Surrounds For Electrostats

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thresholdman

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I'd like some guidance on selecting a set of surrounds for my 5.1 system.
I'm using SL3' for the mains and a Theatre i for the center. I was thinking about a set of Fresco's for surrounds. However, I'm not sure if I will get any benefit form matching the ATF transducers with the other speakers. Any suggestions?
 
thresholdman said:
I'd like some guidance on selecting a set of surrounds for my 5.1 system. I'm using SL3' for the mains and a Theatre i for the center. I was thinking about a set of Fresco's for surrounds. However, I'm not sure if I will get any benefit form matching the ATF transducers with the other speakers. Any suggestions?

Make sure to listen to the ATF's like the Fresco before purchasing. You may or may not like what you hear as we all have our tastes and preferences.

I was thinking about buying a Fresco for a Center Channel but I did not like what I heard for the price I would have to pay. IMHO, you could pick up another pair of SL3's or even a pair of Sequel II's for less than the price of a pair of Fresco's for surrounds.

Dan
 
I listened to a 5.1 system at Magnolia that used ML Claritys at fronts, Cinema i as center and Frescos as rears. They matched WONDERFULLY.

For anyone with Logans who demands matching sound for the rears and doesn't want to or can't do the Scripts, the Frescos are the way to go, IMHO.

At 1K a pop, they're pretty expensive however and not readily available on the used market, whereas Scripts can be found used a little easier and for much less.

Good luck!

Tom.
 
TomDac said:
At 1K a pop, they're pretty expensive .......

That was my main problem with them, not the sound quality. I thought for their performance they are overpriced. Just my opinion.....

Dan
 
Before I picked up my quests and moved my arias i's for my rears I was using the B&W 602 for my rears and they matched pretty well especially for the money 550-600.
 
Full Sized Surrounds

I think a lot depends upon the room size and WAF factor.

I just picked up a flawless set of Aerius i's surround rears to match my Aeon i fronts in my dedicated HT ($1,250 for the pair). I have really enjoyed the full speaker power in the rears, providing the 8" woofer, full ELS, etc. Adds an additional flavor in full 4 speaker stereo and blends obviously well.

I alos found the full-sized rears shine in HT, especially with the newer Dolby PL IIx, Neo, 7.1 Matrix, and other latest blending deliveries if your application can support them.
 
LaserMark4 said:
I think a lot depends upon the room size and WAF factor.

Very good point. Where smaller speakers like Fresco and other ML models might make more sense

I just picked up a flawless set of Aerius i's surround rears to match my Aeon i fronts in my dedicated HT ($1,250 for the pair). I have really enjoyed the full speaker power in the rears, providing the 8" woofer, full ELS, etc. Adds an additional flavor in full 4 speaker stereo and blends obviously well.

And you saved $750 over something like the Fresco to spend on more music, more movies, more equipment, etc. Again, I am not saying the Fresco is a bad speaker - not one bit. But I truely believe you can pickup something in the ML line, like the Aerius, for a good price used and get more performance and save some bucks for other purchases. But the point above about the room size, WAF, and other items, may make purchasing some larger sized speakers not possible.

I alos found the full-sized rears shine in HT, especially with the newer Dolby PL IIx, Neo, 7.1 Matrix, and other latest blending deliveries if your application can support them.

Yes, the Full-Sized and Full-range speakers really do make a BIG difference in HT playback and it also helps with the MCH Music playback - presence, power, etc. I have experienced this first hand with smaller speakers for the rear surrounds before I bought my CLSIIz's and used my Sequel II's for the rear surrounds. I did not realize what I was missing until I made the change. It was a very significant change...

Thresholdman.....Just more things to think about with your purchase :) You cannot go wrong with any of the recommendations made here, but you and your likings, budget, WAF, will make the final decision for you.

Dan
 
I ended up buying the Fresco's. I purchased one used and one new. I have a sever space constarint and the Fresco's fit perfectly.
 
Sounds great!!! Make sure to get back with us to let all of us know what you think of your new additions!!

Dan
 
Weird match, I know, but I have Aeon I's in the front, and some KRK's in the rear on tall stands.

Looks really cool in my funky NYC loft. Dont know if it would work anywhere else though.

And it sounds good too.
 
I love the Fresco I have -- but I use it as a Center Channel, between my Mosaics. Since both use the ATF transducers, and the aluminum woofers, the sound blends seamlessly.

I use Sapphire Audio SBL Bookshelfs for my surrounds. They have 6" aluminum woofers and their midranges work well with the MLs.

HTH !!!


Neshamah (Steve)
 
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