, 2017
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Hello,
I am new here and looking forward getting your opinions since i can't travel or audition any speaker. Local dealers only order upon 100% full purchase non-refundable and no trials. This goes as good as buying from anywhere worldwide, so i am not committed to buy from that dealer.

I'll get to the point and provide information for your reference.

Old systems:
- Focal Scala Utopia paired with a Devialet 250 integrated amp powered by Isotek conditioner on full audioquest cabling.
- My headphone setup was Streamer: Aurender N10, DAC/headamp: Chord Dave, Headphone: Audeze LCD-4 powered by Audioquest Tornado cables.

New System (269 sq ft treated room):
Streamer
: Taiko SGM Extreme,
DAC/Pre: CH Precision C1 paired with X1 power supply and T1 master clock (GPS option),
Power amp: CH Precision M1.1 (Stereo),
Cables: Argento Flow (XLR, Power cords and speaker cables) + Audioquest Diamond(Ethernet, Usb and BNC 75ohm),
Power Regenerator: PS Audio PowerPlant P20.
Speakers: to be decided (Zellaton, Magico, Wilson, Borresen, Kharma, Tidal or other suggestions)

I listen to Classical, Jazz, Funk and a bit of millennial albums if they were well mastered. So i would go for a lively sound, accurate, fast and dynamic.

I hope the information are useful. Please don't suggest to travel and listen, i cannot and that's a fact. Which is why i am posting online. I've made a poll with 3 votes max.

Have fun :)
One question I would like to ask, where did you purchase your Taiko and CH gear? Did you get them from a dealer? If so I would be shocked that given the amount of money you have spent, they wouldn't make some kind of arrangement for you. Is this the same local dealer you mentioned in your post?
 
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Bobvin

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I would suggest you include in your options Asyvox Tintoretto. I have just received my Alsyvox Botticelli (the next size up and which would be too large for your size room) with external crossover (bringing them to “X” designation, and which offers a nice future upgrade option for Tintoretto as well.) I’ve been listening as the speakers are running-in and I will say they’ve completely out-classed my prior Wilson Alexia. The Alsyvox are the real-deal—I have been completely stunned they go as deep as they do, with such control.

I have had the good fortune to visit Mike Lavigne and hear his spectacular system a couple times. A reference track for me that came from these visits is Stevie Ray Vaughn’s “Tin Pan Alley” which has a very deep almost growling bass foundation that Mike‘s system is able to resolve without flinching. My Wilson’s on the other hand couldn’t pull it off. There was a volume limit beyond which the bass just became a muddy mess (and I also have an engineered room). I feared my room wasn’t up to the task, not the speaker. The other night I played that track, loudly, with Botticelli X, and everything* I heard at Mike’s place was present. That a panel could do that (no subs) has me gobsmacked. Other genre’s are played equally well. In your price range the Alsyvox should definitely be on your radar. Spectacular speakers.

"...lively sound, accurate, fast and dynamic" is a very good list of adjectives to associate with the Alsyvox.

*This is of course an unqualified statement as Mike’s system is an all-out-assault and mine is currently not fully broken in with loaner amplifier and little in the way of optimization. That said, to hear what I heard in comparison to Mike’s rig makes me confident in my recommendation.
 
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Elliot G.

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Jul 22, 2010
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One question I would like to ask, where did you purchase your Taiko and CH gear? Did you get them from a dealer? If so I would be shocked that given the amount of money you have spent, they wouldn't make some kind of arrangement for you. Is this the same local dealer you mentioned in your post?
I would highly suggest you listen to the Göbel Divin Marquis Speakers. They sound incredible with CH Precision, that is what they are on display in my showroom and what I show them with at shows. We will be exhibiting at the CAPFEST in Early November and probably at the NY show in Dec if that is anywhere near where you are. My showroom is located in Florida not far from the Fort Lauderdale airport. I would be happy to show them to you if you are around.
 
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Tim F

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Jun 11, 2018
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Could you try and get to a hifi show just to get a simple demo (obviously not optimised). You may at least be able to shortlist.
 

Emerald

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Jul 13, 2017
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One question I would like to ask, where did you purchase your Taiko and CH gear? Did you get them from a dealer? If so I would be shocked that given the amount of money you have spent, they wouldn't make some kind of arrangement for you. Is this the same local dealer you mentioned in your post?
That’s an audio dealer owner I convinced to bring CH to my country (U.A.E). The best speakers he sells are Dynaudios Confidence line and I don’t think they are resolving to what I am feeding them. So I asked him to speak to Peter to ship Magico and he agreed. M2 was my final choice last month however after speaking with Peter he explained that M2 will go through an upgrade by 2022-2023.

Which is why I went back to sketching board and search for other speakers that are not in their end of life cycle. The same story with Wilson Alexia 2 :)
 

ashandger

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Jun 14, 2013
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May I suggest contacting CH Precision (e.g. Florian) as they will have tons of experience with various speakers being used with their products. I have found them to be most helpful. May I also suggest contacting Myles Astor about his thoughts on the Zellaton Plural Evo which he is now using in his system.....these replaced Magico S5 MKII. Best of luck with your shopping!
 
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Emerald

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Jul 13, 2017
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Someone named TechnicalPie who's pretty much gone to most shows mentioned that Zellaton is in another league than other high end brands such as Magico, Wilson and others in terms of refinement of sound.

I am currently considering Zellaton Stage or Plural Evo. The Zellaton Plural Evos that cost as much as Magico M2 sounds better than M6 itself as someone claimed. This is hard to believe and confusing. Did anyone compare ?

However very little is mentioned on the internet. Appreciate some feedback
 

Duke LeJeune

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Jul 22, 2013
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Emerald, if you haven't seen it yet, here is a video tour of the 2019 Munich show, which I believe was recorded by Bonzo. No Zellaton, unfortunately, but Vivid and Marten and Wilson and Goebbel and Kharma.

Edit: That should be "Bonzo75". Not that other Bonzo.
 
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bryans

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Dec 26, 2017
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Emerald, if you haven't seen it yet, here is a video tour of the 2019 Munich show, which I believe was recorded by Bonzo. No Zellaton, unfortunately, but Vivid and Marten and Wilson and Goebbel and Kharma.
Thanks for the link to the videos.
 

musicfirst1

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Zellatons are amazing, as are the Bayz and Lumen lines. At this level, its almost mandatory to hop a flight to hear some of the best though.
 
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Emerald

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Jul 13, 2017
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Great recommendations, thank you all.

@addictedtohifi
Is Dynaudio Confidence 60 even relevant to the speakers mentioned ? I heard the new range is more laid back like Sonus Faber.
 

andromedaaudio

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Great recommendations, thank you all.

@addictedtohifi
Is Dynaudio Confidence 60 even relevant to the speakers mentioned ? I heard the new range is more laid back like Sonus Faber.
It s best to hear these speakers for yourself ( their predecessors C4 C2 i heard on multiple occasions ) ( i have owned confidence series/ Avalon Classic ) in the past
Well designed speakers however i didnt think their membrane material was the most natural sounding , but they might use something else now .

Ps in your case (not many dealers) : why not buy second hand , buy reputable brands for a easy resell .
Its not like a Magico M pro is suddenly a bad speaker after 5-6 years if the brand is your thing

More bang (bandwith/ membrane surface ) for buck $$:)
 
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DasguteOhr

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From Mastermind Joachim Gerhard(Audiophysic) his own new Company.
one of best midrange i ever heard incridible good Speaker.

P.S at 2018 München my favorite speaker demonstration his little Speakers
 
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Emerald

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Jul 13, 2017
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It s best to hear these speakers for yourself ( their predecessors C4 C2 i heard on multiple occasions ) ( i have owned confidence series/ Avalon Classic ) in the past
Well designed speakers i dont think their membrane material was the most natural sounding , but they might use some thing else now .

Ps in your case (not many dealers) : why not buy second hand , buy reputable brands for a easy resell .
Its not like a Magico M pro is suddenly a bad speaker after 5-6 years if the brand is your thing

More bang (bandwith) for buck $$:)
That's risky shipping them insured or not, go through some users on audiogon they still haven't got their money back.

I had many opportunities in Europe and US , it's not a bad idea but I don't want to take the risk.

I'm out region , there is a Martin Mingus 20 used for sale , others are Bose and HT products.
 

andromedaaudio

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That's risky shipping them insured or not, go through some users on audiogon they still haven't got their money back.

I had many opportunities in Europe and US , it's not a bad idea but I don't want to take the risk.

I'm out region , there is a Martin Mingus 20 used for sale , others are Bose and HT products.
Then go to munchen next year in may , and decide after the show . :)

Oeps you said no travel , but with a single trip you can hear them all
 
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ecwl

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Mar 20, 2021
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That’s an audio dealer owner I convinced to bring CH to my country (U.A.E). The best speakers he sells are Dynaudios Confidence line and I don’t think they are resolving to what I am feeding them. So I asked him to speak to Peter to ship Magico and he agreed. M2 was my final choice last month however after speaking with Peter he explained that M2 will go through an upgrade by 2022-2023.

Which is why I went back to sketching board and search for other speakers that are not in their end of life cycle. The same story with Wilson Alexia 2 :)
First, I think speaker tech for some companies in particular are always advancing but I don’t think there is any harm in buying end of life cycle products for any of the brands you’re considering because they’re simply very high performing products.

Second, it’s funny how your dealer was told M2 is end of cycle whereas my dealer was told that the Magico S3/S5 Mk II are near end of cycle and that my dealer should stock A & M series products. I wonder if this is truly something Peter MacKay said or whether it’s just something dealers say to lure people like us into buying the products they want us to order. Because it’s almost end of 2021 and I’m still seeing lots of new S3 & S5 Mk II being sold and installed around the world.

The most important thing though is what others have said which is that at this high-end level, speaker sound is really a personal preference so to me, it’s less important to have “the best” speaker but to have heard the best speakers you can hear and then choose the one you actually want to buy. I tried to think based on your current speaker system of Focal Scala Utopia & your current headphones LCD-4 what speaker sound you’d like. The fact that you can drive your LCD-4 with DAVE without external amp suggests that you don’t listen to music super loud (like me). So of the brands I have listened to, I’m guessing it’ll probably be Focal, Magico M2, and Vivid speakers with the newest Focal speakers being closest to your current one and the Vivid speakers closest to your LCD-4 and Magico M2 somewhere in between.
 
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andromedaaudio

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I cant help but recommending a second hand speaker .
As i would personally never buy new
Its not like speaker design is rocket science where some mk2 model completely dwarfs the old one :)
These are for music lovers and can be had second hand for 30-40 K , as a speaker manufacturer i d have to say these make music and are special :cool:
 

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Addicted to hifi

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I cant help but recommending a second hand speaker .
As i would personally never buy new
Its not like speaker design is rocket science where some mk2 model completely dwarfs the old one :)
These are for music lovers and can be had second hand for 30-40 K , as a speaker manufacturer i d have to say these make music and are special :cool:
.I heard these at a hifi show and they sounded excellent.
 
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