Stereo - Sony SS-CS5 speaker review / Cheapest audiophile speaker vs polk audio RtiA9
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 12 ก.ย. 2024
- My review of the sony ss-cs5 speaker. Also a quick mention of the Polk Audio RTi A9.
Overall, pretty ok for around $250 cdn.
Sony ss-cs5 speaker. Mcintosh 452 amp. Marantz SC11s1 preamp. PS audio Perfectwave.
We had a 1st gen Echo in our master bathroom for listening to music in the morning th-cam.com/users/postUgkxABghAEkaIDGZfHRBH3D3rBrlraNmnC71 and while in the shower. I didn't realize how tinny and awful the sound output on the original Echo was until we replaced it with the Studio. It was a sonic upgrade far beyond what I was expecting. Just wow. I love it because it's like having speakers IN the shower. My friend likes it because the music is so loud that she can no longer hear me singing. So that's a win-win.
If audiophile who has 10-16K Amp says that they sound OK for music listening it means that they're mindblowing.
İ think if it used by 10-16k amp of course they sound much better than 300$ amp
@@mrmuscle9685 Cheapaudioman to the rescue on that one.
I was so impressed, purchased 4pr! (2 for the GF) at crazy low prices awhile back. Remember these were at $37.50ea speaker or less..amazing price/performance ratio.
I agree 😂. I have them and for 99 bucks they sound amazing. Instruments sound very good with them Lil Sony's.
"I have to admit, if I were to start all over again, I might go the budget way. It's so easy to built audiophile level system on a descent budget these days."
I like that idea very much, Thomas.
Very much, indeed.
Sam ... that statement is true but you can tell the difference between a speaker costing $150 and one that costs $1,500. Then we will chase the sound.
The Sony is very good for its price but it’s no where near something like say the Harbeth P3ESR.
The Sony’s mid range is slightly lacking. But the bass is nice enough as what Thomas says. If the Sony had a better mid and a slightly more lush high, it will be totally amazing.
I use them for my bedroom TV set up. Worth every dollar.
“Don’t expect miracles ...” - the important caveat.
I can find budget speakers but which receiver would you recommend?
@@hushpuppykl you can just tweet the treble or base if you have that in your amp
@@MrLuffy9131 aiyima 07 or 08
Really enjoying these budget comparisons thanks for doing them
Got these for $80 to put in a small bedroom system with a NAD 3155 integrated. They sound really nice, the bass is better in the small bedroom as compared to my living room. I almost dismissed this as a joke, but the reviewers are right, dang good value and sound good
Hi Everyone, I took down the Sound Demo for Sony SS-CS5 because the reverb that I was worried about turns out to be caused by the speaker wired out of phase. I will redo another recording and thanks to a subscriber for pointing out as I originally was wondering if it was caused by the Pioneer DSP. The demo against the vintage speaker is still good.
This man knows the business after his review I disregarded everyone else and doing their review like it was poo poo thank you my brother
These are on sale in the states on Amazon for $73 right now! I have them in place of my ELAC BSU5s for break in and while I am surprised how good the sound is for the price. It's good. The highs are definitely louder and more extended than the ELACs. Also I think I am hearing the resonance (cabinet, port or woofer) that Danny talks about in his GR-Research review. If you are on a really tight budget, are not a bass head (or have a sub), and want the treble end extension associated with audiophile level speakers, then the Sony SS-CS5 is the one for you. If you can save up for an Emotiva B1+ or ELAC Debut, you will be rewarded with a more complete experience. I am sure my 10 year old will like these in her system to replace her smaller Micca MB-42Xs. Thanks for the videos Thomas. Thumbs up and keep em coming!
cant find them in germany under 196 euro. lol sucks
I already gave up on Bookshelf speakers, they lack Bass, don't matter how good they are, they will never come closer to the full range that a floor speaker can deliver, and I personally think that Bass is the BACKGROUND of the music, and it is funny how most of the reviewers of HIGH END SPEAKERS demo then with CLASSICAL music or JAZZ as if they were afraid of showing that those HIGH END SPEAKERS simply do not sound good with music with good amount of bass, for example, KILLING ME SOFTLY from Fugees. I just bought a pair of Jamo Concert 11 on Market Place for $50 Dollars, those are floorstanding speakers and have an amazing sound!! Keep the good job, I like your reviews.
Fantastic review as usual. Thank you Thomas 👌💥💥
These sound really amazing, with my Pioneer SX780. (45WPC). I also have a set of vintage ADS L420s, that were purchased new in late '78 with the Pioneer. So sometimes I run them all.
Very in-depth review, covered exactly what I wanted to know and different setups too. Thanks for this!!!
$258 usually buys a rubbish quality 2 way . This sony is impressive.
Some people were recently buying them on Amazon for $105 or even $99.
@@IliyaOsnovikov got mine at best buy today for $80 including tax
@@ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOP519 Great deal!
So thankful you got to this speaker! I bought my brother a pair and myself for $75 on sale on amazon here in thanksgiving and i remember returning my pair for the original debut 6 and didn’t look back but I enjoyed these puppies too!
$75!!! Were they giving it away? So you prefer the Debut 6 over these. The original debut I heard are a bit roll off on the top and very musical. So compare to these, must be a big difference.
Agreed. The audio performance for the dollar these days is incredible. I wasn't always that way.
I purchased the Sony SS-CS5 speakers last year from Amazon for $88, free shipping and returns, Amazon Prime member. For the price they cannot be beat. I have more stereo equipment than a normal human should. Boxed, currently unused equipment in my garage, basement and attic, including way too many speakers. The sound quality of these speakers far exceeds their price. Being rear ported proximity to the wall is critical. It is not a speaker that should be placed out into a room away from the wall if you want good base response. Bottom line is I have wat to much equipment to choose from, currently being used and unused and I like these speakers. Be sure to put them on a stand and experiment with the distance from the wall, angle of the speaker left to center to right and corner placement if possible. If you want more bass response after experimenting with placement as always a subwoofer is an option. I have too many speakers an am very happy with them.
I hate to say this, but a lot of TH-cam videos are showing small monitors and/or cheaper A/V speakers. It seems like anything that cost over $1000.00 is not being shown too much. You do a good job mixing it up with larger speakers along with small ones. Good job.
For budget minded people who can't afford high end equipment, these are pretty good.I bought a pair of these and the Douk Audio X1.I am pleasantly surprised by a sub $300 system
Thank you for your review. I am trying to help/coax an 80+ year old friend to replace his 1970’s no-name bookshelf speaker (the surrounds of which have disintegrated). He was always satisfied with them and his mind is stuck on what he paid 50 years ago. You know how that is! I think this speaker might be just the ticket for him. Of coarse, that amp is from the 70’s, so maybe there would be a mismatch there. His ears might not know it if he heard it.
Wonderful reviews. Thanks Thomas
Audiophiles never had it so good
My Andrew Jones pioneer BS-22 bookshelf speakers (6 ohm rated) are not enough load on my Crown xls1002 class D power amp (350wpc @ 4 ohms). They sound dull and compressed with this amp. The same speakers sound open and really nice using my 30 year old yamaha AV-50 integrated (~115wpc @ 6 ohms).
Hi, Thomas. As always, I enjoyed your fun review. I remember way back when I owned the CS5s and heard the same attributes through much less expensive equipment: "revealing tweeter"…"clarity"…"a little bit thin." In a small listening room, however, the CS5's bass sounded fine to my ears, and even exceeded my expectations. You know, I could live with the CS5 in a small office setting, maybe driven by a little NAD 316 integrated amp. For a warmer, fuller, less-detailed sound, I'd choose the entry-level Pioneer BS22.
For an additional ~$100 USD, the plot thickens.
Thanks for commenting, I guess I was comparing them to my other speakers but I do have to say, later on when I try it again with slight change in setup, they do have ok bass for it's size. I never tried the Bs22 , heard goog things about it.
Looking forward to your review of LS50W, Totem Sig 1, and Buchardt S300. Fun! I would be curious how the less-expensive Wharfedale 225 compares with this group of speakers.
I had the Arcam Solo ... it’s pretty cool for a bedroom set up. 😬
I drove my Sony with the Audia Flight FLS10. Sounded good but how I wish the mids were more pronounced. If only ...
Magnificent review ... so that Sony is a good all around speaker 🔊 for entry levels
I think, or should I say, I believe, we are at a point in manufacturing and materials that the budget pieces are positioned to give the high end guys a run for their money. Schitt Audio comes to mind. I have a set of the Klipsch R-51M I picked up from Best Buy for $99 on sale... I put them next to my SVS Ultra Bookshelf speakers... They sounded pretty darn good, especially for the money... This stereo gear is now more about marketing, sell the sizzle, not the steak. It is a good time to be an audiophile, or a person with fewer disposable dollars wanting to get into the hobby. A lot of fun can be had for a few dollars, without breaking the bank.
Budget has come a long way. Really improved a lot. But if you get a chance to listen to really ultra hi end systems, still like comparing the civic at best to the Ferrari, Lamborghini ....Nonetheless its about the music. Cheers. TH-cam algo got me here.
That's what I did too. Hooked up to PS Audio stack with Direct Stream these speakers really shine, and I left it like that,, for now :)). I enjoy it at night at low level.
The thing about these is that the price is low enough that you could also buy a powered subwoofer and the setup would STILL be cheaper than any competing audiophile speakers.
Maybe the Andrew Jones Pioneers could compete?
Hi Thomas. Thanks for another interesting video. I'm glad you are reviewing inexpensive audio equipment.
Your welcome, I review anything that is interesting regardless of price :)
Very interesting. Thank you. Would love to hear your opinions on Dali Zensor 1.
Next I would like to see the Polk Audio S20 review as a pair of budget bookshelf speakers.
If i come across one at a good price :)
Thomas, are you familiar with the channel GR Research? If so, what are your thoughts on the upgrade suggestions. I enjoyed this video and the presentation.
The issue is, this guy has some very expensive, GOOD speakers. While fair with his review, it is like asking a BMW, Mercedes, or Infiniti dealer to review a cheap car. I just got these and blown away by the performance, especially for the money. I am driving them with a Denon X3500 7.2 channel receiver \ (a much more "realistic" setup for 98% of people compared to what this guy is running!) and they truly sound amazing for the price.
My RSL Speedwoofer 10s fills out the bottom end and this blows away a lot of setups I have had (I have the towers, center, and bookshelf with the Core Atmos speakers on the way, these are my surrounds and the RSL Speedwoofer 10S for my sub) and this system sounds amazing, rich, detailed, and dynamic. I have had (tower, center, surround or all bookshelf) Ascends, Boston Acoustic Classic II, Klipsch, Emptek, Sony MF (first surround setup ever!), Pioneer Andrew Jones set and I like these better! I never would have believed it in the past that SONY can compare or surpass for this price!
But a guy with a $15,000 amplifier and lots of expensive speakers? Am sure such a person would find these "not their cup of tea"! After owning my LG C8 OLED TV, I would likely find a 55" Vizio 4K TV sold at Walmart to be not my cup of tea, though it would be equal or superior to what a lot of people would be happy with. The fact an Audiophile actually picked this speaker over the $1200 Kef speakers should tell you something. Sony truly did some magic with these! They are giant killers, as long as you have realistic expectations and are not spoiled by bookshelf speakers which cost more than a compact car!
Overall, props for a fair review and bass shy does not matter with a good sub woofer backing up the system.
I think you are too hooked on the price thing. Not my cup of tea simply means not my taste. There are many $100k speakers that are not my cup of tea. I also reviewed the Elac debut 6.2, which on special is $149, despite it being priced similar, it was my cup of tea. Based on what you wrote, sure you love this speaker and I respect it. Good and enjoy because that is what matters the most. However, if anyone disagrees with you, it's ok too because the stereo world is diverse. Not everyone should have the same taste as you. That is why we have so many different types of speakers out there. The fact that an audiophile picked a $1200 KEF over this tells me that audiophile prefers the type of sound the Sony produces over the KFE. For the same reason, I can find many people picking a $500 speaker over these.
@@ThomasAndStereo It was not a rub against you, and I agree with these being a bit bass shy, but I believe Sony more intended these to be surround speakers as opposed to mains, hence why the complete set as a whole seems to compliment each other.
I also agree with your reply, take ANY ten speakers, regardless of price and type, and put 10 people in the room and have them take a listen. I bet (unless one was NOTICEABLY far superior) that every single person would hear something different and almost no one would favorite the same speaker. Their opinion would be different on each speaker as well.
One thing I can say, that $15,000 amp may sound way better than an average amp or AV receiver with high end speakers. But these were designed to be used with a "normal" (read: affordable) receiver driving them, so they may even have better performance when used with a receiver such as mine (Denon X3500) which is still a $1000 receiver and better than what some are running. I had a Marantz SR-7010 which I was forced to sell when my wife had my son, and I bet these would have sounded better still with that receiver. But this is a good setup and less than $2000.
I am willing to bet the Sony Core setup would sound REALLY good with their Sony STR-DN1080 7.2 channel receiver, which would likely have good synergy. I do suggest a better subwoofer, from HSU, RSL (like mine), SVS, Klipsch, or any other good subwoofer maker. I have not heard the Sony Core subwoofer, and sure it sounds decent. But for movies and music you want a good subwoofer (two is even better) to fill out the bottom end and round out the sound.
What is junk to some is treasure to others. That is what is great about this hobby. Many choices with budget being the biggest factor (also WAF "Wife Approval Factor"). What I was saying was, much like my LG OLED vs Walmart Vizio example, once you get spoiled by good and great equipment, a lot that before would be good and great would turn to poor or mediocre. But you have to focus budget, because I would love to own a setup such as yours, yet with two kids and a wife I have to budget every single thing I buy. Not like before when I was single and could buy whatever I felt like I could afford.
I said you were fair, I was not saying there was anything wrong with your opinion. But I do think you may not be the "best" person to review these speakers, because even the system you are running them on is way beyond what 97% of people are going to run these on. If you can afford an expensive amp, you can afford expensive speakers and would not even consider these. It is like putting a Porsche engine in a Yugo, you are going to go with higher end speakers automatically and nitpick these more than a person who does not have such great speakers laying around to compare them to. Much like I would nitpick the Vizio, even though a lot would be wowed by the picture. Yet if the Vizio was the best I have, a mid level Samsung would look better, and the LG C8 would look astounding to me. It is all relevant and unfortunately, budget is the largest restraint for almost everyone in this planet. I would also buy better and more expensive speakers, but in the future and I am blown away by how much speaker you get for the money. Sony really hit it out of the park with these.
This is not to say you cannot review these, that you are wrong, or that your opinion would not be shared by anyone else. I just feel you are used to high end speakers, so the lower end stuff is not going to suit you no matter what. I would be in the same exact position if I had your setup, too. So hope you understand what I am trying to say better. I do appreciate your review and the time you took to do this. Your opinion matters, and I have watched your videos often.
I noticed there was a reply you put and it was taken down. I like a good discussion and as long it's respectful, I love it. On a side note, I actually recorded a clip where I was able to get the Sony sound better than my Canton which was a $20k speaker (MRSP).
I was planning to upload the sound demo to let people guess which is which and was hoping to surprise them. Of course, there is a twist in how I was able to achieve this but I thought it was fun. I never got to make that video and perhaps I should one day.
I'm blown away at how great these speakers perform! I think deep inside, i was trying to find fault with them, but the more I play them, Fantastic!!
I have a set of those speakers too. You are right, with the right amp they have good enough bass. It seems my vintage amp is better in this case but I prefer using my new amp for other reasons and just added a powered sub woofer.
I knew you were Canadian, as myself. Purchased 2 pairs of these babies for under $300 Canadian on American Amazon
Try these speakers on a vintage 1980's Onkyo receiver and see what you think of the sound. Plenty of bass for my tests.
Nice review Thomas. Continuing in the affordable vein, what would you say about the Q Acousics line, either the 3020i or Concept 20 speakers, as alternatives to the ELAC Debut 6.2?
Thanks, I almost bought the 3020i just to try. Sadly I cant comment on it as I never heard any Q Acoustics speakers so I don't know it's sound signature.
Thank you very much for your review, now I am convinced which speakers to buy.
Excellent video. Very fair assessment IMO.
That KEF LS50 is a SEXY BEAST! I'm a long-time KEF fan. Also, I love that silver SONY HT receiver (1000ES something?). I've owned it and it puts out extremely good sound. The SS CS5? Can't expect too much in that price range...
It's ok for it's price but can't compare it to a KEF LS50.
I just ordered a PAIR of these 30 minutes ago for $73usd.
At $73, I could not resist, especially since people are saying they are really good for movies, I seem to have trouble hearing the dialog in movies when watching on my desktop PC in my bedroom.
For 73$ they are the best speakers on the market. They worth 250+++.
I appreciate this review a lot.
I have these and the Elac Debut 6.2 and I agree completely, except that I am actually enjoying the Sony SS-CS5 a little more than the Elacs in a rather small room these days. Oddly I tried the Sonys in a nearfield setup and really felt they were too harsh and preferred the larger 2-way Elacs. But in a classic equilateral triangle setup at 7' away I find the Sonys to be clearer and more balanced to my ears. Of course this is almost always just a matter of the setup and the source material.
I like samba music and found the Sonys to be consistently less enjoyable with that kind of music than most of my other speakers. But I have not tried these with a subwoofer yet.
Honestly in my setups I've had no lack of bass, although of course I'm not expecting much from such little boxes. I really feel like they actually go lower, although with less volume, than the Elacs. Neither go as low as the NHT Super Ones though, but those are more expensive speakers.
I tried these with McIntosh amplification, Emotiva, my cheapo Audio Source bridged mono restaurant background music amps (I call them the hillbilly monoblocks), some ChiFi class D, and a vintage Yamaha receiver. Honestly I think they sound as good or better on the class D as anything. I do think they were not as special on the vintage receiver or the "hillbilly monoblocks." But on everything else they were thoroughly pleasing to me.
My experience with Polk Audio depends on what you do with them and the price paid. I bought a pair of Monitor 40 Series II bookshelf speakers for home theater. They're on the bright side when you first use them. They require a break-in period for the bass and treble. The bass is never good enough without a subwoofer. They have a clear, slightly warm midrange. Good acoustic instrument reproduction. The tweeters seem to settle after probably 40-50 hours of use. The one thing that I definitely notice is the cabinet is too thin. It becomes a diaphragm at louder listening levels. This is the price point problem. Better cabinets and crossover could be used to derive a more neutral, vibration (cabinet walls) free sound, but there's the cost to build vs. selling point problem. I bought these new from the factory at less than $100 per pair including shipping. That makes them an attractive deal. I might buy some car door dampening material and install along the interior to dampen the vibration, so I can R&R.
Great! Thanks for sharing. I did thought about using the polk for my hometheater at one point. Damping the inside of the speakers? Yup, I can see it.
@@ThomasAndStereo Decades ago, one of the remedies to create a vibration free cabinet was to apply lead sheeting to the interior of the cabinet. That ended when people became more aware of the health risks associated with lead.
I initially hated my Polk RTIa3 speakers, but with careful matching of components and cables, damping the tweeter, and finding a compatable subwoofer, I really like them a lot. I have SVS Ultra towers, kef LS50's, Sonus Faber 1.5's, and many, many other speakers, so I do have decent speakers to compare them to.
Waiting for KEF LS50 Wireless review. I am hearing past 2 months and keep surprising me with dynamics and with full bodied instruments sound with Excellent vocals. I came from Elac ub5, Elac amp and then nad c388with kef r 300. In every audiophile verbiage KEF LS50 Wireless much superior than above 2 combos. After understanding KEF LS50 Wireless sound characteristics I realised that Elac ub5 speakers are fakeing mid bass sound between 150 to 500 hz frequency
Wow, I don't have your precise hearing. I have to say the LS50W and the LS50 are 2 completely different speakers. I like the fact I can adjust the LS50w settings.
As you know higher end audio sound .. wanted to see how KEF LS50 Wireless can keep up.and your opinion.Some people mentioned that these can beat 10 k priced any bookshelf and amp setup. But i feel that may not true . Seems overrated .
Excellent review with very thorough and interesting comparisons of the various speakers. On point and kept my attention. Very fair and detailed evaluation and description of the Sony bookshelf speakers. The sub definitely resolves any reservations regarding bass. I own two of them so far in a 3.1 set up with matching Sony Core Series center and sub, both of which are also excellent performers in that competitive price bracket. I thoroughly enjoy them with a Sony STR-ZA3000ES AVR, and am in the process of adding two more of the Sony bookshelf speakers and stands for our surround speakers for a 5.1 set up. I listen to music in Pure Direct or 2-channel analog direct. They are all of outstanding value, especially the bookshelf, given performance for price ($118 per pair during frequent sales).
Thanks, it's mind boggling how inexpensive they are. I was thinking at one point to get the tower version to try.
Hi Thomas, love your videos, they give me a really good impressions on the pros and cons of the different products.
Since you said, that you are into affordable audio and you have your hands on LS50s and B6s and these being pretty popular (I also consider the LS50s on the brink of "affordable"), I was wondering if you could test these with an also affordable amp? Say in the 500-1500$ range.
I sold the LS50 already and unlike the Sony, although I did try it with a regular amp, I did not spend a lot of time with it. Regardless, check out my KEF LS50 review and the KEF LS50 vs Elac vs dynaudio review. I also had a sound demo with regular gear.
These or the klipsch rp51m? Primarily for avr surround, music secondary
Just bought it for Father’s Day gift for myself, using Denon and a PC set up sounds great., that’s funny their replacing a set of polks RT 35s
I use the Sony SSCS5 as rear surrounds. They definitely need a sub and can't really play terribly loud. Other than that they are a good neutral speaker for the price.
Hi Thomas, I'm really enjoying your thorough reviews and perspectives on things. You hit upon a subject which I think you should peruse further that being your friend who use to spend a fortune on high-end audio who has now abandoned that quest and has gone vintage & budget conscious. I live in the UK and there is often an abundance of classic speakers to be found on Ebay from the 70s-80s. Those Celestion's for example in this video you can buy on Ebay now for £40 - approx $60 Canadian!! I am currently using a pair of IMF tls80's driven by a quad 606, Meridian Pre & Sansui graphic, which really is giving me everything I want from a pair of speakers - all of which i purchased for under £650. I'm sure you are aware that in the late 70s early 80s there was a an international unofficial competition between the UK,US & Japan in the world of Hi-Fi and thankfully the accountants hadn't made it on to the boards of directors of these companies at the time because alas alot of these products would not have been created due to being uneconomical. This may explain the complex cabinet design eg: transmission line cabinets vs standard boxes which you still get at 50k-100k price points!?! These are supposed to be the holy grail! www.hifiengine.com/manual_library/tdl-electronics/reference-standard.shtml As always Thomas your opinions would be more than welcome! Regards, J.
Oh yes, I can do a whole series of video just talking about his stuff and there is so much I learn from him. His setup is really more for audiophiles and sophisticated audiophiles. If I brought my wife (who knows nothing about audio) over to listen, she might go 'meh' but for people like me and my audiophile friends, we are really impressed with that he does. The problem is time as he lives on the island and I live off island so it's not often I go over. However, it is 100% worth it for me to go do some video. Congrats on your system, I had the Quad 606 before and I LOVE it, I thought it was a big step up compare to the 404 (forgot exact model) and it was one of those amp that I will always remember.
Why don't you become a full time professional hifi reviewer
Thanks for the compliment, appreciate it.
He has no agenda or conflict of interest now,why would you want him to lose his objectivity b being a professional reviewer?
Isn't he??
Swan? Edifier? It's about time to review the top speaker brands in the "best value" category.
, thanks for doin all the work i will update.
Great video! Thanks for making it, really helped
I paid $75 used, looked brand new. Been using them for my desktop powered with a Fossi Audio BT 10a amplifier and an Aiyima dac a2 headphone amp and DAC had them set up 2 years already very happy with the sound.
thanks for your thoughts, impressive little speaker.
Really wanna see some Dali speakers, Zensor series maybe. ^_^.
The Sony's are good within their price range. More expensive speakers surpass them.
Just purchased a set of these with the Sony 100 watt receiver. Wanted to get into vinyl sense I just inherited a huge collection. Also got an Audio-Technica 120BT on the way. Should be a decent starting setup 🤞
Hi Thomas, really enjoying your channel. Greatvwork! Are you in the GTA? Looking for audiophiles/audiophile clubs in GTA. Audiophiles are so hard to find! Congrats on the channel.
D. Leung
Thanks Dave, no, I am in Montreal. I know what you mean and I am fortunate to have a few friends who are really into stereo.
i have one pair and i love it
Lots of meat Thomas. It’s not what review but how you review it in my opinion. That’s why I keep watching. Good stuff, many thanks!
Appreciate it, I try to make it interesting with actual experience instead of a straight forward review. After all, my channel is not a review channel but a journey of an audiophile
The Sony's, paired properly with a good sub. Hard to beat... VERY hard to beat.
suggestion for a home theater system that does music as well. look to a klipcsh rf7III and rc64 for your front sounds stage. I havent found better for the price
What draws your interest to bookshelves so much? I like them too. Often I hear "if you have to put them on a stand might as well have a tower" but I disagree, as I think the small cabinets seem to make the speakers disappear from the soundstage more. Have you tried Falcon Acoustics LS3/5a's or Watkins Stereo Gen Fours?
You are spot on, bookshelf speakers disappear easily in my room. Big speakers unfortunately don't. My friend mentioned to me before when he was at my place and its interesting you mention the same thing. I have not tried the other bookshelf speakers but the LS3 is something I really like to try.
Awesome!! Thanks for the review
Hi ! thank you so much for your always great reviews and comparisons. I think that a good thing to look at is the weight. I have the feeling that an heavy cabinet has less chances to be prone to vibrate and therefore not to add mechanical distortion to the sound. Some cheap speakers have a surprising heavy cabinet.
Yes, there are of course exceptions because Totem speakers for example are very light weigh but was designed that way.
@@ThomasAndStereo Hi ! thank you very much indeed again. I did not know. Very interesting. Maybe they have focus stiffness. I will have a look. Kind regards, gino
The way you convey your points across is awesome Thomas.
I have to agree with you on your assessment on the difference for music listening vs. movie listening...even more the type of music you enjoy can be impacted by speaker type plus amplification. Bass is it's own entire topic it's self.
Thanks for the comment. Yeah achieving good bass is one of the most difficult thing to do. I actually listen to a lot of vocal and slow music .
Did you ever get to demo a Paradigm servo 15" back in the day?
For me it was very unique, wish I had enough bank at the time for one because it was so different.
It used a sealed enclosure, that really focused on lower frequencies (50-20htz) plus with the added servo control made it so clean and accurate...it was like it was hooked up to a lie detector and could not lie about the truth of base notes; resulting in these fast tight shots of unexaggerated bass hits. #JustTheFacts
Thank you for your videos and your responses.
Your welcome. I never tried that model. Servo control? Wow, nice. My place is too narrow to house big subs so I limit myself. I had the SVS big cylindrical one before and it can really shake and pressurize the room. Eventually sold it just because it was too big.
No doubt a SVS would shake any normal house, but I hope they are accurate enough for music listening?
I know the high end JL 13.5" and 12" W7 series are good for music, as well as one or two of the REL's also (but you have to sign a waver to buy some of the REL's).
Interesting. The SVS I had was not good for music. I usually used very small sub for music and big sub for movies, I have like 3 subs in my room! Sometimes 4!
Very good review and it is true what you said about the Polk speakers. My friend also has Polk speakers connected to an expensive NAD-solid state amp. and I have to admid they sound hard and bass-heavy. Too much bass for my taste. I was listening to a life concert on those speakers and it really feels like being at the concert and that sounds to a positive way for my taste. But I would go for other speakers.... I personally own the Bose 301 IV serie and I am very satisfied as they produce a very wide soundstage as they are direct reflecting loudspeakers. So I am satisfied with those. It is hard to find a review of the Bose 301 speakers anyway. Opinions differ of course and I respect every ones opinion. Good luck and greetings.
Thanks, the only bose I had were the 901. My wife like them. It created a very big sound stage and it had a nice equalizer with it.
The RTi A9s are actually pretty good music speakers (I have LS50s and R900s, JC1 mono blocks....to compare) but you have to get everything right. Positioning, plug the bass ports, neutral quality high current amp, good DAC, best is spiked to concrete floor in a well damped room. I have an Asus STX essence sound card for a DAC (124 db signal to noise), hooked to a 200 watt/ch B&K amp and I can listen for hours with zero listening fatigue. It is plenty detailed where I can hear such nuances as the singer breathing between singing and the highs roll off smoothly and are never biting (harsh). For $750 Canadian (boxing day sale) the RTi A9s are hard to beat, but they are picky beasts, so you need to get at least most things right. I'm comparing a $2500 system (I bought the amp and pre amp used) to a $25,000 system, so overall it doesn't sound as good, but for 1/10 of the price it sounds really good with no listening fatigue and if I didn't hear the $25,000 system, I wouldn't know what I was missing.
Believe it or not, but the RTi A9s can produce a sound stage that comes from behind the speakers (rather than right in your face), produce smooth highs and tight clean bass (rather than bloated and resonating bass with the ports open). For music the ports must be plugged and and the right DAC, then they sound like audiophile speakers instead of HT speakers.
Oh, very interesting. Thanks for sharing. I sold mine already so I would not be able to further try other combo with it.
Hi Thomas, would like your opinion since you have the KEF LS50W.
Would the Klipsch RP-600M be an upgrade over the KEF? Thanks and best regards.
No not at all. The KEF should be better but you can't really compare since the Klipsh uses a horn configuration and the sound coming from horns is different. I never heard the RP-600 so I can't really know for sure.
@@ThomasAndStereo thank you for your insight. You are absolutely right on the horn configuration of the Klipsch and there's no real way to know other than listening to one for myself! Appreciate your reply thanks again.
In my low-budget, beginner audiophile opinion, it's bright enough and boomy enough to reduce and blend with a subwoofer as dedicated speakers should be. More than decent high, mid and lows. Speakers shouldn't cost so damn much and it's awesome when consumer giants buckle down and put overpriced products to shame.
Thomas, I think there a couple of things that could be done to somewhat fix that lacking bass: to use an amplifier with lower damping factor or to use some thinner speaker cables for the same reason (to reduce damping factor).
Will a ps10 sub solve the bass issue, or do you think too much will be missing in between?
It should fix the bass issue, the question is if it will integrate well.
These are $73 on Amazon right now
Audio is getting better and cheaper as if it was following Moore’s Law (computing power will double every 18 months at a cheaper price).
The lil Sony will go down as a legend, but it is not as user friendly with budget electronics as most budget designs, kinda like the UB5 but it doesn't yearn for power like those do, you won't see the best it has to offer without a pretty talented front-end....the bass is indeed tricky....
Many people back in the day complained that the Klipsch Heresy didn't have enough bass, to which Paul Klipsch famously replied "Put 'em in the f'king corner!" He's right, though---speakers that don't have much bass response oftentimes benefit greatly from corner placement
Yes, that would work. Of course, you introduce other problems with that setup, it;s a great topic for me to cover when I talk about the KEF LS50 wireless.
Nice brother I also like Sony
"I tried to get out of reviewing bookshelf speakers, but they kept PULLING ME BACK IN!"
Please review Kef R300
I second this request. Please review the R300.
Yess
Yeah, I have looking for one. Just need to get one at good price.
Minga TV : I have got R300 , Amazing shelf speakers , outstanding quality, The sound after braking in them for about 150 hours sounds incredible . KEF website have them now on sale for a very low price .
Thank you Ryan!
Excellent reviewer
Are those the speaker stands you used with the wood on the tops? If they are, dump them and buy good stands. Look, you want a stand that locks the speaker to the floor. And by that I mean, it should "NOT ROCK OR MOVE AT ALL, NOT A MILLIMETER" if you can! The top of the stand should be no larger than the width and depth of the speaker sitting on it or at least move the front of the cabinet to the front of the stand so it doesn't cause a reflection issue. And hopefully, the stand doesn't resonate. Not to mention if you could remove the speakers that you're not using from the room (a closet or something?) Everything then will improve, sonically that is.
the RTI A9 is an excellent HT front tower speaker.... they are very bright and revealing, but they do need good amplification to sound good... those who run these straight out of an AV receiver arent doing them any justice... 250wpc RMS plus is a must!
I ordered these Sony and I want to match them with the Atoll IN30 (still to buy)
I want to use the Atoll as
- an integrated amplifier
- a power amplifier with my Cayin tubes headphone/pre amp
- a power amplifier with my Musical Fidelity class A headphone/pre amp.
They will be used for nearfield. Distance 1,5 meters.
Hi Mr Thomas, you mentioned you changed the position of the polk audio speakers and gain more bass. Moved to where? Further from the back walls or closer? Side walls? And please scout for a C1. I cant wait for you to get your hands on them. Haha! I cant go back to budget speakers, their limitations are too bothering for my listening pleasure. Cant go any lower than my 1.3SE. 😭
I moved the speaker forward a bit. So closer to seating position. There are different spot in the room where bass is at it's max. I almost bought a C1 one point actually but it was sold before I was able to get it. I wish I can get a C4 one day!
@@ThomasAndStereo Yup! I've heard of cases where people finally stopped their search in the audiophile journey after they got their C4. Wonder if your videos would still be posted after getting one. Hmmmmm....😂
Anyway i made a friend who was a dynaudio dealer, he told me Confidence series MK II, Signature & Platinum all carry the same drivers & crossovers. The differences they have would be the warranty period, cabinet wood veneers & the colour of the metal holding the drivers, dont know what its called, not the baffle. Its grey for mk2 & signature, black for platinum. Just dont get the Confidence 1st series coz the crossovers are designed to only sound good when they are at high volume. They fixed that with mk2.
Hi Thomas, thank you for your review. I'm looking for a bookshelf speakers for music and movies as well. More music, less movies but I don't have enough space to store multiple speakers and wanna enjoy both. Do you recommend that sscs5 sony for this purpose? If yes, which center and sub would be good for them? If not, what are the alternatives? Pioneer bs-22 is worse than this according to the reviews.. thanks in advance!!
Depends on your budget and how big your room is. I personally like the Debut 6.2 too more. Check out that review from me. The problem is I don't know what center channel is good to go with that one. For sub, it depends on budget. I personally use small 8 inch subs for music as I need the speed to keep up with my speakers and 12inch sub for movies.
$75 at BestBuy
Polk- RTi (Reference Theater)... these are made for theater use first.
I got The Sony's yesterday, and I'm excited to hear how they sound?
Question...which budget cable would you recommend? I saw on amazon GEARIT has some cables for about $15, would that work with this speaker and amp? The amp is Fosi Q4 headphone and Fos Dt30 I think that's the number.
Do you have a specific song you listen to for testing speakers? I use the William Tell Overature. And not sure if you have ever used the Polk Audio TSi 100's but wondering how they compare to these Sony's. Thanks
Kind of, these days I just listen to music to evaluate gear.
You sir is a master!! Which amplifier I should use for this Sony speaker for the best music experience?
Thanks, depends on your budget. I remember it was not too hard to drive so there are a lot of choices.
What about bass Sir? Deep and powerful or not?
In regards to your review
Trying different amplifiers to match the sony speakers.
You mention how you use expensive amplifiers
Thinking they will be better.
So more expensive is better & you refer about brands in your reviews.
Here is a rule for you to understand
I’m not talking about expensive brands.
You have to have a basic understanding of electronics Ohms law.
When matching preamps to power amps, a general rule of thumb is for the load (amp) input impedance to be at least 10 times higher than the source (preamp) output impedance to provide a suitably flat frequency response. Many prefer using a minimum ratio closer to 20 to 1, or having an amp with input impedance 20 times or more greater than the preamp output impedance.
With solid state preamps, this is generally not a problem since most have output impedance of only a few hundred ohms or less, while most SS amps have input impedance of at least 10K ohms. However, you must pay much closer attention when trying to match tubed preamps to SS amps, since many tubed preamps have an output impedance of several thousand ohms or greater. Another thing to watch is how the output impedance spec is reported, since it is sometimes limited to a measurement at a given frequency such as 1K Hz, while the actual output impedance may vary with frequency. It is not unusual for the output impedance of tubed preamps to rise significantly as the signal approaches a lower frequency of 20 Hz, because of the size of coupling capacitors used in the preamp. In these cases, a low frequency roll off can occur whereby, for the same power output, the lower frequencies drop in output compared to the rest of the frequency range, resulting in a loss of deep bass.
This will save you A lot of time in regards to reviews
Thomas which one would you pick the pioneer sp-bs22-lr or sony ss-cs5?
I never heard the Spbs22 so I can't really comment on comparing both. Sorry.
I have the pioneers and they never cease to amaze me in deep linear bass.ive demoed thesonys and I find the thin!
Once in awhile you can find those sonys on amazon and best buy for 75 dollars or less for the pair. To me they sound pretty close to the kef q100. I have both of these speakers.
these sony speakers in usa are $118 brand new on amazon with free shipping
It's insane how cheap they are.
I found the same thing. Realistic STA78 from 1978 sounded better in the low end vs new stuff in the same room with those Sonys