Audiophilepure

https://www.stereophile.com/content/monitor-audio-platinum-300-3g-loudspeaker

 I see I haven’t commented yet on the Platinum 300 3G’s degree of tonal neutrality. This speaker is commendably uncolored. Solo piano recordings are very revealing of problems in the upper midrange, but the piano on the Silverman concert recording sounded both natural and full range, with no notes emphasized. The only aspect of the Monitor Audio’s sonic signature that did occasionally concern me was a slight emphasis to recorded sibilance, more noticeable with the solid state Naim and Parasound amplifiers than with the tubed Audio Research I/50 or, paradoxically perhaps, the class-D NAD. The I/50’s top octave starts to roll off prematurely into low impedances (footnote 1), which could account somewhat for its mitigation of this slight sibilance, though the shape of the Platinum 300 3G’s impedance magnitude trace (fig.1 in the Measurements sidebar) suggests that this rolloff will be minimal.

I finished my critical listening sessions with Joni Mitchell at Newport (24/192 FLAC, Rhino/Qobuz), recorded live in 2022. What can I say? With its lack of coloration and neutral tonal balance, Monitor Audio’s Platinum 300 3G did justice not just to Mitchell’s age-deepened voice but to those of all the singers featured on this album.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/focal-maestro-utopia-evo-loudspeaker

One moment, the Maestros take on the character of a 200lb street brawler, the next, that of a ballerina. They did the only thing that matters in the wild world of hi-fi: connect me to the music. I produced pages of notes full of terms like authority, grace, ebullience, grandeur, brawn. But maybe this says it better than reams of descriptors: During the evaluation of almost every new piece in my system, I make a fresh Roon playlist of songs that show off the product particularly well. On average, I end up with a list of 30, 40 songs. After two months with the Maestros, I was up to 157 tracks. From chamber quartets to EDM, orchestral showpieces to Appalachian folk, delta blues to big band, these exceptional French speakers brought the joy. Astute and revealing, they’re among the hautest of haut-parleurs.

https://www.theaudiobeat.com/equipment/wilson_audio_alexia_v.htm

is Alexia V the last word — the best speaker I have ever heard? Of course not. There are much more expensive and larger speakers that have impressed me in certain ways that no others have come close to matching. When I heard the WAMM in David Wilson’s house, it had a high-frequency delicacy and lucidity that nothing else has equaled. And more recently, I visited the Göbel factory/showroom where their 1200-pound Divin Majestic produced bass density, resolution, and dynamics that I have not heard in any other system. However, those speakers cost seven to nine times the price of Alexia V, and they would not fit in my home or the homes of most audiophiles.

I have paid close attention to Wilson Audio speakers over the years. I fell in love with Yvette and was sorely tempted by Sasha DAW. However, the Alexia V is now the sweet spot of the Wilson lineup, with its breathtaking dynamics, improved sensitivity, and acute tonal accuracy. Combined with these attributes, its adjustability makes it possible to fit this fairly large speaker into a somewhat modestly sized room. Most of all, the Alexia V has rekindled my love affair with records. I’ve spent the last couple of months playing treasures I acquired over the years that only now are revealing their hidden beauty. The Alexia V stands out among a select few audio products I have reviewed over the years. This is a pair of speakers that will not be leaving anytime soon