Salk HT3 vs. Wilson Sophia

You should take a look at the Vandersteen Quattros or 3A Sigs with a pair of 2Wq Subs.

They may be shaped alike, but I can't imagine for a second that they sound alike ... Focal TC120 TD5 tweeter vs Aurum Cantus G2 ... Seas Excel Mag cones vs Scan Speak paper cones? I haven't heard either speaker, but no way can they sound alike, it's just not possible.

I'm sure they both sound incredible, but alike?

Its no contest the HT-3s will blow away the Sophia2's and the Vandie Quattro's and even with the 2 subs the 3A's Sigs, dont have a snowballs chance in hell!

Your right they sound nothing a like,the Sophia's sound dark and muddy and very very slow compared to the HT-3's,which sound very open and fast with tons and tons of detail but also paired with the right amp/source/preamp/source/dac can have very good body to the midrange.

Is there any speaker you haven't heard?

Not very many,but the HT-3 is gonna be my new Reference by the end of the year, alongwith some new AVA gear ,it isnt often you can get a super speaker at a reasonable price,and it sounds and looks better than most of them.

man, if only ACI still had the Talisman SE w/ Maestro combination... thats probably what I would consider in the 5k$ range for stereo.

You realize probably 75+% of the cost for those is in the cabinet work (although the cabinets are gorgeous!), the drivers are pretty inexpensive relatively. I know he's worked with Raven tweeters in some designs, I bet if he used an R2 or R3 in that same speaker it improve things quite noticeably.

Yeah but the Raven tweeters are very very expensive at least the ones that are better than Aurum Cantus like the one in the Aerial 20T costs $900 for Raven to build for Aerial and their certainly not really what you call off the shelf tweets,I've never seen a Raven Tweeter at Parts Express.If you think 75% of the cost is for the cabinet,imagine what % of the cost B&W 800 Diamonds is for the cabinets,because you know the parts arent very good.

Zalytron sells the Raven ribbons, check them out there They're not 'that' expensive.

To the OP: You need to hear the HT3s and find for yourself if you like them better. In speakers don't take anyone's word. I heard the Wilson's and despite being the favourites at the 20K forum I could not stand their sound even for half an hour. However some folks wont trade their Wilsons for any thing.

In the end it all lies in the ear of the listener

Thanks. Although the % is too high by about a third, your are right in that labor involved in cutting, building and finishing the cabinet is one of the major factors in the cost of a speaker.



"Pretty inexpensive relatively" is a relative term. Actually I think the driver cost is higher than the comparable Joseph Audio Pearls (which sell for $20,000 at retail).


Yes, we have worked with other drivers. In fact, we are constantly evaluating other drivers. And if any driver, regardless of cost, were to "improve things quite noticeably," I can assure you we would use them. The HT3's are our current flagship model and we want them to be as good as possible. If an R2 or R3 would improve the sound, we would simply make the replacement and increase the cost of the speaker accordingly. We wouldn't give it a second thought.

We have evaluated other drivers but, in the end, have not found drivers that were any better in this application than the drivers we are using.

Keep in mind that there is no such thing as the perfect speaker driver. There are trade-offs with every single one. While any given driver may excel in some area, it will have limitations or weaknesses in another.

In this design, the drivers work very well with one another. Weaknesses in one are compensated for by strengths in another. The synergy between the drivers is what is important. And this combination of drivers is about as good as any combination gets. If it weren't, we'd certainly use something else.

I hope that makes sense.

- Jim

With far any away the majority of companies designing to a price point and, as a result, having to skimp on parts or build quality, I appreciate this approach.

That settles that, straight from the man himself! I guess I should have listened more to some recent advice I gave, that driver integration is everything ... and far more important than performance of individual drivers. I love the Raven ribbons, but that doesn't mean in this application they're better than the Aurum G2.

By the way, if I could build cabinets that were just a fraction as beautiful as yours I'd be immensely proud of myself. Unfortunately I have a long way to go. Your craftsmanship is truly incredible!

You can. You just don't know it yet. I look at it like this...if I can, anyone can.

You develop techniques by making mistakes. More cabinets = more mistakes. We've built so many speaker cabinets over the years, we've had ample opportunity to refine our techniques. And we continue to do so. When I see speakers we built a year or more ago, they look nice, but do not compare to the quality level we achieve today.

The key to improving our techniques has basically been to pay closer attention to fine detail throughout all the stages of production. While it is a little more time-consuming, dealing with problem areas early and effectively is far less problematic than trying to correct them later in the process. If we note a defect, we handle it before moving on. If every stage is as good as it can be, the final result will be the same.

In wood-working, there is no such thing as the perfect cabinet. Flaws are inevitable. Once you accept this, then learning to deal with them becomes an integral part of the build process. On a number of occasions we have repaired significant damage to cabinets caused by shipping companies. We're getting so good at it, even if we know where the damage is, we have trouble finding it after the repair.

Take your time, be methodical and keep building. You'll continually improve.

- Jim

I've never had the pleasure of hearing the Salks, but have heard the Sophias. Can't say I was terribly impressed. To me, they seemed to capitalize more on quantity (of air moved) over quality. I'd take my Gallo Ref 3s over them anyday. That said, don't you think you're being just a little over-dramatic? Or more like alot? I don't doubt the Salks are better...from what I can gather from reading/seeing their speakers, they seem to have a more sound (pardon the pun) approach to design, but I can't fathom anyone who has ever heard the Sophias calling them very, very slow. If anything, that's one of their better characteristics.

Thats your opinion,just because they are Wilson's and they are 12k dont mean that they will do everything well,its compramise most designs have 1 ,that is one of the Sophia's in my book.Look at you for instance you will take you 3k speakers over the 12k Sophia's and I would take my $1600 over your Gallo's.

Are you sure you don't own stock in this company?

I dont own any stock in any company, i just support good speakers and good speaker builders.

Haha, can I do it with just a jigsaw, circular saw, and router? I'm sure I can do better, by my problem is lack of a dedicated workspace ... and of course no table saw. Oh, and I do have a belt sander and random orbit finishing sander which really help - since pretty much everything I put together is full of gaps which have to be filled and sanded for hours to get anything resembling a straight line

I guess even still I've been able to make some decent cabs. I've been able to lay raw veneer and have it turn out alright, and I know how to get a piano finish from my experience with automotive finishing.

I'd say that with some nicer tools, and nice clean and organized workspace, and of course 10 years more practice, I might be able to make something that looks as good as yours.

Hey Turbo, drive up to Mexico, Missouri and take a listen to my HT3 system!! You won't be disappointed. Actually that goes for anyone here, Turbo just lives closer.

2 years ago I was on a quest to put together a new 2 channel rig. I started out 25+ years ago in 2 channel right out of college and had some good advice from some local B&M's. Having been a benefactor of sound advice early on has helped me put together a decent 2 channel set up again.

I had stumbled upon the Salk website many times but really felt I could not afford them, nor did I want to try a speaker I could not audition first (so I thought). So I stayed on track for the B&M offerings. We can all save money by buying demo and used gear, so I began to listen in earnest to demo/used B&W 802D's, Wilson Sophia I's and II's, and other top name speakers.

Shortening up the story here, I was coerced into contacting Jim and visited his home to audition a demo pair of HT3's. I knew immediately that I wanted a pair for several reasons:

+ They had imaging to die for
+ They were the fastest, cleanest sounding speakers I had demo'd with no inkling I would fatigue. (and that will never happen)
+ Bass was deep and fast
+ Highs to die for but very clear (not something I could say about the Wilsons IMO)
+ Cabinets that were gorgeous with "custom" options to personalize your pair
+ Value - this was the biggie for me. Even the pair of used Sophias I was considering at half the price of a new pair just did not have the overall presentation of the HT3. And for the same amount of money out of pocket I was able to afford a pair of speakers that were well beyond their price point. I felt guilty (for a little while anyways) about getting them quick before the price went up to $10k (which I feel they are worth). (still not $10k, better get yours!)

So now I am out of the closet as a Salk fanboy, but I feel like I can kick it around with the $20k guys when it comes to quality of sound. And I did it for way less than they typically spend. Almost makes me feel like a savvy shopper because I accomplished on a budget in my entire system what they might spend on one component. Don't get me wrong, most high end speaker offerings are all great products, but if you are on a budget, value speaks volumes. Aren't we all after the Holy Grail - excellent sound reproduction for as little money as we can outlay?

I am now in the process of moving to Salk V3's in my HT. You want to talk about value, the V3 is incredible. Scary imaging and clarity for a $4k speaker. I'm hooked now. I like the HT3's so much I just had to have more Salk speakers in my house!

While only an hour from Jim's, I still am willing to demo the HT3's to anyone who wants to make the trip. Soon I will have my own pair of V3's in the HT as well and a new center channel speaker still in the noodling stages that should work for both the V3 and the HT3 line.

End of soapbox!

Great stuff here......