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Graham Chartwell LS3/5a

@ArtK Also incoming Graham Chartwell LS3/5A today. I have never listend to a Graham loudspeaker so far and so I'm very exited also because it is a trade in and I'm buying more or less blind.:oops:

I'm very interested how you like them so far and what components you are using, etc.
 
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Colonel_Mad said:
Forgive my ignorance, but wasn't the whole point of the strict LS3/5a specifications and licensing to make sure they all sounded the same?
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That was one original point, for sure. The other; to provide a certain standard of realistic sound monitoring in mobile and small BBC studios.

But, the situation has evolved. Now, they have a fan base of home users. No reason the original specs and materials shouldn’t evolve to satisfy a new type of demand. Can they still be called LS3/5a? Pistols at dawn…
 
ArtK said:
Less that than that there isn’t enough room for them to truly open up.
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Very interesting Art K. I recently acquired Spendor Classic 3/1s for my den, about 11 1/2” by 16 1/2”. I got them thinking they would be just the sweet spot between my <ahem> BBC legacy-style small monitors and Graham LS5/9s. The latter are lovely, but with many modern recordings of folk-rock and the like, the bass becomes heavier than I like, in a very resonant room.

So, I’ve been going back and forth between the smaller monitors and the 3/1s. At first, I was convinced the 3/1s would be my final resting place; much like an LS3/5a with about 15% more heft all around. Then, I go back to the smaller monitors and seem to find them just as satisfying, and perhaps warmer with vocals in a way that seems to me both natural and pleasing. But I find no flaw with the 3/1s, and they deserve more time…
 
Panderos said:
Very interesting Art K. I recently acquired Spendor Classic 3/1s for my den, about 11 1/2” by 16 1/2”. I got them thinking they would be just the sweet spot between my <ahem> BBC legacy-style small monitors and Graham LS5/9s. The latter are lovely, but with many modern recordings of folk-rock and the like, the bass becomes heavier than I like, in a very resonant room.

So, I’ve been going back and forth between the smaller monitors and the 3/1s. At first, I was convinced the 3/1s would be my final resting place; much like an LS3/5a with about 15% more heft all around. Then, I go back to the smaller monitors and seem to find them just as satisfying, and perhaps warmer with vocals in a way that seems to me both natural and pleasing. But I find no flaw with the 3/1s, and they deserve more time…
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I recently settled on the 3/1s (after much agonising), in direct comparison to their smaller, ls3/5a-type brothers, write up here:

https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/system-pics-2022.262977/page-33#post-4650556

However, I do know what you mean about musical satisfaction. While I find the 3/1 more pleasing all rounders (for my ears and room), the ls3/5a types still have that charm about them, and remain better at disappearing, snappy midrange and imaging. Plus ease of placement of course. I do miss some of that, even though when taken as a whole, I prefer the 3/1.

So I can understand why some people fall on the smaller speakers' side of the fence.
 
Panderos said:
Very interesting Art K. I recently acquired Spendor Classic 3/1s for my den, about 11 1/2” by 16 1/2”. I got them thinking they would be just the sweet spot between my <ahem> BBC legacy-style small monitors and Graham LS5/9s. The latter are lovely, but with many modern recordings of folk-rock and the like, the bass becomes heavier than I like, in a very resonant room.

So, I’ve been going back and forth between the smaller monitors and the 3/1s. At first, I was convinced the 3/1s would be my final resting place; much like an LS3/5a with about 15% more heft all around. Then, I go back to the smaller monitors and seem to find them just as satisfying, and perhaps warmer with vocals in a way that seems to me both natural and pleasing. But I find no flaw with the 3/1s, and they deserve more time…
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I’m not sure I would have moved them on if I had your size room. Then again I would never have discovered the joy that are the GC LS3/5a’s.
 
Your room is v small @ArtK so makes sense. At least in my room, the 3/1 definitely need some space to breath. Glad the Graham's are treating you well, I bet they sound sweet. How do they compare to other small ones you've tried (proac tablette, p3esr etc)?
 
Goat said:
Your room is v small @ArtK so makes sense. At least in my room, the 3/1 definitely need some space to breath. Glad the Graham's are treating you well, I bet they sound sweet. How do they compare to other small ones you've tried (proac tablette, p3esr etc)?
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I really loved both the Tab 10 and the P3, the latter a bit more. I have decided, for now, to keep my P3’s for an occasional switch out. The Graham’s really combine the best of both speakers. They are very truthful about what you feed them. You hear the differences in what’s happening upstream a bit more than with P3’s. The ProAc’s are clear and open but just a bit too toppy for my preference. Still a delightful speaker.
 
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