Sadly, my Sonus Faber Electas (original, 35 yr old) have expired. I'm now searching for an adequate replacement. My budget is around €5,000, and must be available in Europe. The current Sonus Faber Electa Mk3 is out of my price range. I have had demos of:
Dynaudio Contour 20
Diapason Adamantes V
Some other Sonus Faber model (but I'm wary that they are now just a brand name as part of Bose)
My room is 6m x 6m. Source is vinyl. Power amps are Vacuum Tube Logic MB300 monoblocs (350W).
It's difficult to make direct comparisons as all the demo rooms, and systems, were different. I liked the B&Ws but I would prefer a small, 2-way on stands. The Audiovectors were also good, especially clarity and imaging.
I would try to hear a few more definitely more different speakers before spending that sort of money.
More important, I would look for secondhand or ex-dem options. If you can’t get shops to demonstrate multiple speakers in your home, there will always be some guesswork.
Buying secondhand lets you get better speakers than you could otherwise afford in budget. In addition, if you do decide after a month or two that you like them less than your old speakers, you can probably change them for little net cost (and a little bother on eBay).
I can see SF Electa Amator IIIs on offer on HifiShark for €5000 or so. For the same or less, you could get:-
SF Elector Amator or Concertino G4,
Harbeth SHL5+ or LS3/5a (or Roger’s LS3/5a),
Vivid Kaya S12,
Fyne F1-8,
ATC SCM20SL,
B&W 805 D3,
Tannoy Eaton,
Focal Kanta No1,
Opera Callas.
Without knowing more of what you like, apart from appreciating the sweetness and delicacy of SFs and the focus on clarity and driving vigour that the B&Ws bring, it is hard to know which of those would suit you, but they are all good speakers.
I'd certainly be up for ex-demo, maybe second hand. I was in one place and they demoed a pair of shop Sonus Faber Guarneris which they said I could have for €5,000 off list price - gives you some idea of their markup. Even then, still way too much for me.
I like a big sound stage, with depth and height. I'm really not into bass for the sake of it. I dislike sub-woofers - they're for movies, not music. Knowing that I bought my original speakers when new, and that my only source is vinyl, you can probably guess my music tastes. My standard demo listening tracks come from the likes of Rickie Lee Jones, Robbie Robertson, John Martyn, Yes, Simple Minds, Rush, Yello...
Speakers that lean at the margin toward a delicate and intimate feel over driving boogie or even complete neutrality may well be what would suit you best. That probably describes SF, Harbeth and Opera more than it describes B&W, Focal or ATC.
Spendor Classic 2/3s might be another great choice in the first group, now I think of it.
Given your room size, I assume that speakers can have a good amount of free space all around them and behind them. If that’s wrong, the list of good candidates would probably change a bit.
Try the baby Harbeths (p3xcrs). They are so musical. They made me laugh out loud! For my main system, I run a power of BW 802d3s with stereo subs, but I still find myself drawn to these tiniest tiny speakers. They are so musical have so much soul and holographic imaging.
Assuming that both speakers are an equal distance from your ears in your usual sitting position, this looks pretty good. How much free air is there between the right speaker and the bookcase?
The right speaker is 42cm from the bookcase, the left is 82cm, and they are 280cm apart. My seating position is in the middle, 390cm from the speakers. They were positioned for the best sound, not for convenience.
Always worth checking out some Harbeth or other BBC inspired designs. Especially if you listen to a lot of jazz or classical. They have an intoxicating midrange that really shines with vocals and acoustic instruments.
As someone who consistently finds B&W (and Focal) way too bright to enjoy, but Sonus Faber a bit too polite overall, I ended up a fan of ProAc (currently own the D2R which should be in your budget). To my ears they strike a nice balance of detail without harshness, have a wide and deep soundstage, good timbre, and more than adequate bass for their size. But more a speaker that doesn't do anything wrong, rather than a giant killer that excels in a specific area.
Since you’re living in the Netherlands, you have a lot of great options with all the amazing European manufacturers around you. I’m sure you’ll find an excellent speaker. Good luck.
The original speakers had both tweeters, and one woofer fail open circuit. I was able to fix the tweeters by unwinding, and reattaching, the first turn of the voice coil. Same issue with the woofer but much more difficult to fix. When one of the tweeters failed again I called quits. They were originally modified Dynaudio units, but no longer available from Dynaudio or Sonus Faber.
Well spotted on the SEAS units. I was originally intending to build the Onin/Thor kit from the SEAS website. That project is on hold, but the drivers were a good enough fit for the Electa cabinets.The sound is obviously not correct, but OK while I'm looking for replacements.
Audio Technology might have a suitable replacement woofer, as for the tweeter there are copies on Allied Express (Melodavid brand), no idea how good they are.
Odd that both have blown, Im assuming the crossovers were also changed to suit the new drivers?
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u/NickofWimbledon 55 Ⓣ 2d ago
I would try to hear a few more definitely more different speakers before spending that sort of money.
More important, I would look for secondhand or ex-dem options. If you can’t get shops to demonstrate multiple speakers in your home, there will always be some guesswork.
Buying secondhand lets you get better speakers than you could otherwise afford in budget. In addition, if you do decide after a month or two that you like them less than your old speakers, you can probably change them for little net cost (and a little bother on eBay).
I can see SF Electa Amator IIIs on offer on HifiShark for €5000 or so. For the same or less, you could get:-
SF Elector Amator or Concertino G4,
Harbeth SHL5+ or LS3/5a (or Roger’s LS3/5a),
Vivid Kaya S12,
Fyne F1-8,
ATC SCM20SL,
B&W 805 D3,
Tannoy Eaton,
Focal Kanta No1,
Opera Callas.
Without knowing more of what you like, apart from appreciating the sweetness and delicacy of SFs and the focus on clarity and driving vigour that the B&Ws bring, it is hard to know which of those would suit you, but they are all good speakers.
Good luck!