Miscellaneous speaker thread

[Iago]

Not sure if you are even still dreaming of new speakers, Seamaster, but I keep reading nothing but raves for the new GoldenEar Technology Triton 2. $2500 a pair with built in powered subwoofers -- with a supposed range down to 20hz. Here is Stereophile's review:

http://www.stereophile.com/content/goldenear-technology-triton-two-loudspeaker

[mrblur]

whoah is there a coupon for those to bring down the price.

[Iago]

Not necessary, blur. Thems is cheap already. For comparison, my Vandersteen Quatros (also with powered subs) go for around $10,000 with the external crossovers -- and Vandersteens in general and the Quatros in particular are considered one of the best values for the performance in the world of hi-fi!

[Iago]

Audioholics review of the same:

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/home-theater-speakers/1460-goldenear-technology-tritoncinema-two-home-theater-speaker-system.html?start=4

[Seamaster]

And Iago cheapened out by not opting for the Model 7s!

I'll read the reviews tomorrow when I have a little more time. Thanks for the links.

[Iago]

Blur would really freak out if we tried to convince him that the Model 7s are STILL considered a bargain for their performance!

But $2500 for a pair with built-in subwoofers really seems a more realistic extravagence. That is barely a quarter of the cost of the Quatros. No regrets on my part, of course, but I recall you were looking around earlier for something to eventually replace your Monitors.

[Seamaster]

Interesting review. It's too bad that there are no dealers in Alberta. The closest are in Regina and Vancouver. A bit of a drive for an audition.

[Iago]

What is it with you and no dealers whenever something cool comes along? Sheesh.


I was kind of hoping that you could listen to them and let me know what you think. Not much motivating me to find a dealer myself -- I tend to only put the effort into listening to things when I am actually in the market for buying.

[Seamaster]

I was intrigued enough to visit Golden Ear's website and do a search for dealers. I was quite surprised to find a dealer in Regina, but nothing in Alberta. The last I checked, Calgary has a larger population than all of Saskatchewan, so there is a big market being missed here (of course Calgary's population still pales compared with many large US centres, but you get my drift).

Incidentally, there does appear to be a dealer in Minneapolis. Just saying.

[Iago]

Well, they are still a relatively new brand, so they may not have much exposure in many markets.


I just looked, and it is at Stereoland, which is a dealer with which I am unfamiliar. Eden Prairie is a suburb of Minneapolis that is on the opposite side of the Twin Cities from us, and not one that I visit very often.

[Seamaster]

Maybe the brand will start popping in more places throughout the year. We'll see.

I still have a soft spot for Harbeths, and I did like the sound of the Vandersteens I tested -- only the 3a Signature, sorry. Have you listened to the Treos? Are they new to Vandersteen?

[Iago]

The Treo is actually his newest model. I thought that it was going to esentially be a Quatro minus the subwoofer, and the top three drivers certainly seem to be, but there is that extra driver that the literature describes as a subwoofer -- yet it also describes the Treo as a full-range speaker, which to me implies that it is not powered. It may simply be an extra low-frequency driver that reinforces the sub 80hz signals that the main woofer will not reproduce as well.

The thing that interested me on the GoldenEar website was their subwoofers, the larger of which has two push-pull 10" inch drivers in a sealed enclosure that supposedly plays down to 16 hz -- for $699. That is entirely in range with the similar models from Outlaw and Hsu Research. I will be keeping my eyes open for more reviews of that model.

[Seamaster]

Maybe it'd be worth driving to Eden Prairie after all?

[Iago]

The sub might do it, but of course while listening to any speaker in a room other than your own is of questionable utility, listening to a subwoofer in a showroom is absolutely worthless. I used to hate having to demo subs when I sold electronics. But I have been looking around to replace the burned out AV123 sub; I just do not want to spend the money right now.

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