*Thank you for stopping by! What is YOUR definition of High-End Loudspeakers? Curious to here from you in the comments :)* 0:00 Definition of High-End Audio 3:25 Rosso Fiorentino Speaker Sound Review 9:56 How to Make Assumptions in HiFi 14:55 How to Choose the BEST Amplifiers For High-End Speakers 18:30 LOOKS DO MATTER! Rosso Fiorentino Certaldo: rossofiorentino.com/certaldo/ Gear Matching Recommendations: AGD Audion: agdproduction.com/audion/ Norma 140: normaudio.com/en/products-catalogue/norma-integrated-amplifier-revo-ipa-140/ Hegel H600: www.hegel.com/en/products/integrated/h600 Other related Speaker Videos: Sonus faber Electa Amator III: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-yYIAWzSh1pQ.html Sonus faber Maxima: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-raBihcmADDg.html Dynaudio Hertiage: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-nBo17ditf3k.html Arendal 1961: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-DuolwaOl5PU.html Support on Patreon: www.patreon.com/jayiyagi follow on Instagram: instagram.com/jays_iyagi/ follow on Facebook: facebook.com/jayiyagiofficial Follow soundstage take 2 reviews: ru-vid.com/group/PLPOzvlhtSqn5xdc__ftuSt4Rxy_wm5Af0 Speaker stands: amzn.to/3ssRhI3 Better speaker stands: solidsteel.it/my-product/ss-7-vintage-hi-fi-speaker-stands/ acoustic panels I use: ua-acoustics.com/ acoustic curtain: amzn.to/31d1zAM BDI Cabinet I use: bit.ly/2OJRwQQ amzn.to/3chBuFZ other BDI Cabinets: bit.ly/3ctxXV1 amzn.to/30bsUCH my fav hifi tweaks: (Isoacoustics devices) amzn.to/3j5FGvM
Jay, I want to give you some props...I notice that your videos that you have mastered the one take. When most reviewers do the jump cuts where they splice together multiple takes due to mess ups (which is uber noticeable)...I know you have worked hard behind the scenes to make sure your vids are fluid and have a flow without that crutch that many YTers use. You are mastering the craft and it shows my brotha. Super profestional!
Spot on, Jay. I used to always wonder why audiophiles often have multiple setups. Then through the years, I went through various pieces of equipment, I ended up with the more or less same deal: Now I have three sound systems in my living room, they are all 100% separate, and they all sound different - one is 5.2 "movie" set up (but I still listen to music on it), other is my "GP music" set-up, with basically "quadraphonic" set-up, and the third is my "Classical music" set up. And i pretty much went the same route with headphones, from planars to HD650 - they all have different "specialties" that they shine on.
High end audio is all about one thing, and one thing only.......what sound pleases the individual. And there's a vast ocean of high end audio components and speaker options out there to choose from, at various price points, from entry level, to the ultra high end. For my money, I want my speakers to do it all. I don't do multiple systems. My one main audio system must do it all. I want speakers that are neither to laid-back or to forward. My speakers must have height, width, depth, detail, great imaging, a huge soundstage, transparency, be non- fatiguing and be totally full-range at the same time. I don't want to miss out on any aspect of the frequency range. It took some time, but I finally found that speaker several years ago (Revel Salon 2), and they became my end-game speakers. If you haven't yet found your perfect, end-game speakers, they exits and are out there somewhere just waiting for you to discover them.
Finally some one talks about this brand. The first time a heard a speaker from this brand was in 2008/2009 when a representative came by our shop and showed the Rosso Fiorentino Fiesole. I was in love and still to this day I remember that experience clearly. Which says something because a lot of speakers have passed through the shop in all those years.
@Davitamon76 if you enjoyed them back then, it is worth a revisit of the brand. This is not the same speaker it was even five years ago. If it has left that much of an impression, you should be blown away by the maturation of these designs.
Great review Jay 👏🏼🎶👌🏽 I enjoy how you broke down various speaker strengths and why you enjoy these most. My favourite attribute is the speaker disappearing act, that’s no.1 in my books. I also like crisp fast highs. Those AGD amps look siiiiick, I want them❤. I enjoy your amp reviews to this speaker as well, great video. 🎶🤘🏼
Very good intro discussing the priorities that listeners have. That’s an important intro because it allows all of us to share what we value at this moment in time, knowing that these priorities have changed from our first steps and continue to evolve.
I demoed multiple high priced stereo systems at a local dealer show room store. Each high end system had acoustically treated fabric covered walls and a listening chair at the optimal location. One of the first speakers I auditioned was the Electa Amator III bookshelf and the sound was a complete let down for me. My biggest takeaway from that dealer visit, you absolutely have to personally know that product first before you even think about making a high priced purchase. The biggest Zonk when it comes to high end audio is that you can only trust your own ears! Good luck finding a dealer that has a proper demo space. That old cliché talk is cheap is real high end stereo talk. I'm fan on this channel and the hard work on display here thumbs up to you Jay because it helps to know what the market has to offer and where the trends are going before I decide to try something different. It would be nice to have it like Thomas & Stereo and the all the other real deal audio nerd reviewers on RU-vid, a luxury I can't afford the boss is super prudent
After many years of testing back and forth and finding out what (I LOVE)..I couldn’t beat Meadowlark Audio, to me, the best bang for the buck. Starting with my Kestrel’s, up to my Blue Herons. I couldn’t find something I loved for 5x the amount. Pat did some amazing stuff in the 90’s-2003ish.
Definitely one of your best videos Jay. A very difficult and controversial area of hifi for any reviewer to attempt to convey. It always brings out the 'if its expensive its a rip off' people who think £200 buys you gear that is "a giant slayer" and similiar nonesense. Much as i actually like Randy Cheapaudioman, hes contributing to this whole issue. Buying some cheap Chinese branded gear has its place of course - but hifi it aint and lets stop refering to it as.
Jay I've viewed many if not all your reviews. Could you review B&W's New 805 D4's. ? Your presentation of stand-mount speaks is one of the best I've seen. Thanks
Great review and awesome looking speakers Jay! Nice your telling us about what kind of speakers you like (and not). My definition of an high-end speaker is one that's not too bright or sharp, not too boomy with bass, and combines a good soundstage with a natural and detailed flow of air and musicality. (like Dynaudio and Sonus Faber). And when I am drawn into the music like the artist is really in front of me then I know that it is good!. Btw, as an owner of a H590 I am looking forward to your review about the Hegel H600.
Those speakers probably have really tight tolerances for matching drivers and crossover components is why you are hearing a great soundstage and imaging. The rest of ‘ warmness’ , laid back or whatever you are hearing is all from freq response
Love my Certaldo series 1, and I have for several years. I’d really like to add the Norma at some point, but very happy with my Mastersound Duventi until that time comes. Great review!
There’s probably no new technology in speakers, other than very minor tweaks, in the last few decades. Mostly speakers are made to a budget and spec, rather than to a performance level. This applies to most hifi but I think moreso for speakers.
I've never quite understood why people say a lot of treble = detail, for me detail is over the whole frequency range and the high's mostly add some "air" to the sound (like 10k and above). Maybe my hearing is different, but I really don't understand that part, so if someone could explain how they hear detail dominantly in the treble, since I would like to understand what I'm missing :)
Imaging and detail is the top of my list. I once owned B&W 805 Matrix, sold them and miss them dearly but speakers have come a long way since then. This day I wouldn’t know what to choose. It seems there is always something better around the corner.
The matrix 805 needs a ton of power before they even begin to strut its stuff. However, give them the required quality of power & set them up correctly, these bookshelves sound HUGE for their size & can even fill a very large room. Nowadays many small spks sound far larger than their physical appearance but in the 90s, this was not the norm. As such the matrix 805 was an extremely hot speaker in my country during the 90s. Put it up for sale & it can be sold within 30 mins.
I own Def Tech BP8060 for 8 years. I auditioned BW 702 S3 in a sound room but could not hear much difference in sound qualities between BW and my Def Techs. I was really hoping to hear crisp clear highs with clear defining mids ( voices ) and bass notes that were clean and precise. Was I expecting too much?
Awesome video. Definition is exactly how you put it Jay. I have Sopra 2 and they are absolutely awesome. I also don’t like bright speakers but I have mine set up with very little toe in and using tube front end they are not harsh at all. I have heard Wilson audio previously and that was very harsh. But if I had to narrow it down to the sound: for me imaging and soundstage are most important.
Hey Jay, can you please do a video on speaker driver construction. Though I appreciate that the cabinet is significant in terms of resonance, and that we can't consider each on their own, the drivers are the actual engines of the speaker and arguably contain the most engineering, so it would be good to hear more about them.
Great review of those speakers.on this review I couldn’t help to notice that you have the Volumio Rivo streamer. How can I purchase this in the US? I have read great reviews about it. Maybe you can also do a revivir it. It’s a gorgeous piece
Excellent video Jay. My hearing is also very sensitive to high frequencies. I currently have the SF Minima Amator ll’s and considering upgrading to the Electa Amator lll’s. Would love to get your thoughts as well as others if you would see this as a significant upgrade. Thanks, Dan
Thanks for this review, obviously for lovers of musical speakers. I wonder how you would review Canadian brand Verity Audio speakers, because of the similar philosophy.
Hi Jay ! Did you heard of brand MB Quart ? Made in Germany. I have the MB Quart 480 Konfex for 15 years now. + Denon amplifier PMA 1080R. I am satisfied. Audio equipment : Amplifiers : Japanse. Speakers : Germany. Cables : Monster Cable High End Series
Of all the Hifi aspects that audiophiles are looking for i n a pair of highend speakers , soundstage, dept , width, slam on bass, airiest high and holographic vocals , snappiness etc etc and the lists goes on and on, but if does not play music right, what good it is except for being a pair of showy "hifi" speakers? A pair of real highend speakers, or any speakers, must possess the ability to draw one into the heart and soul of the music, be able to precisely display the ebb and flow of the music yet be as accurate to the original music score ! Able to play "music" accurately with no addition and subtraction is utmost imporrtant for me in a pair of highend speakers!
Do you think it's fair to say that ultra-high-end speakers tend to make bigger compromises than mid-range ones in order to excell in a specific area? Perhaps we could say they make braver design choices. Mid-range price speakers might try to please the majority. Perhaps there is an analogy to sports cars that you might not want to use for everything.
If you find a speaker that is overall as good as the ESL57 let me know. I stopped 20 years ago looking for one after going through many sets of these and always coming back. If the midrange isn’t right the rest doesn’t matter.
Exactly zero from your list are "above" Quad. I imagine you meant superior in sound quality to quad, and again, none on that list are superior in sound quality to Quad. Check the detailed measurements and/or double blind testing... @@megahwang4949
Hi Jay, since you just reviewed the 1961 Towers and mentioned them in this video, how close do they get to these if the 1961s are integrated with a sub?
I'm not as experienced, so I always wonder - can a speaker be laid-back, not punching your ears with needles, non-bright and non-fatiguing, yet have crazy details? It seems you separated such a speaker in 2 categories and I understood we can't have both in 1 speaker, right? Is it the same with tube/hybrid vs solid amplifiers? For a tube amplifier, do I need to buy a $20 000 tube amplifier to match a $10 000 solid amp in detail retrieval, yet still being tubey? Maybe I understood that separation wrong, that's why I ask. It may be just me, but I immediately relate detail retrieval with "high-end", and put everything else in the "flavor" part.
You need to get a double stack of Cerwin Vega XLS15's and four 200ish watt monoblocks to run them...and ask yourself if its dynamic and hows the imaging and soundstage..How dramatic and big it feels for the price.
I would love to see a review from you on the JTR Noesis 215RT. Not cheap, not pretty but supposedly an incredibly musical speaker disguised as a home theater centric main.
Yay...now I have a very good reference point as I am currently rocking the standmount version of these, the Pienza 2 (paint finish) with Norma amp. Jay, what preamp did you use with the AGD?
I have had the Rosso fiorentino fiesole one ( with the acrylic sort material in the baffle ), and the volterra second generation ( with the aluminium front ) .I did found the fiesole standmount the better speaker , the volterra has the above named aluminium front baffle , but also aluminium build in the side walls ,both speakers were tremendous in the mids and highs ( airy , clean, brainless , kind of electrostatic ) , but I did found the volterra boring in the long term , a certain lack of dynamics , I think from the overdemping solutions , The Fiesole ( first model) , with the above named acrylic baffle is one of the very best standmounts that I ever heard irrespective of price in many ways , a dream speaker , very , very well balanced . Sold it ……regret it immediately
The jump from Series 1 to Series 2 saw a large jump in dynamic impact across the entire line. If you aren't getting dynamics out of Volterra 2, there is a reason and it isn't the speakers - likely speaker set, amplifier power, or restrictive power conditioning. The Volterra is the Fiesole with extended bass output with no change to the 'monitor', so if you are happy with Fiesole, you should be ecstatic with the Volterra. If you need assistance drawing out what they are capable of, feel free to reach out! I am the US distributor for Rosso Fiorentino, having everything on hand except for the mighty Florentia.
For me, speakers that I own long term *must* cover all of the meaningful frequency range in the music that I listen to. So, that means it must be "flat" down to at least ~32Hz, and should at least "hint" at music close to the low 20's. Speakers that require a "subwoofer" in order to play the bottom open string of a 5 or 6 string electric bass (~32Hz), start out with a very big shortcoming. Integrating the bass from a subwoofer is non-trivial. Even finding a high quality "subwoofer" is a challenge. I have not found that speakers require being pulled out into the room - for soundstage. The bass balance is the issue - many speakers have bass output that *requires* the speaker to be pulled away from the wall - if they are too close to the wall, then the bass overpowers the tonal balance - and yes, then the soundstage is not good. But IF the speakers are tuned to have bass output that works well with placement close(r) to the wall - then soundstaging is great! The cabinet *acoustic* performance, and high(er) quality crossover parts are critical for a speaker that has all the qualities I want.
@@jonathanmoore8886 Not really. You don't "need a car" You need water and food. Cars, Stereo, watches, bikes, etc are all in the "nice to have or want" category. Or at least that's the way I see it. A Car perhaps may serve you more utility, sure but it also depends on the person. In fact, I know some people that "need" a stereo system more than a car in cases where music brings them therapeutic benefits for their mental well-being.
I Having A Difficult Time In Upgrading Cause I'm A Klipsch Guy! I Looking Into Focal ( Like The Kantan Or So Lineups) Kef/ The R Meta Speakers And The Arendal 1723 S Lineups! But The Klipsch RC-64lll And The Klipsch RF-7 lll Specs Wise, Are Very Hard To IGNORE VS The Others Mentioned , STARTING WITH WATTAGE AND SENSITIVITY OF THE KLIPSCH! PLEASE TELL ME WHAT I AM POSSIBLY MISSING OUT WITH THE OTHER BRANDS MENTIONED, AND WHAT WILL BE AS POWERFUL OR SORTA LIKE THE KLIPSCH SOUND STAGE??? THANK YOU 😊
get the La Scala or the Horns if you love Klipsch and they fit your budget and room size... you never have to think about speakers again. I love Spendor D7. I am done... I think. :)
I don't think detail is 100% about treble or high frequencies. Mid-range detail is just as important, although although maybe I would call it "transparency" as opposed to detail. The use of a soft dome midrange like on some PMC or ATC speakers (and A/D/S speakers of old like L810's I bought in 1982) comes to mind as examples that achieve such mid-range transparency or detail. Dynaudio used soft dome midrange drivers at one time in their high-end speakers (not sure why they gave them up). Tekton (and McIntosh) use of an array of "so-called" tweeter drivers to reproduce the mid-range is another example of achieving exceptional mid-range detail or transparency. Also, I prefer the tighter (and more detailed) bass of an acoustic suspension woofer or sub-woofer.
Hahahaha all these reviewers mostly only say good things abt the products that they review. Trust your own ears. I usually listen to these reviews just for fun.
Not sure why people keep saying that Focal is a bright sounding speaker, I have Aria 936s and they are very very warm and neutral with a lot of mid-bass and mid-range and the highs are softly heard in the back ground🤔🤔
depending on the room and reference point, you may find focals to be the way you described but in the same room side by side with other speakers in the market, it is on the leaner/brighter side (at least for me)
I have questions for you then why does my cerwin vega sl-15 have a great sound stage and great detail clarity but i didnt have to spen $8000 to get great sound matter fact your klipsch would have a really hard time vs my sl-15 especially as a full range speaker 🔊
Actually not. Consider the whole bandwidth of prices of audio gear and then “high end” as the name implies refers to the top 20%. (You may add or subtract a few percent if you will).
Yet Monitor Audio can make speakers out of real wood and put proper high end components in them and sound as good as speakers thousands and thousands more expensive. I don't agree when it comes to pricing. There is no absolutely no reason for High end speakers to be so costly, ever. Same with anything built on this earth, it is all about greed.
So, define ‘high end’. What makes a speaker ‘high end’? The price? Cabinet construction? Fit and finish? Quality of crossover components? Quality of drivers? Brand reputation? Audio performance? Design and engineering? Quality of binding posts and internal wiring? They measure well??? My current speakers cost me €6500 18 months ago. All reviewers label them ‘high End’ with one reputable magazine calling them ‘high end’ made easy, whatever that means? The manufacturer’s website described them as “mid range flagships”. I purchased them for mo other reason than I liked the way they reproduce music. If any of the above applies to them, well that’s an added bonus, but did not influence my purchasing decision. Today they retail for $8200 does that make them higher end? Nobody, has ever been able to give me a definitive explanation of the term ‘high end’ perhaps it’s a marketing tool? I think it’s a vastly overused term, used to validate a product’s over inflated price.
polar response decides soundstage and imaging, and it cant be that good coming from a box speaker looking like that. what you want is a good dipole like the lx521
Thats a really good point. Live music or musicians are not laid back. However, no hifi system no matter the cost in a domestic environment will recreate an orchestra, rock band etc. High end hifi is about giving you a sonically balanced and pleasing representation.
A loudspeakers role is not to colour the music in any way. It is the artist and the musics role to play the mood of the music. The loudspeaker is to present that as is free from distortion and as precisely as possible. See what Q Acoustic is doing. Resonance... They are making more innovations in speaker technology than any loudspeaker company regardless of price. Because they have studied and researched and perfected the real problems. Resonance in the Speaker cabinet, design, is all but gone. The speakers disappear on your room and they sound as good as any speaker any price, if not rivaling them and don't cost an earth shattering price. Monitor Audio is doing the same. You can get amazing sound rivaling speakers that cost frankly an amount that is not worth their asking prices.
Looks are the PRIMARY factor in selecting furniture and equipment for my home. A 10/10 point speaker in audio that scores a 3/10 in looks, would NEVER be in my house. Would rather have a 6/10 in audio with a 10/10 in looks.
If music was played blind folded no one would hear the differences between an expensive audio gear and a “normal” audio gear. That’s relevant and true.
Wouldn't it be nice if Joe bloggs like me could actually listen to them blind & what would be the outcome if ordinary ol me stated I preferred my bowers & wilkins 607 s2 silver anniversaries, would you put the video on youtube or would it get wiped by accident. Or would I agree expensive is better.
unfortunately binaural mics would also record the space as well, not to mention that binaural mics have limitations in both picking up low frequencies and hard to calibrate. It is not an accurate representation of what you would be hearing but perhaps for entertainment !
I cover whatever I find exceptional. I do believe that to find exceptional affordable products that punch above its price class, I'd also have to constantly expose myself to reviewing high-end gear to have a legitimate reference point.
