MODERN-VINTAGE OXYMORON! Mofi Sourcepoint 8 Speaker Review 

I continue to marvel at your excellent reviews….no hyperbole…..and just enough technical to establish your justified outcomes. Super

Thanks for your very well-balanced review with such a fine blend of the objective and the subjective. Your honest opinions, in all of your reviews to date, are refreshingly entertaining. Free of hype, but full of technical information and lots of other interesting information which really benefit your viewer's possible future hi-fi component purchases. Very best regards from Japan, Tarun - hope you & your family are well.

In your new pajamas, this episode is even more exciting. 👍😂

After 44 years I am still wowed by Meridian M1 active floor standing speakers. They just do everything so well even with the electronics getting old.

My favourite reviewer. While some reviewers seem to gush at every product I always feel I get an honest and concise review from someone with a wealth of knowledge who manages to get the point across without all the jibberish. Thanks again Tarun.

Mo-Fi went to Harry Olson school of 1950 (Olson was a big kahuna at RCA Labs). The driver is a take on the RCA LC-1 studio monitor driver and the baffle design can be found in a paper he wrote in 1950 showing the effects of various shapes. Olson's book "Acoustic Engineering" is necessary reading for the informed audiophile and is readily available online. Olson knew damned near everything.

Thanks for super smooth review. I was waiting for this one for quiet some time.

Excellent review. I love how you go into so much detail with the drivers. I'm always learning something new.

Good to see you again Tarun and great review as always Kind regards and best wishes

Another comprehensive and honest review with measured and informed perspectives. Thank you as always for your time and efforts and for sharing this with us all. Not getting notifications of your content, so excuse my absence from your channel. Stay well, Sir.

Very honest, and reveling review. Thanks Tarun

Extremely detailed evaluation of positioning benefits & drawbacks. Impressive review of a speaker seen in half a dozen other vids.

This chanel remains the very best in video based audio reviews.

I always really enjoy your reviews. You explain things in such a clear manner so you can understand the nuances you're talking about with out actually listening to the speakers or the equipment. I also enjoy that you cover many different price ranges of equipment, understanding that not everybody has tens of thousands of dollars to go out and spend on equipment. You mentioned vintage equipment on this last review and I am currently using quad ESL 57s and some Heath kit el84 vacuum tube amps. I really enjoy this setup. The first time I heard those quads back in the '70s was like lightning striking, I just thought they were otherworldly. They're the reason I got involved in audio. There are a lot of things. I wish they would do better but what they do is still pretty spectacular in my mind and I enjoy them greatly. Keep up the good work. Thanks for all you do.

As always, well articulated. It’s like I now know exactly what they sound like. Good job once again.

I just wanted to say before anyone else-how lovely fair balanced, compassionate, kind , environmental minded, brilliant, life saving ,mono tone , non judgmental, non emotional, non hyperbole, what a great curry you make , donating your kidney to the homeless shelter, and how you clean up the small plastic shavings when splitting speakers cables from the floor , in such a fair and balanced way.. Really thank you so much Buddy ! Cheers Allan

Great review as always Tarun! FYI - for those who are interested here in the States upon checking these speakers are currently selling on sale for as low as ~$2000 USD from certain online suppliers like Music Direct in Chicago.

Great review as always! Keep up the proac comparison I appreciate how you keep going to a reference point as your standard this is unique to your channel!

Excellent review that I can relate to. I've listened to and agreed to your reviews , I will enjoy the opportunity to listen to the Source point 8 after this review. Thank You.

Many thanks for your balanced, in-depth views, Tarun - I have a pair of 70s JBL L65, whose versatility with modern and vintage amps/receivers and great depth of sound at low volumes makes them a veritable keeper. Appreciation for your work coming out to you from Barcelona.

I've only heard the 10, and really looking forward to spending time with these. As always, Tarun, you do your homework and put together incredibly useful content. I know this should be about the speakers but I can't say enough about how well you put these together.

Wow! You nailed it again! So thoroughly knowledgeable! Thanks!

Great job. You do a great mix of technical and objective. Our ears don’t normally agree but I feel confident in your reviews that I know more about the sound. Great work. And definitely more interested in these. Especially in the used market. 💵💵

Awesome reviewing. Great cadence and articulation. My audiophile journey started in the 1960's continuing on...

Great review, when I was in my 20’s I wanted to hear the speaker, then in my 40’s I just was happy to hear the music. Moved away from analytical speakers and electronics. Add some tubes, a Vandersteen and some open baffles . 😊

Just to repet myself once again...Content of your reviews, and the highest level of it, is second to none!

Thank you for your take here. Well done.

I’ve been thinking about my music listening habits & preferences of late and I decided to change my setup to work with the way I listen to music (on Spin Bike, Sofa, at Desk or lying on the carpeted floor). Not positioning myself perfectly to listen to my equipment. After researching I decided a minimum 8” paper concentric driver seemed to have everything I was looking for in a speaker design. Great sounding off axis, at low volumes and natural sounding. My plan was to audition the new Tannoy 10” SGMs and the Fynn 701s. Then I heard about the SP8s. EISA Stand Mount Speaker of The Year 2024. So I read/watched review after positive review. Heck, even the guys over at ASR liked the SP8’s. So I took a chance and bought the SP8’s online on sale without auditioning. Result? Probably the best audio purchase I’ve ever made. Incredibly good sounding loudspeakers. Exactly what I was looking for. Does this make me more of a music lover and not so much an audiophile? (-;

Another great review Tarun.

This is a very good review. I heard the point source 10s in a very large room at the Sydney hifi show with Advance Parris electronics and the Mofi turntable and phono stage. Nice. The speakers are far better with vinyl and quality digital. According to the meter displays on the amp we were averaging around 10wpc and in room thr speakers were playing very loud. I run 15 inch Altec Urei monitors and I kind of saw these as a baby version of them without the bite of the compression driver with some music. Andrew Jones is a fine engineer as he has proven over decades. To bring this quality to this pricepoint is great for many. I would carefully dial in a subwoofer or two of high quality for my taste if I was rocking these.

Terrific video as always Tarun, and yes I paid attention in Physics! I own the KLH Model 3 which is identical in size to the SP8’s and also sports an 8-inch paper driver (and one-inch aluminum tweeter). To answer your question of the day, I absolutely love the vintage vibe of the Model 3’s and the way they present male vocals (especially deep voices) is worth their asking price. I highly recommend to your viewers an audition of the Model 3’s. Thanks again Tarun!

Very nice review!

Another well detailed review

I have the 8s. You described their sound signature quite well. I like them quite a bit. To comment on your question, vintage speakers are fantastic. I currently have 2 sets of ADS L series stand mounts which are even larger than the 8s. The ADS have a beautiful lush and full sound that will also bring detail. They have dual 7” or 8” bass drivers and a “sticky” dome midrange and tweeter. There is a bit of mystique about this brand. They were fairly well known in the 70s-80s. Unfortunately, they vanished in the early 90s.

Another balanced, insightful review. Thank you. RE: Your question. I have little attachment to the hi-fi sounds and sights of the past and the current "retro" designs--with the exception of my dad's system. His Electro-Voice loudspeakers, H.H. Scott amp, and Garrard turntable (c. 1960) set a standard that my blue collar systems never met. On the other hand, I believe that a contemporary system priced under $2500 could outperform 90% of vintage equipped systems.

The most pleasant speaking voice in the MilkyWay . i listen to the reviews , understand very little but find it very enjoyable .

Interesting review. I don't question Tarun's impressions of the SP8s...not in the least (trust in his ears and knowledge across the industry was established long ago 😊). But, my impressions were different on the bass response when listening to the SourcePoint 10s...I fully acknowledge different speaker with a larger woofer. But, I was lucky enough to have Andrew Jones himself demo the SourcePoint 10s at Upscale Audio. He had two Rel T/9x subs in the very front of the room and played some very dynamic, bass heavy pieces. At times, it was like being punched in the stomach as the bass waves progressed throughout the room. Amazing...yes. But then Andrew pulled a rabbit out of his hat by revealing, in fact, that the Rels were not even connected to the system! Gasps had ensued, jaws dropped, and it was at that very moment when I realized I had experienced a truly remarkable speaker by a truly gifted designer. To this day, it is the only other speaker I would consider buying that doesn't wear the Klipsch logo.

Thank you, Tarun. Your reviews are always entertaining and informative. Vintage vs. modern speakers is an interesting topic. And of course, which vintage and which modern. And where we are on our journey. As a young man it was all about bass. Like 12 or 15-inch woofers. The only downside I see in modern speakers in general is low sensitivity. I get that watts are cheap, but class A amps, or a SET can sound so wonderful.

another wonderfully methodical review by Tarun. A review of the Magnepan lrs+ would be of great interest. with and without a sub.

Thank you kindly Tarun,, 👍‍‍🌟😎🌟👍‍‍

Well done , thank you !!!

Thanks for another excellent review. I was waiting for this one. They sound like something I could get along with but with two pair now, Zu and Proac, I am practicing some seldom seen self control. Just sold the Special 40s and the Totem Signature Ones. Four pair of speakers seemed a tad indecent. One cant have it all. I have seen the 8s on sale for $1995. which seemed like a very tempting proposition. "Down boy!"

Hi Tarun, OMG, a great, great video. I was not a fan of the Elacs either. I had two of their speakers (mind you, of lower series). Andrew Jones, however, is a genius. This being said: I have fallen in love with the Wharfedale Lintons. For the music I love to listen to, combined with the brutal power of my Adcom mono-blocs that control the bass with the death grip of an ironfist, work amazing for me.

Favourite vintage speakers, Tannoy FSM, JBL 4344mk2 and Tandberg studio monitor. I currently own Raidho D2.1 but i'm considering going back to Tannoy.

Greetings from sunny Manchester Tarun. Thanks for another excellent review. People have commented on this before but your arm gestures really accentuate the points you make (e.g. driver excursion this time). You mentioned the Willsenton R8. Mine arrived last week and even with standard valves, music is so much more than using my Quad 34/405-2 amps. Thanks for the recommendation. Retro style vintage speakers. The Wharfedale Lintons were disappointing. A bit woolly sounding and the veneer was poorly executed. 👊🏻🎶🎵

The stereophile measurements always have that lump in the bass unless speaker rolls off there. Klippel measurement shows no bass hump. There is a small dip/rise between 300Hz and 1kHz And typical for a box speaker the sound is omnidirectional below around 250Hz

Hi taran , very interesting and informative video, thus very interesting design from Andrew Jones,I am currently looking at elac ubr62 is well designed speakers, with your recommended stamp on these speakers , I fully concur there is whole range of decent quality speakers on the market and choosing the right one for your listening room dynamics it’s not to easy it may seem , great video . Regards mark

My IMF RSPM IV professional monitors still amaze me for their sound and build quality the transmission line design and sound is addictive

Hey Tarun, well done for putting your preconceptions aside as always 🤣. Another great review. What do I think about vintage speakers? Well I have fond memories of a few very specific designs including the Linn Kan Mk1 for small rooms and Audiomaster MLS-4 for large ones. Both really exciting but coloured speakers. Would I own them now, er, no! I think it’s really easy to get nostalgic about a sound that was fantastic back in the day but I believe driver technology has progressed hugely over the last 4 decades. I’ll keep my new speakers thanks. Having said that, it seems the Andrew has chosen to reinvent the vintage Wharfedale sound! Complete with vague bass and lack of treble definition 🤣

Would love to hear your take on the Revival Audio Atalante 3 monitors. Keep up the great work.

Your review is excellent. It seems to jibe with other highly regarded reviews .

Another excellent review! But enough for me to turn a Nelson’s eye and take a Pass. The Quads are more what I’d be looking for if room size compels me to change the little DALIs. But for now, I’m happy, and that’s thanks to you.

Well after all these yrs having bought modern speakers as such, I decided to dwell into DIY, now having built the Troels Gravesen " Revelator 851 " A keeper ! Now getting long in the tooth, decided to tackle a classic vintage speaker, JBL or Yamaha. I have now bought a Yamaha NS1000M with their BE tweeter and midrange drivers. Well there's a reason they were manufactured for over twenty yrs, they are that good and well built, weighing in at 31 kgs. Partnered with the right amp they are very good, a touch bright in some recordings and with a sealed unit doesn't go down as low as some people might like, but bass is there. Now Troels Gravesen has redesigned the crossover for these speakers to bring their performance to todays standard's...saving up my penny's :-)

I think there is still a lot to be said for vintage equipment of all kinds. I was listening to a pair of Cornwalls from 1973 this afternoon at a sale. I was drawn into the music immediately and could have easily listened to them all day. That's not an "outdated" experience in any sense. In fact, even though they were too large for my living room, I had to talk myself out of getting them. Luckily someone bought them as i was teetering on the edge. ;) Of course, i really didn't need them. My vintage speakers still get plenty of playing time, including the NLAs and the Laureates, though i imagine audiophiles probably turned their noses up at them when they were popular. Did Advents ever make it to the UK?

I buy my gear from Premium Sounds. Great shop. 👍

Well done!

Have a fireplace 🔥 Winter time its cozy!

Another fine review Tarun. My problem is that I like everything. ( Or, don't really know what you

Hi Tarun, great review, I get the feeling that Andrew Jones can finally do what he wanted to do at Elac but was not allowed. I much prefer the vintage speaker sound over modern ones. Easy to drive; mid high sensitivity; larger paper cones; wider baffles, what it there not to like? Well, at least from my point of view :) That is not to say we can not learn and make progress, but we do not have to dismiss what was good about vintage speakers either.

Tarun your analysis of speaker engineering tradeoffs is excellent and fascinating! It would be great to hear you one day review some of the best models of a company who has built a reputation for expertise in engineering tradeoffs over several decades - Dynaudio. (Their Evoke 10 and Contour 20i are perhaps the pick of their current standmount range). Although the Contour 20 BE has just been released and on paper could well be the best standmount in the market).

Looking at a pair of vintage speakers atm; Pioneer sp-bs22-lr. The model with those striking driver surrounds.

Great video. If today you want to have a speaker as close as possible to your 1sc's which one would it be?

Count on our support to grow your channel. Also, hoping you will review the MF’s bigger brother SP 10 next and some less known like the Zengali’s, Audionote, etc. Thank-you. Cheers from New York!

Interesting review, thanks. I have a pair of Tannoy SGM 10 coming on demo, just wondering how they would compare with these as there half the price ?

per your impression.. it appears mofi.8 is the natural upgrade path from the vfm linton 85th great review!👍

Hi Tarun, great review. Has anyone analyzed Andrew Jones' driver design in comparison with the close competition, Tannoy or Fyne Audio?

Very stylish in black. Excellent review. As to vintage speakers: size of box maybe gives that plummy warmer presentation? I’m afraid I love the richness more than a neutral sound when some details are maintained. V personal thing but I grew up with it.

Good review, thanks. I hope you get to review Wharfedale’s new Super Denton. Interested in your impressions and thoughts on their sound quality. 🎶😎👍🏼

Great video thank you. Oh, please don't pension off the Proacs I really like the way you use them for comparisons they are a true vintage speaker.

For a new speaker purchase I recently considered two vintage speakers ( nostalgia driven - wanted but could not afford in my early 20s), new speakers with a combination of vintage style (some 1970s / 1980s “rock out” sound) but modern crossover and materials. In the end I passed on the “vintage vibe” due to realistic room dimensions and now older guy common playback levels. Ted Nugent at 90-95db is unlikely. I went with stand mount monitors from Tyler Acoustics - TM 1.

Tarun, thanks for another excellent review. Which speaker of the ones mentioned would you actually place as a bookshelf in a cabinet? I am spending more time listening in my non dedicated room and have used Amphions, Buchardt, and Gershman Acoustics with a Hegel H590 and 300 b tube amp. I was curious about the Quads you reviewed, but now the Mofi as a true bookshelf?

Waiting for your review of a new PMC active twenty5 series speakers🔥

I recently just acquired one of the vintage makeovers you referenced. The Mission 770's. I upgraded from a pair of Klipsch floorstanders. The 770's are much more polite with significantly better texture & timbre, IMO. I am very curious for you to hear them and lend your opinion. I positively love them.

Thanks for your videos. Which would you choose between Sourcepoint 8 and Proac D20R?

You can check the measurement done by Erin with Klippel NFS

I run my Tannoy 637's also with dual concentric drivers at basically the same positiong as you do these. It seems to be the way to go with dual concentrics.

Brilliant review and comparisons…but do they do enough to justify being larger and more expensive than Buchart S400 MK2?

there are a few vintage speakers that can still compete with current ones. my Fried Model RIIs with KEF b139s, B110s, and T27s (one of each per speaker) and the loaded with a foam damped line tunnel rather like the Dynaco A25 of yore, does a fine job at that. not as sensitive thereby requiring much beefier power. their transient response and imaging/soundstaging is topnotch. probably not considered to be vintage albeit of 1976 hatching. in reference to paper driver and low distortion bass, the aforementioned Dynaco A25s had a nice stiff paper cone woofer that was as tight as I ever would want. again, it is a significantly lower in sensitivity performer which may explain the similarity in hefty ampage.

Great review...even a greater bargin now at just under $2K us.

Thank you for reviewing the Sourcepoint 8. Out of curiosity, would these be a good match for the Musical Fidelity A1?

Great review. Seriously, I thought about these but didn't get past the wife acceptance factor! In the end bought the ATC SCM 19 in satin white. Love them but have just heard the ProAc D2R & just WOW! They are in another class on every level to my ATC's. That ribbon is to die for. I think you MUST hear them as for me they are a new reference at this price point. I'm now saving up and trying to get the wife to accept their old fashioned looks.

I'm very curious about those speakers, but why not the original 10" version? That's the one I'd want to hear, or both. Sounds like they need amps with enough damping factor to not be too warm in the base.

Hi! I am not the greatest fan of vintage speakers. Some have virtues that still shines today, but from an engineering standpoint, a lot is missing compared to modern mid-fi speakers. Cabinet construction is better on most of modern designs with bracing and narrow baffles. Evolution of driver material is also a contributing factor with smoother response and better power handling. finally, spectral analysis and crossover conception with computer help quite a bit with phase and impedence. Sadly, not all companies avail themselves of all those new technologies, but that's another story. Great video! Even if these are not my style of speakers, I enjoy the review! Thanks!

I would love to hear a $3000 bookshelf speaker in my room. I'm at least curious as to how they would sound/cost. I say this because I love my Tannoy Revolution XT-8F towers which were less at $2600. Still, curious. Such great and pertinent detail in your reviews! And your style is "classy". Thanks * If you've got the space, get the Tannoy's I have. They're discontinued and can probably be had for a real good price! Go Tannoy, I admit I am a fan. LOL

I have the 10s and your general description of the midrange fits, but the imaging and bass I am getting is much better, deeper and better defined than what you experienced from the 8s, which is simply to be expected given the different cone size and the fact my 10s are being driven by much more expensive amplification.

Great job Tahrun! Hope I didn’t just didn’t kill your name …. 😊

Thanks for the review! To answer the question, I believe driver technology and speaker design has come a long way, so I wouldn't be much interested in trying vintage speakers. Modern speakers with a vintage vibe, maybe, it could be interesting to check how they sound. I'd be much more interested in trying vintage electronics though...

Would love to hear your view on the Audio Physic Step 35.

Hey, that's my pyjamas! (Sorry, couldn"t resist.)😂

I only use retro/vintage speakers: my latest acquisition has been a pair of QLN 1's from the 1980's.

THANKS TARUN 🤗WE LOVE ❤️ OXYMORONS 😁💚💚💚

Another speaker to try with the R8 😆

I’m between these and the Wharfedale Linton 85th. I listen to a lot of rock and alternative from the 90s through 2020s with some classic rock and pop mixed in. I don’t like harsh or overly bright speakers, but I also don’t like a veiled sound (I like clarity without fatigue, but I don’t want anything with an unforgiving analytical nature to the sound). I like to listen at medium volumes, preferring to save my hearing for later years. For someone like me, which speaker would you recommend?

Should do well as mid-ranges👍 ...................... Add an 18" paper-cone woofer cabinet & bullet tweeter. Worth trying.

As far as "vintage sound", to me, it's about high-fidelity - being faithful to the original signal, and vintage equipment is just not as good at high-fidelity as modern equipment is. Yes, I'm a resolution fanatic, and have the Adam Audio S3Vs for home listening. Sure, I'm punished with the songs that were poorly recorded and mixed, or just engineered to "sound loud", but I'm richly rewarded with great recordings, and there are more of these out there that I can listen to in my lifetime.

Try everything you can(60yrs) I have Yamaha nearside monitors fixed resistor.Set to David Prices ears Hifi World 2005.These came out $1495 /£650 in 1979-I am still enjoy/marvell versitality.

Always enlightening your videos. Especially for me as a non engineer. I hope to hear more about dual concentric drivers in the future. I would love to see you review the ls50. I want some huge vintage/classic Tannoys but haven't the space nor the money.

Maybe I'm confused but the 8's seem to be available brand new for $2K USD at multiple retailers. At that price, I should imagine that many other speakers could be in for a tough job explaining their value proposition -- such as the Q5050's which Randy recently reviewed. I get buying ATC's for $2K, or KEF's, or Mofi's, or Dali's, or Amphions, or QUADs, but then there are so many other speakers going for the same $2K, and I struggle to see the point of choosing one of them. Surely the Q's don't sound that much better, that the vinyl wrap is something a person should be happy to live with?

What piece of equipment is that on the top of your rack? 😊

How are the ATC SCM19 in comparison?