Speaker decision 803D's and along came Sabrina

[joey_v]

I would purchase a used pair of 802 Diamonds and call it a day.

But that's just me. $10-11K for a pair of speakers that just are truly wonderful.

You should hear mine. You're apparently near by.

[Rod#S]

I echo Joey_v. If you can't find say a used pair of Sabrina's since you liked them so much a used pair of 802 Diamonds would be stellar. With a rumored refresh of the 800 line coming this fall you may see an influx of 802's pop up on A'gon or even here on AA as people upgrade.

However a basically new pair of 803's for $7500 is indeed a Very good price.

[ariess]

If you wait 2 months until the new 800 series, you can probably get a used pair of 802 Diamonds for $8k. Hard to beat that.

Sent from my iPhone using A.Aficionado

[Jagman]

Originally Posted by joey_v

I would purchase a used pair of 802 Diamonds and call it a day.

But that's just me. $10-11K for a pair of speakers that just are truly wonderful.

You should hear mine. You're apparently near by.

Thanks Joey. My main issue with that is I don't want to upgrade my MA8000 at this point and I really feel like the 802's need a larger amp. As much as I'd love to hear yours, I don't think the 802's and the 8000 are ideal. Maybe I'm wrong.
Still be cool to see and hear your setup sometime.

[Jagman]

Originally Posted by Rod#S

I echo Joey_v. If you can't find say a used pair of Sabrina's since you liked them so much a used pair of 802 Diamonds would be stellar. With a rumored refresh of the 800 line coming this fall you may see an influx of 802's pop up on A'gon or even here on AA as people upgrade.

However a basically new pair of 803's for $7500 is indeed a Very good price.

I don't expect to see any used Sabrina's on the market since they're brand new offering from Wilson. My same concerns with the 802's as above is my amp. Seems 803's would be a better fit.

[Jagman]

I have a new wrinkle to this. I'm not sure I see going with Sabrina's due to price, but those 803's sound pretty good for $7.5K. I'm also very interested in the Aerial 7T. They fall right in my budget. I just don't know where I'd hear them. I am still going to hear the Vandy Quatro's and Treos. I don't think I'll have him set the Sabrina's up since $16K is really out of my range as much as I love them.

[Rod#S]

Never count out someone putting the Sabrina's up for sale. There's always someone who can't audition and has to buy blind and is underwhelmed by the performance of a speaker, someone who has to move and can't take the speakers with them, someone who has to downsize, etc. etc. There's always hope

The 300 watts you have will do plenty fine for the 802's. All the talk about the 800 series needing gobs of power is B.S. in my opinion. I ran my 802's and 800's off a Bryston 4B-SST (340 watts) in a similar sized room as you and it could make your ears bleed if I ever cranked up the volume. Moving on up to Bryston 28B's was never out of need, simply want.

I suspect the Sabrina's and 802's would be a far more well rounded speaker than the Aerial 7T as I know the 802 is over the 803. Having said that though I have seen people post their preference for the 803 over the 802.

[joey_v]

There is no difference in powering the 803 vs the 802.

The MA8000 will be enough and you will be able to avail of future upscaling as time and funds allow.

Put the 803Di and the 802Di next to each other, you will notice a cleaner midrange. The marlan head really does make a difference.

Power requirements should be the same. Even all the crossovers are the same, just better parts.

I would not even think about the 803Di. I would take it out of the equation unless you really don't want a pair of 802Di used at just a bit more.

[tractng]

I agreed with Joey. Go with 802Di and don't look back. I was about to buy a new set but my room addition isn't completed yet until mid August. Then I heard rumors of the new series coming this fall so I figure I might wait to get latest .

[joey_v]

Let us know how you like they Quattro and treo. The dealer you're headed to is primarily a Wilson dealer. I remember when they started to bring in the Vandersteens... They (the salesman) gave me mixed vibes on it.