In the last post I talked about finding a speaker that will give maximum enjoyment and satisfaction.
I believe it is vitally important to consider the speaker the most important component in any system, it is vital to get this component suited exactly to your taste.
There should be absolutely no doubt that it provides the sound you enjoy, you should have no qualms about it at all. It should be a 10/10 , and something you could live with over a very long term.
Forget about the dac of the month, find the speaker that speaks to you and everything else will fall into place.
I've had many speakers over 40 years and here follows a description of the 3 speakers I simply could not live without ( ok I could choose one above the others, but I dont have to!)
AR-LST
LST stands for Laboratory Sound Transducer and Acoustic Research meant this design to be a genuine studio monitor.
Released in 1972 its very hard to find a pair in good condition now, But despite their age,they can surpass the best of modern speakers in accuracy and musicality.
With 9 drivers per side- a 10" bass, 4 tweeters and 4 midranges they throw a large and realistic soundstage. Almost ribbon like tonality,but with very much increased dynamics .
They require some modfication to crossover bring them up to modern standards . I replaced the electrolytic caps with polys and removed a tone shifting network consisting of a stepped transformer and large electrolytic cap.
I also separated the 3 crossover sections so they could be individually actively driven. This requires 3 amps per side but is required if speaker is to be driven by tubes, as the total load is quite difficult .
This also provides the ability to adjust levels of bass,midrange and treble independently so as to adjust tone to suit room and taste.
Back in 1972 there were very few high current amps available that were able to drive the high current requirements of the AR-LST.
I used the speakers for quite a few years with 6 tube amps and was very happy with sound.
But recently I used a modern solid state amp capable of 1000 watts into 1 ohm , with bass, mid and treble paralleled and was very pleased with sound.
Of course a state of the art tube preamp is necessary to get a nice synergy with all that power.
Because this power amp has high gain, I'm using my DHT preamp switched to low gain/high drive.
The midrange of the LST is very good, but probably so because of the excellent integration of the bass and treble units, its a complete sound proficient in all areas.
Supravox 215/ Eminence Alpha/Raal ribbon tweeter. Open Baffle
I've only had this speaker system for a short time time but I can see me living with it for an extended time.
I've already described it in previous posts so will just give a short summation.
Field Coil Drivers are different, The Raal ribbon tweeter is different . Open baffle with the Eminence Alpha 15" drivers is different.
All up this is a great speaker that sounds different (surprise) from anything else. It seems to have the best of everything , with very few vices. Maybe the bass isn't as deep as it could be, but it is so tuneful and articulate .
The music comes out with real ease and vitality , very expansive sound-stage with every instrument clearly audible at its particular level ,and clearly defined.
The drivers aren't cheap , but this is an affordable speaker that anybody would be impressed with.
Its particularly demanding of preamps, nothing but the best for this speaker as it demonstrates the very best (and worst) of all.
I'm using a DHT preamp with 3 outputs and low output impedance in order to be able to drive all 3 outputs.
It works very well with an all tube system , a mix of Single Ended and Push Pull amps and responds very favourably to digital EQ/room correction . (that will get the traditional tube die-hards up in arms!)
Accoustat 2+2
Another old design from the 80's. I've had numerous electrostatic speakers over the years- Quad, Crown, Martin Logan, Nakamichi (Whise), SoundKing) but the one that overawes them in size and sound is the Acoustat 2+2
Electrostatics are famed for their detail and crystalline highs, but the 2+2 has the most majestic tone of all stats. It isn't bright , as most stats can be, but has a very natural tone that most resembles real ,
voices and instruments better than any other speaker I've heard.
It does low bass and although not as "heavy" as a bass driver it is nicely articulated. I use a pair of subs but crossed in low at 50Hz, so they mostly are contributing little to the sound.
Voices, brass instruments are so natural sounding ,its the closest thing to being at a real show!
They do beam,so its a one man show,but in the optimum seating position the soundstage is huge and wide, as you would expect from a speaker this size
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Like all stats they only really gel with a very powerful set of amplifiers, I'm using two pair of 1000W into 1 ohm solid state amplifiers
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The designers got this one right and they dont require much modification to surpass any modern day stat.
I did split the crossovers so I could bi-amp, rebuilt the high voltage section with up to date stronger components and did a mild jump in HT joule capacity.
These mods enabled me to use my Supratek Dual Cabernet preamp. The 2+2's have 2 step up transformers and using one of the preamps outputs to drive the amp for speakers bass/mid transformer and the other preamp output to drive the amp for speakers treble transformer , I'm able to make fine adjustments to the speakers blend of bass/mid and treble.
Every speaker/room benefits from the ability to do these adjustments and is the perfect example of how the Dual Cabernet can be utilised.
If I had to choose the 2+2's would be my preferred speaker, and I'm presently building a dedicated (large) listening room to suit them.
There are many other speakers that can make fine music, the trick is to find the the one that suits the way you enjoy your music, and what really sounds like music to you.
Its obvious from my choice of speakers that I like big sound-stages, wide and deep imaging , and speakers that disappear.
Others will value tone or frequency response, it's all subjective but important to find what sounds like the real thing to your ears.
Get the speaker right, then the preamp, power amp/s and finally the sources and everything will fall into place.
Photos above used for illustration only- not my speakers. Photos coming.
