https://www.hifinews.com/content/lowther-almira-loudspeaker

Rawls’ and Dianne Reeves’ voices retained much of their correct textures, hers clear and his raspy, but the absence of deep bass created an imbalance. It was more like listening to a small two-way speaker, despite ample levels which would destroy such systems. Yes, these go loud, but even with plenty of volume in hand I didn’t even bother to try and see how far I could go. It reminded me why horns were the default choice for cinemas back in an era when 5W amplifiers were considered powerhouses.

What caused enough concern to make me question the voicing of the Almira was the Platinum SHM CD of Blind Faith’s lone, self-titled album [Polydor Japan UICY-40013]. As trivial as this may seem, it was the simple cymbal crash that punctuates ‘Can’t Find My Way Home’, a specific crunch which sounded papery rather than metallic. That version of Blind Faith is one of the best I’ve heard, and my trusty Marantz CD12/DA12 in balanced mode is as sweet as CD sound gets. Not this time.

Covering the supertweeter to see if it was responsible merely proved that it added little to the sound. The edginess came from the main driver, making me wonder if the phase plug should be returned to its rightful place, and the LPFRCB removed. One suspects that Chave, Voigt and the rest knew exactly what they were doing a few lifetimes ago.

That last sentence is important as it describes the Q Acoustics Concept 50 perfectly; it passes every test with flying colours. It’s a £2,000 loudspeaker that sounds almost like a £4,000 loudspeaker. The design isn’t just ‘another box’ but nor are the innovations that go into the design merely there for their own sakes. A loudspeaker that is easy to drive and possessed of a classic sound yet isn’t so ‘classic’ as to be boring and isn’t undemanding of electronics in quality terms. With Concept 50, Q Acoustics more than earns a place at audio’s top table.

https://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/1222/Magnepan_LRS_Plus_Quasi_Ribbon_Floorstanding_Loudspeaker_Review.htm

Before discussing the Plusses’ downside, I need to say a word about setup. In the old days, Maggies were typically listened to head-on, without any toe-in, for greatest neutrality. A lot of folks still prefer this alignment, but…it won’t work ideally with the LRS or the LRS+. Because of the smaller size of their quasi-ribbon panels and the fact they are two-ways, you may end up with either too much bass or too much treble and not enough in between — i.e., with too dark or too bright a tonal palette — if you don’t cant the speakers in a fair amount (at least 15–20 degrees). Though this may be room-dependent, Maggie also recommends that the speakers be situated with their tweeters (visible via a flashlight shined through the grille as the section of the panel with narrower, more closely aligned foil strips) to the outside and away from the wall and, with the requisite toe-in, their woofers to the inside and closer to the wall. My description of the sound of the LRS+ reflects Maggie’s set-up recommendations, albeit with toe-in painstakingly tweaked almost degree by degree until I achieved a balance that was neither too top-down or too bottom-up but audibly and measurably close to neutral.

https://www.soundstageultra.com/index.php/equipment-menu/1135-atc-scm50-passive-active-loudspeaker

In summary, the ATC SCM50 is a benchmark design and a world-class loudspeaker, whether driven actively or passively. In the active configuration, it represents an incredible bargain in the high-end audio field—and that would be my choice if I were laying my money down. In my experience, there’s no other loudspeaker that comes even close to its immense power, neutrality, bandwidth, speed, and sheer visceral impact at anywhere near the price. If you choose to go the passive route, expect to budget significantly more than the $8000 difference in cost between the active and passive SCM50 variants for your amplification. The big Naim combination powering the passive SCM50s offered stunning sound—at significant cost—and the transparency of the ATC loudspeakers allowed all the virtues cherished by Naim enthusiasts to really shine.

That is Mr. Janszen’s explanation of why these speakers sound so good. I am in no position to say if this is correct or not. However, no matter how these speakers work, you need to hear these speakers for yourself and come to your own conclusions. I think at $14,700 ($12,750 without Presets 2 and 3) that they are a bargain, particularly if you do not have enough room or money for bulky separate equipment, don’t want long cable runs, or if you would prefer to stream your music directly to the speakers.

https://www.whathifi.com/reviews/bowers-and-wilkins-705-s3

The starker comparison is against the more affordable and Award-winning KEF LS50 Meta speakers. They may not have the grand scale, clarity and refinement of the 705 S3 speakers – but the KEFs have a lovely tone and a beautiful way with detail, agility, dynamism and rhythmic drive that captures the heart and emotion of a song. Voices and piano notes sound that much more realistic and tangible. We connect with what’s being played immediately and are swept away by every song that’s played. 

There are ways to carefully match the speakers to the rest of your system to get the best out of them. To offset that cooler tone, we’d recommend pairing the 705 S3 with the Naim Supernait 3 amplifier. This amplifier’s more robust presentation gives the sound some much needed substance and dynamic punch.