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I was in hunt for Centre channel speaker, sub and surrounds for quiet long time for my Monitor Audio BR 2 Fronts & ended up in Bass N Treble. As usual, Denny, a good friend of mine welcomed with a warm smile. The BR LCR Centre speaker was on the way, so I planned to demo other speakers & the result as follows:
SVS SB 1000:
Hmm.. a decent sub, but not worth for 53K. I had auditioned the PC 12 early which left me numb after the demo with outstanding depth, integration & feel of a REAL SUB (I literally got chest pain many times). The SB was capable to deliver decent bass with good depth during movies, but lacked proper integration when it comes to music. I found Sunfire (SDS8/10, HRS 10) subs were more aggressive all-rounders with a price tag way below SVS. The sunfire sds 8 @ 35K, sds 10 @ 45K & sds 12 @ 55 K.
To be frank, I was not that impressed!
Monitor Silver RX series Package:
The speakers are open, but seriously at a very very brighter side. My ear felt ringing effect within a minutes of cranking. The Centre channel was detailed & surrounds were Polk OWM 3 Instead original MAs. The system seriously lacked integration & I felt sound was played from speakers kept here & there and lost interest within 2 minutes of audition (people may have very good opinion about RX series, not me), which was unexpected from a speaker above 70K.
Monitor Audio BX5: I switched to BX5 FS & BX Centre channel immediately after the above said demo. Oh boy, impressed or not, it was too immersive with the price tag, it was great to have an audition of these speakers. We started with FLAC audio & then switched to movie scenes from Sherlock Holmes, Trasformers, Battleship etc.. I will not say that the experience was heaven like with the high end AVRs and Speakers worth a fortune. But, with that budget, I would give 4* rating for the experience. The sound was well polished, not too bright with good sound stage, warmth & stereo separation (you can easily feel the finger movement on Tabla in sufi music). Minute details were there, but not well presented like the high end Tannoy FS. The surrounds would have been more immersive, but the low end Polk was not capable to win my heart. I also auditioned BR2 (which I own) & it was also decent, but not great like BX5.
The AVR used was Yamaha 675 & the seamless integration with these speakers were mind blowing, The sound flow like bullet movements, shell explosion, sound of feet during running, depth of field etc were great for an AVR in 55K range, but not precise. I would say, it was better than Denon in the same category or above (X2000).
By the time, I received my BRLCR in a heart breaking condition in the form of broken cabinet, two holes on both drivers & a defaced tweeter due to courier mishandling (let thunder fall on the idiots head). I got extremely disappointed as it was the last piece available with them. Then, Denny suggested the BX5 along with the Centre, however, I have to see my overall budget. His suggestion was very good & well acceptable, but I am not an audiophile to shell out lakhs for the same due to budget constraint for the time being. Many speakers are available there for clearance sale including Monitor Audio Vector 5.1 speaker package (with 200 RMS 10 inch sub), Wharfedale diamond 10, DX1, Boston Acoustics A 360, AAD speakers etc.
After 15 mins of careful thought & with craving heart for BX5, I opted for BX Centre channel for my BR2 & decided to go for a sub & surrounds later. The BX 5s price has gone up substantially from 35K to whopping 55K.
My advice would be, anyone who buy front speakers must buy Centre channel at the same time, else you will end up in changing entire system for sake of one speaker & with monitor audio, a powerful AVR (not like the entry level AVR) & right integration can give you wonders, else it will eatup your head in no time. Overall, it was a pleasant experience & I will be going again this weekend to demo latest Sunfire subs. ?
SVS SB 1000:
Hmm.. a decent sub, but not worth for 53K. I had auditioned the PC 12 early which left me numb after the demo with outstanding depth, integration & feel of a REAL SUB (I literally got chest pain many times). The SB was capable to deliver decent bass with good depth during movies, but lacked proper integration when it comes to music. I found Sunfire (SDS8/10, HRS 10) subs were more aggressive all-rounders with a price tag way below SVS. The sunfire sds 8 @ 35K, sds 10 @ 45K & sds 12 @ 55 K.
To be frank, I was not that impressed!
Monitor Silver RX series Package:
The speakers are open, but seriously at a very very brighter side. My ear felt ringing effect within a minutes of cranking. The Centre channel was detailed & surrounds were Polk OWM 3 Instead original MAs. The system seriously lacked integration & I felt sound was played from speakers kept here & there and lost interest within 2 minutes of audition (people may have very good opinion about RX series, not me), which was unexpected from a speaker above 70K.
Monitor Audio BX5: I switched to BX5 FS & BX Centre channel immediately after the above said demo. Oh boy, impressed or not, it was too immersive with the price tag, it was great to have an audition of these speakers. We started with FLAC audio & then switched to movie scenes from Sherlock Holmes, Trasformers, Battleship etc.. I will not say that the experience was heaven like with the high end AVRs and Speakers worth a fortune. But, with that budget, I would give 4* rating for the experience. The sound was well polished, not too bright with good sound stage, warmth & stereo separation (you can easily feel the finger movement on Tabla in sufi music). Minute details were there, but not well presented like the high end Tannoy FS. The surrounds would have been more immersive, but the low end Polk was not capable to win my heart. I also auditioned BR2 (which I own) & it was also decent, but not great like BX5.
The AVR used was Yamaha 675 & the seamless integration with these speakers were mind blowing, The sound flow like bullet movements, shell explosion, sound of feet during running, depth of field etc were great for an AVR in 55K range, but not precise. I would say, it was better than Denon in the same category or above (X2000).
By the time, I received my BRLCR in a heart breaking condition in the form of broken cabinet, two holes on both drivers & a defaced tweeter due to courier mishandling (let thunder fall on the idiots head). I got extremely disappointed as it was the last piece available with them. Then, Denny suggested the BX5 along with the Centre, however, I have to see my overall budget. His suggestion was very good & well acceptable, but I am not an audiophile to shell out lakhs for the same due to budget constraint for the time being. Many speakers are available there for clearance sale including Monitor Audio Vector 5.1 speaker package (with 200 RMS 10 inch sub), Wharfedale diamond 10, DX1, Boston Acoustics A 360, AAD speakers etc.
After 15 mins of careful thought & with craving heart for BX5, I opted for BX Centre channel for my BR2 & decided to go for a sub & surrounds later. The BX 5s price has gone up substantially from 35K to whopping 55K.
My advice would be, anyone who buy front speakers must buy Centre channel at the same time, else you will end up in changing entire system for sake of one speaker & with monitor audio, a powerful AVR (not like the entry level AVR) & right integration can give you wonders, else it will eatup your head in no time. Overall, it was a pleasant experience & I will be going again this weekend to demo latest Sunfire subs. ?
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