Before I get started, since this is a very brand-specific post, I have this disclaimer:
I have no affiliation with PSB Loudspeakers in any way, not in their production or sales. PSB doesn't know me from Adam, and I'm not in line for any kind of remuneration for speaking favorably of their products. I've
heard
PSB loudspeakers and have been very impressed, but that's it. I don't even own any. My only affiliation with Audio Advisor is as a repeatedly satisfied customer.
I like Canadian loudspeakers--Mirage (of which I own many), Totem Acoustic, Energy, Athena, Paradigm, and PSB. They use the same national research facility in Canada and generally build to a similar design philosophy, resulting in a smooth gap-free frequency response and optimum dispersion pattern.
But PSB Speakers is doing something special. A double dose of confirmation arrived this Fall in The Absolute Sound's (TAS) Editor's Choice issue and Stereophile's October Recommended Components issue. Both of these are high end audio magazines, generally are not swayed by advertising budgets, and are accustomed to living with and reviewing cost-no-object state-of-the-art audio gear. When they like something that's affordable to the rest of us, it usually has something special going on.
The TAS Editor's Choice issue divides a component category into several price brackets, and names their favorite components in each price range. Stereophile publishes their Recommended Components issues twice per year where they rate components as performance classes A, B, C, D, and E. In loudspeakers, Stereophile further delineates Class A and Class B into Full Range and Limited low-frequency categories. These are for speakers that are some of the best at any price, but can't reach linearly to 20 Hz. Many of them have great bass extension down to 32 Hz which is plenty for most applications, but still not enough to get a "Full Range" rating.
When perusing TAS Editor's Choice, I noticed that no fewer than 6 PSB loudspeakers (from 4 of their product lines--Alpha, Image, Imagine, and Synchrony) made their Editor's Choice list. No other manufacturer had anywhere near this many Editor's Choices:
Under $500: PSB Alpha B1 bookshelf spkr, $279/pr.
$500-1000: PSB Image T45 and Image T55 at $799 and $949/pr respectively
$1000-1500: PSB Imagine B Bookshelf spkr, $1000/pr
$1500-2000: PSB Synchrony 2B Bookshelf spkr, $1500/pr AND
PSB Imagine T, the floorstanding big brother of the Imagine B, $2000/pr
$3000-5000: PSB Synchrony Two floorstanding loudspeaker, $3000/pr
In the Stereophile Recommended Components issue, PSB was cited four times:
Class A Restricted Extreme LF: PSB Synchrony One, $5000/pr. This is a model up from the Synchrony Two. Stereophile's Class A Restricted Extreme LF is mostly populated by speakers that come in around $16,000/pr. It was also a runner-up for Stereophile's Product of the Year and Loudspeaker of the Year in 2008. For being "Restricted Extreme LF" they do pretty well--bass was -8dB at 20Hz or -5dB @30Hz depending on which measured response curve you look at. That's very deep bass for most of us.
Class B Full Range: PSB Imagine T, $2000/pr. There are a few ~$2K speakers in this category, but most are in the $6K-10K range.
Class C Restricted LF: PSB Imagine B, $1000/pr
Class D: PSB Alpha B1, $279/pr (PSB has owned this category--entry-level bookshelf--for years)
In addition to all these, there are other reviews I've read that made my jaw drop, including the humble PSB Image B25 bookshelf speaker, which had one of the most linear response curves I've seen at any price:
And when you move up to the Imagine B, you get:
One of the things that make the PSBs so great is their sense of balance. They manage to give you all the heft, bass excursion, and dynamics you could hope for from a given enclosure size, while giving you clarity, transparency, nuance, and detail without beating you over the head with it. You want something that rocks out but can deliver a great acoustic set from James Taylor, big band, a jazz quartet, a string quartet, or a symphonic orchestra? PSB will give it to you without unwarranted boom, fog, nasality, or any of the other annoying colorations we often find ourselves listening through.
If you've followed the link to PSB Speakers, you'll notice that PSB is has just released a re-tooled version of their Image line with improvements incorporated from their Synchrony line. That also means that the current Image line is on closeout. You may find them out on eBay or Vann's; I haven't checked yet. But Audio Advisor, who's an authorized dealer with 30-day approval period, is blowing out the black ones at 37.5% off here. Be careful on the pricing: some are listed per pair and others singly, and that list also has the new models (e.g., B5, B6) which aren't discounted. You can get those very linear B25s for $300/pr and the behemoth (check the measurements before you buy) $1200 T65s for $775/pr. The Absolute Sound-recommended T45 floorstanders come in at a mere $500/pr and make realistic bass down to at least 35 Hz.
You can read reprints of the four Stereophile reviews here and the B25 here. Unfortunately the TAS reviews are much more elusive online, but I think you know where they stand.
Question
JohnnyB
Before I get started, since this is a very brand-specific post, I have this disclaimer:
I like Canadian loudspeakers--Mirage (of which I own many), Totem Acoustic, Energy, Athena, Paradigm, and PSB. They use the same national research facility in Canada and generally build to a similar design philosophy, resulting in a smooth gap-free frequency response and optimum dispersion pattern.
But PSB Speakers is doing something special. A double dose of confirmation arrived this Fall in The Absolute Sound's (TAS) Editor's Choice issue and Stereophile's October Recommended Components issue. Both of these are high end audio magazines, generally are not swayed by advertising budgets, and are accustomed to living with and reviewing cost-no-object state-of-the-art audio gear. When they like something that's affordable to the rest of us, it usually has something special going on.
The TAS Editor's Choice issue divides a component category into several price brackets, and names their favorite components in each price range. Stereophile publishes their Recommended Components issues twice per year where they rate components as performance classes A, B, C, D, and E. In loudspeakers, Stereophile further delineates Class A and Class B into Full Range and Limited low-frequency categories. These are for speakers that are some of the best at any price, but can't reach linearly to 20 Hz. Many of them have great bass extension down to 32 Hz which is plenty for most applications, but still not enough to get a "Full Range" rating.
When perusing TAS Editor's Choice, I noticed that no fewer than 6 PSB loudspeakers (from 4 of their product lines--Alpha, Image, Imagine, and Synchrony) made their Editor's Choice list. No other manufacturer had anywhere near this many Editor's Choices:
In the Stereophile Recommended Components issue, PSB was cited four times:
In addition to all these, there are other reviews I've read that made my jaw drop, including the humble PSB Image B25 bookshelf speaker, which had one of the most linear response curves I've seen at any price:
And when you move up to the Imagine B, you get:
One of the things that make the PSBs so great is their sense of balance. They manage to give you all the heft, bass excursion, and dynamics you could hope for from a given enclosure size, while giving you clarity, transparency, nuance, and detail without beating you over the head with it. You want something that rocks out but can deliver a great acoustic set from James Taylor, big band, a jazz quartet, a string quartet, or a symphonic orchestra? PSB will give it to you without unwarranted boom, fog, nasality, or any of the other annoying colorations we often find ourselves listening through.
If you've followed the link to PSB Speakers, you'll notice that PSB is has just released a re-tooled version of their Image line with improvements incorporated from their Synchrony line. That also means that the current Image line is on closeout. You may find them out on eBay or Vann's; I haven't checked yet. But Audio Advisor, who's an authorized dealer with 30-day approval period, is blowing out the black ones at 37.5% off here. Be careful on the pricing: some are listed per pair and others singly, and that list also has the new models (e.g., B5, B6) which aren't discounted. You can get those very linear B25s for $300/pr and the behemoth (check the measurements before you buy) $1200 T65s for $775/pr. The Absolute Sound-recommended T45 floorstanders come in at a mere $500/pr and make realistic bass down to at least 35 Hz.
You can read reprints of the four Stereophile reviews here and the B25 here. Unfortunately the TAS reviews are much more elusive online, but I think you know where they stand.
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