If you are not a dealer, I presume you must live in a mansion.
Your Loudspeaker history...
- Thread starter Jonathan Ribee
- Start date
Wharfedale Denton - my first speakers in 1971
AR6 in 1975
A friend had some KEF 104s which were used for a while in my system in in our shared house, he then moved out so AR6s back in place.
I then inherited a pair of B&W DM70s (rebadged as Sony), in about 1979. These were far too big for the shared house I lived in but were lovely. When I got married and we moved into a tiny semi my wife wouldn't have them in the house so they lived in the garage for a couple of years. Then we moved to a larger place and I did use them briefly but they needed serious work doing on the electrostatic tweeters. Also my wife still hated them. I always shudder when I think of their fate in that skip.
Mission 770 Freedom in the mid 80s- Yuk there's bright and there is glaring.
Next came Castle Chester- kept them for ages.
replaced a few years ago by Spendor D7s, and other than possibly for Spendor D9s which I can't justify , I can't see these changing.
I have some KEF eggs for a surround system, always mean to upgrade this but can't be bothered
Also 2 pairs of Monitor audio Radius 90s in second and third systems.
So quite a modest list.
AR6 in 1975
A friend had some KEF 104s which were used for a while in my system in in our shared house, he then moved out so AR6s back in place.
I then inherited a pair of B&W DM70s (rebadged as Sony), in about 1979. These were far too big for the shared house I lived in but were lovely. When I got married and we moved into a tiny semi my wife wouldn't have them in the house so they lived in the garage for a couple of years. Then we moved to a larger place and I did use them briefly but they needed serious work doing on the electrostatic tweeters. Also my wife still hated them. I always shudder when I think of their fate in that skip.
Mission 770 Freedom in the mid 80s- Yuk there's bright and there is glaring.
Next came Castle Chester- kept them for ages.
replaced a few years ago by Spendor D7s, and other than possibly for Spendor D9s which I can't justify , I can't see these changing.
I have some KEF eggs for a surround system, always mean to upgrade this but can't be bothered
Also 2 pairs of Monitor audio Radius 90s in second and third systems.
So quite a modest list.
lAmBoY
pfm Member
Tannoy dc2000 about 30 years ago.
Amphion Xenon2 about 15 years ago.
QAcoustics Concept 40 about 5 years ago.
ATC SCM19v2 about 2 years ago.
Currently running Monitor Audio Gold 300 latest gen.
Had a few on demo over the years but it was ATC and Totem that tend to have given me the fondest memories. Those QAcoustics were particularly good and one of the lower cost speakers I have had, I put that down to the Hegel h160 amp and the room at the time.
Amphion Xenon2 about 15 years ago.
QAcoustics Concept 40 about 5 years ago.
ATC SCM19v2 about 2 years ago.
Currently running Monitor Audio Gold 300 latest gen.
Had a few on demo over the years but it was ATC and Totem that tend to have given me the fondest memories. Those QAcoustics were particularly good and one of the lower cost speakers I have had, I put that down to the Hegel h160 amp and the room at the time.
JOHN VAN BAVEL
pfm Member
1973-ish Kef Chorales good beginning
Mission 774
Magneplanar ?? model ? lovely but no bass
Elac CL 112 surpringly good but couldn't sell them -- no takers
2006 Living Voice Avatar Pricey , perhaps a tad laid back
Mission 774
Magneplanar ?? model ? lovely but no bass
Elac CL 112 surpringly good but couldn't sell them -- no takers
2006 Living Voice Avatar Pricey , perhaps a tad laid back
Starts early 90’s
Tannoy 609MK2 beautiful. Still going in my friends living room.
Tannoy 636 suited my needs at the time with fuller bass than above but not as good in other areas. Still going in other friends living room!
Neat Motive 1 & 2 excellent with some music, a bit much with others.
Spendor S5e like a warm blanket and a surprisingly full bass. Still own.
Spendor A6 natural sounding all rounder that solved the bad habits of some of the above.
Proac D18 not as natural as the A6 in my set up but impressive with some recordings.
Living Voice IBXR2 the best speakers I’ll ever own?
Falcon Ls3/5a magic in the right scenario.
There are others that didn’t stay for long but didn’t want to appear too much of a hoar. We have moved house about seven times in that period and it’s incredible how different the same speaker can sound going from one room to another when dimensions and materials are similar. Room/speaker matching is everything imo. Dealers that will happily sell you thousands of pounds of loudspeaker based on you carting your own gear to their demo rooms for the pleasure, well...
Tannoy 609MK2 beautiful. Still going in my friends living room.
Tannoy 636 suited my needs at the time with fuller bass than above but not as good in other areas. Still going in other friends living room!
Neat Motive 1 & 2 excellent with some music, a bit much with others.
Spendor S5e like a warm blanket and a surprisingly full bass. Still own.
Spendor A6 natural sounding all rounder that solved the bad habits of some of the above.
Proac D18 not as natural as the A6 in my set up but impressive with some recordings.
Living Voice IBXR2 the best speakers I’ll ever own?
Falcon Ls3/5a magic in the right scenario.
There are others that didn’t stay for long but didn’t want to appear too much of a hoar. We have moved house about seven times in that period and it’s incredible how different the same speaker can sound going from one room to another when dimensions and materials are similar. Room/speaker matching is everything imo. Dealers that will happily sell you thousands of pounds of loudspeaker based on you carting your own gear to their demo rooms for the pleasure, well...
G.smith310
pfm Member
Mordaunt short 902i (loved and had for years)
KEF q100 (liked but wanted to upgrade)
KEF q300 (too big for my room)
Q acoustics 3020 (too small for my room)
Monitor Audio Bronze 2 (too sharp)
Monitor Audio Silver 1 (don’t love but they seem to do everything well)
KEF LS50 (very good but too shiny)
Proac Tablette 2000 (my favourites and regret selling)
Mordaunt Short Pageant (love)
Spendor A5 (newbies)
KEF q100 (liked but wanted to upgrade)
KEF q300 (too big for my room)
Q acoustics 3020 (too small for my room)
Monitor Audio Bronze 2 (too sharp)
Monitor Audio Silver 1 (don’t love but they seem to do everything well)
KEF LS50 (very good but too shiny)
Proac Tablette 2000 (my favourites and regret selling)
Mordaunt Short Pageant (love)
Spendor A5 (newbies)
Komarfamily
pfm Member
Jamo c803
Quad 22l2
Sonus faber grand piano
Jamo concert 11
Jamo concert 8
Harbeth shl5+
Harbeth m40.1
Monitor audio gold
Monitor audio platinu 200
Harbeth m40.2
Harbeth p3esr
Quad 22l2
Sonus faber grand piano
Jamo concert 11
Jamo concert 8
Harbeth shl5+
Harbeth m40.1
Monitor audio gold
Monitor audio platinu 200
Harbeth m40.2
Harbeth p3esr
Countryman
Semi-reformed box-swapper
Mordant Short MS10
Mission 731i
QAcoustics 3020i
Monitor Audio Bronze 5
KEF R100
Quad 10L - best speaker I’ve ever owned….
KEF R300
B & W 606 S2 Anniversary Special - Brilliant little speaker
Mission 731i
QAcoustics 3020i
Monitor Audio Bronze 5
KEF R100
Quad 10L - best speaker I’ve ever owned….
KEF R300
B & W 606 S2 Anniversary Special - Brilliant little speaker
Darren
So gentle when he tries to understand.
We seem to share some history here. Can I please ask what you liked in particular about the Concept 40s? I've never heard them. What size room did you have them in?
ProfessorP3PP3R
Member
Started off in 2015? Maybe 2016 I think
B&O C75s
Monitor Audio Silver 100 (I think I must have got these in 2017?)
Q acoustics 1010i 5.1 system for the av setup
Kef 104/2 (rebuilt these myself think this was 2018)
Kef cantor III (still own these, dad is using them picked em up in a trade for my old yamaha amp)
Tannoy 607 (same story as above)
Another pair of 104/2 (also rebuilt these)
Kef reference model one (currently still have these awaiting new drivers)
Bronze 50/FX/AMS surround setup
Now I'm hifi speaker-less!
Currently demoing some options considering:
MA gold 200,
Acoustic energy 509
And maybe L100s
Or if I can find a nice pair of 107 then them!
Wow I didn't realise I owned so many on such a short space of time.
B&O C75s
Monitor Audio Silver 100 (I think I must have got these in 2017?)
Q acoustics 1010i 5.1 system for the av setup
Kef 104/2 (rebuilt these myself think this was 2018)
Kef cantor III (still own these, dad is using them picked em up in a trade for my old yamaha amp)
Tannoy 607 (same story as above)
Another pair of 104/2 (also rebuilt these)
Kef reference model one (currently still have these awaiting new drivers)
Bronze 50/FX/AMS surround setup
Now I'm hifi speaker-less!
Currently demoing some options considering:
MA gold 200,
Acoustic energy 509
And maybe L100s
Or if I can find a nice pair of 107 then them!
Wow I didn't realise I owned so many on such a short space of time.
12 years on, (and despite buying a house and getting married) the only change has been that I got the Goodmans back from my sister and they now form part of my workshop hifi!
lAmBoY
pfm Member
Well, divorce forced an unexpected move to a flat for a couple of years and I treated myself to a Hegel h160 ampdac and my local dealer in Shrewsbury were doing a great deal on the qacoustics, I took my amp in for a demo and really liked what I heard. That room was about 4 X 7m, my room at the flat was about 3.5 X 4.5. the only word I can use is 'energy'. They just had a lovely bounce to them along with a sparkling top end. They just were a joy to listen to and an amazing bargain to boot at the 700 I paid new.
Perfect thread for when insomnia kicks in.
My Quirky list:
Acoustic Research AR18s - part of classic first system with Rega 3 and NAD 3020. Fun sounds.
Proac Tablette EBTs - unusual tablette with 2 bass/midrange units. Big step up in quality from AR Literally stolen by idiot brother (along with my record collection) to pay off debts or some such. Water under the bridge.
Rega Ela mk1 - used with Naim Nait 2. Cracking combo. Great entertainment. Stupidly decided they were too cheap and I could get something a lot better.
Celestion SL600 - read too many magazines and expected some kind of mega upgrade on the Ela’s. Stereo image was impressive but the sound was very constrained and artificial. Very short acquaintance.
Shahinian Obelisks mk1 - Demoed at Graham’s in North London. Wanted something less hifi and more musical. These fitted the bill nicely. Kept them for a long time but I eventually found them to be lacking some transparency. Sold on for a great price - Shahinian used to hold there value well (current prices seem a bit mad to me though)
Rhedeko 125 - absolute shocker. Another one where I was believing too many magazine reviews. Bought blind (ebay special). As soon as I got them home I knew they weren’t for me but persisted for months. Changed amps, cables etc. but all to no avail. Dreadful sound - thin, edgy, fatiguing. Eventually sold them on at a chunky loss to someone who loved them. All the proof I needed that we all hear and value different aspects of sound.
Kibri Naima - went to see the guys at Walrus in London looking for help. They offered these which were a Huge relief. Musical, transparent and easy to drive. Daughter has them now. Rarely seen and a strange looking standmount but high quality. Super cheap if you can find them as the company (which was Danish) went bust.
Gradient Revolution - Passive. Another quirky design. I had heard them at a hifi show years before (Heathrow?). They were the single best demonstration sound there so when a saw a used pair I had to have them. Retained for a good few years. Lovely sounding and with real heft.
Gradient Revolution - Active. Couldn’t leave well enough alone (wanted more detail/transparency) and upgraded from passive to active with a separate powered gradient electronic crossover. Ran with a DNM pre amp plus it’s separate Ps plus 2 stereo DNM power amps (and their 2 separate PS). So many audio boxes that I had to buy another equipment stand but eventually got tired of the cable jungle and decided to simplify.
Harbeth SHL5 Plus - sourced from Radlett audio. Not quite as good as the gradients but still great and allowed me to clear out lots of “stuff” and have a system that was much easier to live with.
Yamaha NS1000 - snapped up a cheap pair as a gamble and, blow me, I found I preferred them to the Harbeths. Sold the harbeths and pocketed the extra money. Kicked myself for not trying these years before. Easy to drive, great with valves, punchy bass and hear through clarity.
Quad ESL 63 - the result with NS1000 got me wondering about other older classics to try ….. so the Quads were obvious contenders. Kicked myself even harder. I could have saved myself a fortune over the years. In truth the Yams were quite close (and more punchy) but felt the Quads were purer sounding so sold the yams. Subsequently tried to get the same punchiness for the Quads with latest Gradient subs. That did work but I was back in a cable and system mess so decided to let the subs go after a while.
Gradient 1.4. - bought for a second system. Really clear and very unusual styling. No bigger than a small speaker on stands but with much better bass. Gets v close to the Quads. Excellent but in retrospect should have gone for a high efficiency design to match with a small Leben valve amp that I have kept. Still will do that if I see the right opportunity.
Famous last words but the Quads may see me out - unless I have to downsize to smaller place/listening room.
Then again, I haven’t tried any big Tannoys …… or some of the classic linn designs …..
aaaarrrgghhhh!!!!
My Quirky list:
Acoustic Research AR18s - part of classic first system with Rega 3 and NAD 3020. Fun sounds.
Proac Tablette EBTs - unusual tablette with 2 bass/midrange units. Big step up in quality from AR Literally stolen by idiot brother (along with my record collection) to pay off debts or some such. Water under the bridge.
Rega Ela mk1 - used with Naim Nait 2. Cracking combo. Great entertainment. Stupidly decided they were too cheap and I could get something a lot better.
Celestion SL600 - read too many magazines and expected some kind of mega upgrade on the Ela’s. Stereo image was impressive but the sound was very constrained and artificial. Very short acquaintance.
Shahinian Obelisks mk1 - Demoed at Graham’s in North London. Wanted something less hifi and more musical. These fitted the bill nicely. Kept them for a long time but I eventually found them to be lacking some transparency. Sold on for a great price - Shahinian used to hold there value well (current prices seem a bit mad to me though)
Rhedeko 125 - absolute shocker. Another one where I was believing too many magazine reviews. Bought blind (ebay special). As soon as I got them home I knew they weren’t for me but persisted for months. Changed amps, cables etc. but all to no avail. Dreadful sound - thin, edgy, fatiguing. Eventually sold them on at a chunky loss to someone who loved them. All the proof I needed that we all hear and value different aspects of sound.
Kibri Naima - went to see the guys at Walrus in London looking for help. They offered these which were a Huge relief. Musical, transparent and easy to drive. Daughter has them now. Rarely seen and a strange looking standmount but high quality. Super cheap if you can find them as the company (which was Danish) went bust.
Gradient Revolution - Passive. Another quirky design. I had heard them at a hifi show years before (Heathrow?). They were the single best demonstration sound there so when a saw a used pair I had to have them. Retained for a good few years. Lovely sounding and with real heft.
Gradient Revolution - Active. Couldn’t leave well enough alone (wanted more detail/transparency) and upgraded from passive to active with a separate powered gradient electronic crossover. Ran with a DNM pre amp plus it’s separate Ps plus 2 stereo DNM power amps (and their 2 separate PS). So many audio boxes that I had to buy another equipment stand but eventually got tired of the cable jungle and decided to simplify.
Harbeth SHL5 Plus - sourced from Radlett audio. Not quite as good as the gradients but still great and allowed me to clear out lots of “stuff” and have a system that was much easier to live with.
Yamaha NS1000 - snapped up a cheap pair as a gamble and, blow me, I found I preferred them to the Harbeths. Sold the harbeths and pocketed the extra money. Kicked myself for not trying these years before. Easy to drive, great with valves, punchy bass and hear through clarity.
Quad ESL 63 - the result with NS1000 got me wondering about other older classics to try ….. so the Quads were obvious contenders. Kicked myself even harder. I could have saved myself a fortune over the years. In truth the Yams were quite close (and more punchy) but felt the Quads were purer sounding so sold the yams. Subsequently tried to get the same punchiness for the Quads with latest Gradient subs. That did work but I was back in a cable and system mess so decided to let the subs go after a while.
Gradient 1.4. - bought for a second system. Really clear and very unusual styling. No bigger than a small speaker on stands but with much better bass. Gets v close to the Quads. Excellent but in retrospect should have gone for a high efficiency design to match with a small Leben valve amp that I have kept. Still will do that if I see the right opportunity.
Famous last words but the Quads may see me out - unless I have to downsize to smaller place/listening room.
Then again, I haven’t tried any big Tannoys …… or some of the classic linn designs …..
aaaarrrgghhhh!!!!
naka
pfm Member
B&W DM601
Tannoy Mercury M2
Monitor Audio 700 PMC
Sonus Faber Concertino
B&W DM302
Monitor Audio Studio 15
Paragon Regent (my favorite ever... but big and heavy)
Rogers Studio 1A
Roksan Darius Mk4
Quad 11L
ProAc D18
Kef LS50
Duevel Planets
Totem Arro
I still have the last six!
Tannoy Mercury M2
Monitor Audio 700 PMC
Sonus Faber Concertino
B&W DM302
Monitor Audio Studio 15
Paragon Regent (my favorite ever... but big and heavy)
Rogers Studio 1A
Roksan Darius Mk4
Quad 11L
ProAc D18
Kef LS50
Duevel Planets
Totem Arro
I still have the last six!
Last edited:
Alco
pfm Member
It's quite a list, but here goes... (hope my memory serves me well) 
Wharfedale (don't recall the name, it was in de mid 80's)
Vifa Korrekt 3.0 (DIY, small floorstanders)
Magnepan SMG-A
B&W. (don't recall what type. Big ugly, black floorstanders)
Xanadu DS14
Mission 760
Translator 'Jade' (Dutch floorstanders)
Audiostatics ES200r
Royd A7
Linn Kan
B&W 302
B&W N805
Rogers Studio 3 (wish I kept these!)
Naim n-Sats
Sonus Faber Concertino home
Diapason Micra mk3 (twice)
Penaudio Rebel
Penaudio Charisma (should've kept these)
Dali Oberon 1
Wharfedale (don't recall the name, it was in de mid 80's)
Vifa Korrekt 3.0 (DIY, small floorstanders)
Magnepan SMG-A
B&W. (don't recall what type. Big ugly, black floorstanders)
Xanadu DS14
Mission 760
Translator 'Jade' (Dutch floorstanders)
Audiostatics ES200r
Royd A7
Linn Kan
B&W 302
B&W N805
Rogers Studio 3 (wish I kept these!)
Naim n-Sats
Sonus Faber Concertino home
Diapason Micra mk3 (twice)
Penaudio Rebel
Penaudio Charisma (should've kept these)
Dali Oberon 1
Martyn Miles
pfm Member
Rogers Studio 3s.
I miss mine as well.
I miss mine as well.
vicdiaz
Just another analog freak...
Update!
1977 - Akai SW-155
1984 - Wharfedale Diamonds MK. I
1985 - Linn Kan I
2003 - Linn Katans (in storage)
2008 - Rega Kytes (in workshop system)
2012 - Linn AV5140s active (main system)
2018 - Naim SBLs black (in storage)
2020 - Linn Keilidhs black (home office system)
2022 - JBL 4311B (paired with a Marantz 2238B receiver as part of a vintage setup)
1977 - Akai SW-155
1984 - Wharfedale Diamonds MK. I
1985 - Linn Kan I
2003 - Linn Katans (in storage)
2008 - Rega Kytes (in workshop system)
2012 - Linn AV5140s active (main system)
2018 - Naim SBLs black (in storage)
2020 - Linn Keilidhs black (home office system)
2022 - JBL 4311B (paired with a Marantz 2238B receiver as part of a vintage setup)