Every single part of your sound system is vital. The important aspect is to find a balance between the different sound components. They must match each other, be compatible, or else the whole idea of a unique listening experience goes out the window. In other words, if you have a fantastic amp, and a really bad set of speakers, you’ll miss out on some of the key aspects of music – and vice versa. Great speakers + lousy amp = bad sound. So, choose your speakers wisely, as they can also improve (or downgrade) the sound. Here, we bring you a list of five fantastic speakers, in different price ranges, and whichever one you choose, you can’t go wrong. This will not be a list that speaks of hierarchy – as there is no way to say which one of these is truly the best. Depending on what you plan to use them for, you will choose your own number one.
The Wilson Audio WATT Puppy (or the Sasha W/P): These speakers are expensive. And I mean really, really expensive. Like $26,950 per pair expensive. But you will definitely get your money’s worth. They first began producing these at the end of the 1980s, and they are still very highly appreciated within the audiophile community. They have an amazing design – to start with the obvious – a compact footprint and stunning costume finishes. One loudspeaker is 44 inches tall by 14 inches wide and 21.25 inches deep and it weighs 197 pounds apiece. For those seeking numbers, Sasha W/P is 91 dB efficient into four Ohms and they drop down to a low impedance of 1.8 Ohms at 92Hz – thus they ask for a solid amplifier capable that can handle low resistance loads. The frequency response is 20-22kHz (plus or minus three dB). They are powerful, massive and beautiful!
B&W 800 Diamond are the best of the best that comes out Bowers and Wilkins’ workshop. The four driver units are combined in a three-way configuration, they don’t have too many components, which means – they have a better sound. And more attention is given to other, more or less important details. The first thing that catches your ear upon connecting them to your system is the bass. Thus, they are not meant to be kept in small rooms. If you get these, be sure you have a big enough space to keep them in. They are nominally rated at 8 ohms impedance, but can go down to 3 ohms at certain frequencies. This is why an amplifier with an excellent current delivery is absolutely necessary. Their price? From 20 – 25k a piece. But worth it.
Revel Performa F52 Floorstanding Loudspeaker is a true miracle among speakers. They are much more affordable than the previous ones, retailing around $7000 a pair. They have a total of five drivers, a five-and-a-quarter-inch midrange driver connected to three six-and-a-half-inch woofers mated to, and a one inch aluminum dome tweeter. The drivers are very rigid and lightweight, which means: great speed and articulation for bass and midrange drivers. The frequency response is 31Hz to 18kHz and a sensitivity rating of 87.5dB into a six-and-a-half-ohm load. They are heavy and big, and sound fantastic!
Sonus Faber Guarneri Memento loudspeakers are great big chunks of wood, marble and metal. Design is not their strong suit, but what they lack in appearance, they compensate with the sound. They are made out of 21 staves of thick, hand-selected maple, separated by aniline black wooden strips. Their price is around $15 000 each, and I don’t think I have to mention that the price is right for the quality you get. They might even be the best you can get in this price range. They are hand crafted, the wooden cabinets made out of the best possible material, and every component is thoroughly crafted to be in perfect balance with the others.
Finally, the PSB Synchrony One might be the speakers for those audiophiles who don’t plan to spend tens or even hundreds of dollars on speakers, yet want to enjoy the true audiophile experience. Their price range is around $5500, which is more than reasonable. The speaker is 43″ tall, with three 6.5″ woofers, and a 4″ midrange unit which lies just below the top woofer. Below this unit, there’s a 1″ titanium-dome tweeter, which means that the speaker has a big potential for producing high quality sound, and to “do right” by all frequencies. If placed correctly in the room, they will wrap you up in a warm, mild sound and enable you to enjoy your music to the fullest.
Hmmm…nice sets of speakers but, the price is a little high for me. I’ll have it on my list of stuff to get when I’m filthy rich 🙂
How about having some speakers people can actually buy…
this is a poor article in my opinion