SMEagol
Because we wants it...
The thing about hifi, is its taken me on some very interesting journeys, generally your word is your bond and the people you meet are a very likeable bunch. Over a coffee and a pile of music whether selling or buying I've had some great afternoons. On Saturday I made a pilgrimage to Leicester from Manchester and met Paul Greenfield from Classique Sounds. He had a pair of Quads that he thought would fit my bill. Having sold my hornings, I was looking for a speaker that was similarly quirky, (ie removed from conventional cone technology) and had wondered about panels before, as they are a little more girlfriend friendly in a small flat, rather than the coffin sized hornings. Paul specialises in classic hifi from names like Quad, Garrard and Leak, and knows his stuff as well as a good cup of tea.
I listened to my own selection of Cinematic Orchestra's Ma Fleur, Zero 7, and Airs 10,000Hz album. These speakers sounded amazing, the delay on instruments such as keyboard was remarkable. They lacked that, directional punch that you get with some speakers, but that just made things sound more natural, - the same things that initially attracted me to the hornings. Bass seemed fine, I daresay if you are into dub reggae or drum and bass, you should look elsewhere, treble didnt go as high as some speakers, which I find can be obtrusive anyway, but again the glorious mid ranges and particularly voice and piano sounded beautiful. They coped admirably with the electronica of Air too. The soundstage was not perhaps as deep as the hornings, but as a cohesive experience I think I am a convert. I feel my speaker journey may well have ended.
I had to say yes to these, considering the quads are such an old design they can still hold their corner against contemporary exotica. Thinking, as with some hifi that hearing them on the sellers reference system, that they might not sound so good on my own - how very wrong I was! Electrostatics love quality valve amplification, even after my big sell off I kept my Trilogy 958 mono's, they are a great pairing.
I had a great day, and I'm very happy. Paul was the perfect host, with a passion for classic hifi and non of the hard sell. I'd heartily recommend the Quads, the Leak amps on the demo were a treat too. Paul can be reached on +44(0)116 2835821 or www.classiquesounds.co.uk. I'd rate Classique Sounds as a superb seller and I'm not given to plugs!
I listened to my own selection of Cinematic Orchestra's Ma Fleur, Zero 7, and Airs 10,000Hz album. These speakers sounded amazing, the delay on instruments such as keyboard was remarkable. They lacked that, directional punch that you get with some speakers, but that just made things sound more natural, - the same things that initially attracted me to the hornings. Bass seemed fine, I daresay if you are into dub reggae or drum and bass, you should look elsewhere, treble didnt go as high as some speakers, which I find can be obtrusive anyway, but again the glorious mid ranges and particularly voice and piano sounded beautiful. They coped admirably with the electronica of Air too. The soundstage was not perhaps as deep as the hornings, but as a cohesive experience I think I am a convert. I feel my speaker journey may well have ended.
I had to say yes to these, considering the quads are such an old design they can still hold their corner against contemporary exotica. Thinking, as with some hifi that hearing them on the sellers reference system, that they might not sound so good on my own - how very wrong I was! Electrostatics love quality valve amplification, even after my big sell off I kept my Trilogy 958 mono's, they are a great pairing.
I had a great day, and I'm very happy. Paul was the perfect host, with a passion for classic hifi and non of the hard sell. I'd heartily recommend the Quads, the Leak amps on the demo were a treat too. Paul can be reached on +44(0)116 2835821 or www.classiquesounds.co.uk. I'd rate Classique Sounds as a superb seller and I'm not given to plugs!
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