Stand Loudspeaker Reviews

Four products were subjected to second opinions in recent issues: Herb Reichert reviewed the Mk.II version of Klipsch's Reference Premiere RP-600M loudspeaker (above left); Ken Micallef wrote about his time with the MoFi Electronics SourcePoint 10 loudspeaker (above right); John Atkinson lived with the CH Precision I1 Universal integrated amplifier (above); and Julie Mullins auditioned Triangle's Antal 40th Anniversary Edition loudspeaker (below).

"For its high level of transparency and vivid timbral colors, the Antal 40s have the spirit of a coral reef," wrote Robert Schryer in his original review, adding that "the Antal's paper midrange is a smashing success, well flanked by the performances of the speaker's high- and low-end drivers." Julie Mullins was equally impressed by this $4700/pair floorstander, concluding that the Antals' best features were presence and purity of tone. "Their timbre is true: I don't recall ever hearing an instrument sound timbrally off . . . Music seemed to emerge unadorned from these Triangle speakers."

In his March 2019 review of the original Klipsch RP-600M standmount, which cost just $549/pair, Herb Reichert used descriptors like "responsive," "boogie," and "high-vitality." He felt that the RP-600M achieved its high PRaT quotient "by slightly emphasizing the leading edges of notes, which in turn emphasized the beat and clarified the melody. The only sonic indications that I was listening through budget speakers were a moderate lack of soundstage width, some softness, and some light graininess and blurry focus in the crossover region." The new version costs $649/pair, and has a redesigned conical-tractrix high-frequency horn that HR felt was smoother and more refined, with less noise in the crossover region. He concluded that the Klipsch RP-600M II is already a classic, commenting that he sees it as today's version of his 1993 Acoustic Research M1 or maybe the Spica TC-50 that was popular in the mid-1980s. "In my system, it sounded exactly as romantic or resolving, as thrilling or dull, as the amp I chose to drive it with."

John Atkinson was impressed by MoFi's Andrew Jones-designed SourcePoint 10 ($3699/pair), summing up his experience of this standmount by writing "when you consider the clean, superbly well-defined low frequencies, the natural-sounding midrange, the high sensitivity, the easy-to-drive impedance, the ability to play loudly without strain, and the affordable price, the SourcePoint 10 gets a thumbs-up from this reviewer." Ken Micallef was floored by the SourcePoint 10's chameleonic ability to sound good, even great, with every amp I connected it . . . I found the 10's extended highs its crowning glory, superb with all the amplifiers I tried, from sweet and lush (Ella) to concise and fiery (Tony Williams)." He concluded that "the midrange was consistently transparent, and with sufficient juice, the low end was consistently deep, tight (to varying degrees), round, and fast."

Jason Victor Serinus reviewed the CH Precision I1 Universal solid state integrated amplifier, which costs $38,000–$53,000, depending on options, in February 2019. The 2023 firmware updated the time-domain-optimized "PEtER" spline-filter algorithms with fixed-point processing, made the D/A module fully MQA-compatible, and enabled the amplifier to support Roon's audio distribution technology (RAAT). JVS's verdict on the original version of the Swiss amplifier was that it was "one of the most complete, most neutral sounding, most carefully conceived components I've reviewed." My auditioning of the updated version echoed JVS's conclusion: "The I1 Universal marries a state-of-the-art, superb-sounding, solid state integrated amplifier with a superb-performing, streaming D/A processor."