Monitor Audio Owners Thread - Page 3

Kevin,
List prices are:
RS1 $599 pair
RSLCR $599 each
B1 $299 pair
B2 $399 pair

Thanks Brian, just what I was looking for.

Audioarchitech

how does the total GS20 surround setup sound like compared to the MK s150 thx set up?
probably 60/40 movies over music.

what does a set cost for the GS20.. If it worth the drive I could come down this weekend and demo the set.

Did any of you use a wall speaker mount to mount your side and/or rear speakers? I will be buying a pair of RS1's and I need a wall mount for them, any suggestions?

I bought Haropa Uni-lok UL 15/100 wall mounts for my rears. They can hold up to 100 lbs, you can have some degree of tilt if wanted and are pretty sturdy. I would recommend a little extra padding for the pressure plates the help secure it into place (padding is a little cheap) but the mount itself is great.

I bought mine at standsandmounts dot com. They were for $60.00 I believe

I didn't want to buy anything that required screwing into the speaker, but wanted something sturdy and had some flexibility. I also wanted a few inches behind the speaker so it could breathe as well.

Anyway, they worked great for me. Over done on the weight limit, but I wanted to make sure it was a secure install.

Budd

I am about a month into the purchase of the Gold GR10's with the GRLCR and the GRfx 5.1 speaker system. To say I am thrilled is an understatement. I am coming from an M&K setup, and can echo what was said earlier about the comparison. I compared these speakers to the Vienna Haydn Grands, the B&W 705's, the Sonus Faber Concertino's, the Paradigm Studio 20's, and about 4 other brands of $1000-$2000 bookshelf speakers. I can't stand bright, but wanted detailed. I like a warm musical speaker, but can't stand too warm and laid back. The Monitors were the only ones (for my ears) that did everything well. The fact that I got a killer deal on the GR closeouts helped as well.

Question. Both the GR10 and the GRLCR are rated with a 40hz bottom end. I like the sound of a 60hz crossover better than the 80hz crossover in my receiver. Is 60hz too low for these speakers?

Also with the GRfx, I have the choice of Dipole and Bipole. I have them located up high and directly to the sides. I have been switching back and forth between the two and like different qualities of each setting. Any thoughts on how you guys set up yours?

Thanks'
Greg

Kevin12586,
I used some mounts made by B-Tech that clamp my S1's from the bottom (no drilling required). They can hold up to ~25lbs. I believe Crutchfield sells them but Google should turn up a few different suppliers.
-Jeremy

Greg,

Glad you like your MA's. I have had the GR60's 20's and a pair of GR10's crossed over at 60 and 80 Hz with no major difference. I also have a Velo DD sub and when I ran sweeps, the room FR was a little better at the 80Hz crossover. As I recall, I slightly prefered the 60Hz but I went with the flatter FR. My advice would be to trust your ears.

I hope I don't get in trouble for this but I was wondering where are some good places to look for the Gold MA's on closeout(GR-60 Black, GRCR Black) as I live in Louisville, KY and we do not have dealers that stock them on the floor so I am guessing I have to look toward the internet. I would be replacing a complete set of Silver S10's and a SLCR not even 2 years old and not a scratch on them. Thanks

Saturday Audio in Chicago purchased the last of the GR Stock. They seem to be selling for approx 25% off of list.

i am using a marantz sr8500. I was also looking towards Gallo ref 3.1 speakers.
heard good things about them. Not sure how they would compare to MA golds.
Does anybody else have experience with MK s150 vs. MA Gold vs. Gallo Ref. 3.1.
I have demo MA RS 8 against the MKs150's. I thought the Mk's had better clarity and definition in both music and movie. That is why I am leaning towards MK. at this point. Waiting to demo Gallo.

I had to get in on this thread. I have wanted MA's since I was in the 10th grade probably, I was planning on buying them with my graduation money when I got out of high school, but it didn't happen. 6 years later I got rs8's, rs1's, and the rs-lcr. I couldn't be happier. I have them paired with an axiom ep600 and I love it. I need to upgrade my amplifier though. I have a 5 year old hk receiver(avr-65) and 65w a channel just isn't cutting it. However, my next purchase will be a tv, and then I will go for some seperates. but I must say the silvers are great and I would love to checkout the golds one day.

Thanks for the recommendations, I will look into both of them.

I heard both the Mk's and the RS8 at Magnolia Audio in Torrance. I dont know why they do not have a pair of the GS 20's or 60's. I would really like to hear them next to the others.

I liked the fact Magnolia Audio had the same reciever I will be using to play the speakers. Every store, not just Magnolia, has to special order the GS 60. Thats the big problem nobody has them to hear. How does MA plan to sell them if nobody can hear them. I would be curious to know what the set of suround GS 60 or 20 would cost..The Mk s150 L/R & center, ss150 rears, mx350 sub is about 5k. Anyone have any info.

I also though of using the Mk strickly for HT and have secondary system for music with a pair of GS 60.

See my post on page2, sorry not sure how to direct link to it...

I had the MKs150's, ss150's 5.1 setup for years before upgrading to ma, and yeah I mean upgrade.

My bottom line:
MKs150's rock for movies but suck so bad for music that I went over a year without listening to a single cd... yeah that bad....
The gr60's are now up front with the gold center speaker, 4 gr10's as surround. Now there is almost never a time when I'm home that I don't have music playing, they're just that good..... and yeah movies sound just as good as my old MK setup.

dreamhost

what was it about the sound that you didnt like with the MK's. I am not to familiar with what you listed for equipment. I am using the Sr8500 by Marantz. 125wpc 7.1. I am a little concerned that I might be underpowered for GS 60. Of course that problem is a mute point. Can not find GS 60 anywhere to hear.

Like I said I did like the Mk over the RS 8

I used to own M&K 150's all around. I thought they sounded great when I owned them but as is usually the case, when I got something better, I realized how thin sounding they were.

I just got set up to sell Monitor Audio and will have the GS60's next week (along with the center and surrounds). I also have Von Schweikert VR4jr's so we'll see how they compare.
I remember about 5 years ago hearing the GR60's and absolutely loving them so I'm looking forward to getting the GS60's.

I used to own M&K, and I think Brian got it right. M&K is a little thin sounding. The air and detail is amazing, but it just sounded too thin, even when equalized flat with the subwoofer. I am not missing any of the detail with my Monitor GR setup, and everything now has much more presence. A lot of people say M&K is brutally accurate. I don't know if that is the case, but for me, I felt I got a tremendous upgrade going to Monitor.

I always fealt that the MK's sounded very 'thin' and harsh, and there was never a real soundstage as I have now. They were just way to directional for music. I've said in all my posts that I liked them for movies, but it was the music that drove me nuts.

I'm almost at a loss to describe the difference but I'll give it a shot.
when I setup the ma's and popped in a well recorded sacd/dvd audio disk, it was like I instantly had 3x as many speakers in the room. The areas between the front and side speakers were 'filled in' with music. I'd almost swear that I had added in more side surround speakers up closer to the soundstage but I knew better, it was just a much bigger soundstage. With the MK's I always knew EXACTLY where each speaker was at all times, even with eyes closed. With the ma's it's much harder to tell exact placement.

With the ma's, unlike the mk's, for the first time I actually feel like I'm right there in a small jazz club, studio, etc... I can finally hear the faint echoing in voices in some tracks just like you would get in a small jazz club. I can hear fingers picking the strings, feet pressing piano peddles, very subtle sounds as the vocalists inhale, etc. Then there's recordings of huge choirs, where the entire room comes to life. I spent a few years living in D.C. and took every opportunity I could get to goto the symphonies, and other similar concerts. Even with the best recordings using the mk's were always a joke. It never fealt 'real'. With the ma's I'm much closer to what I remember hearing live. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to say the ma's are the best avail, they're not, but for the price I've never heard anything even close. I can spend hours just getting lost in the music, and never get fatigued listening that long.

Currently I am running a denon 5803 to power the system, but do plan a serious upgrade sometime this year. I've just been waiting for a new receiver that can encode some of the new hd formats before jumping again. At this point, I know for sure that any 'weaknesses' I am facing are due to the receiver, as I have had the opportunity to hear the ma's on a much better system, and there is a difference there. As I'm fairly certain that my next receiver will be much more expensive than the speakers, I plan on demoing a lot of equipment. This hobby is just to expensive to just jump right on board without a lot of thought first.

Can you bi-amp the RS6? The RS LCR?

Does anyone have the User Manual or Brochure for the RS AV range in PDF format? I can't seem to find them on the MA sites.

Thanks

Yes.

Try www.mafocus.com

Thanks! That's exactly what I was looking for.

Brandon

where did you listen to the Ma's? Is there a place in the LV area that has a set of GS60 to demo? I am in the So. Calif. area and I am in Vegas offen so I wouldnt mind finding a shop there to hear them. I didnt find any place listed in the MA website.

Right now I am leaning towrds the Mk's. They seem to have a great sound for the movies maybe not the best for music but still better the the MA Silver's. They are under 5k for the 5.1. about 3k less then the set of MA GS set. and I can actully demo them. When considering the price differance you would have to think that any set would sound better for 75% more money. Just as you would expect a system to sound better then then MA's if you spent 12k for a set

Everyone here says great things about the MA Golds but I cant even find someone that has them. Audio Architect, an authorized dealer, raves about them but doesnt have a pair to hear. I tried calling them this weekend. they didnt even return my call. If GS 60 is so good how come there is not one authorized dealer in 200 miles of me that has a set?

I would still like to hear MA but I am getting tired of looking and need to make the jump one way or another.

I am interested in Auditioning the Monitor Audio's, but it seems to me that most of the Dealers are Custom Installers (Michigan and Ohio) and I have found that they dont carry a lot of product....Another question, if I bought from another Dealer that was not in my area will Monitor honor the warranty? Also if anyone has a dealer, that will ship and willing to come off of MSRP please PM me with that info.

I was going to get the P'digm Monitor 11's but before I get my system I want to listen to every system I can in the 3-4000.00 range.....Wife likes the P'digms and dont understand why I would keep on wanting to audition speakers! I tell her that I want the best system for the $$$

BTW I'm wanting to listen to the RS6's with Center and Surrounds...Also what Subwoofers are the rest of you using to compliment your Slivers? I have a Yammy 2600

AM

AM, you have pm. I have Silver S10 and Silver LCR and use Hsu VTF-3 MK2 subs. I only use the subs for movies since the S10 go down to 32Hz and have plenty of bass for most music.