Jamo D450, 870, OR Tannoy Eyris 3

[PlumDragon]

Im trying to make a decision between Jamo D450 or 870 loudspeakers and the comparably priced Tannoy Eyris 3, and was hoping you good people could help me:

Neither speaker has much available information on the net in regard to reviews, performance, quality, etc. It comes down to one of these models (why this is the case is a whole other story) but I dont have either available in my area to listen to. Ill be listening primarily to Classic Rock like Pink Floyd and occasional movies. I want a speaker that handles details and nuances of music very well, that has depth and doesnt have a sterile type of sound. Bass is not a big concern because I will be buying a subwoofer as well but I want my front channels to handle a good range of frequencies quite well.
- Which of these 2 speakers would work better for those goals?
- Which speaker company is more highly regarded? Neither are very familiar to me...
- Finally, the 2 Jamo models (D450 and D870) are comparably priced and have mixed technical specs...What is the better speaker?

Thanks in advance!
Josh

[PlumDragon]

Wow, nobody??

Is there perhaps another forum on the internet that someone can suggest where there might be people familiar with any of the speakers?

[JohnMichael]

Sorry no one has been of help but not all members log on everyday. You may get some advice. I do not know how well distributed those speakers are but none of the dealers in my area sell them. You might want to do a google search if no one responds and maybe find some reviews. Also British audio magazines might have reviews on Tannoy.

[audio_dude]

well, never heard of "Jamo" but i have heard and listened to a few Tannoys when my dad was looking for new speakers...

IMHO, these are very high quality speakers and they perform very well, I can't remember what models I listened to, but they were around $800-$1200 and they sounded very smooth and detailed, i hope you have more luck finding reviews!

happy hunting, Audio_dude

[PlumDragon]

Well since nobody has a clue about these speaker companies I suppose Ill educate with what Ive discovered, for the archives:

JAMO: Bought out by Klipsch, pronounced "yaw-mo", this speaker company kicks ass. Listened to the old-school X series and the D 7 series. The X had a very clinical sound and I didnt like it. The D 7 had a nice rich sound but didnt impress me as much as I wanted. The D450 (89 dB, 4ohm, 300 w max) is a better speaker with some interested design cues (like the fact that the box is cut out of an enormous sphere, giving them a slightly curved shape) but still a bit less speaker than what Im looking for. I think MSRP on the 450 was $2,000 for the pair.
The 870 (90 dB, 4 ohm) is more of what Ive been looking for but its just downright ugly and has no place in my entertainment center.

TANNOY: Tannoy, oh what a company. Great technology, fabulous aesthetic designs...Talking with some work colleagues, it turns out that this is a very well respected company and a friend has routinely chosed Tannoy monitors over other monitors for his studio that ran twice the price. The thing I like so much about the Eyris DC3 (89 dB, 8 ohm, 375 w max) is that they boast a unique type of tweeter that has a frequency response up to 51 KHz. While audible hearing doesnt go much past 20 K, some studies have suggested people are able to tell the difference in music where sound is not cut off at the 20KHz region. These speakers seem to have a very high ability in the midrange to high frequency regions; the DC system is a nice touch as well.
Bass is cut off a bit earlier than some speakers, which doesnt bother me because Im buying a new sub to match the loudspeakers. Ill be ordering speakers in the near future, and as of right now, this speaker is my favorite...MSRP is $2,700 for the pair.

PSB: I also considered a 4th speaker, the PSB Stratus Gold (90 dB, 4 ohm, 300 w max). PSB seems a unique company, doing all of their research in an anechoic chamber up in a research center in Canada; intriguing. The Stratus Gold is a pretty nice looking speaker and has the biggest bass driver (10" dedicated versus 7" for the Tannoy and 6.5" for the Jamo) which isnt really a bonus for me, again since Im getting a nice sub. It is the biggest speaker by a few inches in all directions. Rated at less wattage than the Tannoy, it was slightly more efficient (90 dB versus 89) but is of course a harder speaker to drive due to its impedance. It also has the most limited upper frequency response, cut right at the top of the sonic level at 21KHz, which is substantially lower than both the Jamo and the Tannoy; this speaker seems much more comfortable in lower regions. MSRP on this speaker is the same as the Tannoy, about $2700 for the pair.

Hopefully this info will help someone else down the line looking at similar products. Ill continue to update this with info, probably as far as postng pics and reviews after the speakers have been installed and used at the house...

[audio_dude]

first, most people can't hear about 18htz, so anything higher than 20 is just bragging rights, and there is nearly nothing that comes close to actually hitting 20htz, other than test tones...

IMO: get the tannoys!!! looked into it a bit, awesome piece of speaker tech there! when i heard it, it was hooked up to some 10k McIntosh amps, the sound was so smooth! detailed and full.

[PlumDragon]

first, most people can't hear about 18htz, so anything higher than 20 is just bragging rights, and there is nearly nothing that comes close to actually hitting 20htz, other than test tones...Like I said above, studies have shown, without a doubt, that while sound above 20K is beyond what people can hear, it *does* afftect how the music is perceived; it makes a difference. Furthermore, I can assure you, beyond a doubt, that there are plenty of things that can surpass 20KHz in vibration; its not a very high frequency in the grand scheme of things.


IMO: get the tannoys!!!Well Im still leaning towards them. Ive actually decided Ill probably get a Tannoy TS12 sub as well as the loudspeakers. I didnt like the subs from PSB or Jamo so much but the Tannoy sub seems to be a very nice item nd it will save me some headache and shipping costs (heh...when youre throwing $3500 at a time, shipping is hardly relevant, eh?)

[audio_dude]

right, but in musical instruments...not many go over 20htz...

and ya, the tannoy sub is a good idea too, happy listening!

[PlumDragon]

I used to think the same thing as well. You might want to give this paper a quick gander:

http://www.cco.caltech.edu/~boyk/spectra/spectra.htm

Hope its not too dense; being an engineer myself Im a bit biased and love papers of this nature...Anyway, theres sound all over the spectrum, from musical instruments, in movies...all kinds of stuff as this paper illustrates a good deal of energy exists above the 50KHz region.

As an interesting sidenote, I checked some stats on my amplifier; turns out my amp can respond to sounds up to 100KHz, measured at the -3dB point, which means that there are even some very small harmonic nuances that even my amp wont completely grab; granted, its practically an infinitesimally small percentage of energy, but illustrates just how much of the spectrum is supersonic.

I certainly will keep you updated on it all; I hope the Tannoy sub works out well. It could be up to about 6 weeks before my speakers arrive but I will definitely review them when they are installed...

Oh man...memories...Before I graduated College I was trying to get a job with Yamaha on amp design but took a Defense job based on the pay. Getting back into audio makes me rethink that decision... =\