B&W 684 towers, or...? alternatives

[GCE]

Hi, I'm looking for towers good for jazz, rock, classical
(and sometimes TV movie) on 2 stereo channels;
I like a sound:

• bassy, below 100 Hz, enveloping (warm, dark, soft, etc.)
• better under 50 Hz
• but not booming
• even with middle-highs in background and/or not very detailed
• not bright ...

finished almost as B&W...and possibly with soft dome tweeter

I already heard positively the B&W 684 , but before committing errors,
I would like to know from some experienced guy here some alternatives
in the same price range;
Thank you!

 

[Staxxx]

I am a little surprised given your description that you have chosen B&W as close to your ideal. It is usually a little on the bright side, unless you get to the big models 801 etc. However, you are right to go with your ears rather than attempting a description as all these descriptions are quite often relative. Also bear in mind that your source and amp will also dictate the sound you get from your speakers so look out for synergy and balance with your choices.

 

[GCE]

???? ??? ???

 

[sajjad4joy]

B&W and bright, thats first.

 

[ShaQ.Blogs]

have a look at PSB Image T6 and Dali Icon 6. At the same price you will get better speakers than what the B&W will fetch you.

 

[yahoo0212]

Dali Ikon 6 MK2 is a gem of a speaker...IMHO B&W are more priced than what they really offer.. alternately look at Mordaunt Short Mezzo 6

 

[Flash]

B&W and bright, thats first.

Was going to say the exact same thing

 

[reubensm]

Recently I acquired the B&W DM3000 floorstanders from Santhosh, these speakers were billed in a league just below the 801 and I must say that they are quite good on the bass front, not boomy, good on the mids but definitely not bright. Infact, i would say that these speakers are ideal for listening to orchestration, classical music, vocal-based music like country and soul, jazz etc but for rock, they may be questionable. From my experience, soft dome tweeters cannot deliver the aggressive highs that are required for a genre like heavy metal music, however for other genres of rock, these might suffice. A look at typical graphic equalizer settings for rock music will give you some idea of the kind of sound, your speakers playing rock music, would be required to reproduce.

Hi, I'm looking for towers good for jazz, rock, classical
(and sometimes TV movie) on 2 stereo channels;
I like a sound:

• bassy, below 100 Hz, enveloping (warm, dark, soft, etc.)
• better under 50 Hz
• but not booming
• even with middle-highs in background and/or not very detailed
• not bright ...

finished almost as B&W...and possibly with soft dome tweeter

I already heard positively the B&W 684 , but before committing errors,
I would like to know from some experienced guy here some alternatives
in the same price range;
Thank you!

 

[Shivam]

Hi, I'm looking for towers good for jazz, rock, classical
(and sometimes TV movie) on 2 stereo channels;
I like a sound:

• bassy, below 100 Hz, enveloping (warm, dark, soft, etc.)
• better under 50 Hz
• but not booming
• even with middle-highs in background and/or not very detailed
• not bright ...

Wharfedale Diamond 10.7 sounds like something which might interest you. However they need very careful placement and quite into the room. If you have to place them close to a wall, don't try these.

 

[corElement]

Was going to say the exact same thing

thirded :lol:

 

[Staxxx]

Good to hear the comments on the B&Ws. Perhaps it was the synergy with my system at that time. I had some B&W bookshelves years ago and switched to a used pair of Wilson Cubs , I remember those were a better match...but that left too...and the switching madness continued on and on.....

However I will say if you Google "B&W speakers bright" you will find that I am not the only soul who thought them so. Here is an example from Audiogon:

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?cspkr&1341649131&openflup&1&4#1

...and there are many others. To each his own when it comes to judging sound I suppose ........

Mostly I think this is a relative phenomenon and perhaps a product of system matching. My current system is extremely laid back as that is how I like it. The OP seems to indicate in his initial post that he did not want something extremely detailed, hence my personal surprise at his choice. I heard some of the smaller B&W models at the showroom here and was impressed. I was considering them for my HT set up.

 

[iaudio]

Staxx, I remember the b&w dm610's to be bright.

 

[tirthankar]

The warmth of the B&W sound is in a large part contributed by the Kevlar driver which by material property sounds more laid back than paper or metal cones.
But B&W speakers before the Nautilus tweeters used metal dome tweeters which were very sensitive of the accompanying electronics and could sound bright if not matched properly. Even after the start of the nautilus tweeter, some models like the 7xx series(precursor of the current cm series between 6xx and 8xx) had a different design of the Nautilus tube and could sound bright if improperly matched. It was with the diamond tweeter when things became more tolerent.

Of course, bright and warm is very relative and depends on personal preference. Something which sounds bright to me may sound neutral to another or dynamic to a third.

 

[GCE]

I'm looking for the towers WHARFEDALE DIAMOND 9.6:
after thinking to B&W 684 and Mordant S. Aviano 6, I came across this wonderfull review,

Wharfedale - DIAMOND 9.6 - Zespo

B&W 684 and Mordaunt S Aviano 6

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AdvertisementWant to Advertise?Tested B&W 684 and Mordaunt S. Aviano 6:

B& W684 - more medium bass presence, that may be covers the deeper bass, say 50Hz and down; female voice more rude and heavy, mids more aggressive and in front;

Aviano 6: more deeper bass in evidence, perhaps because they have less 100 Hz bass shield, and voices more in background; more relaxing sound;

amp: Marantz 6004 and Nad 326 - more liquid in mid freq. the first.

tanks to all for every past and future suggestions!

 

[afj]

imo there are better speakers out there at the price range. the monitor audio rx6 is a very detailed and neutral sounding speaker that will do well for your listening habits. if your pair it with a nad you will have a slightly warmer sound with highs a little rolled off. bass is again detailed and big, though a little distant - not too tight and neither boomy. excellent for classical, jazz and soft rock though if you listen to hard rock / heavy metal then the nad doesnt hit hard on the bass