triton799 Posted September 9, 2012 Posted September 9, 2012 Just want to post some info on my new speakers. 2 Weeks ago I bought a set of Audio Physic Tempo 25. I only have a modest front end. Cambridge 851A Primare CD22 Rega P5 , Ortofon 2M Black, Moon Lp3 phono stage. I tried quite a few different speakers up to the $9000 mark and nothing really hit me as astounding for the money. I can agree this is put down to amplifier matching. Some salesman even questioned why I wanted to go so far with speakers exhibiting concerns my front end would not hold up. I did agree on that but as pig headed as I am, I just had to be sure. PMC Twenty series....Very good speakers, tried all but twenty 23, Twenty 22 My god! better than the 24 ..............in my opinion any way. B&W 805D & 804D, Take the PMCs= more natural Opera Callas , Need grunt. but wonderful with unison gear Dynaudio Focus 160, 260, not bad just expensive for how they sound, Dyn Confidence C1, amp no chance New Opera Seconda, NIce KEF R300 and R700, R300 is amazing. R700 extremely thumpy and nearly hollow in the midrange. Suspect Amp matching due to the reviews I have read. All had a nice presentation and some needed more power than what my amplifier can provide........or it didnt match tonally. Then the salesman put the Audio Physic Classic 20 on I was Gobsmacked. There fun, refined and ballsy. Can be a little fat in the bass but everything else sounded so unforced. They can seriously do lots of music very well. Then the salesman put on the Tempo 25 and although there is $4000 difference. On my modest front end I had finally heard audio nirvana ( something I have been searching for , for 10 Years) To be brutally honest they are the quintissential all rounder. Im waiting to hear the ..............not what what you want to hear from a Near $8000 floorstander. But wow they sound amazing with everything....and I mean everything! Straight out of the box my mate and I sat Gobsmacked at the rythmic pull these speakers gave my system. I can certainly say these speakers will never leave my lounge room. Ill post some pics later. Thanks for listening to my rant......I just had to write something 1
Volunteer sir sanders zingmore Posted September 9, 2012 Volunteer Posted September 9, 2012 I heard some Audio Physic speakers at the Melbourne Hifi show and would have to say I agree with you. Can't remember the model but I liked what I heard
Luc Posted September 9, 2012 Posted September 9, 2012 Hurry up with the pics! Sounds wonderful and your right about the front end, now you might find yourself placing a foot on the amplifier upgrade path perhaps. I'd love to hear them with a Redgum running them and then, and then...well, I'm sure you'll eventually try some different amplification with these speakers just out of interest. WD
henry218 Posted September 9, 2012 Posted September 9, 2012 audio physic is good. b&w not so . i heard the opera seconda also, they are very beautiful . i tend to agree, they are abit lack of dynamics and character, although it was incredibly pleasant. it may need 200w amp to make them sing. btw, regarding the dynaudio c1, my friend was quite satisfied with firstwatt F5 25w@8hm 40w@4ohm. he said its better than the his 80w single ended super tubes amp (its 211 or something)
ayou2 Posted September 9, 2012 Posted September 9, 2012 never heard a pair but a few peeps I know who have reckon they are one of hi-fi's best bang for buck speakers on the market & rate them very highly. congrats
Darryl Posted September 9, 2012 Posted September 9, 2012 Yep, synergy is king. Well done on your purchase.
Ray H Posted September 9, 2012 Posted September 9, 2012 Congrats on what is an excellent sounding speaker, heard these with some Quad valve mono's a while ago.. Hoping you got the ebony finish which is quite stunning IMO.
triton799 Posted September 11, 2012 Author Posted September 11, 2012 I got the Light Oak finish to offset the dark oak of my entertainment unit. Looks not actually. They truely area hidden jem of the Audio world. Henry 218 I agree the B&W are cold........thats the easiest way I can put it. Ill take some pics and post tomorrow
triton799 Posted September 11, 2012 Author Posted September 11, 2012 Here You go guys my room is a little messy so I show a couple of teasers until I clean the room and can show it properly 1
triton799 Posted September 11, 2012 Author Posted September 11, 2012 One last thing to add is my Cambridge is relatively new. Goran at Castlehill hifi (where I bought the speakers) after I had chosen the speakers decided to put on his new $13000 Karan integrated amp to show me the inherent weakness of mine. I will say yes it was an eye opener in parts over my cambridge....mainly bass impact and tightness but honestly the midrange and treble of both amps......(this is running off my primare CD player).........were quite similar, with a slight edge to the Karan. When we switched back to the cambridge my mate and I agreed the Karan was better but our reply was ...................... The Karan is $13000 but the cambridge was only $1550 and there isnt $11000 worth of difference in the sound. I put it down to the easy to drive nature of the speakers. But yes, In a couple of years I will add a power amp.
Volunteer sir sanders zingmore Posted September 11, 2012 Volunteer Posted September 11, 2012 The Karan is waaay overpriced here
triton799 Posted September 11, 2012 Author Posted September 11, 2012 Yes probably so....but on some high end Grand callas speakers it wallaped the Class'e and Unison Research Unico 200, honestly..........absolutely walloped them. Once again it comes down to Synergy. I believe If people are frugal enough they can find some real bargains if they get system matching right.
Volunteer sir sanders zingmore Posted September 11, 2012 Volunteer Posted September 11, 2012 Overpriced is the wrong word sorry. It is a brilliant amp and deserves more press. It costs a lot more here than it does overseas.
triton799 Posted September 11, 2012 Author Posted September 11, 2012 Cool. I agree with that. Shame that we get ripped with a lot of gear actually.
nzdans Posted September 11, 2012 Posted September 11, 2012 Wow nice score re the Tempos! I auditioned a pair with my i30 a while back and was affected in a similar manner to that which you've described above; these things are magic. Unfortunately my budget (at the time) was $5k which I had told the salesperson although he let me listen for at least 10 minutes before breaking the news to me Enjoy! 1
rantan Posted September 11, 2012 Posted September 11, 2012 I don't wish to hijack this thread and I congratulate the OP on the purchase ,but the B&W diamond speakers are not cold and are fantastic speakers. There is little to no chance of hearing the Audio Psychic's where I live, but I would most definitely be interested in hearing them and putting them on my short list.
ayou2 Posted September 11, 2012 Posted September 11, 2012 Cambridge puch above their weight especially in the midrange IME 1
triton799 Posted September 11, 2012 Author Posted September 11, 2012 No offence on the B&W's rantan. They are very very good. As funny as this sounds I went with all intent purposes to actually buy the 805 or 804D's. But to be honest the comparison between them and the audio physics was not fair! The Tempo 25 made the B&W sound slightly clinical to the ear. Whereas they just flowed. I also tried other amps besides my own.....I didn't mention that earlier as my first post was so long i thought everyone would fall asleep reading it. Im not saying their the best........(wish i could, but matching is critical)..........but boy they are a hidden gem. All demos were also held in the same room bar the Kefs.
triton799 Posted September 11, 2012 Author Posted September 11, 2012 ayou2, you are correct another hidden gem......... After lengthy auditions in the same room vs MOON 340i, Primare I32 and Cyrus integrated......at $1550 the cambridge was impossible to pass up...not because it came close to the other company but it actually was the preferred amp. Special mention to the primare I32 it was so close but i found it a little brighter than the cambridge. Weird thing is the Primare CD22 was far more enjoyable than the Cambridge 851C cd player/dac. Once again i was not by myself. My good mate Hutch was with me.........he hates cambridge audio but is jaw dropped when he heard it. I have heard him say he feels like getting rid of his $7000 Densen to buy one.
rantan Posted September 11, 2012 Posted September 11, 2012 Hi Triton. No offence taken at all and your speaker choice has stimulated my own interest as I am looking myself. As usual, there is nowhere in Adelaide to audition the Audio Psychic speakers, but since Goran has them [ and he now has my deepest respect,] I may well ask him about these and have a closer look. I am really pleased you found a speaker to love, it's a great feeling
triton799 Posted September 12, 2012 Author Posted September 12, 2012 Rantan, You are right. Goran is a gentleman. He has great gear and wont steer anyone wrong. His shop has a personal touch. Not all about volume sales. Adelaide..ouch......its been 15years since I have been there but I think if I have trouble finding what I like in Sydney.....Adelaide my prove difficult for the passionate audiophile Sincerely good luck in your search
DAMO 1147 Posted September 24, 2012 Posted September 24, 2012 Congrats on the speakers- they really look great. on this PMCTwenty 22 My god! better than the 24 aren't these stand mounts and the Tempo 25's floor standers. How did they differ?
triton799 Posted September 30, 2012 Author Posted September 30, 2012 Damo......the twenty 24 is an extremely good speaker.....but I foundthe 22 to be sooo special and preferredthe tonal balance more. They are tighter but I found the twenty 24 got too carried away with some material whilst the 22 was controlled and voiced perfectly. The Tempo 25 with it 4 x 7 inch side firing drivers give a tremendous bassline whilst the tweeter and midrange give a more fluid reproduction than the twenty series. Although if the wife said I waslimited in what I could buy and I was not allowed to buy the Tempo's It would easily be the Twenty 22 or the KEF R300........twenty 22 is better in my opinion though. All this is subjective though. It highly depends on your amp and Source and more importantly music style. I found the Tempo 25 more forgiving of all types of music than the PMC.
simba Posted March 6, 2013 Posted March 6, 2013 Hi Triton799, I read that you also auditioned the Opera speakers. Which models and how do you rate aganist the Audio Physic? I'm currently researching the Opera Seconda and Quinta but no retailer stock Opera at all in Canberra.
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