Anyone Have Revel F12 or Mirage RS6?
dshlapak -- Sat, 12/09/2006 - 19:09
Hi there. I'm currently researching some new equipment for a two-channel system for my soon-to-be-refurbished studio/office. I'm not looking for the moon and stars, but am seeking an improvement over my current, decade-old Definitive BP8s (driven by a Rotel RSX-965 reciever). Two speakers that have caught my attention are the Monitor Audio Silver RS6 (which I've heard, and like) and the Revel Concerto F12 (which I have not yet auditioned). Anyone have either and want to comment on your likes/dislikes? Just to provide a little context, my own desiderata revolve around imaging, soundstaging, detail, and transparency, rather than deep-bass reproduction, ear-splitting volume, or high-frequency extension.
I'd be especially interested in knowing how you're driving the speakers. My current top candidates--neither yet auditioned--are the Creek Classic (formerly 5350SE) solid-state and PrimaLuna Prologue 2 tube integrateds.
In case it matters, my musical tastes are fairly broad, but neither death-metal thrash nor huge orchestral pieces are frequent choices. My source will be a Music Hall cd25.2 CD player, and the room is about 12x15 with eight-foot ceilings.
Any thoughts/advice/etc. are much appreciated.
Cheers.
--- das
I have not heard either loudspeaker, but the Revel F12 seems to be racking up quite a reputation and winning all sorts of awards. The Creek is very nice, but it's awfully expensive compared to your speaker budget. If you intend on spending that kind of money, you should raise your speaker budget and lower your amp budget because you'll end up with a better-sounding system. I would recommend something like a Rotel RA-1062 (I'm a big fan of Rotel), which will save you about $700 which you can spend on something else, namely better speakers. I'm not speaking from experience, but it would seem to me that you're not going to get a justifiable increase in performance with the Creek vs. Rotel if you're pairing it with what's essentially a budget loudspeaker. If you look at Chris Marten's "Six Budget Systems" in issue 164, he had the Revels paired with a $600 Music Hall integrated.
EasyBigFella wrote:I have not heard either loudspeaker, but the Revel F12 seems to be racking up quite a reputation and winning all sorts of awards. The Creek is very nice, but it's awfully expensive compared to your speaker budget. If you intend on spending that kind of money, you should raise your speaker budget and lower your amp budget because you'll end up with a better-sounding system. I would recommend something like a Rotel RA-1062 (I'm a big fan of Rotel), which will save you about $700 which you can spend on something else, namely better speakers.
Point well taken; I'm risking violating the ol' "50/50 rule". I am hoping to audition some higher-level speakers (the Gallo Reference 3.1, for example), not necessarily because I can afford them :wink: but 'cause I need to hear what the next level is like...and I might make myself afford them. Are there specific models in the $2000 range you'd recommend? What do you own?
I have a Rotel receiver currently, which I like, but I'm looking to move up a class from it and NAD (a brand I have had for over 20 years and still use). The place I heard the RS6s was driving them with a $2500 Krell integrated, and the reviewer for Sterophile, who raved about the Monitor, paired it with his "budget reference" amp, the Creek. So, yeah. I'm aware that I might be over-egging the pudding a bit, but based on the reviews that I'm reading, I feel like I'm in the right ballpark for the amp.
Thanks!
If you get confused/Let the music play
I can't really recommend too many speakers based on experience as I don't work in the industry and I don't hang around the shops too much. I can say that there are a lot of speakers that interest me and would love to spend some time with, like the Maggie 1.6 and Spendor S8e, however I can't recommend anything specific based on any recent experience.
If you decide to buy the Creek, at least you'll have something you can hold onto for a while. If you upgrade your speakers, you won't have to upgrade the amp as well!
EasyBigFella wrote:I can say that there are a lot of speakers that interest me and would love to spend some time with, like the Maggie 1.6 and Spendor S8e, however I can't recommend anything specific based on any recent experience.
I've always loved Maggies, but I don't think they'd mix very well with our cats. :cry: Living in Pittsburgh, I'm gonna be compelled to audition stuff when I travel on business, and will probably be listening to the Spendors in DC next month. Listening to all of these speakers is going to be a chore, but someone's gotta do it. :wink: The big issue will be getting them home from distant parts, if I decide to buy.
EasyBigFella wrote:If you decide to buy the Creek, at least you'll have something you can hold onto for a while. If you upgrade your speakers, you won't have to upgrade the amp as well!
Yeah, I'd like to have at least one "growth" component in my system, and my initial take is that I can, in my budget range, find that in an amp more easily than in speakers. We'll see. I might wind up being very happy with the Rotel or the Rega Mira, both of which are much less expensive than the Creek. The fear, of course, is that I'll listen to some $4,000 speaker--just for context, you understand--and fall in love.
I can see why this hobby is so addictive.
If you get confused/Let the music play
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