New Pioneer SP-BS22-LR speakers in vintage work shop system

[jdandy]

After reading the good comments and a couple positive reviews on the Pioneer SP-BS22-LR speakers, designed by the same Andrew Jones who designed the TAD R1 flagship speakers, I decided to buy a pair for my work shop. They arrived today and it didn't take me long to unpack them and get them into service. I am powering the Pioneer speakers with a NAD 710 stereo AM/FM receiver (20 w/p/c into 8 ohms, 40 w/p/c into 4 ohms) that I have had in the work shop for years driving homemade speakers. I also have a Sony DVP-NS75H CD/DVD player, AIWA AD-S950 cassette deck, and a Dayton Sub1000 10" powered subwoofer as part of the system.

The Pioneer SP-BS22-LR speakers look to be well made with a 4" mid-bass driver and a 1" soft dome tweeter. The cabinet's side panels are tapered to the rear where a port is installed along with a decent pair of threaded metal terminals that will accept spade terminals or bare wire. Each speaker weighs just over 9 lbs.

Listening to the Pioneer speakers without the subwoofer was a nice surprise. The bottom end is rich in texture despite its inability to reproduce frequencies much below 50Hz. The transition between the mid-bass driver and the soft dome tweeter seems very smooth and the mid range and above is exciting and clean. Adding power to the Dayton 10" subwoofer and adjusting its crossover to 50Hz filled in the bottom octave in a pleasant manner that extends the overall performance to near full range. Even though the SP-BS22-LR's are rated 85dB/1w/1m with a 6 ohms impedance, the NAD 710 receiver is able to drive them effortlessly to an enjoyable volume level in the shop with power to spare.

I had my fingers crossed while waiting for delivery that the comments and reviews I read were accurate and that the sound of these small speakers would be enjoyable. It seemed more than one could hope for to expect a pair of speakers costing $129.00 a pair to be good performers, but I have to admit I am impressed with these small Pioneer speakers. They sound much better than my old home made speakers built from car door speakers left over after a stereo upgrade. I consider these speakers an excellent purchase, a tremendous value at a ridiculously low price, and I am pleased I took the plunge. My vintage shop sound system has never sounded better.

[Masterlu]

Dan... These speakers are a crazy good value, I have heard them also. Looks like you can whistle while you work in Style.

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by Masterlu

Dan... These speakers are a crazy good value, I have heard them also. Looks like you can whistle while you work in Style.

Ivan.......I have to admit I expected less. These speakers are quite good. They need a subwoofer to fill in the bottom octave but beyond that they perform admirably. It is nice to have good quality music in the work shop. I don't spend a huge amount of time out there unless I have a project going on, but when I do it is nice to have decent tunes.

[JJinID]

I was very surprised by them also, Dan. I purchased them for our Den, mostly for the kids to use when watching movies via PS3 and 100W Sherwood receiver. I did not at all expect them to sound as clean and nice as they do!

[jdandy]

Jeff.......I'm glad to hear the Pioneer SP-BS22-LR speakers are performing well for you. I'll be back in the work shop tomorrow just to listen to them. I'll probably let them play for 50 hours or so without interruption just to see if there is any improvement in their performance with additional hours on them. Right out of the box they sound darn good.

[Yamaki]

Very nice, Dan! Who says garage/shop systems have to be comprised of low class, poorly made and cast off components?

I'll be interested to see what you think after they've had a chance to run a while.

[OldTex]

Dan, I'm glad to hear that your speakers lived up to their reviews. I wondered if you could really get quality bookshelves for that low price.

"my old home made speakers built from car door speakers"- - I had to chuckle. That sounds exactly like my first dorm room speakers in college. Mine were driven by a $20 amp from Radio Shack, but they were sourced by a $250 reel to reel from Sony - my first real investment in sound. The tape player had been headphone-only until then with a pair of Koss Pro4A s.

[bart1]

I have a pair of the old Bs21s in my garage with a Marantz 2238 and they are quite impressive. I got them for $40 shipped from a newegg sale and they are ridiculously good for anything close to that.

[jdandy]

bart1.......I was out in my shop yesterday for an hour and had the Pioneer SP-BS22-LR speakers playing at a good level. They are much better speakers than their price reflects. My little NAD receiver drives them well.

[jdandy]

This is a short follow up to my original mini review above of the Pioneer SP-BS22-LR speakers designed by the famed TAD Reference One designer Andrew Jones. I have approximately 80 hours on this pair of Pioneer speakers and I am still thoroughly impressed every time I play music in my shop. Day before yesterday I was out in my shop for a few hours making a small repair and while doing my work I had the NAD receiver, Sony DVD/CD player, and the Pioneer speakers filling the shop with wonderful music, a compilation disc I burned years ago with a nice selection of some of my favorite tunes. These are the same tunes I often play on the living room system and the studio system so I am familiar with how they sound on two excellent high-end systems. I am not joking when I say the Pioneer speakers deliver a convincing presentation with details, air around voices and instruments, and resolution to spare. I don't blast the shop system, I just play it at a comfortable volume level, but the little Pioneer SP-BS22-LR speakers actually rise to a very enjoyable performance. Nora Jones voice sounds rich, Lee Ritenour's guitar has the right tone and bite, the midrange transitions seamlessly to the soft dome tweeter, and the total package leaves me scratching my head about how a pair of tiny bookshelf monitors that cost less that $130.00 a pair can sound as good as they do. I am still extremely pleased I took a chance and purchased these speakers on hearsay and reviews only. Having the Pioneer's blended with the Dayton 10" powered subwoofer delivers an enchanting musical performance that is well beyond its price. I find myself looking forward to going out to the shop just so I can play the sound system. I can easily recommend the Pioneer SP-BS22-LR speakers without reservation. They sound very good and represent an exceptional price to performance ratio.