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I've been thinking about replacing my loved but old KEF Reference 104/2s in our media room. It's 14' X 19' and the KEFs sit 1/5th from the back wall and a bit over 3' from the side walls. The rear wall is covered with carpet except for a 100" screen. Is a 14' X 19' room adequate for a pair of Sophias? The LF will be supplemented by a pair of Velodyne HGS-15s with an SMS-1 bass manager.
db
Follow Ups:
I thought the sophia 3s were the best of the Wilson speakers I have heard. Yes, I HATE all their speakers, but hate the Sophia the least! They are very small and don't need a big room. The Usher, Sonist, Teresonic, and Audio Note speakers are light years ahead on any Wilson speaker IMO. And, yes, my Fulton Js and my friends Quad 57s are also light years better than any Wilson speaker.
A reputed audio journalist who owns Audio Note and Quad 57 has written in a review that the Sophia sounds 'beautiful'. I guess you may have to tone down the intensity of negative emotions like 'hate'.
Cheers
Bill
Yes, even Art can be wrong. Of course, perhaps ALL of the Wilson based systems I have heard were set up poorly (a higher possibility than you might think. At the 2011 CAS, about 30% of the rooms I visited on the first day had the channels reversed). At Music Lovers, I heard the Sophias, and they made great records sound boring (Miles Davis' "Kind of Blue" and Chet Baker's "Chet") . The $5,000 Usher speaker shamed the Sophia speaker. Ditto for the $80,000 Acapella horn speaker. Ditto for the $15,000 Vivid speaker. I would love to do a blind listening test of the $5,000 Usher, the $5,000 Sonist, and the $8,000 Audio Note compared with any of the Wilson speakers. Of course, the horribly expensive Wilson's sound much less realistic than the Sophia: It sounds like the music is being forced out of the speakers. No life or palpability. At the 2011 CAS, the expensive Wilson system made Eric Dolphy's "Out To Lunch!" boring!!! The $400,000+ MBL system sounded even worse! It made EVERYTHING sound harsh and strident! Note that Stereophile's Stephen Mejias claimed that his humble system, based on the $299 PSB Alpha speakers, sounded better than the $400,000 MBL based system he heard at MF's house!!!
I am sorry, I withdraw the comments I made about emotion. I havent heard any of these speakers. I was only referring to Art's review.
Mejias is a bright star in the Audio sky, I must say.
Regards
Bill
the old school...Either you have the worst ears on the planet or are just lying . You should find a new hobby.
The Sophias had all the bass one could have wanted in that room (one connecting door to the next room, that closed completely, and one door to the outside).
One might have expected there not to be enough distance back from the tweeters in a long-wall setup, but it was not an issue, and I am sensitive to that. Luxman solid-state electronics.
NB, these were Sophia IIs; I have not heard the IIIs.
Go for it, I say.
JM
Does the listener sit across from the short wall, or the long wall ?
There are some who swear by it. I find that it often involves the speakers being too far apart for a solid center image.
As usual, to get X, Y is given up.
JM
Owned them and they will definately fill the room even without sub's (needed only for crappy movie effects). Long wall is best bet if possible of course. What are you going to be driving them with??
dave_b
Dave,
I plan to drive the Sophias with a Proceed HPA3 capable of 500 watts/channel into 4 ohms with substantial current. IIRC, they are pretty easy to drive, so another option is a Proceed Amp 3 (250 watts/channel into 4 ohms). I don't know what I might use as a center channel for MCH music and HT.
db
Great...enjoy! The Sophias are worthy of as much quality upstream gear you can afford:O)
dave_b
Actually, that's a very nice size room for Sophias.
The only question is how far you can get them from the front wall before losing bass because they are rear ported.
It'd be great to try them with the option to return is that is an issue in your room.
I just saw that you have subs, so you might as well go for it!
The 104/2s were great in their day, some may have thought they were a little too forward. The Sophias are voiced more conservatively, IMO.
Best regards,
Jim Smith
...Thiel 7.2s in a 14" X 17" room.
I have a lot of room treatment so they work great.
Sophias should be no problem.
I have Klipsch Fortes and my room ia 15x24. I have no problem, and probably underplay my rig, commensurate with its potential maximum.
Freedom is the right to discipline yourself.
In answer to your query the answer is "yes"
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