The Official Energy Speakers Thread

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by Miker107

Actually, Steve, you did and excellent job at describing the sound. As I waited for them to come in I kept trying to imagine in my mind how they would sound, and sure enough they sound exactly as I thought they would according to your accurate description. It's kind of hard to explain without having heard them for yourself, but I went ahead and bought them based on your description. I just had a feeling I would like the sound and it just worked out. So thank you!

Mike Steve knows what he's talking about when it comes to Energy speakers and he sure knows how to describe the sound.

Honestly I think he will agree that the new line of Conoisseur is probably even more linear than the RC and his 2 Way C-300. At least this is what I felt.

Mids are very smooth with the RC-series so are the highs but man I love that sound that comes out of the RC it's almost like a Totem speaker

Steve mentionned he was at 75 to 80% of the sound quality of a Totem or Dynaudio speaker as of were a RC would probably be closer to 85-90%.

The uniqueness of the Dynaudio and Totem put them in a different category of speaker but the RC line right now at the price they go for is an absolute steal. 600$ for a pair of RC-30 is absolutely one of the best value I have ever seen.

[patwrightjr]

ok folks, got my rc-10's in from fedex...great packaging, like an early christmas. Nice looking speaker, a little smaller than i expected but the quality is surely there. love the gold double posts on this rig and those magnetic covers are sweet. Hooked them up to the Harmon AVR 354 along as fronts and kept the rest of my BIC's DV62sib's in their same positions. Very pleasant and clear sounding with a noticeably crisper soundstage, though they lack the bass and kick of my larger BIC's bookshelfs....i fiqure it needs to "break in" a bit for the woofer to loosen up, but right out of the box i love the added detail...

[patwrightjr]

been playing them in stereo mode to help breakem in at a moderate volume, any recomendations?

[callas01]

Originally Posted by patwrightjr

ok folks, got my rc-10's in from fedex...great packaging, like an early christmas. Nice looking speaker, a little smaller than i expected but the quality is surely there. love the gold double posts on this rig and those magnetic covers are sweet. Hooked them up to the Harmon AVR 354 along as fronts and kept the rest of my BIC's DV62sib's in their same positions. Very pleasant and clear sounding with a noticeably crisper soundstage, though they lack the bass and kick of my larger BIC's bookshelfs....i fiqure it needs to "break in" a bit for the woofer to loosen up, but right out of the box i love the added detail...

As I told Miker, the sound of Energy speakers is balanced and linear. Linear means that there will be no one area of sound, highs, mids, or lows will be more pronounced then anyother. Bass will be there, but they will not have the hit you in the chest with bass effect. They will have a very good and accurate detail, smooth highs, and will be pretty coherent speakers.

Don't expect the bass to be super deep. It just isn't going to be that. It will be tight and controlled and punchy, but not super deep.

Break in will be just what your doing, play a variety of music that provides a wide range of frequencies. The woofers will loosen up and provide more bass and improved speed of the drivers which will increase their speed and accuracy. If you do it for several hours a day, and on the weekends, you should have them broke in within 2-3 weeks.

[callas01]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

Mike Steve knows what he's talking about when it comes to Energy speakers and he sure knows how to describe the sound.

Honestly I think he will agree that the new line of Conoisseur is probably even more linear than the RC and his 2 Way C-300. At least this is what I felt.

Mids are very smooth with the RC-series so are the highs but man I love that sound that comes out of the RC it's almost like a Totem speaker

Steve mentionned he was at 75 to 80% of the sound quality of a Totem or Dynaudio speaker as of were a RC would probably be closer to 85-90%.

The uniqueness of the Dynaudio and Totem put them in a different category of speaker but the RC line right now at the price they go for is an absolute steal. 600$ for a pair of RC-30 is absolutely one of the best value I have ever seen.

I would expect that the RC series would still be more linear then the new Connoisuers, and I say that because the RC series is probably using overall better components and design process that add to the dynamics but maintain their linearity. For instance, take the Dynaudio Excites, they have very good bass, but they are very linear speakers, they are not as dynamic as the Totems, but the Totems are not very linear speakers, at least not the ones I have heard.

As far as compared to the C-300s v the CF-70s that would be tough to determine without them being right next to each other. The 70s are a tapered 3-way design and so they sound like they have much better bass, but at the same time, the bass isn't overly thumping, but its got good slam for a linear speaker. Again, the Totems have more bass, and dynamics, again why I say the Totems are not very linear at all.

[Miker107]

Originally Posted by patwrightjr

been playing them in stereo mode to help breakem in at a moderate volume, any recomendations?

Congrats patwrightjr, I played a lot of classical in the beginning and worked around to some jazz. It gave them a nice workout without pushing them too much I think. By the end of the 100 hrs you should notice they will sound even better.
As Steve mentioned, you wont feel that kick in the chest feeling from a bass drum in a drum kit, but I find a stand up bass in jazz, or low tones in a classical musical score in a movie for example comes through quite nicely. I watched Saving Private Ryan again this morning without a sub, and I found the rumbling of an engine or the low end in the musical score for example to come through very well. Don't get me wrong, you still need a sub of course, but I am continuously impressed how low they can get. But, as Steve said, the bass doesn't overpower the mids and highs. It's just a nice balance across all the frequencies. Hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

[Jwilly019]

Hey Steve I was wondering if you've had a chance to listen Vienna Acoustics before and if so, what do you think of them?

Justin

[callas01]

Originally Posted by Jwilly019

Hey Steve I was wondering if you've had a chance to listen Vienna Acoustics before and if so, what do you think of them?

Justin

I have and to me they are a bit to airy for my tastes, there is not enough meat to them. I think they are overhyped speakers to be honest. Heck the Best Buy Magnolia guy admitted that he thought they were overhyped and overpriced.

[Jwilly019]

Originally Posted by callas01

I have and to me they are a bit to airy for my tastes, there is not enough meat to them. I think they are overhyped speakers to be honest. Heck the Best Buy Magnolia guy admitted that he thought they were overhyped and overpriced.

Interesting. I listened to the Haydn Grand for a while today and other than lacking a little in the bass department, I thought they were just a touch better than the RC-10s. Not $900 MSRP better mind you, but slightly more so.

Justin

[callas01]

Originally Posted by Jwilly019

Interesting. I listened to the Haydn Grand for a while today and other than lacking a little in the bass department, I thought they were just a touch better than the RC-10s. Not $900 MSRP better mind you, but slightly more so.

Justin

OK, but Justin I will show you that the Dynaudio Excites and the Totem Rainmakers are $500-900 MSRP better.... Viennas just don't do anything for me. I have heard the Mozarts and the Bachs.... thats all. For $2k, I would take the Dyn Excites X16s $1600 and the Totem Sttafs $1850 over the Viennas ANY DAY.

[Jwilly019]

Originally Posted by callas01

OK, but Justin I will show you that the Dynaudio Excites and the Totem Rainmakers are $500-900 MSRP better.... Viennas just don't do anything for me. I have heard the Mozarts and the Bachs.... thats all. For $2k, I would take the Dyn Excites X16s $1600 and the Totem Sttafs $1850 over the Viennas ANY DAY.

I wasn't trying to call you out, everyone's ears are different. Having not had the opportunity to listen to Dynaudio or Totem before, I can't comment on any advantage they may have compared with Vienna or Energy.

That being said, I believe you mentioned Totem speakers are not as linear as Energy (or Vienna from what I've read), and I've come to enjoy the sound a linear speaker produces.

Justin

[Adam.C]

Still love my Energies Just wish I could get a nice Emo amp to help them a little. But it looks like it will be a TV upgrade first

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by Jwilly019

I wasn't trying to call you out, everyone's ears are different. Having not had the opportunity to listen to Dynaudio or Totem before, I can't comment on any advantage they may have compared with Vienna or Energy.

That being said, I believe you mentioned Totem speakers are not as linear as Energy (or Vienna from what I've read), and I've come to enjoy the sound a linear speaker produces.

Justin

Hehe I too love a linear speaker but the Totems and Dyns just have that something I don't quite know how to say that, Extreme detailing and really strong cabinet construction and a quality control beyond believable barriers that make them stand out it just works nice all together.

Really hard to decribe how good those speakers sound until your hear them. Sure people hear things differently but there is a little something when you listen to them that make you want to listen some more. You hear the quality of the sound rather than oh this it's bright neutral or warm and I think anyone can find their favorite sound troughout the line of Totems cause they sound diferent one another but still sound great.

Overall quality build makes those speakers sound fantastic for specific applications but the Sttaf from Totem is amazing with anything you throw at it and is neutral- warm sounding.

Olivier

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by Adam.C

Still love my Energies Just wish I could get a nice Emo amp to help them a little. But it looks like it will be a TV upgrade first

I understand why you love em so much what's not to like about thise soeaker ther is better sure but Price performance ratio is one of the best out there.

[Adam.C]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

I understand why you love em so much what's not to like about thise soeaker ther is better sure but Price performance ratio is one of the best out there.

yea man so true. Of course id love to move to a speaker of a Paradigm quality, but I think it be smarter to get a better display and get the pre/pro amp situation first.

[Jwilly019]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

Hehe I too love a linear speaker but the Totems and Dyns just have that something I don't quite know how to say that, Extreme detailing and really strong cabinet construction and a quality control beyond believable barriers that make them stand out it just works nice all together.

Really hard to decribe how good those speakers sound until your hear them. Sure people hear things differently but there is a little something when you listen to them that make you want to listen some more. You hear the quality of the sound rather than oh this it's bright neutral or warm and I think anyone can find their favorite sound troughout the line of Totems cause they sound diferent one another but still sound great.

Overall quality build makes those speakers sound fantastic for specific applications but the Sttaf from Totem is amazing with anything you throw at it and is neutral- warm sounding.

Olivier

There is a Totem dealer here in town that will be my next stop on the auditioning tour. The nearest Dynaudio dealer would be a 3 hour round trip, so I probably won't be going that way anytime soon. I may just plan a weekend trip to Chicago and see Rhett's dealer while I'm there.

Justin

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by Adam.C

yea man so true. Of course id love to move to a speaker of a Paradigm quality, but I think it be smarter to get a better display and get the pre/pro amp situation first.

Altho Paradigm are abolutely amazing speakers when comparing apples to apples Energy VS Paradigm I can tell ya it's a matter of taste.

You can very well compare the Connoiseur to the Monitor, RC to the Studios and the old Veritas to the Signature although the Sigs can fill a much larger room when you take the biggest speaker available in that line.

Honestly Paradigm is not necessarely better and I don't say that cause I own Energy or I like Energy better it's just a fact.

You could ask DLS here who owns Studios with a set of Energy RC-R as back surround and he thinks they are the best surrounds he owned so far.

Paradigm looks and sound spectacular indeed but seriously have you heard the RC-70 hooked up to some great gear?

That will not only hold it's own agaist the Studios 100 it will compete without a shame and they are in the same price range.

Me I would love to Own Totem Spekaers

[patwrightjr]

Originally Posted by callas01

As I told Miker, the sound of Energy speakers is balanced and linear. Linear means that there will be no one area of sound, highs, mids, or lows will be more pronounced then anyother. Bass will be there, but they will not have the hit you in the chest with bass effect. They will have a very good and accurate detail, smooth highs, and will be pretty coherent speakers.

Don't expect the bass to be super deep. It just isn't going to be that. It will be tight and controlled and punchy, but not super deep.

Break in will be just what your doing, play a variety of music that provides a wide range of frequencies. The woofers will loosen up and provide more bass and improved speed of the drivers which will increase their speed and accuracy. If you do it for several hours a day, and on the weekends, you should have them broke in within 2-3 weeks.

sounds like a plan thanks...and if you see any deals on that expensive center channel please let me know

[patwrightjr]

Originally Posted by Miker107

Congrats patwrightjr, I played a lot of classical in the beginning and worked around to some jazz. It gave them a nice workout without pushing them too much I think. By the end of the 100 hrs you should notice they will sound even better.
As Steve mentioned, you wont feel that kick in the chest feeling from a bass drum in a drum kit, but I find a stand up bass in jazz, or low tones in a classical musical score in a movie for example comes through quite nicely. I watched Saving Private Ryan again this morning without a sub, and I found the rumbling of an engine or the low end in the musical score for example to come through very well. Don't get me wrong, you still need a sub of course, but I am continuously impressed how low they can get. But, as Steve said, the bass doesn't overpower the mids and highs. It's just a nice balance across all the frequencies. Hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

right on man, these things do sound great....i'll let you know when a little bass starts to come around..

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by patwrightjr

right on man, these things do sound great....i'll let you know when a little bass starts to come around..

Once they are fully broken in you can crank the volume of that 354 up and you'll see how great they sound and that receiver is surely capable of giving them some lifelike performance.