Hifi Tips - How to select speakers

Comments · 323

• DA

  @damianzaninovich4900 · 6 years ago

  That was a well thought out explanation, better than any I’ve ever heard. I’m 58 and have been an audiophile on and off for 40 yrs. You are a great asset to this quest for good sound.

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• RA

  @ranelime · 6 years ago (edited)

  My personal recommendation is to get your expectations aligned with the amount of effort and money you are willing to invest. The first question would be, where do you want to place your system and in what manner will you use it. Will you be doing critical listening in a dedicated room, or will you play some music in the background in your living room as you do other stuff? Are you all about the quality or ease of use? Lastly, how &quot;perfectionist&quot; are you, are you a &quot;buy and forget&quot; person? If you are reading this, then you are probably not... answering this question might reevaluate your answer to the first one. The answers will of course will change over time as well as your needs, but it is important to answer them first so you won&apos;t be disappointed from your first gear.<br>Like others, I believe that room and placements are a huge factor, if not the most important one (by far). So the room and placement will probably be the result of the questions I&apos;ve mentioned above. Essentially, if you are not willing to place your system in a relatively symmetric room, with some distance from wall boundaries, aiming for equilateral triangle, then there will be a relatively low budget where you money will just goto waste.<br>Lastly, the room size does matter. I think bookshelves are great value, but they just won&apos;t cut it when it comes to big rooms. They will sound small compared to bigger cabinets, and small sound is really no fun, no matter what the volume is. Specs are important but a 40 litter floor stander will usually sound bigger than a 20 litter bookshelf who claims to go lower (for the same price).<br>Adding a subwoofer is always great. But if you are a beginner, do yourself a favour and select a floor-standing speaker for moderate to big rooms. It will take care of the synergy between the lows and the rest of the frequencies much easier than matching a sub to a bookshelf, as the crossover between them is usually more audible the higher the crossover is (and why not, they were not designed together).<br>On the same topic, the driver size also matter. A big woofer driver, or 2 small ones, will pressurise your room better than one small one. If we do want to get a bit more nerdy, I would also add that sensitivity of the speaker does matter, but what more important is the resistance rating and its spread across the spectrum.<br>If you buy a speaker with a 3 ohm dip, you better get an amplifier that is capable of that. That amplifier might affect your budgeting &nbsp;decisions. I believe this channel covers this topic perfectly in another video.<br>Lastly #2, take it easy, it won&apos;t sound like a live concert or like the way you know music back when you were 14. Enjoy what your system CAN do, as it is a world of compromises.

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• E.

  @e.kent.d9561 · 6 years ago

  This is a good example of why I enjoy your videos. I always learn even if I think I already know all about it.

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• JO

  @JoseMTamez · 5 years ago

  Another great video with some very good tips.

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• BI

  @bigblueocean · 6 years ago

  Great to see a British channel thriving in this space. I enjoy every episode. 👍

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• AN

  @andyg8054 · 6 years ago

  Great video Tarun, I always look forward to your posts. It’s all been trial and error for me over the last 30 years and I’ve made a few mistakes along the way as no doubt we all have. You’re doing those new to the community a great service and most likely saving them a few quid! 👍🏼

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• NI

  @NickP333 · 6 years ago (edited)

  Another excellent vid! All great points. Thanks, Tarun! 🎶👍🔊✌️<br>I auditioned close to 20 pairs of speakers ranging in price from $1K up to aprox $15 - $20K before hearing a pair of Tekton speakers at my buddy’s place, and I immediately knew it was the sound I’d been looking for regardless of price. Choosing the right speaker can be quite a daunting task.

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• MA

  @markphilpot4981 · 6 years ago

  I learned speaker placement from experimenting with it. It isn’t the same with any two pairs of speakers I have heard. It is more about patience in placement and using those tools we already have, your ears and your brain. Really good video Tarun. I am anxiously waiting for the next one.😊👍🏻

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• PB

  @pbode1 · 6 years ago

  Absorbsion: Everybody buy BIG teddy bears now!

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• PA

  @patthewoodboy · 4 years ago (edited)

  Most modern speaker from reputable manufacturers are very good , your room and how you place them makes the difference. You have it spot on 🙂

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• DO

  @douglasdorsey8842 · 5 years ago

  Thank you for a video that can help everyone! This is the valuable info that few talk about and something that is essential in getting good sound. Good sound is why we are here in this hobby.

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• CH

  @ChrisPapas100 · 5 years ago

  This would have to be one of the top two YouTube articles on hifi topics I have read in recent years. The other articles is his talk about speaker placement. Well done Tanun

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