Are Sonus Faber speakers "Hi-End"?
 

Prompted my a comment Mr. McGowen of PS Audio made in a video, I reached out to him & received this response. I am re-posting it here because it was in a public forum & not a private conversation.

bugeyed December 13, 2018 at 10:12 am #

Hi Paul,
I’m really surprised at your comments about Sonus Faber speakers. They are beautiful & many sound great. I have the original Cremona & they are wonderful sounding speakers. I have heard you make several comments about other manufacturers (B&W) & this leads me to believe that you have not heard these brands well represented with proper setup & such.
Regards,
Kev



Paul McGowan December 14, 2018 at 6:28 am #
"Sonus Fabers are indeed beautiful and I made sure when my son wanted a new pair of speakers for his home he bought those. But, that doesn’t mean they are what I would think of as reference quality or highly revealing – which may or may not be for everyone. Yes, they are musical and yes they are pleasant to listen to, but they are not what I consider high-end.

B and W speakers and I go way back and I have never been a fan. Their tweeter and voicing are too far forward and aggressive for my tastes."

I am not as familiar with the newer Sonus Faber speakers but back in the day they were definitely a “colored” and “euphonic” speaker just like some others were in fact too aggressive and forward sounding. I don’t know if there really is such a thing as a true “reference” speaker since they all are voiced and designed by the taste of their respective designer but the Sonus Faber is just as “high end” as any other speaker from respected manufacturers today. It’s a question of what suits your taste and system Synergy more. I understand what Paul is saying although I would not agree with his choice of wording the description of Sonus Faber as not high end. In any case, chasing a true high end or reference grade speaker is a pipe dream with our current technology, they are all colored or tonally misbalanced in one way or another not to mention their interaction with and acoustics of the listening room where they are placed.

Who cares if someone thinks your favorite brand is high end or not anyways as long as they are bringing you listening pleasure in the end?

Are Sonus Faber speakers "Hi-End"?
 

If the Arnie Nudell speakers in the PS Audio room at RMAF are an indication of what Paul thinks of as “high end” speakers, I can understand why he wouldn’t care so much for SF. To each his own.

The only reason I pay attention to what Paul is saying is to understand what his idea of good sound is. I have a PS Audio Directstream DAC, & he is instrumental in "voicing" the software. His idea of what sounds good touches my system with each update. So far, so good ;)
I agree that my speakers are colored, but every speaker is it's own flavor. BTW I know someone who was not impressed at all with the sound of Paul's IRS V setup so onward we go into the fog.
Kev

I think there are so many biases when it comes to speakers ,or for that matter any audio product, that we should all take all opinion with a grain of salt.

All speakers are colored in their own way. :smoking:

High End... Define high end? Exotic cabinets, exotic and high accuracy drivers such as tweeters that do not break up into the stratospheric frequency range where our own hearing cuts out at 20kHz? More like 12-15kHz as we start to age... :D

So the pretty typical scenario is: One reads all the reviews and listens to opinions which the internet is filled to the brim with, goes for the brand XYZ “high end” speaker capable of plumbing the 20Hz depths to 25kHz extremes that drives the neighborhood dogs crazy but one can’t hear the upper end to begin with. A said speaker is placed in suboptimal listening space where the excessive bass response excites room modes that rattle the house from the roof to the basement and resembles anything but high end bass response. The midrange is obliterated with bass overhang, bloom and ripeness, the early reflections of the untreated room cause a brain overload and listening fatigue in 5 min flat, your favorite music sounds like crap but surely the brand XYX cable upgrade will bring about a miraculous change... if not a better DAC or preamp will. In the mean time...
You wife looks at you funny, your dog hates you, your wallet despises you, the high end speaker sounds anything but high end in your room but at least the EGO says... I have a High End speaker. :smoking:

No, it’s not the way this hobby should be. :no:

Listen less to what others think and listen to a speaker that will bring you the most pleasure in the acoustic space you will be enjoying it in.

If you know someone’s (including reviewers) taste and preferences, and trust that they use sound (pun intended) judgement, then their opinions can be useful as general guidance, but in the end you should rely on your own judgement and taste, since only you have to live with the results.

I agree with what you are saying but in the end that same speaker will still sound very different in your room vs where the audition or review took place not to mention the associated gear and differences that also brings. That’s not to say the reviews are totally useless.

Yes, agreed.

Jim.......Absolutly!