Tannoy Canterbury SE

[JohnThomas]

Originally Posted by FranklinLG

+1. Yes, please post photos and a review. I am planning an upgrade from my zu essence this fall, and this is one of 3 speakers i'm interested in the others are the Orangutans and the new zu def iv

Thanks!

Hi Franklin I will post some pictures and review by the weekend. So far things are looking good.

John

[JohnThomas]

Originally Posted by cmalak

John...I have not heard any but wanted to suggest one additional amp to consider as it has gotten a lot of good feedback at audio shows and my dealer recently heard one paired up with the Verity Amadis and was blown away:

Nagra 300i (integrated version) or 300b (amp version). 20wpc of push-pull Class A. Here is the website: Nagra - High end Audio

Here's a pic from the Stereophile coverage of SSI 2011:



Here are some show blogs/reviews:

The Audio Beat - CES & THE Show 2010 - Best of Show - Nagra 300i and CDC integrated amp, Verity Audio Leonore speakers
Verity–Nagra | Stereophile.com

Here's a thread on it that Howie started a while back:

http://www.audioaficionado.org/mbl-d...300b-amps.html

Hi Cyril,

The Nagra looks mighty fine. The reviews and spec look great. Since I'm new to owning tubes I'm taken baby steps. I just got this Triode TRV-300SER integrated 2 days ago.Visually it is stunning in candy apple red enamel. So far the 8 watts is holding up easily. But I will be testing it to limits here today.

John



Triode Production - Triode Corporation

[JohnThomas]

Well here are a couple of pictures. I 'm still figuring out the best setup (cables (permitting). I know Joe one 911MK3 is missing. Sent it to Germany for checkup before a possible sale. I will post some feedback soon.

[cmalak]

John...looking very very cool! Enjoy Looking forward to how you like the new speakers with 300B vs. 911MkIII power behind them

[joeinid]

Originally Posted by JohnThomas

Well here are a couple of pictures. I 'm still figuring out the best setup (cables (permitting). I know Joe one 911MK3 is missing. Sent it to Germany for checkup before a possible sale. I will post some feedback soon.

John,

That looks awesome. No complaints from me. I know even just one 911 will do the trick. Very nice setup. Thanks for the photos. I'd love to hear the Tannoys on the 911. Mmmm mmmm.

Joe

[JohnThomas]

Originally Posted by FranklinLG

+1. Yes, please post photos and a review. I am planning an upgrade from my zu essence this fall, and this is one of 3 speakers i'm interested in the others are the Orangutans and the new zu def iv

Thanks!

Ok I have had the Canterbury's for week and half and I'm ready to voice a short opinion. The reason switching from the Hansen's prince to the Tannoy's was I wasn't happy anymore with the midrange sound coming from the speakers as well as wanting to trying an efficient speaker that didn't require gobs of power, a more musical speaker with more midrange bloom, dive into set amps and run a dual system of solid state and tubes depending on the mood.

The bad, the day they arrived on pallets there was two small fork lift holes in the boxes, luckily no damage. I don't know why some companies don't use wooden boxes. After taken them out of the box and setting them up I was surprised by the mat finish on a $20,000 speaker. I remember Serge talking about it but blew it off. So after setting them up and starting the burn in process I got one of the jars of black wax out and got to work putting on a coat. After putting a coat of wax on, the finished look excellent plus it made the walnut look even darker. Ok the good the screens that come with the speakers are heavy and made very well but I like the look with them off. I heard thru the grapevine that Tannoy's screens were cheap looking.Maybe that was on lower end models. The wood work is beautiful looking with a lot attention to trim detail. The 15 inch woofer is huge and definitely an eye catcher.The visual difference between my Hansen's and Canterburry's would be the Hansen's are gorgeous looking. Now when you walk into my room the Canterbury's give the visual look of I am one bad ass speaker don't screw with me. Ok now for the sound hooked up to my Burmester gear, first I am happy to say the 15 inch doesn't overpower my room at all so the port slot are wide open. The dual concentric is definitely different then Hansen's 3 way. The music just seems to flow better together. You have to hear it to experience it. First impression is the sound is fuller and more musical like my old PMC IB2's. The bass isn't overpowering, you hear it but don't feel it ,sort of reminds me of the Shindo 604 speaker. The vocals are where this speaker shines voices sound natural and not at all in your face or fatiguing. Right now I testing it out with a 300b tube integrated and that sounds wonderful to. If I was to describe the Canterbury speaker in a few words I would say its like an old baseball glove everything you throw at it just sounds right.

P.S. Sorry I am not more descriptive but I hate to type.

[FranklinLG]

John,

For a guy that doesn't like to type, well done. Thanks so much for sharing! I seriously consider these one of the few speakers I would jump at. They are beautiful to look at and hear. The other, which I've not heard is the the new orangutan. The visuals on that wow me. And For me, efficiency rules the day because I use 300B amps that generate about 12 watts. My hesitation with these canterburies is their size. I'm trying to avoid the in your face look. Plus, I need harmony with my wife on "design" issues. And right now we are in a cold war over my current monolithic zu's... Lol. Still, in the right room I think the canterburies would look amazing! Just not in our "beach" coastal inspired living room. Lol. Te orangutans, however, can fly with that style!

Keep posting more as you settle in. I'd love to read more about your adventures and how satisfied you are!

[Alberto]

They look wonderful in your room. About the non-gloss finish: I actually prefer it to gloss and it does get darker - noticeably darker - with time; at least mine did. They look and sound better every day.

I look forward to your opinion on the soundstage, I am still floored by how my lil' Sandringhams throw a soundstage that is so deep, wide and tall that it transcends my room.

Another thing I've noticed is that these speakers disappear like no other I've owned. When I have guests in my listening room the want to touch the speaker because the sound materializes in mid-air and there seems to be zero relationship between the speakers and the sound produced.

Again, congratulations and I am looking forward to your impressions as they break in.

Alberto

[FranklinLG]

Alberto,

What else can you share about your canterburies? Sounds like you really like them.

Sent from my iPhone using A.Aficionado

[Alberto]

Originally Posted by FranklinLG

Alberto,

What else can you share about your canterburies? Sounds like you really like them.

Sent from my iPhone using A.Aficionado

Ooops. I should have been explicit about the fact that I own the Sandringham and not the Canterbury model. If I had a room for it, I would definitely go for a bigger Tannoy, but the Sandringhams are just perfect for my 11x14x9 room: the bass is just right for the room and a bigger speaker may overpower it.

Alberto