Speaker Suggestions

Give Dynaudio a listen. 

Hiya Hammy,

I can’t say if the sound you are hearing is to do with running in, but units never sound their best for the first hundred or so playing hours, so if you’re nowhere near that expect to hear greater resolution, maybe more extended, smoother frequency extremes and possibly a more resolved, somewhat bigger sound stage. It won’t be night and day differences, but pretty useful improvements across the board. Once run in you can evaluate the overall SQ achieved and decide if you want to upgrade speakers.  Speakers often respond very possitively to improvements in their supply chain,  so its worth waiting to see what you get once you’ve given it sufficient time to reach its full potential.

Thanks for the feedback. I think I will run the system in more as only had it running for a few hours so far (didn’t realise it can take as long as 100 hours) so plenty time to see how the sound progresses. 

Dynaudio are a great shout and will look at Q Acoustics as well

Really enjoying the Uniti Nova so far ????

If Nova will drive them, ATC SCM40, offers a rich, dynamic sound, with balanced treble. I would recommend a room bigger than 20sqm though otherwise might experience bass issues.

Harbeth 30.1 for a rich, warm, natural, room filling sound with zero listening fatigue. Work well in my 4m x 4.3m room 40cm from front wall and 80cm from side wall. SCM40 have too much in the bass for my room.

Both nice speakers, both really really nice mids and top end. Everything just sounds good on both. ATC time better and more accurate in the bass probably due to sealed cabinet and dedicated bass driver.

PMC 25.23 would be awesome .... I notice that on a certain site 20.26's are available pre loved at very reasonable prices......depends on your room...

Richieroo posted:

PMC 25.23 would be awesome .... I notice that on a certain site 20.26's are available pre loved at very reasonable prices......depends on your room...

I use the 25.23 on the end of a Nova, they sound superb, I’d echo the earlier advice tho’. I ran my Nova in by looping a streamed album for 4 weeks, low volume during (home-worker) working day and night time, louder when not in. The speakers were new as well, so I can’t be sure which was the main factor, but the system definitely improved a lot over that time. I’d hang on until it’s run in, then if you’re still thinking you can get more, then start looking, I always liked older Rega speakers, so give them a chance, you might find it’s a great setup in a couple of weeks.  

Richieroo posted:

PMC 25.23 would be awesome .... I notice that on a certain site 20.26's are available pre loved at very reasonable prices......depends on your room...

Don't know if you mean well known auction sites, but they're now in run-out and the last batches are being sold through at least one established dealer at a bit of a discount. I picked a pair up a few weeks ago for a significant reduction on list, and they're absolutely superb, stuck on the end of a 272/XPSDR -> 250DR. Goggle will reveal the deal...

The 20.26 is indeed a superb speaker, on a par with ATC sound-wise but they do need a large room, even bigger bass than SCM40.

I find the PMC models below 26 a little forward/bright, when I tried 25.22 I did notice too much top end treble for my taste on many tracks.

All depends on your room and budget put Kudos and Neat on your list.  

Regards,

Lindsay

Hammy posted:

hi everyone, recently purchased a Uniti Nova and have just set it up connected to my trusty Rega speakers. The sound is great but maybe lacks a bit of depth and richness. 

Do you think this is just because everything needs to run in or should I look for new speakers (Rega ones are about 14 years old). What speakers do you suggest? I like a rich, dynamic sound, nothing with too much top end treble 

thanks

 

You mention the age of speakers as if that is a factor. It isn’t.

Before searching for speakers a significantbquestion suggests itself; you refer to your speakers as ‘trusty’ - does that mean they sounded great before, and if yes, what was your amplification and source before the Nova?  It kind of suggests that the Nova is the limitation.

As for if you do go speaker hunting, unless you have a large budget I suggest only considering secondhand or, possibly, ex-dem, to maximise buying potential.

Hammy posted:

hi everyone, recently purchased a Uniti Nova and have just set it up connected to my trusty Rega speakers. The sound is great but maybe lacks a bit of depth and richness. 

Do you think this is just because everything needs to run in or should I look for new speakers (Rega ones are about 14 years old). What speakers do you suggest? I like a rich, dynamic sound, nothing with too much top end treble 

thanks

 

Any reference to speakers that have too much top end treble to your ears?

Dynaudio Special 40s go well with Nova and price wise are a bargain.

Nova amp is fine for driving a number of different speakers. I think people get a bit sniffy about the Nova because of its pricing level. I would be a bit miffed if I’d payed three times as much for very little improvement. The biggest problem nowadays is the quality of the source.

I run Totem Forest Signatues with mine. But give the Nova a couple of months to burn in. Indeed, mine was quite bright for some time and even dipped in SQ and then just opened up.

John L F posted:

Dynaudio Special 40s go well with Nova and price wise are a bargain.

Nova amp is fine for driving a number of different speakers. I think people get a bit sniffy about the Nova because of its pricing level. I would be a bit miffed if I’d payed three times as much for very little improvement. The biggest problem nowadays is the quality of the source.

I agree. I’ve heard systems at 3 times the price and didn’t think the improvement was that significant. I think the Nova is very much in the sweet spot and great value.

Everything from Focal is good.

Really ???

Simon-in-Suffolk posted:

Really ???

I’m not sure now ????

Simon-in-Suffolk posted:

Really ???

yes, good quality overall and less fuss than Naim speakers.

John L F posted:

Dynaudio Special 40s go well with Nova and price wise are a bargain.

Nova amp is fine for driving a number of different speakers. I think people get a bit sniffy about the Nova because of its pricing level. I would be a bit miffed if I’d payed three times as much for very little improvement. The biggest problem nowadays is the quality of the source.

Not so sure about that. I think digital sources -or more specifically DACs - have improved hugely in very recent years and you can get far better quality at quite a low price point for less money, and exemplary quality higher up.

I have always found Focal speakers to be very bright and shouty, even in Naim's factory demo room.

best

David

My point about the source relates to the quality from the studios. There’s a huge disparity in recordings and often better equipment only emphasise poor recordings to a point where it sounds better on less analytical systems.

I agree that the cost to quality ratio has reduced greatly in recent years.

Agreed David.......bright, and seemingly a lack of control in the midrange even with a 552/500. I have heard the £47k Focals.....they were better, but still not a patch on speakers £30k lower in price.

David Hendon posted:

I have always found Focal speakers to be very bright and shouty, even in Naim's factory demo room.

best

David

Agree David & Gazza,  most of the Sopra styled boxes that I have heard are much as you say,  the treble has always struck me as a bit too much,  it might be tamed with a better damped room.    But not in my room whatever,  apart from the sonics they are just plain pug ugly.   The Kanta's are better,  shame about the colour choices tho'.

Re the Utopia Evo (or whatever they are called) at the Naim meeting,  all the peeps who have commented agree they weren't good,  one said awful.  It crossed my mind at the time that they might have a defect. 

Those same speakers were at Signals a week or two before, and were sent back.....not liked. On the day I thought a few folks like James liked them?

Focal do not seem popular round here, and while there is better out there for sure, I found the Aria 926 a pleasant listen powered by an SN2, and at £2k I felt they embarrassed some of the competition up to £3k.  However, 'rich' is probably not a word I would use to describe them, and I didn't find they had the most natural tone for vocals.  The best I heard in the price range was Kudos X3s, which I bought a little over a year ago and love very much.  Definitely the X3s should be on the demo list, though they're not overtly rich themselves, they're just right and very engaging without inducing fatigue, for me at least.   I think they should work very well with the Nova.  You often see Kudos speakers getting much praise here, but usually toward the higher end of their range.  The entry point X2 (I've not heard those) and X3 models, the latter in particular, seem to be quite overlooked, and not just here, there doesn't appear to be a review of them by any of the major hifi press or websites, something I find strange as I believe the X3 should be an absolute super-star.  Good luck with the search and make sure you audition everything you can.