From: paul@gaitlab1.uwaterloo.ca (paul j guy)
Subject: Re: PSB Stratus Gold/MAS Revelation OPINIONS SOUGHT
Organization: University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1992 17:03:48 GMT

In article <16sgl4INNd4t@agate.berkeley.edu> henken@ocf.berkeley.edu (Matthew J. Henken) writes:
>Hi!  I have two questions about two different types of speakers.
>
>First, looking through Stereophile's Recommended Components list from April,
>I noticed that there was a speaker in the Class-B list which had a price
>way out of line with the rest of the list ($2000/pair).  That was the PSB
>Stratus Gold.  I'm curious what experience/knowledge any of you have with/
>about them.  I am having some difficulty locating a dealer near me, and so
>in the meantime I'm looking for opinions.
.......and some stuff about another kind of speaker.....

	I bought a pair of these 6 months ago, after shopping around
for a few months. Now my tastes in speakers aren't likely to be 
everyone's cup of tea, but you might get an idea from my 'finalists'.
They were (in no particular order) KEF104,Celestion 600,Linn Helix,
Totem (from Quebec), Clements RT7, and the Stratus Golds. I listened to,
and didn't like any of the VanderSteens,Tannoys. There were about 10-20
others that were so-so. I eliminated the Clements because of its
directionality (it's a very good ribbon), the Celestion for its lack
of base and warmth, the Helix for its accentuated mids. The KEF got 
out since the store ran out of them, and the Totem lost out after
the salesman got ticked off the second time I came back to listen.
(I can understand that, but I think HIGH END stores have to maintain
the patience of Job in order to sell some of the ridiculous items
they stock).
	In terms of sound, the Stratus Gold and the KEF's seemed
reasonably close, although the comparison was in different show rooms
and several weeks apart. I used chamber music on cd's to audition the
speakers, since that music is the bulk of my listening. The 
Stratus Gold's did the best job of resolving the individual instruments,
and still keep a believable overall warmth and sound texture.
They have a superb range of directionality, if you can tolerate the
loss of sound stage as you move way off to the sides. The treble
is very smooth, a bit elevated in balance to my tastes. I hear no
'stridency' at all, even when I get real close to the speakers. I
have a passive preamp with shelving control (Horrors!) to tame the
brightness on the speakers and (mostly) the cd's. Bass goes very
low (around 25-30Hz) and I couldn't comment about the 'speed' of it,
since I don't know how the particular instruments sounded in the
recording sessions. My test for mid-range is to see how long I can
listen before I get a headache, or get sick of listening, at all 
reasonable levels. This speaker passed!
	My current setup (while it lasts) is a NAD 5100 cd player
(tweaked audio output as per 'Audio Amateur'), a passive preamp with
minimal shelving control of the treble, a Linn LK100 power amp,
with major electronic modifications.
	The speakers are heavy! about 90 lbs each. Their footprint is
about 1ft x 1ft, they have an oak finish all around except for black
grills, and should get Spouse Approval.

	-Paul
 

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