From: jeh@cmkrnl.com
Newsgroups: rec.audio
Subject: Re: Advice on bookshelf speakers
Date: 21 Jan 93 23:34:10 PST
Organization: Kernel Mode Systems, San Diego, CA

In article <1993Jan21.145404.16320@news.nd.edu>, mike@nowaksg.chem.nd.edu (Michael George Buening) writes:
> In article <1993Jan20.225752.4956@news.acns.nwu.edu> interpol@casbah.acns.nwu.edu (Drew Cheng) writes:
>>In article <0fLQQQm00iUy45YXB7@andrew.cmu.edu> Martin David Frankel <mf3s+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes:
>>>I am looking for a small and relatively inexpensive bookshelf speaker in the
> [deletion alert!]
>>Take a look at the PSB Alpha bookshelf speakers.  Good price at $299/pair, and
>>they sound great.
>>
> 
> Is it just me or just South Bend or what?  $299/pr for PSB Alpha is not that
> good of a deal 

I don't know where the $299/pair price came from, list is $199, and don't 
expect discounts. 

> and I can't stand the sound.  A friend was looking at bookshelf
> speakers recently and the salesman would not stop pushing those damn PSB Alpha's
> They were about $200/pr and when I listened to them compared to Polk Monitor 4
> I was totally unimpressed.  

How were they set up?  They're made to go on bookshelves (unlike most small
speakers designed for sales in high-end stores). 

> My friend bought the Polk's.  I also compared them
> to the Pinnacles (I don't know the model but they are small) and the Pinnacles
> sounded better than the Alpha's also but I liked the Polk's more than the Pin's
> anyway.  

Can you describe what you did and didn't like about the PSB Alphas, Polks,
and the Pinnacles?

> Is this PSB Alpha that I keep hearing about on the net and I read
> something about it in a rag, really so good?  (I know, personal perference
> and all that)  

Well, I like the ones I have in the office... I think they have a very natural
midrange, some raggedness in the highs, and a very convincing imitation of a
low end (which is all I expect in this size and price).  

They also throw an image which is simply amazing given how they're placed in my
office.  

The only comparable speakers I compared them to directly were a pair of
Celestions.  About $270/pair, pretty much the same size.  I thought the 
Celestions were too laid-back in the upper mids... a mild lack of what used to 
be called "presence".  (Some receivers in the '70s actually had a tone control
labelled "presence" that affected this range...)  

> Is it just so new to this poor (I mean terrible) market that 
> they have lowered the price to get them out?  

No, $200 is the standard price.

> (They supposedly did that with
> some Luxman equipment in South Bend and it still didn't catch on)  I don't
> know but I thought the sound was far too bright and harsh.  Just MHO and
> nothing more.
> 
> Mike

And MHO.  

I think that the "bottom line" here is that in this price range *every* speaker
system has to make a lot of compromises.  You have to pick which set of
compromises you like best (or, to put it another way, which set you dislike
the least). 

Thank Ghu there are choices in the market, eh?

	--- Jamie Hanrahan, Kernel Mode Systems, San Diego CA
Internet:  jeh@cmkrnl.com, or hanrahan@eisner.decus.org  Uucp: uunet!cmkrnl!jeh