Quad 22L's [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

PDA

View Full Version : Quad 22L's



BillyB
12-02-2006, 07:43 PM
I posted a while back after purchasing a pair of Quad 22L's and initially having my doubts about whether or not they were going to live up to their rave reviews.While I had my doubts after setting them up they have broken in and they are nothing short of incredible.They replaced a pair of B&W 703's I was very unhappy with and this process has made me a believer of speakers needing the right amount of burn-in time.I have gone from wondering what all the fuss over the Quads is all about to feeling like these speakers have restored my faith in the rest of my components that were all selected with a great deal of thought.The Quads simply have that certain something that makes you want to listen to them long and hard.I play my music fairly loud and the more I crank these things up the sweeter they sound.I would highly recommend these floorstanders because they have no business sounding this good for $1600 with a cabinet quality that belies their price range.I have a feeling the Kevlar drivers are still breaking in and things can only get better from here.I had a pair of phenomenal Proacs at one point so my standards are quite high.These speakers put my $3000 B&W's to shame.

audio_dude
12-03-2006, 07:50 AM
heyy, nice little review there...

the Quad's get a lot of recommendations here, and i guess, this just chalks up another satisfied customer

jrhymeammo
12-03-2006, 10:45 AM
Good deal.

How is music at low output level?

JRA

The13thGryphon
12-03-2006, 01:31 PM
I couldn't agree more BillyB. My Quads are getting better and better every day (Had them about a month now.) They do take a bit of time to fully break in it would appear. I have a pair of the 21L's -- which I happen to like even better than their bigger brother. Not trying to stir things up, or to bash your choice... I just felt that the 22L's could overwhelm my den -- which is where this particular system is located -- and believed that the single 6-1/2" Kevlar driver would be faster and cleaner in that space. I know I gave up a little low frequency extension, but in my system/room the bass is tight, controlled, tuneful, and highly communicative. I couldn't be happier with my purchase.

BillyB
12-04-2006, 03:30 AM
I posted a while back after purchasing a pair of Quad 22L's and initially having my doubts about whether or not they were going to live up to their rave reviews.While I had my doubts after setting them up they have broken in and they are nothing short of incredible.They replaced a pair of B&W 703's I was very unhappy with and this process has made me a believer of speakers needing the right amount of burn-in time.I have gone from wondering what all the fuss over the Quads is all about to feeling like these speakers have restored my faith in the rest of my components that were all selected with a great deal of thought.The Quads simply have that certain something that makes you want to listen to them long and hard.I play my music fairly loud and the more I crank these things up the sweeter they sound.I would highly recommend these floorstanders because they have no business sounding this good for $1600 with a cabinet quality that belies their price range.I have a feeling the Kevlar drivers are still breaking in and things can only get better from here.I had a pair of phenomenal Proacs at one point so my standards are quite high.These speakers put my $3000 B&W's to shame.

Just wanted to add in respect to the many B&W fans and owners out there.They make a quality product and many speakers in their vast line more than get the job done.The 703"s just happened to be a disaster for me especially at their price point.They were terribly bright to the point of making me question my whole system which as I said was put together with a great deal of thought.The Quads have simply justified the expense of all the other components as they have become the perfect finishing touch.

BillyB
12-04-2006, 03:37 AM
I couldn't agree more BillyB. My Quads are getting better and better every day (Had them about a month now.) They do take a bit of time to fully break in it would appear. I have a pair of the 21L's -- which I happen to like even better than their bigger brother. Not trying to stir things up, or to bash your choice... I just felt that the 22L's could overwhelm my den -- which is where this particular system is located -- and believed that the single 6-1/2" Kevlar driver would be faster and cleaner in that space. I know I gave up a little low frequency extension, but in my system/room the bass is tight, controlled, tuneful, and highly communicative. I couldn't be happier with my purchase.

Glad you're enjoying your Quads as well.I actually saw a lot of reviews that stated the 21L was the best of the L series.My listening room is huge and the 22L's were definitely the right call for me.The bass improvement in just 3 months with the 22L's has been amazing.I heard these speakers take forever to break in and since I don't get that much time to listen to them I finally got smart and just started leaving them on all day while I was at work using different Cd's.That did the trick.Enjoy.

BillyB
12-04-2006, 03:50 AM
Good deal.

How is music at low output level?

JRA

That's a hard question for me to answer accurately.I'm the type of listener who doesn't really listen at low levels like having the stereo on as background music.I usually wait until I have an empty house(not often enough) and then get down to some serious listening usually at fairly high volumes.I find listening to music loud becomes habit forming and at least for me I notice that I no longer really enjoy my music unless I can crank it up.I can only say that I was concerned about whether or not the 22L's would handle high volumes cleanly without distorting.They have handled everything I have thrown at them with flying colors.I don't abuse them but again I simply like to play music loud and feel that any good quality speaker should be able to handle that.I actually think these speakers still have some improvement left in them because as I said the improvement during the burn-in period has been startling.Sorry if I didn't address your question better but I can only say I'm obviously very excited by these 22L's.They are the real deal.

Jimmy C
12-04-2006, 04:59 AM
I posted a while back after purchasing a pair of Quad 22L's and initially having my doubts about whether or not they were going to live up to their rave reviews.While I had my doubts after setting them up they have broken in and they are nothing short of incredible.They replaced a pair of B&W 703's I was very unhappy with and this process has made me a believer of speakers needing the right amount of burn-in time.I have gone from wondering what all the fuss over the Quads is all about to feeling like these speakers have restored my faith in the rest of my components that were all selected with a great deal of thought.The Quads simply have that certain something that makes you want to listen to them long and hard.I play my music fairly loud and the more I crank these things up the sweeter they sound.I would highly recommend these floorstanders because they have no business sounding this good for $1600 with a cabinet quality that belies their price range.I have a feeling the Kevlar drivers are still breaking in and things can only get better from here.I had a pair of phenomenal Proacs at one point so my standards are quite high.These speakers put my $3000 B&W's to shame.

...my M20s took some time before settling down as well. There certainly are a lot of skeptics, but you'll have a hard time convincing me run-in doesn't exist.

I'm glad you are enjoying your stereo now, but something is missing... hhmmm... a turntable! That's it! :^) Seriously, have you ever toyed with the idea? Infinity Records in Massapequa Park is a killer store, we even have Mr. Cheapo's right here in Commack for a quick fix. Used CDs as well.

I have to get down to "The Den" to check out the Quads. I was joking around with an inmate from AA that we always go in, but never buy...lol. Both of us feel stupid.

Have fun...

bobsticks
12-04-2006, 05:40 AM
Hey BillyB,

Good to see you around these parts again. Congrats on finding the solution for you and your room! The store I frequent occassinaly has some Quad product and I'm sure in the right setup they're fantastic...

Cheers

Bernd
12-04-2006, 06:27 AM
Congrats. on your Quads. Speakers need time to break in as you found out. I also very rarely listen to music at low levels.
Anyway wishing you lots of musical fun.

Peace

Bernd:16:

pkats
12-04-2006, 12:08 PM
What kind of music do you listen to most? Through much listening lately I have put the
22L on my short list. The sound was great all around and the speakers were great looking too. Although, I did think they weren't the best for heavier guitar music at louder levels. I also usually listen at louder levels so what is your experience with this - I realize there are good and bad recordings.
Thanks.

BillyB
12-04-2006, 06:37 PM
What kind of music do you listen to most? Through much listening lately I have put the
22L on my short list. The sound was great all around and the speakers were great looking too. Although, I did think they weren't the best for heavier guitar music at louder levels. I also usually listen at louder levels so what is your experience with this - I realize there are good and bad recordings.
Thanks.

I listen to mostly pop and rock CD's with a lot of progressive rock (genesis,ELP,Yes,Rush,etc.) and so far I can only say that while these speakers are very revealing they aren't making these 30 year old mastered CD's excruciating to listen to.I was listening to Heart of the sunrise by Yes the other day and Chris Squires bass lines were so heavy and pronounced and the overall listening experience was so pleasing that I realized if my old stuff can sound this good than I have found a speaker that has the perfect balance between accurate yet not so revealing as to render my CD collection useless.The problem with the B&W 703's was that while they could sound stunning that only applied to about 5% of my Cd collection with the rest sounding brutal.If heavy guitar means heavy metal than yes this speaker might be too refined for you but if heavy guitar means Steve Howe,Frank Zappa,Alex Leifsen,or Steve Hackett than you will find the 22L's a pleasure to listen too.While I know many will disagree with me my opinion is that a truly well designed speaker will shine playing almost anything and they definitely hit the mark with the 22L so buy it and don't look back.Just believe it when you hear that this speaker can take 200 hours of burn-in before hitting it's sweet spot.

jrhymeammo
12-04-2006, 07:01 PM
Hey BillB, I appreciate your reply.

I also like my music loud, that;s why I ditched my B&W. My new pair sounds great at low level too. This is critical for me, since I stay up late studying and I like to have my music playing. I was never a big believer in breaking in speakers. I've always thought 20 hours was sufficient, but I not no more. I probably got 2-300 hours and I think they are finally starting to settle in. I totally agree with you on 700s. I really think they are the worst value in speakers. Just my preference.

Good Luck,
JRA

pkats
12-05-2006, 08:12 AM
BillyB, sounds like we listen to alot of the same stuff. I do like to put on some Metallica and Pantera occasionally and its a drag when I turn it up and it sounds bad. I need speakers that are very versatile and sound great loud. I am trying to narrow things down a bit for home auditions and your input helps.
Thanks

BillyB
12-05-2006, 05:03 PM
...my M20s took some time before settling down as well. There certainly are a lot of skeptics, but you'll have a hard time convincing me run-in doesn't exist.

I'm glad you are enjoying your stereo now, but something is missing... hhmmm... a turntable! That's it! :^) Seriously, have you ever toyed with the idea? Infinity Records in Massapequa Park is a killer store, we even have Mr. Cheapo's right here in Commack for a quick fix. Used CDs as well.

I have to get down to "The Den" to check out the Quads. I was joking around with an inmate from AA that we always go in, but never buy...lol. Both of us feel stupid.

Have fun...Hi Jimmy C.I'm sure you probably remember us going back and forth about my decision to go with the 22L's and my initial disappointment with them.At the time your reply was not to get too caught up with being initially blown away by them.Your advice was sound as now that they have burned in I'm at a point where I'm enjoying my system as much if not more than when I still had my Proacs that were such outstanding speakers.The Quads are very revealing and yes there are times when you put something poorly mastered in and it's tough to listen too,but I can live with that because there are many other Cd's I put on where these Quads simply blow my mind.Unless they've changed their Demos the only Quads Audio Den keeps on hand is the 12L Bookshelf model.I can't tell you how happy I am to have such a great sounding pair of speakers after the 3 year nightmare the 703's were and the $1100 loss I took on the trade-in doesn't even bother me anymore because as I said to my ear the $1600 22L's put the $2800 703's to shame.Take care.

Jimmy C
12-05-2006, 05:44 PM
Hi Jimmy C.I'm sure you probably remember us going back and forth about my decision to go with the 22L's and my initial disappointment with them.At the time your reply was not to get too caught up with being initially blown away by them.Your advice was sound as now that they have burned in I'm at a point where I'm enjoying my system as much if not more than when I still had my Proacs that were such outstanding speakers.The Quads are very revealing and yes there are times when you put something poorly mastered in and it's tough to listen too,but I can live with that because there are many other Cd's I put on where these Quads simply blow my mind.Unless they've changed their Demos the only Quads Audio Den keeps on hand is the 12L Bookshelf model.I can't tell you how happy I am to have such a great sounding pair of speakers after the 3 year nightmare the 703's were and the $1100 loss I took on the trade-in doesn't even bother me anymore because as I said to my ear the $1600 22L's put the $2800 703's to shame.Take care.

...that could NOT distinguish between a good and bad CD. Even my sh***y Insignias can tell the difference! I suppose it boils down to how grating on the ears some discs are - and certain transducers are better at mitigating the negatives... possibly at the expense of resolution, but that's another story :^P

And, wow... I didn't realize the B&Ws were a 3-year "nightmare"...lol... guess you were ready for a change.

<Ahem> You still didn't answer the "turntable" question...

Inquiry minds wanna know...

jrhymeammo
12-05-2006, 09:10 PM
<ahem> You still didn't answer the "turntable" question...



I didnt wanna say it since TTs are being hated so much around here and all.

JRA
</ahem>

BillyB
12-06-2006, 04:48 AM
...that could NOT distinguish between a good and bad CD. Even my sh***y Insignias can tell the difference! I suppose it boils down to how grating on the ears some discs are - and certain transducers are better at mitigating the negatives... possibly at the expense of resolution, but that's another story :^P

And, wow... I didn't realize the B&Ws were a 3-year "nightmare"...lol... guess you were ready for a change.

<Ahem> You still didn't answer the "turntable" question...

Inquiry minds wanna know...

In all honestly while I've always been very passionate about music I'm very much a late bloomer with become an audiophile.Because of that my Vinyl collection wasn't very well taken care of so while I didn't throw them away they aren't in what I would call playable condition.If you invest in a good turntable are there still places to get new or near new quality Vinyl LP's.I like mostly older music so that probably helps in that regard.I know there are many purists who still say that nothing sounds as good as Vinyl on a high quality turntable,but again where do you find the high quality LP's if you don't already own them.I'm open to this idea but at best it would have to wait a while as my wife is still recovering from my speaker debacle.She's no dummy so of course she realized we took a nice hit on the B&W exchange.I don't know how true it is but I hear that the truly great(and expensive)CD players approach the warmth of Vinyl playback.My Arcam73T which I've grown to like quite a bit can be upgraded to an upsampling player but it's not cheap.I still may consider it now that I'm sure I have a speaker that will reward me for the investment.I've heard this upgrade from Arcam takes the 73T to the next level and the beauty of it is my wife doesn't have to see a new component coming through the door.We'll see.Talk to you soon.

Jimmy C
12-06-2006, 04:57 AM
I didnt wanna say it since TTs are being hated so much around here and all.

JRA
</ahem>

I didn't realize that was the case in this neck of the woods!

Jimmy C
12-06-2006, 05:58 AM
In all honestly while I've always been very passionate about music I'm very much a late bloomer with become an audiophile.Because of that my Vinyl collection wasn't very well taken care of so while I didn't throw them away they aren't in what I would call playable condition.If you invest in a good turntable are there still places to get new or near new quality Vinyl LP's.I like mostly older music so that probably helps in that regard.I know there are many purists who still say that nothing sounds as good as Vinyl on a high quality turntable,but again where do you find the high quality LP's if you don't already own them.I'm open to this idea but at best it would have to wait a while as my wife is still recovering from my speaker debacle.She's no dummy so of course she realized we took a nice hit on the B&W exchange.I don't know how true it is but I hear that the truly great(and expensive)CD players approach the warmth of Vinyl playback.My Arcam73T which I've grown to like quite a bit can be upgraded to an upsampling player but it's not cheap.I still may consider it now that I'm sure I have a speaker that will reward me for the investment.I've heard this upgrade from Arcam takes the 73T to the next level and the beauty of it is my wife doesn't have to see a new component coming through the door.We'll see.Talk to you soon.

..."which format is better" debate, both , as you know, can sound great or... err... not so good. For me, it's also about FUN.

We're lucky here on Long Island, many used vinyl stores. You like the oldies? There's a place in E. Islip that does mainly 50's stuff (if that's what you mean). There is Record Stop in Ronkonkoma (messy, but cheap), actually two Mr. Cheapos (Commack, Mineola), and the cream of the crop, like I said earlier, Infinity (www.infinityrecords.net/) - amazing selection, organization, and condition. This store is all one really needs.

It was sort of in jest I mentioned vinyl, but I have a friend with a barely-used Pro-Ject 2.1... he bought a V.P.I. Scout and he has about 25 LPs... aarrrgh.

Lemme know when (if) you're ready... we'll give it a test drive.

bigfanga
12-06-2006, 04:44 PM
Glad to hear you're enjoying your Quads. Mine are still wonderful. The best value in loudspeakers.

BillyB
12-06-2006, 06:57 PM
[QUOTE=Jimmy C]..."which format is better" debate, both , as you know, can sound great or... err... not so good. For me, it's also about FUN.

We're lucky here on Long Island, many used vinyl stores. You like the oldies? There's a place in E. Islip that does mainly 50's stuff (if that's what you mean). There is Record Stop in Ronkonkoma (messy, but cheap), actually two Mr. Cheapos (Commack, Mineola), and the cream of the crop, like I said earlier, Infinity (www.infinityrecords.net/) - amazing selection, organization, and condition. This store is all one really needs.

It was sort of in jest I mentioned vinyl, but I have a friend with a barely-used Pro-Ject 2.1... he bought a V.P.I. Scout and he has about 25 LPs... aarrrgh.

Lemme know when (if) you're ready... we'll give it a test drive.[/QUOTE

When I say oldies I mean older Van Morrison,Genesis,Yes,Tull,ELP,Zappa,and a whole ton of stuff from the early 70's to about the mid eighties.I do like some of the new bands but my heart is definitely tuned into a period of music that was magical and to me nothing will ever compare to classic Yes or Genesis Or Zappa.The brilliance of this era will never be repeated and While I love Dave Mathews and Pearl Jam and Third Eye Blind they'll never replace the bands I call supergroups I grew up listening too.I would imagine you can get them on Vinyl if you put enough effort into it but I have to say the durability and convenience of Cd's is hard to argue with.I'm quite serious about the Arcam upgrade as I've heard from serious Audiophiles that it makes the 73T much more forgiving when playing these older Cd's which is really the stuff I enjoy listening too the most.Thanks for the feedback.

BillyB
12-11-2006, 06:00 PM
[QUOTE=bigfanga]Glad to hear you're enjoying your Quads. Mine are still wonderful. The best value in loudspeakers.[/QUOTE

Thanks.We were conversing back and forth after I initially bought my 22L's new and was initially very disappointed.I'm well aware of speaker burn-in but the difference in these Quads as they finally started to break in has been mind boggling.Initially they were lifeless as if there was a blanket over them.After about 200 hours of run-in I came home one day and finally decided to stop babying them and just lit them up at some serious volume.I was playing Old Yes that I wouldn't even consider a great recording and they came to life in a way that really caught me off guard.I don't want to come off as one of these people who is just being partial to their own equipment.I had no problem admitting there was something truly off with my sound when I had my 703's and I'm extremely critical when it comes to this stuff.These 22L's are simply that good as my system has never sounded better.Continue to enjoy yours.

BillyB
12-13-2006, 05:53 PM
Hey BillyB,

Good to see you around these parts again. Congrats on finding the solution for you and your room! The store I frequent occassinaly has some Quad product and I'm sure in the right setup they're fantastic...

Cheers

Thanks.I was literally in audio limbo as I was trying to determine if I had made the right decision with the Quads.Once they broke in and literally came to life I just wanted to let everyone know my opinion on these 22L's.I don't want to sound like I'm blowing my own horn but rather endorsing a product I think is so good that you simply need to hear them and forget what they cost because my previous speakers cost almost double and aren't even in the same league as these 22L's.
The amazing finish and build quality are just the icing on the cake.

Carl Reid
12-13-2006, 06:25 PM
I posted a while back after purchasing a pair of Quad 22L's and initially having my doubts about whether or not they were going to live up to their rave reviews.While I had my doubts after setting them up they have broken in and they are nothing short of incredible.They replaced a pair of B&W 703's I was very unhappy with and this process has made me a believer of speakers needing the right amount of burn-in time.I have gone from wondering what all the fuss over the Quads is all about to feeling like these speakers have restored my faith in the rest of my components that were all selected with a great deal of thought.The Quads simply have that certain something that makes you want to listen to them long and hard.I play my music fairly loud and the more I crank these things up the sweeter they sound.I would highly recommend these floorstanders because they have no business sounding this good for $1600 with a cabinet quality that belies their price range.I have a feeling the Kevlar drivers are still breaking in and things can only get better from here.I had a pair of phenomenal Proacs at one point so my standards are quite high.These speakers put my $3000 B&W's to shame.

Just out of curiosity, what equipment do you have driving the Quads?

I haven't had a chance to listen to the B&W 700s or Quads yet.... but I have heard a number of people complain about how bright the 700s are....

So I'm always interested to know what electronics were connected to speakers that people found to be extremely bright...

For example.... I have a friend who paired a set of B&W CM1s with a Yamaha Receiver... and though I really liked the sound of the CM1s when I heard them in the store driven by Rotel Seperates.... I find the B&W Yamaha combo to be offensively bright.....

Anyway, congrats on finding the right speakers for your setup...

BillyB
12-14-2006, 04:30 AM
Just out of curiosity, what equipment do you have driving the Quads?

I haven't had a chance to listen to the B&W 700s or Quads yet.... but I have heard a number of people complain about how bright the 700s are....

So I'm always interested to know what electronics were connected to speakers that people found to be extremely bright...

For example.... I have a friend who paired a set of B&W CM1s with a Yamaha Receiver... and though I really liked the sound of the CM1s when I heard them in the store driven by Rotel Seperates.... I find the B&W Yamaha combo to be offensively bright.....

Anyway, congrats on finding the right speakers for your setup...

I have a Rotel 1080 Amp at 120W per channel,Rotel RC-1090 Pre-amp, and Arcam 73T CDP.I have Tara Lab Silver interconnects and the Quads are Biwired using Tara Lab Prism solid core Biwire.I don't doubt the B&W CM's sounded good as I find that series to be a good speaker at their price point and I love Rotel products.Rotel separates are a step up from an integrated Yamaha reciever so that should explain your preference for that sound.I thought I was making this huge upgrade by spending almost $3000 on the 703's and it was a disaster.I should have simply spent more time listening to them especially with CD's that aren't the best in Quality.The 703's are very bright and after 3 years of torture it became painfully clear my system was fine and the 703's had to go.The sad thing is I could have bought the 603's(I think I'm right about the model) for about $1000 and they're a nice sounding speaker that's not overly bright despite using an aluminum dome tweeter.That series uses Vinyl on the cabinets but they're actually good looking speakers.I don't know if you're seriously shopping and what your price range might be but people seem to be as happy with the 21L as I am with the 22L.They're about $1150 and use one less 6.5 driver which in a smaller room can even be an advantage.Take care.

Carl Reid
12-14-2006, 02:26 PM
I'm not ready to change my speakers yet, but I am still checking out different options... So I'll definitely listen to the Quads...

I don't think my problem with the Yamaha was based on the fact that it's inferior to Rotel.... I actually like the sound of Yamaha paired with more neutral speakers... Like when I first heard my Mission Speakers, they were hooked up to a Yamaha and the sound was really good (to be honest I think the sound was better with the Yamaha than when I paired the Missions with a "superior" NAD Integrated Amp)....

Since you had the 703s hooked up to Rotels (I'm a Rotel fan as well)... then I'm pretty sure that they've gotta be bright since I find Rotel to be pretty neutral.... and frankly if a B&W speaker doesn't sound good with the Amp that it is designed to work with, then something is really wrong....(but I'll still listen to the 703s just to quench my curiousity).

As for the 603s, well I didn't get much of a chance to listen to them since the sales guy was so excited about playing the CM1s... but they sounded good for the short time I listened to them and the finish was really nice.... despite being Vinyl, I prefer their look to alot of more expensive wood finish speakers....

BillyB
12-14-2006, 03:25 PM
I'm not ready to change my speakers yet, but I am still checking out different options... So I'll definitely listen to the Quads...

I don't think my problem with the Yamaha was based on the fact that it's inferior to Rotel.... I actually like the sound of Yamaha paired with more neutral speakers... Like when I first heard my Mission Speakers, they were hooked up to a Yamaha and the sound was really good (to be honest I think the sound was better with the Yamaha than when I paired the Missions with a "superior" NAD Integrated Amp)....

Since you had the 703s hooked up to Rotels (I'm a Rotel fan as well)... then I'm pretty sure that they've gotta be bright since I find Rotel to be pretty neutral.... and frankly if a B&W speaker doesn't sound good with the Amp that it is designed to work with, then something is really wrong....(but I'll still listen to the 703s just to quench my curiousity).

As for the 603s, well I didn't get much of a chance to listen to them since the sales guy was so excited about playing the CM1s... but they sounded good for the short time I listened to them and the finish was really nice.... despite being Vinyl, I prefer their look to alot of more expensive wood finish speakers....

You definitely need to see the finish on the Quads in person to truly appreciate it.They use a real wood veneer with 7 coats of laquer of piano gloss finish on them.I don't want to sound like an audio snob but unless your dealing with outrageously high end recievers the sound of a high quality separate Amp and Pre-amp will easily surpass a good quality reciever.Think about the fact that your jamming all that function into one box including a tuner versus dedicated components that are only being designed to perform one function.That's not to say they can't sound good but again the reality of a reciever is that it's about being a good bang for the buck.I don't even have a use for a tuner so a reciever is useless to me.Some guys also try to use their A/V reciever for the whole works and while that makes connection and source issues much less complicated it's not the purist way to approach 2 channel stereo playback.Good luck with your hunting as the research is half the fun.

Carl Reid
12-14-2006, 03:58 PM
You definitely need to see the finish on the Quads in person to truly appreciate it.They use a real wood veneer with 7 coats of laquer of piano gloss finish on them.I don't want to sound like an audio snob but unless your dealing with outrageously high end recievers the sound of a high quality separate Amp and Pre-amp will easily surpass a good quality reciever.Think about the fact that your jamming all that function into one box including a tuner versus dedicated components that are only being designed to perform one function.That's not to say they can't sound good but again the reality of a reciever is that it's about being a good bang for the buck.I don't even have a use for a tuner so a reciever is useless to me.Some guys also try to use their A/V reciever for the whole works and while that makes connection and source issues much less complicated it's not the purist way to approach 2 channel stereo playback.Good luck with your hunting as the research is half the fun.


I agree that Seperates have better sound quality than integrateds and receivers... I've stepped up over the last 7 years from a Panasonic Mini-system to a Technics 5 channel receiver to a NAD Integrated Amp and finally to Rotel Seperates.... So even though it is rather unfair of me to compare the sound of the CM1s on a Yamaha Receiver to Rotel Seperates... I am a believer that certain products go well together... eg.. a bright speaker like a Klipsch will sound better with a Denon Receiver than with a brighter Yamaha Receiver... Bright Speakers + Bright Amp = Ears Bleeding.... So I was initially curious to see if maybe you had the 703s hooked up to something bright. But since that wasn't the case, then I suspect the 703s will not be to my tastes (I don't mind a touch on the bright side, but I have my limits)....

I was going to ask what type of music you listen to, since we have almost the same Rotel Amp & Pre-Amp setup... but I re-read the first page of this thread and saw that you already answered that...

Anyway based on your description of the Quads, they sound like the kind of speakers that should be on my short list for when I eventually replace my Missions...

Since my requirements for a new pair of speakers are: 1) They need to sound good on all/most of my music collection and not just highlight the really well recorded CDs I have 2) I have to be able to play them loud without having my ears bleed & 3) The finish needs to be exceptional (my Missions are very good looking speakers)...

I think I'll check out the Quads this Saturday....

BillyB
12-14-2006, 05:54 PM
I agree that Seperates have better sound quality than integrateds and receivers... I've stepped up over the last 7 years from a Panasonic Mini-system to a Technics 5 channel receiver to a NAD Integrated Amp and finally to Rotel Seperates.... So even though it is rather unfair of me to compare the sound of the CM1s on a Yamaha Receiver to Rotel Seperates... I am a believer that certain products go well together... eg.. a bright speaker like a Klipsch will sound better with a Denon Receiver than with a brighter Yamaha Receiver... Bright Speakers + Bright Amp = Ears Bleeding.... So I was initially curious to see if maybe you had the 703s hooked up to something bright. But since that wasn't the case, then I suspect the 703s will not be to my tastes (I don't mind a touch on the bright side, but I have my limits)....

I was going to ask what type of music you listen to, since we have almost the same Rotel Amp & Pre-Amp setup... but I re-read the first page of this thread and saw that you already answered that...

Anyway based on your description of the Quads, they sound like the kind of speakers that should be on my short list for when I eventually replace my Missions...

Since my requirements for a new pair of speakers are: 1) They need to sound good on all/most of my music collection and not just highlight the really well recorded CDs I have 2) I have to be able to play them loud without having my ears bleed & 3) The finish needs to be exceptional (my Missions are very good looking speakers)...

I think I'll check out the Quads this Saturday....

Definitely post after auditioning the Quads as I'm curious to hear what you think and what type of equipment you heard them on.As you may have noticed in this thread I like to play my music loud and the Quads make me want to crank them up which is a simple way of telling that your liking what your hearing.I ordered the conversion kit for my Arcam 73T today which upgrades it to the Upsampling 192 model which is supposed to be very special.The Quads have inspired me to make this costly change as I think they are refined enough to reward me for such an upgrade.The Upsampling players do seem to take some of the edge off of the old and not so well recorded music that I love so much.Enjoy your listening this weekend.

Carl Reid
12-27-2006, 10:28 PM
Definitely post after auditioning the Quads as I'm curious to hear what you think and what type of equipment you heard them on.As you may have noticed in this thread I like to play my music loud and the Quads make me want to crank them up which is a simple way of telling that your liking what your hearing.I ordered the conversion kit for my Arcam 73T today which upgrades it to the Upsampling 192 model which is supposed to be very special.The Quads have inspired me to make this costly change as I think they are refined enough to reward me for such an upgrade.The Upsampling players do seem to take some of the edge off of the old and not so well recorded music that I love so much.Enjoy your listening this weekend.

Unfortunately, I still haven't had a chance to listen to the Quads yet... as my local Quad Dealer dumped the line untill the new versions arrive sometime in January...

However, I finally got the chance to listen to some B&W 704s this weekend...

I tossed on a few of my reference CDs including some old Jackson 5 and was really impressed... For a while at least...

But my dealer made the huge mistake of leaving me alone to have an extended listening session with them... (he was busy dealing with other customers)... anyway... after half an hour of listening to them, I started feeling some hardcore listening fatigue... and starting turning the volume down and down... which is the opposite of my usual listening style with my Missions.... I normally find myself cranking the music up at home...

Needless to say, The 700 Series are totally off my list....

Hopefully I'll get to hear the Quads soon, though I doubt I'm gonna change my speakers anytime soon....

jrhymeammo
12-27-2006, 11:42 PM
I finally had a chance to listen to those Quads you kids always talk about and a bunch more other models.

They were ALOT smaller than I had in mind. I dont think WAF is a problem, great looking too. But whotta hell cares about that..
they sounded great. I would defintely want a sub to go with it...but very nice sounding speakers. I heard them hooked up with all Accuphase gears so might not be very fair but why not? Right?
I was under the impression from this thread that they like to ROCK!! Well they can, sounded really smooth over all. 89dbs sen. isnt bad at all, but not quite enough for my likings. If Jolida 1000 ever offered triodes/UL switch option, I wouldnt heistate to consider those speakers but others will also be very tempting too.

JRA

BillyB
12-29-2006, 04:09 AM
Unfortunately, I still haven't had a chance to listen to the Quads yet... as my local Quad Dealer dumped the line untill the new versions arrive sometime in January...

However, I finally got the chance to listen to some B&W 704s this weekend...

I tossed on a few of my reference CDs including some old Jackson 5 and was really impressed... For a while at least...

But my dealer made the huge mistake of leaving me alone to have an extended listening session with them... (he was busy dealing with other customers)... anyway... after half an hour of listening to them, I started feeling some hardcore listening fatigue... and starting turning the volume down and down... which is the opposite of my usual listening style with my Missions.... I normally find myself cranking the music up at home...

Needless to say, The 700 Series are totally off my list....

Hopefully I'll get to hear the Quads soon, though I doubt I'm gonna change my speakers anytime soon....

Very interesting regarding the Quads.I stumbled onto the 22L2 doing a google but it seemed to be only on european websites and Quad didn't even list it on their site.It's obviously unavailable in the US right now.I did see the picture of it and the specs and they seemed almost identical to the existing model I have.The only difference I could find was a slightly higher frequency range meaning they may have tweaked the tweeter a little bit.I'll be curious to see the US prices as the European sites seemed to be showing a much higher price for the new model as some of them were offering both old and new versions.The beauty of this speaker is it's quality versus cost so maybe I got lucky buying when I did.They'll be hard pressed to improve this speaker significantly while keeping it in the same price range.Glad to hear you spent that extra time listening to the 700 series as I truly believe it's the type of speaker that initially sounds great and then creates listener fatigue(especially cranked up with rock or pop) which is basically what you confirmed.Enjoy your hunt and if you find out anything new about the newer Quads please post.

BillyB
12-30-2006, 04:34 AM
I finally had a chance to listen to those Quads you kids always talk about and a bunch more other models.

They were ALOT smaller than I had in mind. I dont think WAF is a problem, great looking too. But whotta hell cares about that..
they sounded great. I would defintely want a sub to go with it...but very nice sounding speakers. I heard them hooked up with all Accuphase gears so might not be very fair but why not? Right?
I was under the impression from this thread that they like to ROCK!! Well they can, sounded really smooth over all. 89dbs sen. isnt bad at all, but not quite enough for my likings. If Jolida 1000 ever offered triodes/UL switch option, I wouldnt heistate to consider those speakers but others will also be very tempting too.

JRA

Just curious which Quads you were listening too.They make two bookshelf models 11L and 12L and two Floorstanders 21L and 22L.You mentioned how small they were and while the floorstanders are not large speakers they're definitely not overly small either.The 22L's which I own would only require a subwoofer if you're into very heavy bass or are integrating them into home theatre and want floor rumbling bass.I play mine using 120W per channel Rotel amp and I don't find myself needing to turn the Amp up any higher than with other high quality speakers I've had in this system so sensitivity shouldn't be a huge issue with these speakers.I play them extremely loud and while I'm not saying that's how they need to be played I find distortion levels to be extremely low even at close to ear splitting volumes.(yes I occasionally get carried away when the house is empty)Thanks for your input on the Quads.

Dusty Chalk
01-01-2007, 06:51 PM
Actually, it looks like they've updated the Quad site, and they're showing both lines (http://www.quad-hifi.co.uk/ranges.php?sector_id=2). So either they're not doing away with the L series, or it's more of a "phasing it out". I hope the former -- I'm not going to be able to buy a pair for quite a while.

EDIT: PS They're also showing the active line, so it looks like that's still available, too.

jrhymeammo
01-01-2007, 09:04 PM
Just curious which Quads you were listening too.They make two bookshelf models 11L and 12L and two Floorstanders 21L and 22L.You mentioned how small they were and while the floorstanders are not large speakers they're definitely not overly small either.The 22L's which I own would only require a subwoofer if you're into very heavy bass or are integrating them into home theatre and want floor rumbling bass.I play mine using 120W per channel Rotel amp and I don't find myself needing to turn the Amp up any higher than with other high quality speakers I've had in this system so sensitivity shouldn't be a huge issue with these speakers.I play them extremely loud and while I'm not saying that's how they need to be played I find distortion levels to be extremely low even at close to ear splitting volumes.(yes I occasionally get carried away when the house is empty)Thanks for your input on the Quads.

I saw 22 and 21, and thought they were very small(Im not saying thats good or bad). Just thought they would be a bit bigger. Bookshelf speakers were exceptional small too. Dont remember if I stated this already, but low level resolution was very nice.

BillyB
01-09-2007, 03:56 AM
Finally had time to visit Quads website and yes they do have the new L2 series listed.I already have the 22L but of course I have to torture myself and see what I'm missing out on.This series apparantly is more than just a subtle change to the line as I originally had heard.The tweeter was completely redesigned with a more powerful neodynium magnet and redesigned dispersion plate.The terminals on the back were improved and they seemed to imply they may have tweaked the crossover which I guess makes sense as the tweeter goes to 27K from 24K at it's upper limit.The bottom driver on the 22L which has dual 6.5" woofers has a completely different looking dust cap(or center) and the base of the cabinet looks completely different.Of course none of this guarantees better sound because as I said in a previous post I thought Quad would be hard pressed to significantly improve the L series and keep it so reasonable.Still can't find the prices for this series on any US websites.The L series is still listed but I would imagine that will end when their dealers sell out the existing stock.If they're significantly improved and still under 2K than this is still one of the killer bangs for the buck for a floorstander.

Kirch
01-12-2007, 06:33 AM
Hi Guys - if it's not too late on this topic, hope you don't mind my two cents worth -

First off, (and no, I don't get a commission) you can get the Quad 22L's for $1190 plus shipping in any finish from Walter at Underwood HiFi (http://www.underwoodhifi.com). I've had mine for about 2 months now (replacing my Paradigm Studio Reference 20's). I think they're still breaking in. Guess I need to listen more often, but I have these in the living room with my solid state system, and the "family" doesn't allow for a ton of loud music listening, I'm sure you understand.

My opinion of these speakers is they really shine with good amounts of power. They're not the most sensitive speakers I've owned, but they kick butt with my Musical Fidelity A5, which is 250 wpc. They sound excellent at low levels, by the way, and terrific at higher levels. In fact, I've not had them higher than say, 10 O'clock or so. After that it's too ear-splitting for me, and I really, really like loud music. I listen to Jazz (bop and hard bop), Indie Rock, White Stripes, Pixies, etc, and 70's "art rock", Genesis, Yes, Rush, etc. All these genre's excel with the Quad 22L's. I've tried various speaker cables as well, and as the old adage says, less is more. Tried the garden hose variety at 1200 bucks a pair (PSAudio) and the $90 delivered Anti-Cables and the Mapleshade Golden Helix. The skinny inexpensive ones won out easy, easy, easy! And at $1100 less!

I bought the L22's them without listening to them since we have no Quad dealer that I could find here - just based on online reviews from respected outlets - Stereophile, AVGuide among others. While they do show poor recording technique and quality, especially from 60's and 70's rock music, they still make even these sound better than on say, a lesser speaker. I'm really happy with mine!

BillyB
01-12-2007, 07:29 PM
Hi Guys - if it's not too late on this topic, hope you don't mind my two cents worth -

First off, (and no, I don't get a commission) you can get the Quad 22L's for $1190 plus shipping in any finish from Walter at Underwood HiFi (http://www.underwoodhifi.com). I've had mine for about 2 months now (replacing my Paradigm Studio Reference 20's). I think they're still breaking in. Guess I need to listen more often, but I have these in the living room with my solid state system, and the "family" doesn't allow for a ton of loud music listening, I'm sure you understand.

My opinion of these speakers is they really shine with good amounts of power. They're not the most sensitive speakers I've owned, but they kick butt with my Musical Fidelity A5, which is 250 wpc. They sound excellent at low levels, by the way, and terrific at higher levels. In fact, I've not had them higher than say, 10 O'clock or so. After that it's too ear-splitting for me, and I really, really like loud music. I listen to Jazz (bop and hard bop), Indie Rock, White Stripes, Pixies, etc, and 70's "art rock", Genesis, Yes, Rush, etc. All these genre's excel with the Quad 22L's. I've tried various speaker cables as well, and as the old adage says, less is more. Tried the garden hose variety at 1200 bucks a pair (PSAudio) and the $90 delivered Anti-Cables and the Mapleshade Golden Helix. The skinny inexpensive ones won out easy, easy, easy! And at $1100 less!

I bought the L22's them without listening to them since we have no Quad dealer that I could find here - just based on online reviews from respected outlets - Stereophile, AVGuide among others. While they do show poor recording technique and quality, especially from 60's and 70's rock music, they still make even these sound better than on say, a lesser speaker. I'm really happy with mine!

Pretty wild.I listen to the same music and I also like my music real loud but rarely can enjoy that due to the wife and kids.I also bought my Quad 22L's without hearing them as no local dealer had any demo's.I basically went on reviews and a hunch and I couldn't be happier.Trust me when I tell you that your speakers aren't burned in and will sound significantly better as they break in.My speakers don't even sound like the speakers I took out of the box and fired up.It took 200 hours of playing time for them to sweeten up.If you can leave them on at a moderate level when no-one is home that will really shorten up the break-in wait.I did the math and figured out It was going to take me a year plus to burn these things in at my listening rate so that's what I finally did and it worked like a charm.If you're going out for the day pop in a CD and leave it on repeat and don't be afraid to apply a little volume.My theory is a stereo can't be offensive in an empty house.I'm biased of course but these are very special speakers and you are going to be blown away by how much better they get from use. Kevlar woofers are notorious for taking forever to break in and these are no exception.I paid $1600 for them and they smoke the $2800 speakers they replaced .Enjoy

jrhymeammo
01-12-2007, 08:11 PM
Nice to have you here at AR.com there Kirch. Welcome.

Since I don't want to get off the subject as usual, I sent you a PM.

Ryukyu
01-13-2007, 08:57 AM
You guys are more brave than I am. I'm in a similar situation where there is no dealer close by for me to have a listen.
But I've read reviews for other speakers, listened to them myself, and found that I didn't really like the ones that have been raved about. So that's made me very hesitant to buy without auditioning.
I've heard so many good things about the 21Ls that I would love to listen to a set. Can you guys compare them to any other brands??

BillyB
01-13-2007, 10:11 AM
You guys are more brave than I am. I'm in a similar situation where there is no dealer close by for me to have a listen.
But I've read reviews for other speakers, listened to them myself, and found that I didn't really like the ones that have been raved about. So that's made me very hesitant to buy without auditioning.
I've heard so many good things about the 21Ls that I would love to listen to a set. Can you guys compare them to any other brands??

While I have the 22L's and not the 21L's I can only say that when I researched the 22L's some reviewers(professional)thought the 21L was the best of the series.I consider the Quads on the neutral side,not as bright as B&W's,Paradigm,amongst others.They are a refined sound that works well with most music but may not be the best choice for Heavy metal or very hard rock.They are not revealing to the point where you feel like throwing out your CD collection which is how I came to own them as my 703's did have that problem.I would never tell someone what to buy as this hobby is so subjective but I think you can safely assume you are considering a very worthy performer in the 21L.Read this whole thread as it mentions Quads new L2 series which will probably completely replace the L series at some point.Makes this an excellent time to snag the 21L's no doubt as you can probably get them on line for an incredibly reasonable price from dealers looking to make room for the newer series.

Ryukyu
01-13-2007, 12:20 PM
I re-read the thread as you suggested. It sounds like these may be a good choice for me.
I was just about sold on buying some Focals, but I went back and forth between the Chorus 716V and the 816V. I did some extensive listening last weekend and when I played some of my older rock, I felt that fatigue did start to set in. In particular, I was listening to the Zeppelin Houses of the Holy album and although the remastering is probably a little hot, I felt that the Focals were a bit on the bright side. The 816Vs were not bad, and I think I could be happy with these, but they cost more than I would like to spend right now. Previously when I had listened to them, it was mostly some more modern jazz and R&B, and they sounded wonderful on that stuff. But since I listen to a lot of Zep, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd and other bands of that nature, I have been hesitant to go forward with those. I also listen to a great deal of jazz and R&B, but like others in this thread have stated, I want most, if not all of my collection to sound decent. I also have a pretty good vinyl collection, and listen to that stuff as well.
One other concern is the Quad's sensitivity. I am using a Yamaha CR-840 for my 2 channel music fix, and it works grreat, sounds warm and I don't want to have to replace it anytime soon. Although I will probably go with separates sometime within the next year.
I guess what I'm looking for is something warm, yet detailed.
I also have listened to Totem Arros, B&W 603S3, Rega R3, KEF IQ7 and IQ9, Boston Acoustics VR1, 2, 3, Paradigm Studio 20, 40, 60, and the previously mentioned Focals, and have found all of them lacking in some respect.
And you are correct in saying that you can get a great deal on a pair of 21Ls right now. I've seen some for under $900 for a pair.

BillyB
01-13-2007, 01:15 PM
I re-read the thread as you suggested. It sounds like these may be a good choice for me.
I was just about sold on buying some Focals, but I went back and forth between the Chorus 716V and the 816V. I did some extensive listening last weekend and when I played some of my older rock, I felt that fatigue did start to set in. In particular, I was listening to the Zeppelin Houses of the Holy album and although the remastering is probably a little hot, I felt that the Focals were a bit on the bright side. The 816Vs were not bad, and I think I could be happy with these, but they cost more than I would like to spend right now. Previously when I had listened to them, it was mostly some more modern jazz and R&B, and they sounded wonderful on that stuff. But since I listen to a lot of Zep, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd and other bands of that nature, I have been hesitant to go forward with those. I also listen to a great deal of jazz and R&B, but like others in this thread have stated, I want most, if not all of my collection to sound decent. I also have a pretty good vinyl collection, and listen to that stuff as well.
One other concern is the Quad's sensitivity. I am using a Yamaha CR-840 for my 2 channel music fix, and it works grreat, sounds warm and I don't want to have to replace it anytime soon. Although I will probably go with separates sometime within the next year.
I guess what I'm looking for is something warm, yet detailed.
I also have listened to Totem Arros, B&W 603S3, Rega R3, KEF IQ7 and IQ9, Boston Acoustics VR1, 2, 3, Paradigm Studio 20, 40, 60, and the previously mentioned Focals, and have found all of them lacking in some respect.
And you are correct in saying that you can get a great deal on a pair of 21Ls right now. I've seen some for under $900 for a pair.

That should be about the right price as I heard the 22L's which are the flagship can be had for about $1200 on line.The 21L's do need some power as they aren't overly sensitive but you're always better off growing into a better system as you say you are thinking of separates and the Quads would reward you for that investment.I listen to Pop and Rock exclusively and as I said previously the Quads are revealing without being harsh on even reasonably recorded and mastered CD's.While these speakers may or may not be the perfect speaker for you I think you would be hard pressed to find anything better for under $1500 that would make you think you had made a mistake.If you do buy them don't judge them until they are sufficiently run in or you will be disappointed at first.Good luck with your decision.

Ryukyu
01-13-2007, 02:02 PM
Anybody if the Yammie will be OK with the 21Ls for now? It's rated at 65watts rms continuous for 8 ohm loads.

BillyB
01-22-2007, 03:58 AM
Anybody if the Yammie will be OK with the 21Ls for now? It's rated at 65watts rms continuous for 8 ohm loads.

I'm not really a reciever guy but Yamaha certainly makes decent stuff so I would be surprised if it didn't have the power to make this work for you.Of course it's all relative and you will commonly hear the Quads are very equipment sensitive.This is par for the course with speakers that have a refined sound and that is how I would describe them.Good luck and keep looking on line.I could be wrong but I'd have to think that as the new L2 series becomes more mainstream the prices for the L series may continue to drop.Of course if you're too patient they may become too hard to find.

ptt660
01-31-2007, 05:49 PM
hi guys. i thought i would chime in here since i have had the small 11L's for about 2 months now. bought them new from tsto.com in the beautiful yew finish for $550. they still have the 11L's and 12L's in yew if anyone is interested.

my experience with these has been super. my music preference is similar to members here. a lot of classic rock (zepp, floyd, even sabbath!) plenty of blues, with some hard bop jazz thrown in. these quads handle them all with aplomb. bad recordings are listenable which is crucial with a lot of the 70's recordings i have. i am sure they are still breaking in and will only get better. i live in an apartment building and can not get away with deep bass so hence the 11L's instead of the floorstanders others have here. still, surprising bass from such a small speaker.

ryukyu, i use a yamaha ca-610II integrated amp from the late 70's with these quads and they sound great! therefore, i think you would be fine for now with the cr-840 which i believe is from the same era as mine, circa 1980 and with similar power. i will say however i am looking to upgrade because i am getting lazy in my old age and want remote control capability. i will get some kind of integrated amp that i can also use within my HT set-up as well.

billy b, i am not surprised you ditched the b&w's. i have listened to that brand a few years ago (another model) and thought they were neutral and very revealing, similar to my then current a/d/s L510 speakers. also, i have demoed rotel electronics and thought they made my ads speakers sound too bright. i actually settled on an onkyo tx-2500 receiver from the same late 70's era the ads speakers were produced, and the sound of these together was great! the warmer sound of this receiver balanced out the revealing tendencies of the a/d/s speakers and made for a great match! i suspect this is what you needed to do, albeit at a much higher price point, to get the most out of those b&w's.

well, in summary, count me in as another quad fan-boy!

regards,
Paul

Dusty Chalk
01-31-2007, 06:58 PM
Nice! Thanks for the extensive description, too.

Yew, huh? That's a gorgeous finish, but I thought it was OOP?!?!? I wish my actives came in Yew...

ptt660
02-01-2007, 03:25 PM
yeah, my guess is quad passed along a good deal to tsto to clear out the remaining stock of 11L and 12L's they had left in yew.