revel v nautilus

Having just disposed of my Celestion A3s, I'm on the look out for some new speakers. I'll eventually also upgrade my source - quite interested by the new Krell SACD Standard. On the speakers, on paper I like the look of the Revel Performa F30 and F50, and the B&W N802. The reviews are all excellent, they seem to work in my size room (18' x 17' x 10') and they are cosmetically acceptable. It's going to be a bugger though getting to compare these given the thinness of stockists. I've seen Audiosalon advertising a deal on the F50, but they don't do B&W. Ideally I'd want to find a dealer who'd ship both to my home for a direct comparison in the room - but in the real world I suspect that will be a stretch. Have any of you had direct experience of these speakers or know of dealers who do both?

 

why not get them from different dealers, on the condition that they are being tried sale or return?

In fact, why not try a few more aswell? For that cash I would!


Chris

 

Hmmm ... B&W and Revel. We are talking about apples and oranges ... really. Incidentally I was once a B&W owner and my current speakers are the Revel M20 (the only one I can afford...).

I've been able to audition all the Revel speakers with the exception of the F50 (excellent review by RG @ Hifi+, btw). IMHO, I find the Revel superior in every way. It's not often that one finds a speaker which sounds simultaneously "accurate" and "musical". All the Revel models I know do. There's plenty of detail and transparency, but it's never thrown on tour face; They manage to sound delicate, but they also excel on dynamic contrasts and manage to play LOUD showing tremendous "grace under fire"; They sound coherent and convey an amazing sense of presence and scale...

Compared with the Revel, to my ears, the B&W sound nasal, congested, lacking coherence and refinement.

BUT, the Revel are quite demanding on the amplification (both regarding quantity and quality) and, accurateas they are, they will highlight any eventual shortcoming on the system ...

Try them both (Revel and B&W) you may not agree with me, but they sound so different that you will know in a second which approach is more appealing to you...

Vermeer

 

Vermeer my friend, congratulations on your first post I knew you wouldn't be able to resist a thread about Revel speakers

Michael.

 

Hi Vermeer and welcome to the forum!

I've never heard a Revel speaker in my life, but just going on your description alone, I'd be very interested in hearing a pair.

I've heard Nautilus 802's, but your description of a "sound nasal, congested, lacking coherence and refinement" isn't one I'd identify with in anyway. They were my second choice of speakers before settling on what I currently have now. Oh, and the 802's in the dem I attended were driven by a Chord 1200C amp which didn't sound cold or hard to my ears in any way!

 

Thanks for the welcome

HenryT, please understand my comments regarding the two brands as generic and not specifically addressing the F50 vs 802 (I never auditioned the former and only listened to the latter for a few moments). On the current 800 (Nautilus) series I've auditioned the 805, 804, 801 and 800 Signature. Surely I didn't find the 800 congested when I auditioned them with the Halcro DM58, neither did the 801, but - imho - their tonal balance is not quite accurate and they sound too bold for my taste lacking refinement when handling the subtle details in the music and - although agnostic - I do agree that "God is in the details"

Having said that, I must go back my former post: they do sound different, so I really think midlifecrisis should listen to both and let his heart (and mind) make the decision...

I also do agree with bottleneck: you shoud try other speakers besides these two brands (when I bought the M20 I listened to some 20 different speakers before settling with the Revels ... :banghead: )

Vermeer

 

Only 20, I thought it was more like 200... :JPS:

Welcome Vermeer... :beer:

 

Thanks everyone for the feedback. I'm aware that the B&W and Revels are supposed to have quite different characters - but I've never heard either, so I have to stat somewhere by comparing apples and pears... The size and aesthetics thing is quite a strong filter on what I can look at - otherwise I'd also have been interested in Martin Logans, Living Voice OBXR and possibly even Quads. The other one I do have on my list however is the Sonus Faber Cremona.

 

I heard the Cremona twice in audioshows, first with tubes, lousy sound, probably setup, second with Krell, reasonable but not as good as my EAII...

But I would try the Auditors with a pair of good subwoofers... :MILD:

 

ok ... try the Cremona ... BUT I'm sure the Revel F50 will destroy them ... :MILD:

let us know your conclusions afterwards

Vermeer

 

Interesting, I've never heard Living Voice OBX's mentioned in the same breath as panels before. Do some people think they're a decent dynamic speaker alternative to panels then?

 

Cant imagine anyone thinking OBXRs or any LV speaker is like a panel.

Just completely different.

The fast moving, sensitive, massive magnet cones give you speed, dynamics and impact - and make low output amps a real possibility.

Panels give you unerring accuracy, detail and a wide open sound that doesnt seem bothered by room acoustics too much.


Cheese vs Marmite, surely?

 

Different for sure, but the two together are one of the great taste combinations on this earth

Michael.

 

Ah Michael, you beat me to it! Cheese and Marmite sarnies for lunch it is then!

 

eurgh marmite

like eating rat cack. :chunder:

(so Ive heard)


Chris

 

nautilus

Still waiting for the new Revel distributor to arrange a demo of the F50 and F32 when it is released, but I did get to hear the Nautilus 802 today. Not in the best of circumstances as I wandereed into the shop by chance and saw them there, so hadn't got my reference CDS... The pair on dem were still being run in, but I can identify with some of the characteristics you mention above. I also thought while music was well controlled, male voices got a bit shouty and certain frequencies seemed to merge into the music so you got a kind of brief 'hole'. Bass articulation was however very good - easy to follow different drums at the back of the mix for example. I'm going back with my amps and own music later this week to give a fuller test. Also have the Cremonas and the new Krell SACD turning up for home demo on Friday....