Audiophilepure

https://www.whathifi.com/us/reviews/proac-k1

While no one will see the plinth’s bottom surface once the speakers are on stands, it’s a shame that ProAc didn’t cover the base with veneer or give it some other treatment to make it look smarter. Currently, it looks a little unfinished with the plain wooden panel visible. This feels like cost-cutting that has no place in a product such as this. The way the plinth’s metal front plate is attached looks a little messy from underneath, too. Neither of these things are major issues, but at this price level, such small details matter.

ProAc makes 50cm-tall dedicated stands for the K1 that cost £995 ($1995). They require assembling and are held together by an oddly varied collection of screws and bolts. There are four columns in total for each stand and, thanks to pretty clear instructions, it doesn’t take long to put them together. The silver one in the front is solid aluminium (matching a similar piece on the front of the speaker), while the remaining three (all painted black) are hollow steel tubes. Once assembled, the stands are quite resonant, so a bit of mass-loading with sand or similar would help.

And, most delightfully, the 4349’s woofers don’t lose pitch definition or speed despite their size and weight. But as good as the bass is, it is NOT their best feature – that would be the midrange and treble! JBL’s horns put out a dynamic, clear, open, and extended midrange and treble. Again, I was highly skeptical about the 38mm horn driver – surely it couldn’t have the high-end sparkle and extension of a smaller driver of lighter mass? But from the first listen, the squinched-up-looking horn and its driver just astounded me. Not only did it disappear as being a discreet sound source, but the dispersion provided a holographic-sounding image with more clarity than I’d heard in my room before.

I’ll admit to having some preconceived ideas about how smallish bookshelf speakers were going to sound. Just because of their size, I assumed they wouldn’t have deep bass heft, and they probably wouldn’t have the tightest sense of rhythm and dynamics. However, the Luminas proved me very, very wrong. No, they aren’t going to give you heart palpitations with their sub-bass rumbles. (Again, physics is a thing.) But the Luminas certainly changed my mind about how small bookshelf speakers are supposed to sound—or can sound. As far as I’m concerned, these are the new sub-$1k bookshelf speakers to beat. Just keep in mind those power amp requirements. Highly recommended to anyone looking for fantastic sound and beautiful style in a surprisingly compact package. 

The crux of loudspeaker design is the art of making choices and striking the right balance. The BRX chose transparency, finesse, and nuance to communicate the experience of real musicians performing in acoustic space. Yes, there are compact speakers in this class that have a more direct sound and ring out with a bit more extension and seat-of-the-pants slam—more Reznor than Rossini, if you will. But the GoldenEar BRX is a black-tie classicist of a very high order. You won’t need a golden ear to enjoy its class-leading blend of musicality and refinement.

Vienna Acoustics Beethoven Baby Grand Reference loudspeakers

They let the music step away from the speakers and into the room. They bring the performance to you and you to the performance. They have always been few and far between and invariably somewhere the wrong side of expensive – until now. All of a sudden, a few genuinely exceptional speakers have hit the market, shattering the glass ceiling that’s restricted affordable speaker performance. Vienna Acoustics’ Baby Grand is the tip of that wedge, setting the pace and setting the standard. This is one speaker where you need to trust your ears. Hear them doing their thing, and like me, you really won’t believe your eyes – whether you are looking at that slim cabinet or the price ticket hanging from it. Prepare to be surprised – and impressed: very impressed indeed!