Where to go speaker wise from here?

[AJSki2fly]

Just had a read through a recent thread on AOS about buying floor standers and it struck a chord with me, certainly at present anyway.

I currently have a lovely pair of Impulse H2's, a lovely design of horn loaded speaker from the early 90's. Not perfect but they give a lovely musical rendition. However they are a reasonable size! 1200mm * 300mm *500m, quite a big footprint, certainly in a modern average house lounge, and even I have to admit they can be a bit dominating. So here's the rub, recently I have heard those magic words, "How long are you going to keep those speakers for?", and "There must be smaller ones that sound as good" so we get where this is going. So far I have resisted these utterances, but I suspect the mutterings will gradually increase to the point of frustration.

So where do I go to from here? I used to own a pair of Dali Ikon 6, very nice but not as accurate or as musical IMO, but acceptable in size terms. Mid reasonable sized range floor standers will be accepted. The ARC's I own are lovely, very accurate and produce some wonderful low-mid to top, and even the bass is not bad, but the low end bass is as you would expect from a stand mount gets as low as it can around 50-55hz and then its gone.

So I am open to suggestions? I have some thoughts but I am certainly not up to date with speakers produced over the last 15 years, and there is so many to choose from it is bewildering.

[walpurgis]

Have you looked at the Frugel Horns? They tend to be more compact in size and quite a few members use them I believe.

[Scooby]

I’d say Impulse H6 might fit the bill. Not as good as H2 but still very nice

[The Alchemist]

Have you considered IPL tranmission lines? Unfortunatley Ivan Leslie lives on the other side of the Devon coast but have a look at his website, www.iplacoustics.co.uk and go and have a listen if anything takes your fancy. I will readily admit that I am biased because I make his speakers as a hobby but I am certain that one of his floorstanders would fit the bill for you. Don't take my word for it. If you do a bit of research you will find a lot of good things about them. (Quite a lot on this forum!). I am confident that if you hear them you will be amazed at how good they sound. Send me a PM if you want a chat.
Richard.

[AJSki2fly]

I’d say Impulse H6 might fit the bill. Not as good as H2 but still very nice

I think H6's might be a disappointment to me, having read a few reviews on them. Thanks.

[AJSki2fly]

Have you considered IPL tranmission lines? Unfortunatley Ivan Leslie lives on the other side of the Devon coast but have a look at his website, www.iplacoustics.co.uk and go and have a listen if anything takes your fancy. I will readily admit that I am biased because I make his speakers as a hobby but I am certain that one of his floorstanders would fit the bill for you. Don't take my word for it. If you do a bit of research you will find a lot of good things about them. (Quite a lot on this forum!). I am confident that if you hear them you will be amazed at how good they sound. Send me a PM if you want a chat.
Richard.

I had not considered them I think someone on AOS built a pair on recently, was it you? I had not considered them because woodworking is not my best forté. Do you have or know where I can see specs/measurements for them? Its not too far for me to go and have a listen, I'd probably take my amps and CD player along so I can get a real a feel as possible, room is always difficult unless its at home. Thanks

[Svend N]

Adrian, a few questions... What kind of sound character are you seeking? Similar to your Impulse, or something altogether different? What is your budget?

Have you considered integrating a subwoofer in with your ARCs? Seems like you are keen on their sound, excepting the lack of bass extension. From some recent threads here on subs, with a well-chosen unit and careful tuning and setup, it appears that it is possible to get natural sound out of a sub without ruining the sound of the main speakers.

As a general comment, I have been auditioning quite a number of speakers recently, and am appalled at the poor sound quality of the great majority of them, even very expensive ones. Faults that are most obvious and common are a very forward, in-your-face aggressive sound; a metallic sheen that is annoying and fatigueing; poor imaging and sound stage; and recessed or over-accentuated parts of the frequency band, usually audible as a hump or dip somewhere in the midrange. It will be a challenge to find something to replace your H2s.

That said, there are the odd good ones out there. E.g. I heard a pair of Proac floor standers a couple of months ago that really impressed me...nice warmth, natural sounding, quick and agile. The Neat Iota Explorer sounded very good also, but seem to be sensitive to setup and the quality of the source components....that tweeter can sound like breaking glass if things aren't just right. They have a small listening sweet spot too....wonderful if you're in it, but kind of ho-hum sound if you're just two feet out.

Have fun in the search!

Best,
Svend

[The Alchemist]

All the specs are on Ivans's website. He is a super guy and will be happy to demo his speakers with your kit I'm sure. I will be very surprised if you are not impressed. If you like them but don't have the building skills I would be happy to build for you for a very modest fee! Since I am now retired it is what I do as a hobby. You will find a link to my (very modest) website by visiting IPL acoustics.

[Scooby]

I think H6's might be a disappointment to me, having read a few reviews on them. Thanks.

I’ve only ever seen good reviews of H6. H7 on the other hand, are more Marmite.

[AJSki2fly]

Adrian, a few questions... What kind of sound character are you seeking? Similar to your Impulse, or something altogether different? What is your budget?

Have you considered integrating a subwoofer in with your ARCs? Seems like you are keen on their sound, excepting the lack of bass extension. From some recent threads here on subs, with a well-chosen unit and careful tuning and setup, it appears that it is possible to get natural sound out of a sub without ruining the sound of the main speakers.

As a general comment, I have been auditioning quite a number of speakers recently, and am appalled at the poor sound quality of the great majority of them, even very expensive ones. Faults that are most obvious and common are a very forward, in-your-face aggressive sound; a metallic sheen that is annoying and fatigueing; poor imaging and sound stage; and recessed or over-accentuated parts of the frequency band, usually audible as a hump or dip somewhere in the midrange. It will be a challenge to find something to replace your H2s.

That said, there are the odd good ones out there. E.g. I heard a pair of Proac floor standers a couple of months ago that really impressed me...nice warmth, natural sounding, quick and agile. The Neat Iota Explorer sounded very good also, but seem to be sensitive to setup and the quality of the source components....that tweeter can sound like breaking glass if things aren't just right. They have a small listening sweet spot too....wonderful if you're in it, but kind of ho-hum sound if you're just two feet out.

Have fun in the search!

Best,
Svend

Svend that is a very good point, why did I not think of using a tuned sub:doh: with the ARC's, but then again I know absolutely dilly about them accept what they do. I actually do have a Mission sub from an old Mission sound system so I could try it and see how it basically sounds. What has always confused me about using subs in a stereo set up is if one is ok or if in fact you really need two two, or perhaps it doesn't really matter below say 120hz.

Apart from the issue with the project manager and the size of the H2's, I actually think the ARC;s are better and more accurate high mid upwards, this is apparent in the clarity of say a trumpet, violin, or a female soprano. This does not mean that the H2's are bad, far from it they are extremely difficult to better without spending vast amounts of cash, and this is reflected by reviews by press and owners. Both the ARC's and H2's have very similar soundstage, everything is well placed, nothing is forward or as you say over emphasised, at least IMO. Some people might consider the presentation a little laid back with certain music but I think that maybe because they are so used to listening to speakers that are what I would call pushy or aggressive.

I possibly have the opportunity to try/buy from a friend a pair of VIENNA ACOUSTICS BEETHOVEN BABY GRAND SE, these would meet the size constraints of the boss, and they may very well meet my acoustic expectations. All the reviews I have read of them are positive. The Proac's you mention I have read that they can be good, the Neat Iota Explorers I think will be stretching my budget unless I buy secondhand or sell the ARC's as well, which I am loath to do.

I will have a play with the Mission sub and the ARC's to see what I think of that possibility.

[Stryder5]

Don't be put off if the Mission sub doesn't help, as you are aware there are subs and there are subs.....think REL perhaps?

[Pharos]

I really think that you should go for second hand because the value/pound is much greater. I have bought many over the years and never had a problem with any, and this is largely because, and think of most on this forum, they value and treasure their equipment, and look after it.

You probably for a given amount of cash, could go well up the range and also know that they are well tested.
Of course listening is a separate issue, but after you decide, look for a pair and check out the condition, as well as the character of the seller, and there are a lot of speakers to consider.

[AJSki2fly]

I really think that you should go for second hand because the value/pound is much greater. I have bought many over the years and never had a problem with any, and this is largely because, and think of most on this forum, they value and treasure their equipment, and look after it.

You probably for a given amount of cash, could go well up the range and also know that they are well tested.
Of course listening is a separate issue, but after you decide, look for a pair and check out the condition, as well as the character of the seller, and there are a lot of speakers to consider.

Yes I tend to agree with you, previously used well cared for generally gives VFM, sometime ex-demo is good too if sufficient discount. I am going to have a play with my sub initially in conjunction with my ARC's and see if that road is a possibility. If not then it will hunt down a suitable floor stander, possibly 2nd hand KEF Ref 3.2 which I know, or maybe Proac 2.5's which are highly rated. I will also try my friends Vienna's. The rest of my system is pretty good and neutral so it should just be a matter of finder a speaker that suits me and the room. Thanks for the advice.

[southall-1998_mk2]

Any decent hifi shops in Seaton, Adrian?

S.

[AJSki2fly]

Any decent hifi shops in Seaton, Adrian?

S.

:lol::lol::lol:

[southall-1998_mk2]

:lol::lol::lol:

Can say the same for Torquay.

S.

[Svend N]

+1 for the KEFs! I have a pair in my system now, on loan from my Father in law, and I really like them. Very impressive indeed. So much so that he may not get them back :). My impression is they need a warm to neutral system, and a power amp with lots of Oomph. They are accurate and revealing...very clean and uncoloured.

Correction:. I have the Reference 103.2...not the 3.2...my mistake. Still, the 103.2 are great speakers :)

[Pharos]

Not sure there are many decent Hi-Fi shops at all now, certainly compared with 25 years ago, largely because music has lost its primacy both as a creative force, and as a public interest.

[Barry]

Not sure there are many decent Hi-Fi shops at all now, certainly compared with 25 years ago, largely because music has lost its primacy both as a creative force, and as a public interest.

Would agree with much of that. Some of the more famous ones appear to be staffed by people who seem to have never attended a live concert.

But I think the demise is largely due to customers getting advice and auditioning gear for free, and then going off and ordering on-line. :doh:

[Yomanze]

There is a pair of Royd RR2s on Pinkfish, which don’t come up often. However, I think you should instead get Paul at RFC to fettle your Impulses, crossover rebuild and stick with them. :)

[Pigmy Pony]

Not sure there are many decent Hi-Fi shops at all now, certainly compared with 25 years ago, largely because music has lost its primacy both as a creative force, and as a public interest.

I believe the replay of music is pretty much as popular as it's always been, it's the replay methods that have changed. And absolute sound quality isn't a priority anymore - most modern chart music is produced to sound fine on a smartphone, but barely any better on a ten grand system.

[AJSki2fly]

Can say the same for Torquay.

S.

There are only 2 (3) hifi shops nearby in Exeter as far as I know. Gulliford Hi-Fi, I went in there once looking for a CD player to replace the Meridian I had foolishly sold, they were so complacent and uninterested(rude) I just left. Then there is Sevenoaks which I have yet to visit, but have the impression its more about modern Cinema based systems, The 3rd I refer is the HiFi Emporium basically a 2nd hand hifi and record shop, sadly is in the process of closing as the owner is moving to Brighton, he used to sell a lot of mid range hifi and often got in some good gear. I purchased quite a number of LP's from his at reasonable prices and usually in at least VG+ condition.

Oh there is a 4th, Richer Sounds, they are actually quite helpful and one or two of the staff are quite knowledgeable, they are happy to demo and will always beat a cheaper price, if you are in the market for new don't forget them, only a small percentage of their stock is end of line nowadays. In fact I just remembered I purchased my Dali Ikon 6's from them as they were about £200 cheaper than anywhere else, and they ordered them in.

[Macca]

Population of Exeter - 129,000
Hi fi shops - 4 (including Richer Sounds).

Population of Stoke On Trent - 259,000
Hi-fi shops - 1 (including Richer Sounds).

[struth]

my county is over 180k and we have none to my knowledge

[AJSki2fly]

There is a pair of Royd RR2s on Pinkfish, which don’t come up often. However, I think you should instead get Paul at RFC to fettle your Impulses, crossover rebuild and stick with them. :)

Yes I remember auditioning a pair of Royd RRs some years ago, and they were impressive but out of my league at the time, there was something I did not like about them but can't remember what.

Fettling the Impulses with a replacement cross-over and possibly new SEAS tweeter was well up on my list. In fact I had measured the speakers response curve myself with REW on the MacBook to see where the issue were, mainly because the H2's can vary I believe as Impulse played around with the cross-overs through their build life. Mine have about a 5dB drop from 520hz to about 570hz, it is not terrible but obviously has some effect, this is due to the cross-over and is a known issue. The other aspect is that they start to roll off at about 14khz, hence possibly replacing the tweeters with better SEAS ones, whether this is actually worth the expense in my individual case is questionable as like most that have gone into the Autumn of their life my upper hearing has degraded at the upper end, above 13khz by about 10dB anyway.

The main issue is how long it will be before the SWMBO(She Who Must Be Obeyed) increases the noise around the size of the speakers and them dominating the room. My experience of over 35 years in this department is that once an opinion is voiced by her then the battle of attrition has begun, until I relent. :( Spending money on them would I think be met with vast resistance on her part and increase the reasons to replace them in her mind. So it is not easy, as I think others have experienced.

[AJSki2fly]

Population of Exeter - 129,000
Hi fi shops - 4 (including Richer Sounds).

Population of Stoke On Trent - 259,000
Hi-fi shops - 1 (including Richer Sounds).


Ah, yes Martin but I live in what is supposedly the affluent West of England, it is actually not that it only appears so on the surface underneath there is a lot of hard up people. However it has had a large influx of old farts who are running away from the Home Counties in dare I say the Midlands for their retirement. So I suspect that the relatively wealthy old farts that remember what hifi is and have time to listen to it support the number of shops catering for it.

By the way I ran away down here nearly 20 years ago and have now morphed into an old fart.:lol:

[Pharos]

I agree Steve, but that makes it 'wallpaper', like so much in our dumbed down culture.

Neil, I don't want anybody to fettle their impulses near me unless they have lovely tits.

[Macca]

Ah, yes Martin but I live in what is supposedly the affluent West of England, it is actually not that it only appears so on the surface underneath there is a lot of hard up people. However it has had a large influx of old farts who are running away from the Home Counties in dare I say the Midlands for their retirement. So I suspect that the relatively wealthy old farts that remember what hifi is and have time to listen to it support the number of shops catering for it.

By the way I ran away down here nearly 20 years ago and have now morphed into an old fart.:lol:

It's beautiful part of the world. I used to go out with a girl who lived in a big mansion house just outside Exeter. It was converted into flats but they were huge, massive rooms with high ceilings. Could have moved down there with her but decided not to.

As far as hifi shops go I could always jump on a train to Manchester, only takes 20 minutes. But I've no need for one. Saw one of my brothers at xmas, he was asking my advice about upgrading his speakers with £500 to spend. He's been looking on dealer's websites at what he could get for the budget. I told him to buy second hand off a forum as it pretty much increases your spending power by a factor of 5 to 10 IME. He wasn't keen on the idea.

[AJSki2fly]

It's beautiful part of the world. I used to go out with a girl who lived in a big mansion house just outside Exeter. It was converted into flats but they were huge, massive rooms with high ceilings. Could have moved down there with her but decided not to.

As far as hifi shops go I could always jump on a train to Manchester, only takes 20 minutes. But I've no need for one. Saw one of my brothers at xmas, he was asking my advice about upgrading his speakers with £500 to spend. He's been looking on dealer's websites at what he could get for the budget. I told him to buy second hand off a forum as it pretty much increases your spending power by a factor of 5 to 10 IME. He wasn't keen on the idea.

Quite agree Martin, there have been some very good speakers on AOS recently, I've been trying to persuade a friend to buy a pair as his Missions have seen better days and weren't all that good in the first place and let his system down. Interestingly not all gear is cheap 2nd hand even on forums, I have noticed that some of makes/models which are really good in their own right often maintain a quite high value, or even go above their original sale price, supply and demand I expect.

[Macca]

Quite agree Martin, there have been some very good speakers on AOS recently, I've been trying to persuade a friend to buy a pair as his Missions have seen better days and weren't all that good in the first place and let his system down. Interestingly not all gear is cheap 2nd hand even on forums, I have noticed that some of makes/models which are really good in their own right often maintain a quite high value, or even go above their original sale price, supply and demand I expect.

On the flip side there is a lot of very good stuff that goes for way below what it should do given the quality of it, which is entirely down to people believing the nonsense written about it and the equally silly praise given to competing brands. It's that stuff that is the sweet spot to aim for to get maximum value. There's some excellent gear gets advertised very cheap and it sits around for ever. You can put together a proper hi-end sounding system these days for just a couple of grand with the right choices and a bit of patience.

[southall-1998_mk2]

There are only 2 (3) hifi shops nearby in Exeter as far as I know. Gulliford Hi-Fi, I went in there once looking for a CD player to replace the Meridian I had foolishly sold, they were so complacent and uninterested(rude) I just left. Then there is Sevenoaks which I have yet to visit, but have the impression its more about modern Cinema based systems, The 3rd I refer is the HiFi Emporium basically a 2nd hand hifi and record shop, sadly is in the process of closing as the owner is moving to Brighton, he used to sell a lot of mid range hifi and often got in some good gear. I purchased quite a number of LP's from his at reasonable prices and usually in at least VG+ condition.

Oh there is a 4th, Richer Sounds, they are actually quite helpful and one or two of the staff are quite knowledgeable, they are happy to demo and will always beat a cheaper price, if you are in the market for new don't forget them, only a small percentage of their stock is end of line nowadays. In fact I just remembered I purchased my Dali Ikon 6's from them as they were about £200 cheaper than anywhere else, and they ordered them in.


Yes, I hear the Richer Sounds in Exeter is supposed to be good. Must pop down someday and check the place out.

S.