Finishing off
Posted by: Adrian Mehlig on 17 May 2001
I've spent the past decade or so building up the following system:
. SME Model 20A/Series V/Lyra Clavis DC on Mana Phase 3
. Micromega Solo (CD player)
. Toshiba SD9100 (progressive-scan DVD player)
. 102/HI-CAP/250/Headline/NAPSC/ on Mana 6-shelf stand
. Linn Kans on Kan II stands
. Sony VPL-VW10HT (LCD video projector)
I've always made upgrades based on the "front-end first" principle, and hence always with a view to the next upgrade. I've spent a fair old chunk of cash already, and I've no desire to progress to NAP500s and DBLs or surround sound - stereo is fine if you've got a big screen 
. I think it's time to "finish off" the system.
While I love my Kans, I can't help but think that a pair of £250 speakers are now a bit out of place with a £5,000 front-end and £4,000 amp. I'm thinking about auditioning a pair of Shahinian Arcs...
Any comments/suggestions anyone?
Adrian Mehlig
Posted on: 17 May 2001 by woodface
Replace the pre amp with an 82. This will give you a far more balanced system. If you have any cash left I would then replace the speakers with SBL's.
Posted on: 17 May 2001 by Tony L
quote:
While I love my Kans, I can't help but think that a pair of £250 speakers are now a bit out of place with a £5,000 front-end and £4,000 amp. I'm thinking about auditioning a pair of Shahinian Arcs...
Don't think of Kans as a 250 quid speaker in today's money. At the point that the Kan II went out of production it cost 540 quid without stands, it would be interesting to compare how much a LP12, SBL or 250 has increased in the years since. I don't know the figures, but I would be very surprised if the Kan would be available for less than 1K in today's money if it were still made.
I'm with the above recommendation - go for a 52 or 82 before doing the speakers.
Tony.
PS That's not Joel B's old SME is it?
Posted on: 17 May 2001 by Simon Matthews
An 82 would make a big big difference. If you cannot lose the upgrading bug w.r.t speakers then I think either the sbl's or the arcs would be prime candidates for audition. Different presentation, both very musical.
Posted on: 17 May 2001 by Dev B
It's easy.
a) Get a SuperCap.
b) Get some SBL's.
c) Get a 52.
And get rid of the SME and buy a Well Tempered!
Posted on: 17 May 2001 by Uwe Supper
Adrian,
if you really consider a pair of 'Arcs' (which I can only recommend), don't lose too much time: shahinian prices have gone up recently, you would be better off if you found a second hand pair.
Good luck,
Cheers
Uwe
Posted on: 17 May 2001 by Ade Archer
Recently, when experimenting with speakers to replace my AVI's, I tried my old pair of Kans, and although I would have to say they are very impressive for their size, I find you have to condition yourself to mentally fill in the lower frequencies which they physically can't reproduce.
I could have simply stuck the Kans on the end of my system at no cost, but ended up paying over £1100 for a pair of SBL's, as ultimately they were much better.
I also found that the Kans had their own character which they seemed to impose on the music, particularly with voices where the vocalist seemed to be pinching his nose slightly as he sang. They are very musical and fast, but I wouldn't call them completely natural sounding.
Ade
Posted on: 21 May 2001 by Adrian Mehlig
Thanks for your input, everyone. I suppose it's going to be a case of demo-ing a SuperCap vs a pair of Arcs to see which makes the bigger difference. Mind, you, I just found out that Arcs are now £2,795 a pair - yikes!
P.S. Tony, no, it's an original Mk I SME Model 20 and I bought it new ...
Posted on: 21 May 2001 by Dev B
sorry to be controversial but it is utter rubbish to suggest that kans are worthy of a system fronted by a cds2, sme or 52. sure they are incredibly accomplished but a well set up pair of kans do not come EVEN CLOSE to a well set up pair of sbls.
kans are superb transducers and haqve incredible timing and midrange abilities for their diminutive size, but much of what is said here about their 'ultimate potential' is pure tosh.
i have both sbls and kans (now blown up!) and i compared both on my system driven by a 500 and believe me there is no contest. i can only assume that those who prefer kans over sbls are either (a) deaf or (b) have heard poorly installed sbls. both very likely.
cheers
dev.
Posted on: 22 May 2001 by Paul Davies
It's not a question of whether modest speakers are worthy of a top-quality source and amp. Rather, it's a question of how best to divide up a limited budget for maximum musical enjoyment.
I ran Kans quite happily on the end of a 52/250 for three years before I upgraded them to SBLs. Yes, the SBLs are much better than the Kans, but my system with the Kans represented the most effective way to divide up the money I had to spend at that time. A "more balanced" system with more spent on the speakers at the expense of the amp would have given me less musical enjoyment. I know because I did the comparison before I parted with the cash for the 52.
A similar story: Shortly after I heard the 52 for the first time (with a NAP 90 and a pair of Mordaunt Short bookshelf speakers) I heard a six-pack with a 32-5/HICAP. The six pack was louder, and had more bass and treble than the system with the Mordaunt Shorts and the 52, but I much preferred tha latter system because it let so much more of the music through.
In short: if funds are limited, make your economies as far from the source as possible.
[This message was edited by Paul Davies on TUESDAY 22 May 2001 at 17:24.]
