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R252 Beer Money Delight

Minio

Kind of Sort of Not really...
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I've just collected these little beauties dating from the mid eighties for less than a night out at the pub.

There are quite a few of these Monitor Audio classics on the bay for not a lot of dosh, and make me wonder. Why buy new?

Although beer money, they respond well to the best amp and source. Above all is the ability to bring music to life. Jazz and female vocal excel whereas heavy rock is a bit challenged due to being a little light at the very bottom and a rather exuberant top.

I've spent hours enjoying them, all the same.

Exceptional mid range clarity could be down to the simplicity of the Robin Marshall design crossover. So I believe?
 
Yup, got the big brother R852MD which is another of his, closed box and sounds really nice with a good amp pushing them. Shame they're in 80's Black Oak as not currently decor friendly.....
 
Yup, got the big brother R852MD which is another of his, closed box and sounds really nice with a good amp pushing them. Shame they're in 80's Black Oak as not currently decor friendly.....

Did you ever compare the 852 to the other models in the range? I quite like 90s black ash, so if you ever decide to sell ...
 
Heard some of the 352's but they were ported and just weren't as good to my ears.

If I find a pair in Walnut or even 952's I may well sell but I have plans for mine....oh yes I do!
 
Ha - worth a try! Yes, 952s would be interesting but come up rarely. No ports, that's the beauty of the 252 & 852 and their subsequent ease of placement - mine are about 10cm from the rear wall and one is near a corner. If a pair of 352s close up locally I think I'd probably plunge for them!
 
Heard some of the 352's but they were ported and just weren't as good to my ears.

Although lighter in the bass than similar sized closed box types like the Rogers LS4a, say, the advantage they then have is in the rhythm and speed dept.

Quite easy to listen to. Except on tracks like Luka by Suzanne Vega where the treble energy overwhelms.

Best on jazz and acoustic with nimble bass lines. Not a bad tweeter but a metal dome might resolve better.

Enjoyable well beyond the outlay though. I've heard speakers in the 4 figure bracket sound less fun. The overriding quality for me is the sheer musicality of the R252.
 
They were high on the list when I bought my first speakers, opted for Tannoy Mecurys in the end, still in service on sons system upstairs.
 
I had a pair when they came out and were a rave recommendation in all the hi fi rags. I had them for at least a year but they had to go due to the treble that could strip enamel from teeth combined with being rather bass light...
On very good recordings the mid range and "speed" could be quite impressive but put a typical commercial pop/rock recording on and turn up the juice and they were ear bleedingly "in yer face" and had to go.
 
I have a pair of R100's that I use in near field in the computer room with a cheap Sony AV amp. Not felt the need to change them for years, musical and with a lovely tone.
 
... treble that could strip enamel from teeth combined with being rather bass light.
On very good recordings the mid range and "speed" could be quite impressive but put a typical commercial pop/rock recording on and turn up the juice and they were ear bleedingly "in yer face" and had to go.
Agreed. They are a little fussy about the sort of music fed to them. The upfront presentation does not sort all comers.

One of their strengths, though, is low level monitoring as detail is not lost on them.
 
Slightly O/T but I bought a pair of R552s in '84 to use with Linn/Naim and enjoyed them greatly, I think they were about the same era as 252s (must be good cos Naim pinched the numbering!).
 
I had a pair when they came out and were a rave recommendation in all the hi fi rags. I had them for at least a year but they had to go due to the treble that could strip enamel from teeth combined with being rather bass light...
On very good recordings the mid range and "speed" could be quite impressive but put a typical commercial pop/rock recording on and turn up the juice and they were ear bleedingly "in yer face" and had to go.
These were the first speakers I bought new, so I have a certain fondness for them, but agree about the abrasive treble. The R252 on the receiving end of a Linn Basik cartridge was not for the fainthearted.
 
First serious hifi demo l had were Monitor Audio R300MD ( believe that was the model number in late 80's Black ash) and they sounded superb!
A very smooth sound.:)
 
Yep,they were available with the aluminium dome tweeters later on,big improvement on the original polyamide.
 
I still have a pair of R252s with their matching stands bought new in 1985 doing sterling service in my garage system. Still driven by the Rotel B252 bought at the same time. Source is mainly an elderly Squeezebox 2 now (wireless to my iMac server), although I still have the Rotel RT-830L tuner and Denon DR-171 cassette deck (just in case I want to hear my 40th birthday party mix tapes again!) that came as part of the package. Cracking sound up against the rear wall with a cold beer as I fix whatever has recently broken . . .
 
Still have a pair also from 1985. Have loaned them out a few times to fellow listeners and they have been pleasantly surprised. Not totally perfect -see earlier comments but they are keepers in the collection.
 


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