One thing I’ve learned from the ongoing LS3/5A & JR149 comparison is I I think I had the 149 tweeter very slightly too hot. I need to think obsessively about this setting before forming any real conclusion. I’ve backed it down a little further, but when I get to the measuring stage (that will be a fair while away) I’ll be interested to see how they compare. I will use the LS3/5A as a reference here, as it is clearly absolutely bang on right to my ears.
Now they’ve warmed up and I’ve got more used to them there really is something stunningly good about the LS3/5A midband. I totally get the fanaticism people have towards these little speakers. The way they pull information out around the sax, trumpet, piano is etc superb, maybe as good as I’ve ever heard, and they do it without any unnatural hype or spotlight. They are a fantastic speaker for jazz and small scale classical, though switch to rock and electronica and the 149s pull ahead. They are very close but still surprisingly different! My gut feeling is there is nothing between them efficiency wise, maybe a db here and there at different points in the range, but not enough to make me want to adjust the volume. Again measuring will reveal how accurate that impression. I’ll get there eventually.