Kelvin is talking about "nostalgia". I have almost every piece of hi-fi I lusted after from the late Seventies to the early Nineties! Many of these things I wanted, but couldn't afford, when I was a schoolboy. Also, I have found that throwing money at hi-fi won't necessarily improve the sound of your hi-fi. Relatively modest/affordable British hi-fi equipment from the 70s to the 90s can outperform many of the more expensive components from their respective manufacturers' ranges. The moral of the tale... don't go chasing "unicorns"...
Your last segment is an interesting one. In my experience with certain speakers that I’ve owned. Mass loading speaker stands didn’t work well for me. I had a set of stands and read this and read that, all stating, fill your stands! So I did. I bought “sound bites” which weighed a ton. I could barely lift the stands afterwards. Ha I used them for about a year. I then had a home demo of some JM Labs speakers from a very experienced dealer. He just couldn’t get them to sound like he thought they should. After some head scratching he asked what I had in the stands. Mmm, he said. Can you empty them out? I did and it was a revelation. The sound just filled the room completely free of the speakers. It was an amazing difference. A lesson learned. It made send as the stands that were made for the Epos S12 and S11s were open framed and they’re still one of the best speakers I ever owned. Great advice as always. Don’t just read and believe stuff. Listening is the only way. Cheers
Hi Kelvin, just wondering, do you not like subwoofers? You never mention them. My Spendor BC1s sound pretty gutless without the Monitor Audio sub. Big improvement getting a sub. Try it you might like it!
Great video. As a retired professional musician and educator, I would be considered an audiophile. It bothers me. Yep...most of the time that label brings too much negativity. I acknowledge that audio gear is fun and the pursuit of the perfect sound for yourself is intoxicating...that said, heavy preoccupation with it takes away from time spent with the music. Also, I can care less what another person tells me something "should" sound like. Though to a degree, I can tolerate a person showing me potential in sound elevation. Some people just have an addiction.....coupled with or in substitution of loving music. I see the same thing with people and their music collection or the acquiring of professional grade instruments. Peace from the show me state.
@@johnvincent4048This is from the 64 year old Black man O.G and music loving audiophile,(my full title!🤣). Don't forget to take off your shoes and slip on those slippers!( in summer don't where any, just socks or bare feet!).👍😁
Yeah? Really? Ppfffuhh! Easy for you to say... What colour is this wine? What grape/vintage/region/country is it? Cork/screw top? How expensive? Room temp or from the fridge? What did the reviews say? What shape is the glass? Is it lead crystal? I really don't think you're taking this seriously enough.
Find something you like and just be happy with it. Don’t worry that there might be something better out there because we all know there is. There always will be. Just be happy with what you got if it sounds good
The best way to get a big sound from a small loudspeaker for a reasonable prices... is to add a suitable matching subwoofer. My "giant killer" small room system comprises Dynaudio Evoke 10 + Dynaudio 9S subwoofer with two Mogami cables (left and right channel). And then a great amp and loads of tweaks - fully agree with the benefit of tweaks. My single best tweak is a Puritan grounding cable.
Hi Fi is a journey, happy to say 50 years on i found a great place to stop and listen today (-: I found big bass speakers do not work properly in my smallish cottage room, now using B&W CDM1 NT for a much tighter, more musical bass that doesn't overwhelm the room, the treble is also very clear but not overpowering, needs careful amp selection.
I personally just really enjoy the equipment itself. I mainly buy pieces I like from a design standpoint. This is mixed with quality and looks as wlel ofcourse. Basically I buy and use what I think is interesting. I personally don't really think there is a big difference between amps, record players or other devices. And while speakers do make a big difference there comes a point of diminishing returns, also doesn't help that speakers are just so cumbersome to move around.
I have to say that this is the best hifi gear talk channel on youtube. Great talk this time as well :) Im with you Kelvin, but i have one room next to my workshop where i have gear and always play with gear. In the livingroom i have JBL L112's in the bedroom Namco NSQ-551's.Its been that way for years since i last moved and i will keep it this way now. Both systems have an AMC 3100a amp, both old Arcam alpha CD players a Manticore Mantra TT and Grado Sonata with the JBLs. Pioneer PLX1000 and JICO J50 Kurogaki with the Namco's. I paid between 20 and 30 uk pounds for the Namco's. I spens money on cartridges and records mainly.
Kelvin, I have discovered your channel yesterday and binge watched quite a few videos already;) apart from the subject-hi fi, that interest me, I love your personality and the way you talk. You love it, and your honesty, enthusiasm and humour, makes your channel very special! I am a big fan already! Keep doing what you do please!
The best I ever heard was a full Naim system at a dealers in the early 90's, A pair of DBLs fed by that two box CD player they did and a whole stack of lovely olive green amps. It was amazing. But now 30 odd years later I feel the same way about my Arcam Alpha 5 and Musical Fidelity A1 powering the Musical Fidelity MC2 speakers I had at the time. I think I just miss being young. My current system would probably have blown me away back then, shame it's taken all this time to be able to afford it.
Nice subject. My experience supports your views... back in the 80s I bought a pair of Acoustic Research AR94 speakers. I loved them. Driven by the original Mission amp, those twin 8inch drivers delivered remarkable, powerful, clean and articulate bass. Coupled with an overall engaging and dynamic sound through the range. But after the foams rotted around the millennium I put them in the garage and tried a succession of well-reviewed, more "modern" speakers. I was never happy. Even with a sub I couldn't quite get the sound I was looking for. Eventually, around 5 years ago, I put the work in and re-foamed the old AR94s. Since then I've switched them in and out with two other sets of speakers and even though this exposed their limitations - especially at higher volumes - it's the AR94s that are staying in. They just sound, well, good. The only downside is their appearance: big ugly black monoliths. But now I've a separate listening room it's not a problem domestically.
Great video, one of the best I've seen on the subject. I would like to add something. The quality of the recording can send you off on a wild goose chase. I have a very wide spectrum of musical taste. from trad jazz to hip hop and everything inbetween. With the best will and equipment in the world a 1926 recording of Bix Beiderbecke will never blow your socks off sound quality wise. The bottom line is the songs and tunes you love may not sound the best on your system. If thats the case you could end up chasing rainbows. My advise is find some audiophile recordings even if you dont like the music so much. When your happy with the sound of these recordings then the music you love is going to sound as good as it's going to get. Then sit back and enjoy.
Thanks Kelvin - very sage advice. Before room I would put music source quality. Your right on product, as audiophiles (addicts) are obsessed with product, so of course almost all audio UA-cam reviewers (salesman) are pushing product because that makes money. No $$ in "tweaking". My limited budget prevents me from chasing utopia, as audio (like wine) has a characteristic economists call "the law of diminishing returns". Linking music with experiences is very valid. A form of treatment for people with advanced dementia is to appeal to the senses, and music can assist to "find the person within" and provide enjoyment to those suffering and bring back life experiences and the joy of music.
If it's really about the sound quality, and you want to dream, remember the best sound you ever auditioned and liked the best, and try to get to that level? Any reproduction beyond that, you don't know if it really exists, or only at prices you'll never afford, or if there IS something better, just how much better is it? Have you been dreaming about an improvement that is only a tiny smidgen? On 90% of my recordings, the singers voice in the middle sounds like it is coming from the ceiling. The sounds at the extreme left and right sometimes sound like they are coming from the ceiling. My speakers are on the floor and less than shoulder height. When there is more air volume (not volume as in loudness), than even a big room can hold, the sound goes upward. Like smoke, but for different reasons. Spatiality, transient response, and purity are the 3 areas we can come closest to real instruments. Dynamics, clarity, harmonic complexity and accuracy we can't come as near. Listen to the guy playing a sax or clarinet on the street corner with no microphone. How far is your sound from that? If it is truly really close then good, but that doesn't mean instruments played in unison will be that close a reproduction. Perhaps audiophiles convince themselves they'll achieve happiness if they attain a certain level of sound quality realism. But when they get to that point; they realize the happiness isn't there. So they need better and better sound quality. Perhaps the moral to this story is that sound quality can't buy happiness; but it's nice. The reson for not as many comments today is that this is the opening weekend for NFL Pro Football in America.
10:27 there seems to be a shift happening in attitude regarding speaker stands. These days there's a move back towards decoupling and isolating, rather than coupling via spiked stands. In any case a resonating speaker stand, even a B&W one, is hardly likely to fare very well if it's coupled to a loudspeaker.
Thanks for speaking my mind, the room is the limiting factor, and your speakers determine how the tonal and spatial characteristics are rendered in the soundstage. I hope you'll be able to find the amp/s that synergize with the speakers. ie "2+2=6" The power cables or power treatment is most and as important as room treatments, and endless speaker placement tuning. The more work you do, the less you pay for gears. My 2 cents😂🙏 YMMV
I got the sound I wanted by placing the speakers over a wooden dining table with nothing else on top. On another room I got a great sound with one speaker facing front and the other a few feet apart but facing the opposite direction, both over a table.
The record that takes me back to first noticing the superiority of having my first hifi compared to my second hand Fidelity stereo was Exodus opening track Natural Mystic. Age 14 and exploring the punk/reggae connections of the late 70s. I really miss the thrill of hearing something so mind blowing now but still get a kick out of that album - pure classic sound that! Great review and spot on about that feeling in your gut when it happens, oh yeah!!
All items have whats called a Q sound factor , you knock the metal speaker stands and they have a different sound ,like a bell. This is Q ,same with all things hifi , the speaker box , hifi rack , glass shelf, hifi component chassis. If you can master the Q and coupling of the components . This will make the biggest gains in hifi along with room tuning and speaker placement... Remember your listening to electricity , so that is where to spend the money first ...
My main 2 channel speakers are ESS 7. Their first model speaker from 1970. They have the KEF oblong woofer and are the boss for rock-n-roll and have never needed a refoam.
I agree with most of what you say, but you neglected to mention our hearing- If you are mutton , then forget it. We all suffer hearing deterioration as we age,and some will suffer injury due to the work we have done. Then there is the build up of wax in the auditory canal .Who has had their ears cleaned by a otolaryngologist ? I have and the best money I ever spent - 70 years in the London underground took its toll in the build up I had .When I came out of the surgery ,I felt like Nureyev when he was fitted with his first cod piece.
Afternoon Kelvin thnxs for sharing some insite into your past...stained glass windows now there's a art form, explains your creative nature which shows on your superb video's..as always well done ..and funny but true my fav speakers were Kef Concorde lll ',s. And still have found memories...
I'd say very underrated - I have early Concord iii's with the sprayed black wood base (not the plastic ones) which after 20 years I finally realized could be sanded back.. They need TLC so re-capped & replacement tweeters over the years but to this day I still haven't found anything better. For the places I've lived in anyway. Need stands but closed box 2 & 1/2 way design with two 8 inch woofers so tight bass. And brilliant midrange!
You make do with what you have. I am listening to Henry Mancini with a Yamaha CR 420 (22 watts rated) and a Yamaha TC 520 cassette deck both made from 1977 to 1979. Listening With Baby Advent speakers. The older model with cone tweeters. It sounds good. I live in an apartment and cannot blast music anyway. I have been on a big cassette kick for a few months now. I never see you mention cassettes.
I have my B&W bookcase speakers on a stack of books., one side, and on a nest of tables, other side. Restricted by space. I wonder if investing in speaker stands will make a difference. Also the room has carpet.
I watched a UA-cam video of these two guys who were testing and measuring resonances with different speaker stands. They made some stands out of large solid blocks of concrete (200 pounds each). To everyone's surprise, the concrete stands resonated terribly, measured badly, and sounded awful.
1:10 Good on Kelvin to tell it like it is and share his own considerable experience of chasing unicorns. Since 99.9% of popular music is compressed to make it sound "better" 100% of all HiFi systems have no chance of producing life-like dynamic shifts. What does that actually leave us? At best, a facsimile representation? Once you recognise compression, the illusion of pretense completely falls apart. And then there's all those issues with microphone placement, overdubbing and multi tracking which further destroy any remaining illusion. Not even the most expensive systems can do anything about bringing that illusion back. In fact some will only reveal it further. There are very good reasons why dealers and manufacturers prefer using carefully selected audiophile recordings to show off their products. Without that carefully constructed illusion, everyone might see that the emperor actually has no clothes.
Did the experiments regarding bass enclosures. Yeah, there is no substitute to woofer size.😂 If you want chest pounding and (below) average detail. Then go with the mass market bass reflex enclosures..😂 But if you want something that don't upset the room and therefore don't need a lot of treatment. And with the ability to hear EVERYTHING without any time smearing. Then open baffle bass "enclosure" is unbeatable.🎉 The drawbacks is you will NOT get chest pounding bass, regardless of how loud and low you play. You need bigger woofer and more wattage. When open baffle "enclosure" is less efficient. But what you get is a detailed bass performance out of this world that standard bass reflex or sealed boxes are far from. In short if you want to hear everything that is in the recording and what for example Paul Chambers do. Then open baffle is for you. But if you want to rock out and feel it in the chest (also upsetting the room) then go after the standard stuff..❤
I've watched all your video. They are interesting and informative. Your also quite entertaining, like me I'm told in being funny without necessarily knowing it. I have a Thorens td150 mk2 in a particularly heavy custom made plinth. A Leak 3400 receiver and two sets of vintage speakers running, both Wharfedales, Glendales and Lyntons which I imagine were not particularly spectacular speakers from the 70s because you've never featured them. For me it's a matter of enjoying what I couldn't afford in my youth and it's many things apart from just sound. Your correct about some music being more profound in our memory from our young years. At that magical age when anything is possible we are like a blank canvas and more impressionable. Keep up the good work.
It's the 1970s, a warm summer day, smell of creosote drying on a garden fence, and Joe Walsh Barnstormer on my music centre....flashback every time I play it today
The way to get the Hifi holy grail is to go and listen for yourself and stop listening to other people, there your ears, and only you can tell what's good for you. what's right for one person might be totally wrong for someone else.
Ive been dabbling with HiFi since the late 1970s and I have had all sorts of gear too much to mention - and yes room acoustics and size were also part of the journey - mostly enjoyable as its a fun bobby and I love music ( have a couple of sons here Drums and Bass) and bass is my go to vibe - I liken to feel the air vibe and my system delivers all I need now - Sugden A21 / Lintons / Rega P3 -- of and yes Audiolab CD Transport - thats its and it didn't cost me a shed load of money -- greetings from Ireland
A really good point Kelvin……keep your old item to compare with the new item, before you sell it, if possible. I wish l had done, not just thinking this is going to be a whole lot better.
I think it is mostly your brain that accepts the illusion of live sound or not. For Classical Orchestra I find if you have a sound source that does not change, your brain will figure out how to listen through the sound. I prefer live concert recordings because they are mostly recorded without anyone fiddling with the sound , letting the brain work its magic .
Top video as always - I'd say as with everything hi-fi, it's the speaker stands in your room & on your particular floor - for me it's no sand (sounds too damped / dead) & no spikes - de-coupling rather the opposite. You have to play, or 'tune' your hi-fi to your room & your liking. You're the only reviewer who stresses this but it's the heart of my experience as well. All the best!
This is from a 64 year old Black man O.G and music loving audiophile. After 44 years of high end audio experience, I've concluded that the absolute sound ( not the magazine! 🤣) in all audio equipment regardless of system price does not exist. All systems and equipment deviates from it more or less. There is no Holy grail.😇
When you mentioned the bit about music in your teens and early twenties, I can really relate to that a lot of 70's and 80's music takes me right back. However I do wonder today as music seems so disposable due to how it's consumed if people will feel like me in say 40 years time. If I wanted a record, I would have to travel in to Brighton, have a little browse around my faverite record shops, (that could take me an hour in each shop) I would often come out with what I went in for and then some other stuff. Travel back home itching to play it when I got in. Now days you just pick up the phone and click search. Have to say though whilst I prefer physical music, spotify and the like is great for new music.
Cup your hands behind your ears. youll hear a big difference. Youll actually hear your speakers and not the room. A chord mojo 2 is great for tuning your speakers to your liking.
@@Carl-bd1rfYes a full range speaker any day.Subs are difficult to integrate , often very slow and plodding , people overdo them.They should be subtle.
@@davidspendlove5900 Yes sir. I’ve owned multiple subs. Proper integration is difficult at best for music. Easy enough for movies but my system isn’t for movies.
Tesco's are selling kids play sand that's the best stuff for your stands. also put some Blu-Tack on top of the stands instead of spikes, will be better roll 5 balls of 1" not 4! and place the speaker on top don't push down.
Kelvin. Try the JBL A170, just brought some out of interest. Ended up keeping them and sold my Bowers and Wilkins CM7s and had money in my pocket! A170s around £280 and amazing value for money! Crist highs, nice clear mids and incredible bass for a 5.5” bass driver! :). Great channel btw
If it moves you... Then you're there! I used to spend tons of money on expensive HiFi. Nowadays I buy much less expensive and the sound is still awesome and I'm moved.
Hi kelvin my best sound is some kef chorale that i redid the crossover with new caps and some 104ab that i play togetter the 104 facing the wall at 10 inch and the chorale place like 7 feet apart on good stand configure in stereo i wish i could post a photo🤷🏼♂️
Great insights about all aspects of hifi Kelvin well done.. Please review some streaming via audioquest dragonfly & quad esl 57s with a valve amp. Its as good a system as l can afford. Brilliant soundstage and tonality l love the honest Quad sound hope you can too. Thanks.
Good tips on: speaker size, placement & filling stands. Listening position & speaker toe in/out is just as important. One thing you didn't mention is cleaning your signal cable connectors (plugs & jacks) to remove oxidization. I use Q-tips & as close to 100% medical grade alcohol. Why 100%? Because the remainder is often rubbing oil or water (both bad for connectors). Cheers!
I think the sound we hear is psychological. Possibly why when we hear our same system when we are tired, it doesn’t sound so good. I remember playing my system when i had covid and it sounded awful.
Sound is personal that's why we all have different systems I've got friends and their system I wouldn't have but they love it that's just personal taste and the music you play and like
I love the lighting, background and props you have in your videos, content aside. Ps. Please the try the 752 Freedom’s. As to the subject … It’s only too easy to get obsessed in this hobby. Been there and it’s not a good place.
well there are crossover upgrades and plain new capacitors I think its worth it . also I took some wadding out the midrange box and defo tighten the bass driver and mid
Hi Kelvin 👋 Another great Vid of knowledge 😊 I feel the best sound is not really attainable for most ! Its down to so many things like Cost, what you can afford to get and recording of your fav records or CD player , or Speakers ... I've found having two setups work the best for what I can afford. One setup for warmth/another for punch, sharpness of sound ! None wost of all my hearing might not be as it was 😅 Right now im Just happy to have the music the best sounding I can ... your vids always get me that little closer to what I think I want right now 😉 Also Kelvin, can you do a Vid on how to Mono block a stereo power amp and the pros cons of doing it ! What to take care of while doing ... 😅 As im about to give it a go soon, little worried about my speaker 😅 Think it would make a great Vid. Many thanks in advance Kelvin 😉👍
I don't know why people stress about their audio systems. I think it's a blast tweaking my system. And if I feel something is off, I play my favorite album or song.
Hi Kelvin what about Cambridge audio SX60 speakers mine seem to deliver everything that you have mentioned. They have the port at the front. Great content keep up the good work
enjoyed this- very funny! refreshing to hear a few truths about audio. how about a vid about your favourite ever system and why it was so good (to your ears?)
Hi Kelvin . I don,t understand some point of the dimension driver because majority of brands today, have a 2x5¼” floor stands drivers. It,s dificult buy a speakers with a 10 12 ".
Excellent Kelvin you talk a lot of sense, all was going well until you mentioned the speaker stands😂,how can filling the stands with sand really make the singers voices sound like there further behind what's going on? perhaps you can explain❤
An infinitely huge attempt to achieve perfection would at best only produce a system that was infinitesimally close to perfection, but still not perfect.
@@jozefserf2024 Also to close the gap between a system that is infinitesimally close to perfection and a system that is perfect would be infinitely difficult and infinitely expensive.
The holy grail of perfect sound with a small budget in a small room is just not viable. Having spent a lifetime repairing Hi-Fi i have heard a vast range of systems that sound fantastic in a demo room, only to sound lifeless in a buyers own home. This is why you need to try before you buy, yes you can try all the known ways of postioning speakers and changing the rooms furnishings to no avail. As said, you need to move air if you crave for sound you can feel as well as hear.
What if your in a big room with a big pair of speakers but your sitting close to them? Would a smaller speaker in a big room work but your close to them? say about 3-5 meters ?
That is why I never state any advices in audio because even I heve by myself hugh experience still after 50 years of experimenting I must admit each few days "this I wouldn't come to my mind ever." Unfortunately most advicers tend to make "eternal" truths, rules but every case is individual with many unique factors. which change everythng Those who search will find.
A question for you Kelvin please: I'm blessed with some really nice vintage kit - the sound is GORGEOUS and I'm really, really happy with it... but... after I saw your video on the Sugden A21, now I'm wondering about saving a shed-load of hard-earned cash for the improvement my brain and desire is telling me I will get - should I just stop? Am I chasing a rainbow? or will it deliver more than my very competent 100-old-school-watt CR2020 Yamaha receiver? If you had the choice of the two amps which would you take to a desert island? 🤔Thank you 🤗
The Holy Grail is the music! Everything else is icing on the cake. My Sansui 221 is superior to a Marantz or McIntosh wattage wise All subjective all enjoyable!
There's no perfect sounds. Being 70 now I when through a bunch of hifi équipements without being completely satisfied. Now I have one of the least expensive hifi of my last 50 years and find it's the most rewarding of the bunch. The secret stop listening to other peoples listen to yourself what you like stop looking at numbers and start listening to the music.
Whatever anyone says it's always gonna be a different answer. I think if you're happy with what you have and you believe it sounds good for your ears, then that's enough. Hifi is a bottomless pit to pour money into. At what point is it enough?
You’re the hifi philosopher. After hearing you I have a better idea of what questions to ask myself. I’m glad we’ve got you on the journey
Kelvin is talking about "nostalgia". I have almost every piece of hi-fi I lusted after from the late Seventies to the early Nineties! Many of these things I wanted, but couldn't afford, when I was a schoolboy. Also, I have found that throwing money at hi-fi won't necessarily improve the sound of your hi-fi. Relatively modest/affordable British hi-fi equipment from the 70s to the 90s can outperform many of the more expensive components from their respective manufacturers' ranges. The moral of the tale... don't go chasing "unicorns"...
Please stick to the rivers and the lakes that you’re used to.
Not unless you enjoy chasing those mythical creatures and realise you won't ever catch one.😅
@@stephenpeel2945lol!
Your last segment is an interesting one. In my experience with certain speakers that I’ve owned. Mass loading speaker stands didn’t work well for me. I had a set of stands and read this and read that, all stating, fill your stands! So I did. I bought “sound bites” which weighed a ton. I could barely lift the stands afterwards. Ha
I used them for about a year. I then had a home demo of some JM Labs speakers from a very experienced dealer. He just couldn’t get them to sound like he thought they should. After some head scratching he asked what I had in the stands. Mmm, he said. Can you empty them out?
I did and it was a revelation. The sound just filled the room completely free of the speakers. It was an amazing difference. A lesson learned. It made send as the stands that were made for the Epos S12 and S11s were open framed and they’re still one of the best speakers I ever owned.
Great advice as always. Don’t just read and believe stuff. Listening is the only way.
Cheers
Hi Kelvin, just wondering, do you not like subwoofers? You never mention them. My Spendor BC1s sound pretty gutless without the Monitor Audio sub. Big improvement getting a sub. Try it you might like it!
Astonishingly meaningful and informative Video. Brilliant.
Great video. As a retired professional musician and educator, I would be considered an audiophile. It bothers me. Yep...most of the time that label brings too much negativity.
I acknowledge that audio gear is fun and the pursuit of the perfect sound for yourself is intoxicating...that said, heavy preoccupation with it takes away from time spent with the music.
Also, I can care less what another person tells me something "should" sound like. Though to a degree, I can tolerate a person showing me potential in sound elevation.
Some people just have an addiction.....coupled with or in substitution of loving music.
I see the same thing with people and their music collection or the acquiring of professional grade instruments.
Peace from the show me state.
You need to do a review of lava lamps. I see one in nearly all your videos.
You’re making a lot of sense you know
If you drink a botlle of wine it sounds better
My system sounds better after 4 shots of Irish Whiskey.
@@johnvincent4048This is from the 64 year old Black man O.G and music loving audiophile,(my full title!🤣). Don't forget to take off your shoes and slip on those slippers!( in summer don't where any, just socks or bare feet!).👍😁
Yeah? Really? Ppfffuhh! Easy for you to say... What colour is this wine? What grape/vintage/region/country is it? Cork/screw top? How expensive? Room temp or from the fridge? What did the reviews say? What shape is the glass? Is it lead crystal?
I really don't think you're taking this seriously enough.
@@johnvincent4048 American Bourbon will make you want more Watts. Just look at how many horsepower is under the hood of American automobiles.
Brilliant talk , I ended up making my own speakers 8” driver, 10” drivers and15” drivers with compression tweeters a ribbon tweeters seas tangband etc
Find something you like and just be happy with it. Don’t worry that there might be something better out there because we all know there is. There always will be. Just be happy with what you got if it sounds good
"A good big one is better than a good small one" ..... Very true in many instances not just speakers and amps. No replacement for displacement.
Thanks kelvin. I could listen to you all day.
I always say.. Your room, your ears.. The rest is all subjective and conjecture.
The best way to get a big sound from a small loudspeaker for a reasonable prices... is to add a suitable matching subwoofer. My "giant killer" small room system comprises Dynaudio Evoke 10 + Dynaudio 9S subwoofer with two Mogami cables (left and right channel). And then a great amp and loads of tweaks - fully agree with the benefit of tweaks. My single best tweak is a Puritan grounding cable.
Yes small spks with sub/subs is the way to go.
Hi Fi is a journey, happy to say 50 years on i found a great place to stop and listen today (-: I found big bass speakers do not work properly in my smallish cottage room, now using B&W CDM1 NT for a much tighter, more musical bass that doesn't overwhelm the room, the treble is also very clear but not overpowering, needs careful amp selection.
I personally just really enjoy the equipment itself. I mainly buy pieces I like from a design standpoint. This is mixed with quality and looks as wlel ofcourse. Basically I buy and use what I think is interesting. I personally don't really think there is a big difference between amps, record players or other devices. And while speakers do make a big difference there comes a point of diminishing returns, also doesn't help that speakers are just so cumbersome to move around.
I have to say that this is the best hifi gear talk channel on youtube. Great talk this time as well :)
Im with you Kelvin, but i have one room next to my workshop where i have gear and always play with gear. In the livingroom i have JBL L112's in the bedroom Namco NSQ-551's.Its been that way for years since i last moved and i will keep it this way now. Both systems have an AMC 3100a amp, both old Arcam alpha CD players a Manticore Mantra TT and Grado Sonata with the JBLs. Pioneer PLX1000 and JICO J50 Kurogaki with the Namco's. I paid between 20 and 30 uk pounds for the Namco's. I spens money on cartridges and records mainly.
Kelvin, I have discovered your channel yesterday and binge watched quite a few videos already;) apart from the subject-hi fi, that interest me, I love your personality and the way you talk. You love it, and your honesty, enthusiasm and humour, makes your channel very special! I am a big fan already! Keep doing what you do please!
thank you
The best I ever heard was a full Naim system at a dealers in the early 90's, A pair of DBLs fed by that two box CD player they did and a whole stack of lovely olive green amps. It was amazing. But now 30 odd years later I feel the same way about my Arcam Alpha 5 and Musical Fidelity A1 powering the Musical Fidelity MC2 speakers I had at the time. I think I just miss being young. My current system would probably have blown me away back then, shame it's taken all this time to be able to afford it.
You are obviously not alone in feeling that way 😂
Nice subject. My experience supports your views... back in the 80s I bought a pair of Acoustic Research AR94 speakers. I loved them. Driven by the original Mission amp, those twin 8inch drivers delivered remarkable, powerful, clean and articulate bass. Coupled with an overall engaging and dynamic sound through the range. But after the foams rotted around the millennium I put them in the garage and tried a succession of well-reviewed, more "modern" speakers. I was never happy. Even with a sub I couldn't quite get the sound I was looking for. Eventually, around 5 years ago, I put the work in and re-foamed the old AR94s. Since then I've switched them in and out with two other sets of speakers and even though this exposed their limitations - especially at higher volumes - it's the AR94s that are staying in. They just sound, well, good. The only downside is their appearance: big ugly black monoliths. But now I've a separate listening room it's not a problem domestically.
speaker positioning in the right environment are the most important
Some high end speakers manufacturers come to your house and setup them
Great to hear about your Stained glass business.
Great video, one of the best I've seen on the subject. I would like to add something. The quality of the recording can send you off on a wild goose chase. I have a very wide spectrum of musical taste. from trad jazz to hip hop and everything inbetween. With the best will and equipment in the world a 1926 recording of Bix Beiderbecke will never blow your socks off sound quality wise. The bottom line is the songs and tunes you love may not sound the best on your system. If thats the case you could end up chasing rainbows. My advise is find some audiophile recordings even if you dont like the music so much. When your happy with the sound of these recordings then the music you love is going to sound as good as it's going to get. Then sit back and enjoy.
It's simple, you need loudspeakers with magical drivers, they are rare but you can find them
Thanks Kelvin - very sage advice. Before room I would put music source quality. Your right on product, as audiophiles (addicts) are obsessed with product, so of course almost all audio UA-cam reviewers (salesman) are pushing product because that makes money. No $$ in "tweaking". My limited budget prevents me from chasing utopia, as audio (like wine) has a characteristic economists call "the law of diminishing returns". Linking music with experiences is very valid. A form of treatment for people with advanced dementia is to appeal to the senses, and music can assist to "find the person within" and provide enjoyment to those suffering and bring back life experiences and the joy of music.
If it's really about the sound quality, and you want to dream, remember the best sound you ever auditioned and liked the best, and try to get to that level? Any reproduction beyond that, you don't know if it really exists, or only at prices you'll never afford, or if there IS something better, just how much better is it? Have you been dreaming about an improvement that is only a tiny smidgen?
On 90% of my recordings, the singers voice in the middle sounds like it is coming from the ceiling. The sounds at the extreme left and right sometimes sound like they are coming from the ceiling. My speakers are on the floor and less than shoulder height. When there is more air volume (not volume as in loudness), than even a big room can hold, the sound goes upward. Like smoke, but for different reasons. Spatiality, transient response, and purity are the 3 areas we can come closest to real instruments. Dynamics, clarity, harmonic complexity and accuracy we can't come as near.
Listen to the guy playing a sax or clarinet on the street corner with no microphone. How far is your sound from that? If it is truly really close then good, but that doesn't mean instruments played in unison will be that close a reproduction.
Perhaps audiophiles convince themselves they'll achieve happiness if they attain a certain level of sound quality realism. But when they get to that point; they realize the happiness isn't there. So they need better and better sound quality. Perhaps the moral to this story is that sound quality can't buy happiness; but it's nice.
The reson for not as many comments today is that this is the opening weekend for NFL Pro Football in America.
10:27 there seems to be a shift happening in attitude regarding speaker stands.
These days there's a move back towards decoupling and isolating, rather than coupling via spiked stands.
In any case a resonating speaker stand, even a B&W one, is hardly likely to fare very well if it's coupled to a loudspeaker.
Shape of the room, drapes, windows. A million variables to get better sound from your equipment.
Thanks for speaking my mind, the room is the limiting factor, and your speakers determine how the tonal and spatial characteristics are rendered in the soundstage. I hope you'll be able to find the amp/s that synergize with the speakers. ie "2+2=6" The power cables or power treatment is most and as important as room treatments, and endless speaker placement tuning. The more work you do, the less you pay for gears. My 2 cents😂🙏 YMMV
tend to agree
@@stereoreviewx 🙏🙏🙏
I got the sound I wanted by placing the speakers over a wooden dining table with nothing else on top. On another room I got a great sound with one speaker facing front and the other a few feet apart but facing the opposite direction, both over a table.
What would we be without the fantasy of a Holy Grail? Nothing to pursuit.
The record that takes me back to first noticing the superiority of having my first hifi compared to my second hand Fidelity stereo was Exodus opening track Natural Mystic. Age 14 and exploring the punk/reggae connections of the late 70s. I really miss the thrill of hearing something so mind blowing now but still get a kick out of that album - pure classic sound that! Great review and spot on about that feeling in your gut when it happens, oh yeah!!
All items have whats called a Q sound factor , you knock the metal speaker stands and they have a different sound ,like a bell. This is Q ,same with all things hifi , the speaker box , hifi rack , glass shelf, hifi component chassis. If you can master the Q and coupling of the components . This will make the biggest gains in hifi along with room tuning and speaker placement... Remember your listening to electricity , so that is where to spend the money first ...
My main 2 channel speakers are ESS 7. Their first model speaker from 1970. They have the KEF oblong woofer and are the boss for rock-n-roll and have never needed a refoam.
I agree with most of what you say, but you neglected to mention our hearing- If you are mutton , then forget it. We all suffer hearing deterioration as we age,and some will suffer injury due to the work we have done. Then there is the build up of wax in the auditory canal .Who has had their ears cleaned by a otolaryngologist ? I have and the best money I ever spent - 70 years in the London underground took its toll in the build up I had .When I came out of the surgery ,I felt like Nureyev when he was fitted with his first cod piece.
thanks for that
Afternoon Kelvin thnxs for sharing some insite into your past...stained glass windows now there's a art form, explains your creative nature which shows on your superb video's..as always well done ..and funny but true my fav speakers were Kef Concorde lll ',s. And still have found memories...
I'd say very underrated - I have early Concord iii's with the sprayed black wood base (not the plastic ones) which after 20 years I finally realized could be sanded back.. They need TLC so re-capped & replacement tweeters over the years but to this day I still haven't found anything better. For the places I've lived in anyway. Need stands but closed box 2 & 1/2 way design with two 8 inch woofers so tight bass. And brilliant midrange!
You make do with what you have. I am listening to Henry Mancini with a Yamaha CR 420 (22 watts rated) and a Yamaha TC 520 cassette deck both made from 1977 to 1979. Listening With Baby Advent speakers. The older model with cone tweeters. It sounds good. I live in an apartment and cannot blast music anyway. I have been on a big cassette kick for a few months now. I never see you mention cassettes.
I have my B&W bookcase speakers on a stack of books., one side, and on a nest of tables, other side. Restricted by space. I wonder if investing in speaker stands will make a difference. Also the room has carpet.
I watched a UA-cam video of these two guys who were testing and measuring resonances with different speaker stands. They made some stands out of large solid blocks of concrete (200 pounds each). To everyone's surprise, the concrete stands resonated terribly, measured badly, and sounded awful.
1:10 Good on Kelvin to tell it like it is and share his own considerable experience of chasing unicorns.
Since 99.9% of popular music is compressed to make it sound "better" 100% of all HiFi systems have no chance of producing life-like dynamic shifts.
What does that actually leave us?
At best, a facsimile representation?
Once you recognise compression, the illusion of pretense completely falls apart.
And then there's all those issues with microphone placement, overdubbing and multi tracking which further destroy any remaining illusion.
Not even the most expensive systems can do anything about bringing that illusion back. In fact some will only reveal it further.
There are very good reasons why dealers and manufacturers prefer using carefully selected audiophile recordings to show off their products.
Without that carefully constructed illusion, everyone might see that the emperor actually has no clothes.
That is why we listen to older, non-compressed (or less compressed) recordings. Forget the new stuff.
Did the experiments regarding bass enclosures.
Yeah, there is no substitute to woofer size.😂
If you want chest pounding and (below) average detail. Then go with the mass market bass reflex enclosures..😂
But if you want something that don't upset the room and therefore don't need a lot of treatment. And with the ability to hear EVERYTHING without any time smearing. Then open baffle bass "enclosure" is unbeatable.🎉
The drawbacks is you will NOT get chest pounding bass, regardless of how loud and low you play. You need bigger woofer and more wattage. When open baffle "enclosure" is less efficient.
But what you get is a detailed bass performance out of this world that standard bass reflex or sealed boxes are far from.
In short if you want to hear everything that is in the recording and what for example Paul Chambers do. Then open baffle is for you.
But if you want to rock out and feel it in the chest (also upsetting the room) then go after the standard stuff..❤
Another no
nonsense vid from kelvin! Happy days!
I've watched all your video. They are interesting and informative. Your also quite entertaining, like me I'm told in being funny without necessarily knowing it.
I have a Thorens td150 mk2 in a particularly heavy custom made plinth. A Leak 3400 receiver and two sets of vintage speakers running, both Wharfedales, Glendales and Lyntons which I imagine were not particularly spectacular speakers from the 70s because you've never featured them. For me it's a matter of enjoying what I couldn't afford in my youth and it's many things apart from just sound. Your correct about some music being more profound in our memory from our young years. At that magical age when anything is possible we are like a blank canvas and more impressionable.
Keep up the good work.
Tweaking is everything. I could not agree more ❤❤❤
It's the 1970s, a warm summer day, smell of creosote drying on a garden fence, and Joe Walsh Barnstormer on my music centre....flashback every time I play it today
The way to get the Hifi holy grail is to go and listen for yourself and stop listening to other people, there your ears, and only you can tell what's good for you. what's right for one person might be totally wrong for someone else.
Ive been dabbling with HiFi since the late 1970s and I have had all sorts of gear too much to mention - and yes room acoustics and size were also part of the journey - mostly enjoyable as its a fun bobby and I love music ( have a couple of sons here Drums and Bass) and bass is my go to vibe - I liken to feel the air vibe and my system delivers all I need now - Sugden A21 / Lintons / Rega P3 -- of and yes Audiolab CD Transport - thats its and it didn't cost me a shed load of money -- greetings from Ireland
Wise words, Kelvin.
A really good point Kelvin……keep your old item to compare with the new item, before you sell it, if possible. I wish l had done, not just thinking this is going to be a whole lot better.
I think it is mostly your brain that accepts the illusion of live sound or not. For Classical Orchestra I find if you have a sound source that does not change, your brain will figure out how to listen through the sound. I prefer live concert recordings because they are mostly recorded without anyone fiddling with the sound , letting the brain work its magic .
Are you saying your brain thinks its mostly your brain?
Top video as always - I'd say as with everything hi-fi, it's the speaker stands in your room & on your particular floor - for me it's no sand (sounds too damped / dead) & no spikes - de-coupling rather the opposite. You have to play, or 'tune' your hi-fi to your room & your liking. You're the only reviewer who stresses this but it's the heart of my experience as well. All the best!
This is from a 64 year old Black man O.G and music loving audiophile. After 44 years of high end audio experience, I've concluded that the absolute sound ( not the magazine! 🤣) in all audio equipment regardless of system price does not exist. All systems and equipment deviates from it more or less. There is no Holy grail.😇
what no quest 😅
@@stereoreviewx Uuh...well...uh...Aw shucks!, let's just enjoy the music and our systems man!🤣🤣🤣
It will only sound as good as the recording, the mixing and the pressing. End of story
I will respectfully disagree. It only gets as good as the symmetry between speakers and room.
Unfortunately, for most recordings, no system will get anywhere near the master tape.
@@jozefserf2024
Humm…what if you happen to have the same speakers the studio used to mix the sound?
Beginning of story!!
Kelvin . You can fill the B and W stands with sand aswell
When you mentioned the bit about music in your teens and early twenties, I can really relate to that a lot of 70's and 80's music takes me right back. However I do wonder today as music seems so disposable due to how it's consumed if people will feel like me in say 40 years time. If I wanted a record, I would have to travel in to Brighton, have a little browse around my faverite record shops, (that could take me an hour in each shop) I would often come out with what I went in for and then some other stuff. Travel back home itching to play it when I got in. Now days you just pick up the phone and click search. Have to say though whilst I prefer physical music, spotify and the like is great for new music.
thanks
Cup your hands behind your ears.
youll hear a big difference.
Youll actually hear your speakers and not the room.
A chord mojo 2 is great for tuning your speakers to your liking.
Sub woofers are a must
A full range speaker beats the separated sound a sub brings to the table.
I agree but it takes much effort to integrate the sub properly
@@Carl-bd1rfYes a full range speaker any day.Subs are difficult to integrate , often very slow and plodding , people overdo them.They should be subtle.
@@davidspendlove5900
Yes sir. I’ve owned multiple subs. Proper integration is difficult at best for music. Easy enough for movies but my system isn’t for movies.
Tesco's are selling kids play sand that's the best stuff for your stands.
also put some Blu-Tack on top of the stands instead of spikes, will be better roll 5 balls of 1" not 4! and place the speaker on top don't push down.
Absolutely true! 😅
Kelvin. Try the JBL A170, just brought some out of interest. Ended up keeping them and sold my Bowers and Wilkins CM7s and had money in my pocket! A170s around £280 and amazing value for money! Crist highs, nice clear mids and incredible bass for a 5.5” bass driver! :). Great channel btw
Thanks for the tip!
I find it by getting something that I like and then never listening to anything else!
yes that works
It's a journey of trying to reach an unreachable personal audio "nirvana" (budget permitting) with lots of fun along the way.
If it moves you... Then you're there!
I used to spend tons of money on expensive HiFi.
Nowadays I buy much less expensive and the sound is still awesome and I'm moved.
As always very informative Kelvin . Looking forward to Sunday 😅
Hi kelvin my best sound is some kef chorale that i redid the crossover with new caps and some 104ab that i play togetter the 104 facing the wall at 10 inch and the chorale place like 7 feet apart on good stand configure in stereo i wish i could post a photo🤷🏼♂️
Great insights about all aspects of hifi Kelvin well done.. Please review some streaming via audioquest dragonfly & quad esl 57s with a valve amp. Its as good a system as l can afford. Brilliant soundstage and tonality l love the honest Quad sound hope you can too. Thanks.
Great video Kelv. Speaker placement is key especially if the Speakers don't have good and consistent on and off axis measurements.
Good tips on: speaker size, placement & filling stands. Listening position & speaker toe in/out is just as important. One thing you didn't mention is cleaning your signal cable connectors (plugs & jacks) to remove oxidization. I use Q-tips & as close to 100% medical grade alcohol. Why 100%? Because the remainder is often rubbing oil or water (both bad for connectors). Cheers!
Do you think you could pass a blind listening test and tell the difference between clean signal cables and unclean?
Cmon now
I think the sound we hear is psychological. Possibly why when we hear our same system when we are tired, it doesn’t sound so good. I remember playing my system when i had covid and it sounded awful.
Sound is personal that's why we all have different systems I've got friends and their system I wouldn't have but they love it that's just personal taste and the music you play and like
I love the lighting, background and props you have in your videos, content aside. Ps. Please the try the 752 Freedom’s. As to the subject … It’s only too easy to get obsessed in this hobby. Been there and it’s not a good place.
Hi Kelvin, Another great video. Do you or your viewers have any advice on improving KEF CONCERTO's mid/treble?
well there are crossover upgrades and plain new capacitors
I think its worth it .
also I took some wadding out the midrange box and defo tighten the bass driver and mid
@@stereoreviewx Thanks Kelvin!
Good sense and logic as always kelvin 👍
There something about this hobby that drives people mad.
emmmmm
All good advice.
Brillant sir cheers
Hi Kelvin 👋
Another great Vid of knowledge 😊
I feel the best sound is not really attainable for most ! Its down to so many things like Cost, what you can afford to get and recording of your fav records or CD player , or Speakers ... I've found having two setups work the best for what I can afford.
One setup for warmth/another for punch, sharpness of sound !
None wost of all my hearing might not be as it was 😅
Right now im Just happy to have the music the best sounding I can ... your vids always get me that little closer to what I think I want right now 😉
Also Kelvin, can you do a Vid on how to Mono block a stereo power amp and the pros cons of doing it ! What to take care of while doing ... 😅 As im about to give it a go soon, little worried about my speaker 😅 Think it would make a great Vid.
Many thanks in advance Kelvin 😉👍
I have them speaker stands for my cm1 bookshelf
I don't know why people stress about their audio systems. I think it's a blast tweaking my system. And if I feel something is off, I play my favorite album or song.
Hi Kelvin what about Cambridge audio SX60 speakers mine seem to deliver everything that you have mentioned. They have the port at the front. Great content keep up the good work
I’d love you to try out B&W cm1 s2 bookshelf’s to see what you think of them kelvin 😊
enjoyed this- very funny! refreshing to hear a few truths about audio. how about a vid about your favourite ever system and why it was so good (to your ears?)
Thanks for the idea!
Hi Kelvin .
I don,t understand some point of the dimension driver because majority of brands today, have a 2x5¼” floor stands drivers. It,s dificult buy a speakers with a 10 12 ".
Excellent Kelvin you talk a lot of sense, all was going well until you mentioned the speaker stands😂,how can filling the stands with sand really make the singers voices sound like there further behind what's going on? perhaps you can explain❤
wish I could it does happen though
@@stereoreviewx 😂Cheers
You made stained glass windows?? How cool!! I had a go on a 5 day course in Edinburgh many years ago. Do you teach stained glass techniques?
So true👍
An infinitely huge attempt to achieve perfection would at best only produce a system that was infinitesimally close to perfection, but still not perfect.
Quite true sadly. It's too easy to get lost in incremental changes and go round in circles.
I'm sure I'm not the only one who's done this.
@@jozefserf2024 Also to close the gap between a system that is infinitesimally close to perfection and a system that is perfect would be infinitely difficult and infinitely expensive.
The holy grail of perfect sound with a small budget in a small room is just not viable.
Having spent a lifetime repairing Hi-Fi i have heard a vast range of systems that sound
fantastic in a demo room, only to sound lifeless in a buyers own home.
This is why you need to try before you buy, yes you can try all the known ways of postioning
speakers and changing the rooms furnishings to no avail.
As said, you need to move air if you crave for sound you can feel as well as hear.
Radio shack did that giant killer thing in the '70s and people didn't buy it because of the small size !
that can happen
What if your in a big room with a big pair of speakers but your sitting close to them? Would a smaller speaker in a big room work but your close to them? say about 3-5 meters ?
bigger speakers make a bigger everything v0ices drums etc
That is why I never state any advices in audio because even I heve by myself hugh experience still after 50 years of experimenting I must admit each few days "this I wouldn't come to my mind ever." Unfortunately most advicers tend to make "eternal" truths, rules but every case is individual with many unique factors. which change everythng Those who search will find.
Surely the type of music will be a factor. A four piece rock band might sound great on a particular set up, but a 100 piece orchestra might not.
A question for you Kelvin please: I'm blessed with some really nice vintage kit - the sound is GORGEOUS and I'm really, really happy with it... but... after I saw your video on the Sugden A21, now I'm wondering about saving a shed-load of hard-earned cash for the improvement my brain and desire is telling me I will get - should I just stop? Am I chasing a rainbow? or will it deliver more than my very competent 100-old-school-watt CR2020 Yamaha receiver? If you had the choice of the two amps which would you take to a desert island? 🤔Thank you 🤗
Listen it other systems before trading in your gear. New is not always better.
I assumed all hollow speaker stands were designed to be filled before use. No?
Try EMI 62 speakers.
My holy grail..............
Spectral SDR-1000
Sony TA-5650 (Accuphase E-202)
Rogers LS3/5A 15 ohm low serial numbers.
The Holy Grail is the music! Everything else is icing on the cake. My Sansui 221 is superior to a Marantz or McIntosh wattage wise All subjective all enjoyable!
love Sansui have 331 upwards 221 is not powerful but quality over quantity anytime heh
Try tuning chips an get youre house
E smog free huge improvement
Nice video very amusing .
There's no perfect sounds. Being 70 now I when through a bunch of hifi équipements without being completely satisfied. Now I have one of the least expensive hifi of my last 50 years and find it's the most rewarding of the bunch. The secret stop listening to other peoples listen to yourself what you like stop looking at numbers and start listening to the music.
Whatever anyone says it's always gonna be a different answer. I think if you're happy with what you have and you believe it sounds good for your ears, then that's enough. Hifi is a bottomless pit to pour money into. At what point is it enough?
Yep, the only person who has to be happy with your system is you.