Robert Harley on "How to Choose Loudspeakers"

[gleeds]

Who are we trying to help here and how are we helping them?

I can shop for a new car in a certain price point and the choices are staggeringly good and very varied. The same is true for a Swiss watch. In speakers line arrays, dipoles of electrostatic magnetostatic, ribbon type - cones and domes with paper, ceramic, carbon drivers - horns, full range, field coils and others. Big brands, full-line brands, small bespoke makers etc.

I would rather hear from Members who have made mistakes choosing a loudspeakers based on one method or another and what they learned from that experience. We could then condense those experiences in a what NOT to do process and perhaps help more enthusiasts get it right out of the gate.

Finally, magazines, websites, YouTubers all have an agenda and are sources of information only. How good or bad the advice is as varied as it is debatable. The good news is no one person or group is being severely harmed by this information and in most cases it light reading and entertainment.

 

[thedudeabides]

At the risk of causing great nashing of teeth in this wonderful but very exclusive forum, here are my thoughts. And is meant to be applicable to all products, not simply loudspeakers.

First off, having been a serious audio hobbyist (within my budgetary constraints) for several decades. I emulated, to the extent possible, what many of you suggested. But you all have to realize that the majority of WBF folks live in a delusional bubble regarding what is practical and realistic for the vast majority of the public who purchase audio gear. This includes the very wealthy sector where cost is not an issue.

A pertinent, recent example was a thread by Ron requesting system recommendations for his friend within a $10K budget. After all the numerous posts, what happened? His friend decided to buy his system from Crutchfield, spending about $8K and per Ron, is quite content with his decision.

The point being that when most people shop for an audio system, be it budget or extreme hi end, they want the process to be relatively easy / cost effective and occur in a timely manner. This is the exact opposite of this forum's mantra which takes this process to the extreme.

Each of you, for the most part, preaches to the WBF choir. And that's fine. I enjoy reading all of the comments and various perspectives except for the personal, degrading insults some choose to post. There's enough negativity and mistrust out in the world and we should not encourage nor accept that type of behavior on WBF.

I hope / trust that we recognize IMHO, the reality of what is the heart, core and purpose of WBF. And I, for one, have enjoyed being a part of the journey. Best.

 

[tima]

Robert advises:

The place to start loudspeaker shopping, therefore, is in the pages of a reputable magazine with high standards for what constitutes good loudspeaker performance. After you’ve read lots of loudspeaker reviews, make up your short list of products to audition from the crème de la crème. There are several criteria to apply in making this short list to ensure that you get the best loudspeaker for your individual needs. As you apply each criterion described, the list of candidate loudspeakers will get shorter and shorter, thus easing your decision-making process. If you find yourself with too few choices at the end of the process, go back and revise your criteria.

How to Choose Loudspeakers — the absolute sound

Choosing just the right loudspeaker for your system, tastes, and home is much more challenging than picking, say, a power amplifier. Loudspeakers come in a wider range of sonic “flavors” than do other components; they must be matched electrically to your power amplifier for the best performance...

apple.news

What?!?!

You select a loudspeaker by reading a lot of reviews, and then you make up a "short list" of audition candidates based on other criteria you read about?

When do you walk into a high-end audio store and listen to a speaker? Auditioning is the last step before you write a check?

No, no, no, Robert! I want people to learn about loudspeakers by walking into high-end audio stores and listening to everything in the store and learning about different types of speakers and beginning to figure out the kind of sound one likes and beginning to understand how their favorite recordings sound different when played back on different types of speakers!

My suggestion is more like "may I please wander around and hear everything in the store."

---

If you read the Robert Harley article you'll find this:

The bottom line: You can’t tell anything about a loudspeaker until you listen to it.

I think that is true. You need to listen to a speaker to learn how it sounds.

Reviews should provide technical accuracy about product features as vetted by the manufacturer. They will tell you MSRP. Good reviews can offer insight about matching speakers with amplifiers as well as room positioning. A good review will give you a comparison of the review speaker with another speaker and maybe some insight as to what it is like to live with the review speaker for an extended period. A good dealer can tell you this as well -- in the context of what he sells. It is more helpful if you can read 2 or 3 reviews of the same speaker. I found it helpful to listen to youtube videos of a variety of speakers; particularly horn systems whose dealer accessibility was slim to none.

An informed buyer better positions himself to have some understanding of what he is seeing and hearing than the buyer who simply wanders around. A knowledgeable buyer is better equipped to understand and assess what a dealer may tell him about his products. A dealer may be more receptive to a potential customer who has done his homework -- it shows he is serious -- than to the wandering tirekicker. I don't always agree with Harley, but here his approach seems rational.

It strikes me as wise for the buyer to be educated before stepping onto the sales floor.

 

[Al M.]

The point being that when most people shop for an audio system, be it budget or extreme hi end, they want the process to be relatively easy / cost effective and occur in a timely manner. This is the exact opposite of this forum's mantra which takes this process to the extreme.

Each of you, for the most part, preaches to the WBF choir. And that's fine. [...]

Understood, and you are right. Most people will be happy with an easy process.

Unfortunately, there is no free lunch. Only with a large investment of time and effort will you choose the exactly right components and get the most out of the components and the entire system.

Those who want an easy process don't know what they leave on the table.

In concurrence with what you say, I may be preaching to the WBF choir. However, I am not so sure that even most people on WBF have spent the time and effort to optimize their setup and get it right, rather than chasing for always new components without ever getting the most out of their system.

Part of it may also be domestic reality. I have my own share of that reality, which is, a listening room that is not as large as I would like. However, if you are domestically constrained in terms of where to put your speakers in a room, or which room treatments are allowed, this is a different story.

 

[thedudeabides]

Most people will be happy with an easy process.

Those who want an easy process don't know what they leave on the table.

I am not so sure that even most people on WBF have spent the time and effort to optimize their setup and get it right, rather than chasing for always new components without ever getting the most out of their system.

Part of it may also be domestic reality.

Very astute observations in my view. Regarding the second, I think that applies to many aspects of our personal lives and the choices we make as we progress through our unique, individual journey on this planet.

 

[godofwealth]

I have bought, heard, and owned many loudspeakers over the past 40+ years of every conceivable design (electrostatic, dynamic, horns, Magneplanars etc.). I still own an eclectic array of speakers, but here's my all time favorite: a pair of Quad 57s made 50+ years ago. I have these set up exactly as Peter Walker (the "Quadfather") intended, in a small guest room, where I listen to them up close (around 6 feet way), and they are spaced widely apart. I play them softly. They project sound like no other speaker I have ever heard, regardless of cost. I bought these used (for $1500, I vaguely remember) from an audio distributor in Scarsdale, NY, who would only sell them to me if I drove to his house and picked them up. He was a grizzled old veteran of high end audio, and he looked at me sternly in the eye and said: "these are the best speakers ever made, and don't ever forget that!". I could swear there were tears in his eyes, as if he was bidding goodbye to a favorite pet or child. After 15 years of owning these, and treating them as I think he would have liked me to, I couldn't agree more. There are "loud"speakers, and then there is the Quad 57. There's never ever been anything like it ever built again, and there never will be. It's the Western Electric 300B of loudspeakers. An immortal classic.

 

[Kcin]

I'm with you , they are one of a kind --- even if others are louder, deeper et al.
I always keep them on hand to validate. Played with a Bedini or Futterman... very nice.