Well respected speakers that you don't like

[mdkim]

A couple of others....

Paradigm S8's.....I find the tweeter very BRIGHT!

I had a pair of S8s for a few months. The reviews were great and they made a good impression on me at the dealer when I only listened for 15-20 minutes (forgive me I was a bit green back then). A bit forward but surely I could tame them with Mc and ARC.

Wrong. I wanted to love them so badly I'd continue to listen to them after my ears began to numb from the piercing. I actually thought I could condition my ears. Ha!! Anyways, they were not for me and gave me a real negative impression of metal tweeters for a while. Again, I know a few that still love them so you never know.

 

[MDP]

Michael, I agree !! That's why I steered clear of auditioning the Salon 2's for 2 years,I feared their metal drivers. Boy was I wrong, Revel knows what they're doing !!

 

[Glareskin]

I agree,except for the Duette,I thought it sounded very good. The Alexia is also a good speaker,once they went to the soft dome tweeter,their sound changed for the better!!

I love the Focal inverted titanium dome. I haven't heard a lot of Wilson's though....

Michael, I agree !! That's why I steered clear of auditioning the Salon 2's for 2 years,I feared their metal drivers. Boy was I wrong, Revel knows what they're doing !!

Mark, you've got me so interested in Revel. I have got to find a dealer here...

 

[Mike]

I love the Focal inverted titanium dome. I haven't heard a lot of Wilson's though....

Mark, you've got me so interested in Revel. I have got to find a dealer here...

I've owned the Salon 2's and Studio 2's. Despite their somewhat difficult sensitivity, put a ballsy (250 watt+) tube amp on either model and you're in heaven. A good Class A amp (Pass, Vitus) would also work wonders. I always thought that Biamping a Pass X series (on the bottom) with a Pass XA series on the mids/high would be phenomenal on the Salon 2's.

 

[highEndguy]

Paradigm looks like cheap speakers , for me

And Mike,
You are not longer my fiend
You put Canton on the black list. Hahahahhaha
Just kid , love you man

 

[joeinid]

Some speakers will come and go, but my Studio2 are here to stay. They sound superb with my Dartzeel, Job 225, CJ ART and almost anything in between. They do nothing wrong!

 

[MusicDirector]

Paradigm looks like cheap speakers , for me

And Mike,
You are not longer my fiend
You put Canton on the black list. Hahahahhaha
Just kid , love you man

The lower models of Paradigm also sound cheap in my opinion. The upper line (Studios on up) do sort of have a slight cheap look aspect to them except for the wood part and the drivers. However, I can attest that they are anything but cheap in price and sound. Never judge a speaker by it's looks. Judge it by it's build design and most important, it's sound.

 

[MusicDirector]

A couple of others....

Paradigm S8's.....I find the tweeter very BRIGHT!

Canton 1DC (Stereophile raved about it)....I thought my ears were going to bleed.

Good example. Half the people agree that the Paradigm Studios on up are very bright sounding to them and some of them claim them to be ear-bleed bright. The other half think they are the bee's knees. This shows that no two people will hear a speaker the same way. There are many factors that must be accounted for as well. For instance, some folks have slight tinnitus or some other condition that make them more sensitive to treble. Some folks are sensitive to certain frequencies across the spectrum, some are tone deaf, etc. When I first heard my Paradigms, I also thought they were just a tad too bright for my taste for a while, but they were new and not broken in. Once they started to break in they calmed down a bit, but that was just my experience. For others they just don't work. I have frequency sensitivity as well, for example, I can not handle 2 seconds of singing bowls, those things hurt me. I wish I knew the exact frequency of them.

 

[Glareskin]

Good example. Half the people agree that the Paradigm Studios on up are very bright sounding to them and some of them claim them to be ear-bleed bright. The other half think they are the bee's knees.

That is probably right. I will not lean left or right as I have never heard them. However I will state that I will never buy them no matter how good they are as I think they are ugly as hell! Sorry to be so explicit but man didn't they even try to make a nice looking speaker?

 

[joeinid]

I think the Paradigm speakers look kinda cool.

 

[MusicDirector]

That is probably right. I will not lean left or right as I have never heard them. However I will state that I will never buy them no matter how good they are as I think they are ugly as hell! Sorry to be so explicit but man didn't they even try to make a nice looking speaker?

Nothing wrong with having an opinion on looks. There are plenty of other high-end speakers that I think are real eye sores. I just try not to let my opinion color what I hear. I agree that I'm not keen on the bottom looks of the Paradigm cabinets as it does look like a BestBuy special. I don't know why they did that either because the wood and drivers I find to look quite nice. I wish they had not put the plastic looking grey stuff on them. For what they cost, they should not have done so. The saving grace is that it doesn't effect the sound. I agree they should have at least followed through on the wood cabinet or something that would at least accent nicely. FYI: I had a choice of 4 finishes and while I did not really want to, I had to go with Rosewood because it was the nicest look of all for that design. Shows the drivers off nicely when you take off the grills.

 

[highEndguy]

Good example. Half the people agree that the Paradigm Studios on up are very bright sounding to them and some of them claim them to be ear-bleed bright. The other half think they are the bee's knees. This shows that no two people will hear a speaker the same way. There are many factors that must be accounted for as well. For instance, some folks have slight tinnitus or some other condition that make them more sensitive to treble. Some folks are sensitive to certain frequencies across the spectrum, some are tone deaf, etc. When I first heard my Paradigms, I also thought they were just a tad too bright for my taste for a while, but they were new and not broken in. Once they started to break in they calmed down a bit, but that was just my experience. For others they just don't work. I have frequency sensitivity as well, for example, I can not handle 2 seconds of singing bowls, those things hurt me. I wish I knew the exact frequency of them.

True
+100%
But I just mention looks

 

[mdkim]

I was also quite fond of the looks.

 

[Glareskin]

Nothing wrong with having an opinion on looks. There are plenty of other high-end speakers that I think are real eye sores. I just try not to let my opinion color what I hear.

I know and you are correct but even if I would ignore looks and select Paradigm just from a sonic perspective my wife would definitely kick me out. I don't want to find my car like this:

She of course being a Paradigm loudspeaker...

it does look like a BestBuy special.

LOL, excactly my point.

I agree that I'm not keen on the bottom looks of the Paradigm cabinets as it does look like a BestBuy special. I don't know why they did that either because the wood and drivers I find to look quite nice.

While I don't think that is the only thing I can see that in black finish and without the bottom they look acceptable.

 

[iamhifi]

Once you are in the higher End arena there are a few speakers that I don't like their looks but I like how they sound example Wilson, some Kef, etc. Really up there they all sound good just need to do some careful matching and you will be in heaven as I am and forget the looks.

 

[Glareskin]

Once you are in the higher End arena there are a few speakers that I don't like their looks but I like how they sound example Wilson, some Kef, etc. Really up there they all sound good just need to do some careful matching and you will be in heaven as I am and forget the looks.

It is easy to say that you forget the looks if your speakers look as fabulous as yours :

 

[Mike]

Here is another.....I've heard these a couple of times and just don't get the fuss.

Vandersteen 5a.

 

[Glareskin]

And one more I don't dig so far: Dali.

 

[MusicDirector]

Hello everybody,

First let me state: this is about personal opinion.

I was in a discussion with Mike over speaker ratings and we both found some speakers with high respect that don't sound right to your own ears (or is it taste?). Especially with speakers it is hard to keep objective because we all have different ears and different musical taste. So I guess this is going to be an interesting thread. Let me kick off. For the following speakers I don't know why they get high ratings:

Dynaudio Statement

TAD Reference One

KEF Reference 207/2

So in order to prevent flame wars on the forum I want to state that I don't want to claim the speakers are not good but just are not appealing to my taste.
Let's have fun!
Hans

The KEF s here aren't bad looking. Don't know what they sound like though. I have heard the Dynaudio Statements though and to me they are just "meh". Just my personal hearing opinion though.

 

[MusicDirector]

Here's mine:

KEF Blades:

Rockport Aviors:

Rockport Altairs:

Magico Q5:

I have to agree as far as looks, they do nothing for me. I have not heard any of those though so I can't judge sound. I have suspicions though about speakers on the sides though, most I have heard sounded unbalanced and had loose Bass that was uncontrollable.