Originally Posted by
Torqdog 
Ok, I realize that most folks who post here have mostly newer PSB offerings and may not be interested in this but I want to tell you of my new purchase (new to me anyway). First let me state that I have been a VERY happy PSB owner since 1996 when I bought my first "real" loudspeaker, the Stratus Silver. At the time it was all I could afford and the extra $600.00 for the much desired and coveted Stratus Golds was beyond the budget. But that didn't stop my interest and last weekend I finally got ahold of an excellent pair of the Gold
i for $700.00. Now that I've had them in the system for a week I can honestly say that they are well worth the money. Before buying, I poured all over various forums for any info I could find on these speakers and it all came up VERY favorable. They even received a "class B" rating from Stereophile magazine back in the day. I came across a few threads where they were compared to Synchrony Ones by folks who had owned both and where-as most all claimed the Synchrony's were a more detailed speaker that image well, they also said the Golds were a warmer speaker that were also quite detailed, image almost as well with a very wide soundstge and a better bottom end when put side by side. More than a few posts indicated remorse for selling their Golds.
I can personally attest to the fact that in my situation, the Golds have much more bottom end than the Silvers. It only figures considering that the Golds have a 10" woofer compared to the Silver's 6.5" woofer. Another surprise was the fact that the upper mid range seems more robust but not at all abrasive. Vocals really stand out now and things like cymbal decay is more prevalent and piano sounds fuller and more natural. I'm now able to run my front speakers set at "large" and the difference is jaw dropping when watching boisterous movie soundtracks. These are my first pair of what I would classify as "true" full range speakers.
The Silvers are now being utilized as my center channel and that is a story in and of itself. Dialogue never sounded better and pans across the stage are so smooth you really can't tell where one speaker stops and the next one starts. Perfect!
The Bronzes which have been serving as center speaks may find themselves relegated to side surround duties. I haven't decided yet as the Stratus Minis are doing just fine.
The Golds are paired up to my Parasound Halo A-31 which has plenty of watts (400wpc-4ohms) for these power hungry monsters(they weigh 90lbs each!), the sound is finally something I can truly say is at the point where any improvements beyond here are gonna be cost prohibitive. After almost two decades of searching I think I have finally found sonic nirvana.
Just thought y'all might be interested to know that a decent, "audiophile" quality PSB speaker setup can be had for less than what you might think if you just shop around a bit.
Stratus Gold, I paid $700.00 but I've seen 'em for less.
Silvers, I've seen for around $400.00
Bronze, I paid $200.00
Stratus Minis; 1 set cost $260.00, 1 set cost $300.00
Total = $1860.00
Eliminate the Bronzes and we're talkin exactly $1660.00 clams for a better than awesome 7.? surround system!
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Let your ears be the judge.
