ProAc Studio 150 Floorstanding Speakers

ProAc Studio 150 Floorstanding Speakers 

DESCRIPTION

floorstanders

USER REVIEWS

Showing 11-17 of 17  
[Nov 28, 2001]
Pete
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

bass performance on the nose
the best treble and mid heard from speakers in this price range, they make excellent home cinema speakers creating a big sound stage, 5 star quality, I would have paid full price for these babies.

Weakness:

placement can be fussy, avoid too close to corners or back walls, bass becomes overbloated, other than that nothing i ve found so far

Provided you are using qualityish electonics around $1,300 -$2,000 which output a natural sound signature and decent bi-amp cables, you won't hear much better unless you outlay a lot more money.
I use Shearne anniversary phase 2 & 3 amps ($1300 ea)
Shearne anniversary tweeked cd phase 7 ($1800)
Nordost Red dawn interconnects & spk cable bi-amped ($1500)
(used castle avons previously) not recommended, stange unnatural sounding speakers.

Similar Products Used:

I tested all these before making my purchase.
cyrus sl, atc, castle howard, cura, B & W nothing came close.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Jan 19, 1999]
Dave Beaumont
an Audio Enthusiast

Speakers are fast accurate and crisp. With their 5" drivers bass is a little lean but acceptable. Unfortunately big operatic style voices and big orchestrations (Wagner etc.) are poorly served by these floorstanders; for the money they are close to dreadfull. Cabinet finish(mine mahogany)is good. Using Rotel RSP980 processor and RB985 amp. to drive them.

OVERALL
RATING
2
VALUE
RATING
[Jan 22, 1999]
mike
an Audio Enthusiast

Anyone who faults these speakers for anything other than a bass that has trouble filling some larger rooms is smoking dope. I auditioned these and a number of other $2,000-$3,300 speakers recently (these speakers are at the bottom of that price range) and heard nothing that compares to the vivid and lifelike reproduction of music as diverse as jazz, classical, opera and rock. On the rock front, I understand the disappointment of those who crave subwoofer-like performance from their speakers. . . and quite honestly, it took me about a week of tweeking my speaker placement and proper adjustment of the bass and treble controls on my Nakamichi AV-10 receiver to achieve a sound that was similar to my breathtaking audition of these speakers in the acoustically-near-perfect soundroom of Stereo Exchange in NYC. I also note for those of you who are tempted to write a review after auditioning a pair of Studio 150s relatively fresh from the box that they have a remarkable capacity to transform themselves after the first few weeks of use. The sound opens up and becomes more lifelike after each use. I haven't yet found a better speaker for the price.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
[Jan 23, 1999]
Omer Shibolet
an Audio Enthusiast

The Studio 150's are fast and accurate, with a great sense of being right at the performance. They're precise and so-very-detailed, but not too coldly-analytical. People coming to my place are quite amazed (or maybe "moved" is a better adjective here) - they're intimate and yet big sounding (and pretty too, but that's not a point here). What's important is they're equally adept in all genres - Everything from Brahms and Miles Davis to Pixies and Prodigy.
Two points however:

1. They need a looooooooooong break-in period. I'd say that even after six months they were getting better, getting opened up, with more tuneful bass and greater realism.

2. They don't like harsh sounding amps. I've tried them with Rotels 981 pre-power (this also relates to Dave's review below), and it wasn't acceptable. Flat and Harsh at the same time. Hearing them with several other amps (Naim Audio pre-power, SimAudio and Acurus integrateds, Crimson pre-power) proved their real capablities, doing well intimate stuff as well as "big" music, like large orchestras and operas, with real depth and sense of "being there". I'm currently running them with my old trusty Naim Audio Nait 2 integrated - it's only 20 watts, but I'd rather have few "quality" watts than the other options at the price - and they're driven surprisingly well.

cheers, Omer.






and has you in the bad sense.yet tuneful and not harsh.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
[Mar 31, 2001]
tanuj nakra
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

smooth character

Weakness:

bass extension only if you don't take the time to set them up right.

i have been incredibly happy with these speakers powered by an Arcam and Rega Planet. ProAc has the best tweeters in this price range- absolutely no listener fatigue. And the midrange is fabulous and musical and live. these speakers are placement-sensitive for the soundstage and bass accuracy/extension. take the time to break them in and experiment with placement.

Icing: They are so beautiful and well-built.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
4
[Mar 02, 2001]
Maurizio
Audiophile

Strength:

Soundstage, medium frequencies, dynamic, quality of materials

Weakness:

Requires quality amplifiers and recordings

My hardware is :Turntable Ariston RD40+Mayware+Linn K9 Pre Beard CA35 Amplifier Beard P35MKII Cables G&BL+Kimber.
The loudspeakers are very nice to see and listen to.
Very deep bass, using only 35+35 tube Watt (EL84),
very smooth medium and high. The soundstage is one
of the deepest i have ever heard. The vertical images is no as good as using panels (like Maggie) but better than majority of dynamic towers, better than B&W and Diapason
that i heard before Studio150.
The only thing you should consider, before using studio150,
is the quality of you materials: CD, amplifier and recording. You can immediately listen to the difference between a good disk and a bad one. Same is for CD player and amplifier. Increase the quality of your hardaware and you immediately listen to the difference.
Fantastic loudspeaker.

Similar Products Used:

Diapason Adamantes

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Sep 22, 1999]
TimB
an Audio Enthusiast

I have had these for 5 months now. They were bought as demo's, but given the comments on a long break-in period I thought I'd wait a bit to be sure. Obviuously I would not have purchased if not pleased with them. I was not able to actually audition them (bought from auction m.o.), but had heard the Tablette 2000 and Response 1SC and 2.5, and was ready to buy the Tablettes when I happened upon this auction and got them for about the same price. At that price, I'd give a 5 for value, but only a 3 at retail.
I have them in a fairly small room (12x14x8=1400cf or so)and listen at moderate levels for a forty-something (modest for a teen) to mostly jazz and acoustic or non-hard rock with considerable vocals. You're likely to find Earl Klugh, Indigo Girls, Bonnie Raitt, Chick Corea, Lee Ritenour, Kotoja, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Dan Fogelberg, Dave Mason, Dave Brubeck, Steely Dan, and assorted eclectic artists in my CD or on my table any given time. I use these for HT as well, perhaps 30% of my time and 70% of my wife's time.

I'm driving with a modest Yamaha receiver (70wpc) (soon to be replaced I hope), and using my DVD and onboard DACS or an old Pioneer table with Grado cartridge, Monster interconnects, and generic 12 ga. speaker cable with RatShack banana plugs.

Now, for the review...(anyone remember Edith from All In The Family?)... for my music in my environment these are a very good match. Clarity and realism of vocals and acoustic instruments are superb, soundstage broad and deep (given limitations of room and source/amplification). As for bass, I have gladly sacrificed some extension for extreme articulation , response, and "musicality" - but even the extension is quite remarkable for the size of the drivers. I have heard the Studio 125's ("replacement" for the 150's - if you're in the market, they sound very good , but not as good as the 150's) driven by better electronics in a harsher environment actually sound better, so I'm looking forward to an electronics upgrade (more than I can say for my wife ;-).

I listened to B&W 602(couldn't hear CDM1 or CDM7), NHT S1, VT-1, VT-2, 2.5i; Paradigm Ref20,Mon9, Ref 60; Energy eXL26, and others (I know...a pretty eclectic bunch) - at my purchase price nothing touches these...at retail I still like these in absolute sound, but perhaps not value (but I'd say the Tablette 2000 give everything a value-based run for their money). Certainly several of these others mentioned offer some strengths and perhaps advantages, but overall, for my tastes, I'm glad I have the ProAc's.

Occasionally I wish for a little more bass extension (I eavesdropped on a B&W Nautilus 803 audition last week with a puny Arcam 9 integrated, and they sounded significantly better, but are they worth the $?). I plan to satisfy this with a DIY sub or a Vandersteen 2Wq, then I'll be finished...yeah, right ;-)

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
Showing 11-17 of 17  

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