CHANGSTAR: Audiophile Headphone Reviews and Early 90s Style BBS
Lobby => Speakers => Topic started by: ihasmario on May 20, 2015, 10:42:46 AM
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I'm on a very long quest of finding the magic of a Stax Lambda (Signature, specifically) in a speaker.
The closest I've come so far is either Quad 2805 or 2905 - I can't quite remember. But they had too much midbass and I don't care for that at all.
I'm going to check a Quad 57 that's come up in my area recently soon. What should I be looking out for in terms on damage/wear/mods besides the obvious?
Thanks.
And - if you have an opinion on the speakers for me - what are they?
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Just sold a pair of Quad ESL-63 USA Monitors that I've owned for years. Really the best midrange I've ever heard anywhere, highs damn near perfect too. I know the 2805 is based on them but the ESL-63 did not have the midbass hump you described. The only think missing was that tactile lower bass you could really feel. The bass that was there was wonderful, but ultimately it didn't reach low enough or hit hard enough for me. But I've become much more obsessed with bass the longer I've been in this hobby, so my tastes tend in that direction (current speakers are SVS Ultra Towers which are bass monsters).
I've never heard 57s so I can't comment on those.
Issues you should consider if you go down this path is many ESL-63s/57s will require servicing, and both require plenty of room on all sides to sound their best. There are many people who refurbish old Quad speakers (I recommend Kent at Electrostatic Solutions, really great guy), but they are a pain in the ass to ship around the country (freight is most definitely required, so hundreds of dollars per speaker to ship one way).
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Lot of speakers will give stax like effortless if that's what you mean and looking for. even traditional electro-dynamic speakers will...I always thought the opposite that stax to be closest thing to pretty good speaker set. I like headphones lot besides speakers but for different reasons.
If you were more specific on what you're looking for it'll narrow things out a bit. Just saying...
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Could be a bit out of your range but I found some of the older Acoustats and the Dragons to offer that effortless realistic, ethereal sound that the old Quad 57 and 63 are capable of doing. If you're out on the watch for a pair of old 57's, always ask the seller where they've been stored and when was the last service on the panels if done so.
Have you considered horns?
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Could be a bit out of your range but I found some of the older Acoustats and the Dragons to offer that effortless realistic, ethereal sound that the old Quad 57 and 63 are capable of doing. If you're out on the watch for a pair of old 57's, always ask the seller where they've been stored and when was the last service on the panels if done so.
Have you considered horns?
I haven't considered horns. It's difficult to get good speakers all the way down in Perth Australia, because the used market is small. There's some quad 57s on the market right now I intend to listen to hence the thread. It's a full quad setup and the price is very good (about what I'd expect to pay 57s in the US).
Failing that, I might end up DIYing some using local supplies (there is a supplier of "kits" that are well received, and he also services quads). Only an hour by car.
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Ah makes sense you`re from Perth, Victoria here some Acoustats recently being sold on stereonet if you haven`t checked it out. Lots of horn owners too.
Quads go a little bit cheaper in the States but having them shipped to Aus is very expensive.