Hi all,
I absolutely adore my 23’s but the mids can get a little fatiguing with some vocals. Has anyone changed to the newer twenty 5 23’s and if so is it a costly swap i dont need? Ive read many good reviews.
Not the i but regular Twent5.23 was a move I made from Twenty.23.
I think they present differently and respond to amps differently. The Twenty had a more laser focused and smoother soundstage. The Twenty were lovely and responded brilliantly to upgrades in electronics. I chose them after demoing with a Superuniti 2 but end up driving them with 282/SCdr/250.2.
In contrast, the Twenty5 are a bit more demanding. The top end is not as smooth but digs out more detail so they need a very good source. The soundstage is not as precise by a long way but what it lacks in laser focus it makes up for in sheer scale that seems to extend a meter wider than speaker placement.
They also react differently to the amp used. I felt the Twenty worked much better with non DR amps and Twenty5 absolutely needed the DR.
I’ve had the Twenty5 for 7 years now but could easily live with the Twenty. My personal opinion is your Twenty.23s have a lot more mileage to be had from better amplification and sources. I’d keep them.
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Fantastic reply. Many thanks.
Im sat here listening as we speak. I nodded off and awoke to Ray lamontagnes ‘the love is over’ and i have to say it surely couldn’t sound any better. It was adding the hi cap dr that made me feel the 23’s are the bottle neck.
Today all is sounding wonderful though.
Very strange that some days seem to sound better than others.
Anyhoo, thanks again and you may have just saved me a couple of grand and a divorce.
I had twenty.23 in the past and, yes, was aware of an upper-mid ‘thinness’ or ‘sharpness’. That was with a SN2.
I use the twenty.5 23i Active now. A whole new listening experience where the hi-fi just gets out of the way.
G
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Would going bigger in the original Tweny series, 24 etc be worth considering? Im aware the super nait has it power limitations of course.
I’m sorry, I’ve never heard the 24 variant.
G
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The 24 is exactly half as demanding as the 23, having 3dB more in sensitivity. Going bigger will ease the pressure on your amp.
Wow, i wouldnt have thought that. I have quite a big room to fill so thinking bigger might be better after all🤔. Have you indeed compared any of the twenty range side by side?
I’ve only compared the Twenty5 series. 21 and 23 are very focused and extremely fast but very timid in the lower register. 22 and 24 have a fuller, more forward presentation and are easier to drive.
Thanks for your imput Dan.
Was that the ‘i’ series? I’ve owned both 21i and 23i, the latter passive and now active. Two things I’d add; the room plays a huge part in how the speakers present the frequency spectrum and, your source and what they are driven by, again makes a big difference.
Going active (balanced) makes the biggest difference to the ‘presence of real musicians in front of you’ I’ve heard. Adding the NPX300 to the 300 gives the bass both greater presence and shape (control). Any more bass in my room would be too much.
So, as with most things in this game, it’s horses for courses, suck it and see and let your ears be your guide. More clichés are available, but I’ve run out.
Good luck.
G
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Always enjoy a clichés, just wish there were more bloody hifi shops around but it us what it is…
Hehe.
G
You are certainly whetting my appetite - I have to wait about five weeks before I find out what the active PMCs can do.
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Yep. That was what sold me on actives when I first demo’d active ATCs. And then there’s the new Focal Diva and the Kudos SIGAO …. actives are the future!
Roger
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Active with a Nova?
You are so right re room dynamics…I have had great speakers sound awful in my room!
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Maybe not, I suspect that it may be Atom HE into active 21i.
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Correct me if im wrong but dosnt going down the active root create a whole new conversation about lengthy interconnects? Resistance, material, shielding etc…
Not really. While there are lots of hugely expensive options out there, Mogami microphone cable does the job admirably, so I’m reliably informed. I’ve ordered two XLR cables and the cost is under £70.