Need help to select a pair of towers for Stereo

[newlash09]

I had put my plan to acquire new speakers on cold storage for few months. I was initially planning to get a speaker pair that can replace Focal Aria 926 in the living and move Arias to the Gym room. But in the past few months I realized that I had been foolish and that I wouldn't be able to easily replace Arias unless I spend significantly more money. Aria's have opened up quite well in the past few months and they sound incredible in my living space. I am truly impressed by their musicality despite being driven by modest RN803. I believe I can get even better sound if I upgrade my electronics. So decided to spend money there.

But that still leaves me with needing a pair for my Gym room. I am currently using a Polk S60 pair taken off from surround-back duties in HT room as temporary arrangement with a newly acquired Denon DRA 800H. I noticed that having a decent audio+video seem to encourage family members to spend more time in the Gym room

Max budget 150k. Size of the room is 19x19 with no acoustic treatments whatsoever. I am leaning towards Debut2.0 F6.2 based on all the positive reviews. It comes in half my budget and I could use the remaining cash for some basic acoustic treatment post Coivd, whenever that may be. Other two options are Evo 4.4 and Q950. Is spending twice the amount on Evo 4.4 / Q950 justified over Elac F6.2? Would there be a significant improvement in sound quality over Elac's to justify their prices? I am willing to spend my full budget if speakers in 150k budget can significantly better speakers in 80k range like Elac F6.2, QA 3050i, Dali Zensor/Oberon etc.

I am leaning towards Elac or Evo as I need a slightly laid back pair for my untreated room with Denon as the receiver.

Any suggestions would be welcome. Thanks in advance.

You made the right decision jarneevan

In my humble opinion you need to give the focals a fair fighting chance to sound their best first. And then if you still crave an improvement, you can look for a speaker upgrade. The Yamaha RN803 is a good place to start. But there are stellar improvements to be had with every small thing in the mix. Especially if better amplification can be provided. So please take it easy...the present bottle neck in your system is not the focals, but the Yamaha. So no matter what speaker you spring for, the bottle neck with remain and not let the new speakers show their true potential. You have a very healthy budget...so time to get down to improve the digital source and amplification. All the best

 

[DB1989]

I personally did not find them clinical , they were very musical , vocals were natural , tight bass and overall an unique presentation and enjoyable while at the same time not lacking in detail. However as Jarneevan said Aria 926 dominates the highs in terms of details and the guitar texture, literally felt like Nils Lofgren was playing live infront of you.

I also listen to quiet a bit of Bollywood music , tried Sawali Si Raat on Focal 926 and did not find the connect which i find quiet easily in the M20s and similarly found it on the Q950/XTZ 95.44 as well ( I attribute this to two things, the song has lush vocals which the Aria 926 might not be the best for and also it has a good amount of low end which was missing probably due to the larger room size and open nature of the room)

Both your and @jarneevan 's description of the Focals closesly resembles the qualities of the S5s. I guess we need to feed them with better amplification and test the results. I was speaking to this other gentleman from Birmingham who swore by his Quad S4s low frequency response despite having smaller drivers. He was driving them through an Exposure 3010S2D.

 

[newlash09]

Different rooms matter a heck of a lot. I installed a second setup in one of the guest bedrooms and i can't seem to get anywhere close to the sound quality I get in my main room, even when i deploy the same gear. The soundstage is terrible and lacks depth, instruments are all over the place and lack separation and the sound is harsh and brittle, irrespective of the speakers. The Positioning helps to some extent but certain rooms just don't react well or are flawed and require serious room treatment.

You seem to be in my room

 

[jarneevan]

I personally did not find them clinical

Oh..I didn't use the term clinical to describe their high frequency traits. May be I didn't use the correct term. What I intended to say is that their Lows and Mids sounded too precise for my tastes. For example, bass has a very dry presentation and notes are defined too well. But I can see that it would get tiring quickly if few bass heavy tracks are played. I like my bass notes to have bit more texture and little longer decay.

Similarly, the vocals sound natural with absolutely no coloration. That would make most female voices and male voices with softer tone sound nice and full. But vocals would take center stage and start to dominate when tracks from Dire Straits, Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan etc are played. That's precisely what I felt when I listened to few tracks from Dire Straits. Only two things stood out, bass and Mark Knopfler's vocal. I suspect the strong center image actually makes it worse than what it is. The same track on Aria sounds more musical, Knopfler's vocal is still presented with that deep thick tone but better controlled.

It's true that vocals of these legends are thick and heavy and Q950s faithfully reproduce them. But a longer listening session with such heavy vocals can induce fatigue. My music tastes lean towards some of the artists with heavy tones. I would probably settle for a presentation that takes the edge off such vocals like how Aria does. I listen to Arias for long hours, sometimes 7 to 8 hours at a stretch. I can't see myself doing the same with Q950s.

So that's why I used to term clinical to emphasize the fact that they play too neutral to my tastes.

 

[jarneevan]

You made the right decision jarneevan

In my humble opinion you need to give the focals a fair fighting chance to sound their best first. And then if you still crave an improvement, you can look for a speaker upgrade. The Yamaha RN803 is a good place to start. But there are stellar improvements to be had with every small thing in the mix. Especially if better amplification can be provided. So please take it easy...the present bottle neck in your system is not the focals, but the Yamaha. So no matter what speaker you spring for, the bottle neck with remain and not let the new speakers show their true potential. You have a very healthy budget...so time to get down to improve the digital source and amplification. All the best

I did feel Aria's vocal presentation could have been better when I started this thread. Polk S60's have good presentation with female vocals and also soft male vocals, much like Q950s. Such vocals sound lush and intimate. But then I realized, with cheaper speakers like S60s, such presentation can turn bright quickly when vocals get deep/thick or when there are sudden upward transients in mid frequencies. It can induce fatigue quickly. Q950s aren't that bad but I see such traits.

I have now either gotten used to Aria's presentation style or understood why Aria's present vocals that way. Soft vocals may not sound full or lush on them but they can control things better when vocals are not soft anymore. So I am going to stick with Aria's and better amplification is definitely on the cards.

I started this thread with the intention of finding a replacement for Arias but soon realized I was being foolish. So I have now repurposed this thread to find a decent speaker for Gym room.

 

[jarneevan]

Both your and @jarneevan 's description of the Focals closesly resembles the qualities of the S5s. I guess we need to feed them with better amplification and test the results. I was speaking to this other gentleman from Birmingham who swore by his Quad S4s low frequency response despite having smaller drivers. He was driving them through an Exposure 3010S2D.

I am now seriously considering Quad S5s. Both S5 and Q950 cost the same. But one thing that prevents me from committing to S5 is lack of demo options and lack of reviews. I can't find many reviews online, these appear to be speakers that no one buys. Except few professional reviews of Quad S family, I can't find any user reviews.

 

[DB1989]

I am now seriously considering Quad S5s. Both S5 and Q950 cost the same. But one thing that prevents me from committing to S5 is lack of demo options and lack of reviews. I can't find many reviews online, these appear to be speakers that no one buys. Except few professional reviews of Quad S family, I can't find any user reviews.

In that case, its better to go with a known evil than an unknown one. If you consider the KEF sound to be different enough from your other speakers and you enjoyed listening to them, go ahead. If you are in doubt, go for a second demo. It'll still be better than going in blind and discovering that they are similar in nature to your Focals or perhaps not suited to your taste at all. I still somewhat regret my purchase of the Evos which was entirely based on professional reviews.

 

[raghupb]

In that case, its better to go with a known evil than an unknown one. If you consider the KEF sound to be different enough from your other speakers and you enjoyed listening to them, go ahead. If you are in doubt, go for a second demo. It'll still be better than going in blind and discovering that they are similar in nature to your Focals or perhaps not suited to your taste at all. I still somewhat regret my purchase of the Evos which was entirely based on professional reviews.

Hey, don't hang them out to dry yet. Maybe you have not found the right match of a system for them.
You seem to have a stable full of electronics and I would guess at least 2 rooms to host systems.
So take it slow, maybe even reset all of the experiences and start with a fresh mind.
Most importantly, try and erase the KEF sound from your brain. It tends to draw unfair comparisons.

Cheers,
Raghu

 

[edjamesx]

I want a pair of towers below Rs.2lakhs that aren't bright but not too laid back to the extent of being boring. I quite like Focal's sound signature especially the ultra clean and sweet treble from it's dome tweeter but wish vocals had touch more presence and had better soundstage. Focals have better bass though. Now coming to Polks, I don't prefer long listening sessions on them as they sound a bit bright overall and resolution of thier tweeters is no match to Focal's. But they aren't fatigue inducing.

Check Sonus Faber , Wharfedale Evo speakers. They are the best ones singing beautifully to my ears i auditioned so far. I did not buy them due to my budget constraints . My future plan to buy them...

 

[jarneevan]

Check Sonus Faber , Wharfedale Evo speakers. They are the best ones singing beautifully to my ears i auditioned so far. I did not buy them due to my budget constraints . My future plan to buy them...

Where did you demo Wharfedale Evos. I can't to find them anywhere other than Hifimart.com. I would like to get a demo of Evo 4.4 or 4.3 in Bangalore.

 

[edjamesx]

Where did you demo Wharfedale Evos. I can't to find them anywhere other than Hifimart.com. I would like to get a demo of Evo 4.4 or 4.3 in Bangalore.

Getting demo of Evo speakers are tough... it's quite surprising why none of the dealer keeps it , such a good speaker.
I happened to listen to these when i was in chennai long months ago.
Mid range & high end punch was great.

You may look at the video below to get some fair idea.

You may check Sonus faber also .. It also sounds sweeter , At price point its expensive.

 

[DB1989]

Hey, don't hang them out to dry yet. Maybe you have not found the right match of a system for them.
You seem to have a stable full of electronics and I would guess at least 2 rooms to host systems.
So take it slow, maybe even reset all of the experiences and start with a fresh mind.
Most importantly, try and erase the KEF sound from your brain. It tends to draw unfair comparisons.

Cheers,
Raghu

You misunderstand Raghu. I imagined this post would raise a few eyebrows. First off, you’ll seldom come across ‘bad’ speakers per se. Every speaker has their strengths and weaknesses and the Evos definitely have more strengths than weaknesses. The “regret” stems from the context of this thread i.e. that i’d not have picked the Evos had I auditioned them first. They are very good speakers and I appreciate them for what they are and can accomplish but its not the kind of sonic presentation that I immediately gravitate towards. I‘d picked them up based on the listening impressions of a reviewer. Based on those listening impressions, i was expecting a certain sonic signature which did not turn out to be the case . This is when i realised that insofar as hifi reviews are concerned, considering the abstracts used by reviewers to describe their experience, we need to ensure that the reader/viewer is on the same page while understanding an adjective used by the reviewer.

Coming back to the evos, i’d not have brought them home had I listened to them first. It was a cool bit of dough that went towards that end insofar as it concerns me. Had i listened to the evos first, i’d probably have found myself deploying the cash elsewhere. However, Now that i have them, i am making the most of it. In fact, had it not been for the Evos, i wouldn’t have found myself listening to compositions by the classical maestros. They excel with such types of music. While its always great to discover new music and sometimes having the tools for a particular job may induce a person to take it up in the first palce, i dont consider it ideal. As long as the Evos are with me, I’ll accommodate them the best way i can manage. Otherwise, i’d passed them on to some other user who’d be able to appreciate the breadth of their abilities better than me. However, i am waiting for my power amp to arrive to see how they react to high current (ive exhausted every other permutation and combination including placement that my current setup allows but further suggestions are most welcome).

They are currently my daily drivers and i’ve gotten quite accustomed to them. I don’t find them wanting in any regard and i daresay anyone else might either. Its only when i switch to the KEFs or the Quads is when i realise what these speakers do better and it is those qualities that really do it for me while listening to music. And i’d be remiss if i refrained from listening to the KEFs or the Quads at all while the Evos are here.

 

[goget]

My current setups are a 7.2 HT with Polk S60s/S35 powered by a humble Pioneer VSX LX AVR and a Stereo with Focal Aria 926 powered by Yamaha RN 803 in the living. Both setups have Subs. Both don't have any fancy seperates like DACs and Preamps. But I do use my iFi Micro BL headphone DAC with Yamaha sometimes to play Tidal MQA tracks.

As expected Focal Arias are overall better for music but I feel Polk S60's produce better soundstage and vocals sound little better on them unlike the slightly recessed nature of Focals. For example Lana Del Rey's voice sounds more intimate and sultry on Polks than on Focals.

Now I am looking to get one more pair of Towers purly for Stereo use. I am torn between SVS Prime Pinnacle and Wharfedale Evo 4.4. Both have many steller reviews but I can't audition them due to prevailing conditions.

I want a pair of towers below Rs.2lakhs that aren't bright but not too laid back to the extent of being boring. I quite like Focal's sound signature especially the ultra clean and sweet treble from it's dome tweeter but wish vocals had touch more presence and had better soundstage. Focals have better bass though. Now coming to Polks, I don't prefer long listening sessions on them as they sound a bit bright overall and resolution of thier tweeters is no match to Focal's. But they aren't fatigue inducing.

I am inclined towards SVS but they cost quite a bit more over Wharfedales. Anyone listened to either of these. Or should I just get one more pair of Focals as they cost less than SVS with onging offers on them.

All opinions and suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks.

SVS is a very good option liked them but could not buy due high price in India will try to buy in future.

 

[DB1989]

Getting demo of Evo speakers are tough... it's quite surprising why none of the dealer keeps it , such a good speaker.
I happened to listen to these when i was in chennai long months ago.
Mid range & high end punch was great.

You may look at the video below to get some fair idea.

You may check Sonus faber also .. It also sounds sweeter , At price point its expensive.

Hi james, which sonus faber did you try out. Also, could you mention the chain that you tried with the evo?

 

[raghupb]

@DB1989
From what's on your gear signature, you could try "better" amplification for 2-ch purposes.
Something other than Marantz and Crown.
I have Marantz (AVR and IA) and have heard Crown. Sometimes they don't do justice to speakers.

Cheers,
Raghu

 

[DB1989]

Where did you demo Wharfedale Evos. I can't to find them anywhere other than Hifimart.com. I would like to get a demo of Evo 4.4 or 4.3 in Bangalore.

Hey, don't hang them out to dry yet. Maybe you have not found the right match of a system for them.
You seem to have a stable full of electronics and I would guess at least 2 rooms to host systems.
So take it slow, maybe even reset all of the experiences and start with a fresh mind.
Most importantly, try and erase the KEF sound from your brain. It tends to draw unfair comparisons.

Cheers,
Raghu

I find my experience with the evos relatable to this review. Due to copyright issues, im only inserting an excerpt for the portion that best describes my experience with them. For reference, the entire review can be found on hifi choice issue no.460 - March 2020

 

[DB1989]

@DB1989
From what's on your gear signature, you could try "better" amplification for 2-ch purposes.
Something other than Marantz and Crown.
I have Marantz (AVR and IA) and have heard Crown. Sometimes they don't do justice to speakers.

Cheers,
Raghu

Yes Raghu. I’d placed an order for a nad c275bee with my dealer way back in June. Apparently its still in the process of being imported. Hope it arrives soon.

 

[raghupb]

I find my experience with the evos relatable to this review. Due to copyright issues, im only inserting an excerpt for the portion that best describes my experience with them. For reference, the entire review can be found on hifi choice issue no.460 - March 2020
<snip>

Loved the analogy
"Fist raised and yelling the lyrics vs firmly parked in the sofa"
Everyone needs a pair of speakers like these. Chillin' types.
I would guess they are great for low volume, night time listening, when you don't want to wake up the family members.

Cheers,
Raghu

 

[DB1989]

Loved the analogy
"Fist raised and yelling the lyrics vs firmly parked in the sofa"
Everyone needs a pair of speakers like these. Chillin' types.
I would guess they are great for low volume, night time listening, when you don't want to wake up the family members.

Cheers,
Raghu

Yes, they are generally laidback, something that both sean from zerofidelity and steve guttenberg (evo 4.3) also observed with these speakers. They are really good with classical notes. Its not unlike the Quad S5 with its detail retrieval at the top end which is its forte. While the S5s have an extremely neutral presentation which fleshes out every single detail, the Evos are slightly warmer with the focus being more on the body of the strings of an instrument like the guitar or a piano rather than on the plucking which the Quads highlight - if it makes sense. The details are all there but its a different presentation.

 

[RRR]

While the S5s have an extremely neutral presentation which fleshes out every single detail, the Evos are slightly warmer with the focus being more on the body of the strings of an instrument like the guitar or a piano rather than on the plucking which the Quads highlight - if it makes sense. The details are all there but its a different presentation.

You have described it right. I have found the same difference when comparing the Wharfedale Linton to the Quad Zseries back to back.