Audiophilepure

I suspect that these JBLs had not been given much of a run-in prior to delivery because the results they produced improved markedly over the weeks that they were in the system. I played a lot of music through a variety of sources and amplifiers and came to the conclusion that they are really rather good, their high sensitivity is a definite bonus but ultimately the HDI-3800s are a lot more sophisticated than they look. This combined with their competitive pricing makes them look like rather good value if you have the space.

https://www.soundandvision.com/content/kef-lsx-ii-wireless-speaker-system-review

Otherwise, day-to-day operation of the LSX II speaker system was a snap, whether streaming from the KEF Connect app or directly from the “native” Qobuz or Tidal apps on my iPad mini. (Though I confess this can get a bit confusing—which app is this, anyway?) Most users will be perfectly happy using KEF’s app. It has all of the expected music-streaming features—playlists, “favorites,” and the like—and is about as simple and intuitive as one can expect in this decidedly un-simple age. That said, I must observe that there are no physical controls on the LSX II speakers themselves apart from the pairing and reset buttons on the rear of the main speaker. So if the KEF remote—which provides volume, input, and play/pause/skip controls—is lost in the sofa cushions and your phone or tablet was forgotten at the office…

Lastly, the Connect app lacks any tone controls, per se. If you choose the “Expert” setup mode you can effectively adjust treble, midrange, and bass by a few dB each, but you must first dig deep into the 104-page PDF owner’s manual to learn how these correlate to “Desk Mode,” “Wall Mode,” treble Trim, and Bass Extension; this is probably done by design to discourage ham-thumbed users from screwing up the LSX II’s carefully created native balance.

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

This pair of ATC SCM50s was quite simply one of the most breathtakingly revealing sets of loudspeakers I have ever heard. According to my definition of what constitutes high-end sound, these loudspeakers utterly excelled across all parameters, and I believe this is no coincidence. The SCM50 was designed from the outset as a recording engineer’s scalpel; its task was to reveal every unwanted creak of a chair or surplus open microphone channel, and to permit forensic analysis of a singer’s performance or technique. In Making Rumours, Caillat describes how they chose which microphone to use for Nicks’s lead vocals on “Dreams.” He set up around eight top-class vocal microphones on a long line of booms in the live room of the Record Plant studio in Sausalito, California, and asked her to sing into each one in turn. It was quickly apparent to both of them that the Sennheiser 441 best suited Nicks’s voice, and it became her microphone of choice. It’s the incredible transparency and openness of studio monitors that allows such differences to be discerned, and I believe it is the combination of ATC’s studio heritage and superlative engineering that makes the SCM50 such an exceptional loudspeaker for the home.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/tannoy-stirling-prestige-gold-reference-loudspeaker

Like other speakers I’ve reviewed that have horn-loaded drive units, the Tannoy Stirling Prestige Gold Reference is fast, plays with marvelous dynamics, and presents a full, believable, densely populated soundstage. It requires careful setup, but once that’s done, it rewards with excellent transparency, fine treble resolution, good midrange and bass fundamentals, and impressive textures. I’d go so far as to say that the Stirling, which just had its first price increase since 2013, is a bargain. Considering the adjustability of its treble output to accommodate different room sizes and conditions, the Stirling is an easy speaker to love.

Despite changes at the company, the Tannoy legacy continues with the Stirling, which proudly carries the torch for a classic, timeless design.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/triangle-antal-40th-anniversary-edition-loudspeaker

Every Triangle speaker, from the cheapest to the most expensive, is designed at the company’s workshop in Soissons, France; most are built there. Why not Asia? “That’s a loaded topic,” Decelle said. “But we decided to continue to build our speakers in France. We even repatriated some of our other building projects. There are two reasons for that. Building locally gives us a level of quality we can’t get offshore. In France, we have speaker builders that have been with us for over 30 years. It’s their career choice. They know what the quality of every piece should be, and they have access to state-of-the-art quality-control facilities. It’s they who determine if our speakers meet our standards acoustically and cosmetically before they leave the plant.

https://www.the-ear.net/review-hardware/neat-petite-classic-standmount-loudspeaker

This is a fiercely competitive areas of the market, with mainstream brands opting to design small speakers in the UK but manufacturing in the Far East to meet key price-points. Neat eschews that idea and it’s refreshing to have a British loudspeaker in more than just name, manufacturing being in County Durham and the cabinet hailing from Essex. 

The Petite Classic is something special, and manages to combine competent engineering with superb manufacturing standards while generating a highly entertaining and extremely involving sound. For sheer enjoyment and involvement, the new Petite is able to not only match but surpass the original, helped by advancements in technology and the glorious implementation of that AMT ribbon. Classic by name and classic by nature. 

https://www.stereophile.com/content/tannoy-stirling-prestige-gold-reference-loudspeaker

The Stirling’s 1″-thick grille, which is inset flush with the cabinet edge, is the heaviest and thickest I’ve ever seen. It’s covered in a tweedlike fabric that reminds me of a blazer worn by a character from a ’60s TV show. The grille snaps into place magnetically and is also held in place by the same mechanism found on earlier Tannoy speakers, released with a gold-plated key near the bottom. “This is a classic Tannoy design,” Deal explained. “Fans like the big grille and key for removal. Tannoy avoids the use of plastic pins in this design. … Owners leave them either on or off.”

Around the back, four large, sturdy binding posts allow for biwiring; a fifth post enables optional earth-grounding to the amplifier chassis, presumably to reduce EMI reception. Four thick, color-coded wire jumpers were included to connect high- and low-frequency posts.

PSB has literally put everything into these speakers. They’ve been designed from the ground up and no detail has been left unaddressed. From the precise drivers to the stone-like cabinet and its isolated aluminum front baffle and high-tech feet, everything here is devoted to delivering the best possible audio performance.

The PSB Synchrony T600 Tower Speakers are quite simply, the best speakers I’ve ever heard in my home. While I’ve had the chance to audition some frightfully expensive speakers at shows or in specialty shops, none have left so many positive memories as these.