Ok, after listening forever and being a huge supporter of Focal speakers and owning many pairs, I have to admit, finally, that are not good speakers to listen to. They are harsh and bright and not soulful. I've owned 5 different sets and matched them with so many different amps and sources and I've never ever been completely happy with them. I hang my head low in admitting this. I wanted so so badly to advertise their brilliance. I just heard a pair of Sonus Faber speakers hooked up to my system and they so thoroughly blew my focals away that I was actually sad that I had made the mistake I did in buying the focals. I've also hooked up Harbeth speakers, B&W speakers and many others. Basically all were better than mine in almost every category.
Tboooe, I've bought the kimber monocles and have done a couple listening tests with audiophile friends and friends who couldn't care less. Across the board, the kimber cables were preferred. I find the difference about as great as I've heard from a cable switch up. Don't forget, the kimber cables are about twice the price, so they better be better.
Samhar, I have tried what you recommended and it seems to be a beneficial move to the sound of my system. It's more 3D sounding and the reverb from my walls is definitely reduced. Thank you for the advice.
I think speaker positioning is possibly the most important thing to consider when looking for good sound. As far as reflections go, that will depend on your room and its shape. My room is almost impossible to work around so I just do my best. I think bdr stuff is really good. All I can say is try them out every where and decide for yourself if you prefer the sound. One thing I've noticed is that it's very beneficial to have your equipment as far from the speakers as possible. This way you'll have fewer vibrations effecting your equipment.
Also, I'd like to buy some cardas clear light speaker cable. Does anyone have an opinion on how they'd sound compared to my acoustic zen hologram II cables?
Samhar, I have tried a lot of positions for my speakers. I admit to having a hard time getting it just right. I'll do exactly what you say and see how it goes. Unfortunately, my room is a weird shape and I can't seem to nail it. Thanks for the input. Also, is the troll "Altmann 214"? I don't understand his comment.
System edited: I added the Weiss DAC because I wanted a really good DAC and seemed that to me. Also, I broke my old cartridge trying to clean it so I thought I'd move to a MM to see how it would sound.
Mcjmt I have indeed heard the b&w speakers and they are great. Simply put, the store I went to when I first got into audio sold Focal and so I became loyal to that brand. As to which is better, I figure they're both quite good. Regarding the sa-60, it is fantastic I think. Unfortunately, I'm only able to use it with discs as the dac within is not usable elsewhere. Also. I really like the wireless usability of the arcam. Thanks for asking.
