Recently purchased PSB Goldi. I have listened extensively to, Thiel 2.3 and 3.6, Vandersteen 3A, Martin Logan SL3 and reQuest, Magnepan 3.6, Snell CV and Bminor also. I like all of these loudspeakers for various reasons, but I chose the Goldi. My analysis is as follows:
Speaker Pluses Minuses

Thiel 2.3 Imaging Limited loudness
Jump Factor Limited dynamic range
Some midrange roughness
on female voice
Narrow sweet spot,
especially vertical
Limited low bass response

Thiel 3.6 Same as 2.3 Some midrange roughness on female voice
Narrow sweet spot,
especially vertical
Minor loudness/dynamic
range limitations
Cost

Vandersteen 3A Imaging Narrow sweet spot, especially vertical
Accuracy of vocals No local dealer
Upgradable

Martin Logan SL3 Best midrange of the lot Limited loudness
Sound stage presentation Limited dynamic range
Setup sensitive
Limited low bass response

Martin Logan reQuest Same as SL3 Setup sensitive
Size
Cost

Magnepan Close to SL3 midrange Setup sensitive
Sound stage presentation Size
Pristine upper octaves Limited low bass response
Narrow sweet spot
horizontally

Snell CV Good in every respect No local dealer
but no standout areas Questions about companies absorption
by Boston Acoustics. Product
line is changing

My reasons for the PSB Goldi below.

PSB Goldi Best midrange other than Not the ultimate in midrange
ML performance.
Incredible dynamic range Not the ultimate in detail
resolution.
Outstanding bass Not a USA company.
Lowest paying price by at
least $900.
Smaller size.

Please note my dynamic range comments are in the context of my room which is approximately 8000 cubic feet. My star rating includes an assesment of value. If cost is not a factor, I would say the speaker is a 4 to 4.5 star rating.
Please feel free to share your thoughts.

Lived very happily with a pair of the original Aerius for 6 years. All the strong and weak points of this design have been debated ad infinitum. Suffice to say with the right components the ML will do some very fine things sonically. But time to upgrade. Went back to the box coz I was tired of ignoring my classical and rock collection. The Aerius simply won't produce the sufficient oompfh! to enjoy orchestral or straight-ahead r and r pieces. The PSB Stratus Gold i speakers will. Their greatest strength is their dynamic range; the ability of these speakers to go from soft to very loud is something that you have to hear to appreciate. Sure, at headbanger levels they start to break up, but that might be related to clipping, or room artifacts, as much as anything else. To repeat: in order to have a satisfying musical experience you need a speaker capable of broad dynamic swings, and the Goldis have that in spades. They also have a very refined sound, burnished is how I describe it. Gold is a good name for these speakers, coz they seem to have a golden glow to their sound. In that regard (somewhat rolled off?), they won't get you as far back into a recording as an electrostatic design. There is a kind of sameness to the Goldis reproduction of music that never descends into drabness. Listening to a lot of live music lately I think this smmoooooth sound is more faithful to actual live music. But audiophiles in particular often prefer a hyperdetailed look back into the recording chain that the best 'stats, Thiels and (recently) Joseph audio, are famous for. Fine. There are times when you just wanna hear how many coughing louts can fit into Carnagie hall at one time. But it AIN"T music! By emphasizing the presence aspects of sound reproduction, I feel these "etched" designs lose something of the whole of the musical experience. That's why some people are turned off to such designs; they just give you too much info, especially on bad recordings. The Goldis are very kind to lousy CDs or LPs; but they also do full justice to the best new recordings. And they never induce listener fatigue. What I've noticed is, the newer and better the recording, the better these speakers sound. I really look forward to hearing them with 24/96. Did I mention bass? Plenty there. Could be tighter for my tastes, but it's tuneful and gives the speakers a decent sense of rhythm. Though for real pace, try a mini or go back to a 'stat. Mids are very uncolored, with enough amp power. the highs I've already discussed, very laid back. Excellent build quality; and these guys can be had for around $2k, well below retail. But beware, they are a subtle speaker and likely won't suck you in during a short demo like some other designs (Magnepan) for instance will. Thanks for sticking through this long review. Rock On!

I recently purchased a pair of Goldi speakers after listening to them side by side with a highly regarded and expensive European speaker valued at over four times the cost of the Gold1's, hooked up to some very high end equipment. The Goldi's performed so well against those fine speakers, the decision to buy them was an easy one. At home hooked up to more modest but good equipment, they performed equally well. Whatever listening tastes you have, they handle them with equal competence.
Exceptional detail, clear highs, not too bright, not too subdued, just right. Smooth and quick mids and that glorious bass. If the recording has bass they will deliver it in full measure, if it does not, then they will not manufacture it. When asked to do so, the Goldi's won't have a problem shaking your foundation. One of the most interesting attributes of the Goldi's is how well they play quiet, and still give you the full impact of the recording.

If there is such a thing as value for your dollar in the overpriced audio world, I believe the Goldi's are it. You can spend several thousands more and not receive any further gains for your dollar, much less gains worth the money. I'll leave the last words to my wife who always said "I can't tell a difference." Well, she finally noticed a difference with the Goldi's and expressed enthusiasm for an audio product. She went so far as to insist "write a review or I will from a wife's perspective."

The Goldi's impressed me from before they even played their first note. Their sheer size and elegance in their dark cherry finish was something to behold. As soon as the box was opened I was grinning ear to ear. Sturdy construction all around, beautiful cabinet work, and even spikes for use on harder floors. As we set them in place, we chose to not use the spikes, as they would sink into our carpeted floor and underlay. This also helps for manoeuvrability. At 95 pounds a piece they're a real bitch to move on carpet with the spikes. The amazement continued onto the hook-up. The dual gold plated binding posts allowed for quick, easy, and fool proof hook-up. We chose to bi-wire these speakers, which is not difficult if one takes a second to look in the manual. Hook-up was easy from start to finish, and I couldn't wait to hear them.
As the player opened, my heart pounded. Toni Braxton's new CD found itself in the CD drawer, loading into the player. It was an intense moment. The play button was hit.

Heaven. Now do understand, that I am not a religious man, but when I say heaven, I just may very well be.

Without any time to break in (which is redundant, according to Paul Barton, the psb main man), the speakers shone their stuff beautifully, in every respect imaginable. The volume wasn't loud, just adequate to hear every aspect well, about at 8-9 o clock on the dial. I was first struck by the amazing richness and full, room filling effect of the Goldi's. I didn't even have to concentrate on the sound to know that it was fabulous. The detail is everywhere, from every single pick of an acoustic guitar, to the most barely audible sounds of the singer breathing. I cannot describe the highs and mids. I mean that literally, I can't. Reason being quite simple. They're too good to concentrate on. With highs and mids I find it hard to just listen for that, because if they're well done, you get lost in them. I find myself in that situation. If the highs and mids aren't wonderful, I can concentrate on them and pick out their downfalls. I can say one thing, the highs are beautiful even at high volumes. I say this in that a female's voice does not get ear piercing and shrill, but are very true to life.

The bass was something to behold. And I mean that, I was beholding my bed at night upstairs so I wouldn't fall out of it when my dad was listening below. Even at really low volumes the bass is phenomenal. A good was to understand this is the fist track of the Titanic soundtrack. In the beginning there is a series of very low bass "spurts" I'll call them. They are very low, and pound very hard. Even at low volumes these speakers retained the impact of the "spurts" and delivered them nothing short of spectacular. One other material, the bass is very tight and clean, without being rolled or boomy. I thought that with the 10" woofer the bass might be a bit boomy and uncontrolled, but I was far from the truth.

The soundstage is gigantic. No longer does one have to be in the middle of our couch to get good sound. Even sitting upstairs eating the sound fills the house and displays itself beautifully. Like one reviewer wrote "If these speakers have a sweet spot, its one of the largest I've ever seen." He put it nicely.

the Goldi's continue to amaze, and I'm sure they will for a long time. To really hear these speakers, take well recorded material, play them not too loud, then turn them up if you want. You'll be amazed. Five *s all the way.

I own the origina PSB Gold for 4 years Very happy with them. My system consist of:
PSB stratus gold (biwired)
McCormack DNA0.5 AMP
McCormack TLC-1 PRE_AMP
SONY DVP-S7000 DVD/CD Player
Kimber 4TC (double run) biwired speaker cable
DH-Lab Silver Sonic BL-1 intercnnector

The PSB is superior both for music and home theater. Future upgrade include add AC3/DTS procssor and another McCormack DNA0.5 and combined a PSB C5 and Alpha.

I will stick with this system for another 20 years. Get your inestment back.

Anyone trying to compare a product like the Gold Stratus to Cerwin Vega needs toget their hearing checked. If you just want to play music loudly and shake the walls then CV's will do the trick. If interested in quality musical reproduction
then the Golds are certainly one of the best in the price range if not better than speakers much more costly.

These are good full-range speakers if you can find them at a discount. You really don't need a sub-woofer for general music. The sound is on-par with speakers costing much more. I definitely don't like the look of these speakers, though -- boring/ugly/heavy. The build isn't great. I wish the bass was tighter. The bass is a bit boomy. Beware non-carpeted area use!
"Bang for the buck" is the key phrase here. If I had the additional funds, I would of gone for the B&W CDM 7se with a decent sub-woofer. Definitely clearer and more dynamic. And ready for home theater use...

I purchased these several months ago after spending a few weeks researching and listening to different models and brands. I originally intended on spending up to a $1000 on a good pair of speakers for home theater and music. I auditioned several brands and selected a few that I thought were especially good, (Mirage FRx-7's and OM-10's, Paradigm 60's, a pair of Boston Acoustics and nice-looking pair of Jamo Coronet 195's) I then went to a dealer that had PSB, a brand I was not very familiar with. He pointed me to the Stratus Bronzes as a good speaker in my price range. I liked them about as much as the Mirages and thought they were a possibility. I then saw the Stratus Gold's (impressed by their large size) and I asked to hear them. Wow! I was immediately impressed by their clarity, soundstage, imaging and dynamic range. The vocals were crisp and clear, the bass was deep, fast and pretty tight and the highs were very detailed without being sharp. They really sounded great with acoustic guitar too! Overall they sounded similiar to the Bronzes but with much better imaging and depth to the sound. Of course the Gold's were $2500, with an out-the-door price of around $1900. I decided to find a way to afford these and also decided it would be wise to audition other speakers in the price range. I narrowed my final decison down to Paradigm Reference 80's (which I actually liked better than the 100's), the FRx-7's (which I still loved for the price of under $700) and the PSB Stratus Golds. It was obvious that the Golds were the best speakers I had heard and I bought them (along with some MIT Terminator Bi-Wire cable, which admittedly did not seem to make a huge difference). I am very happy with these speakers and have found a renewed interest in my CD collection. These speakers are great for home theater too, especially with my PSB C5 center channel and Dolby Digital. To summarize, if you are like me and are wanting good speakers and think you may eventually spend some big bucks on new audiophile level equipment, invest your money in a pair of these speakers. I can't wait til I can save the money to buy seperate mono-blocks and pre-amp.

I own a pair of PSB Gold speakers and I am quite happy with their performance. They are such a full range spaekers I do not need a subwoofer for home theater entertainment.

I guess the most startling review I saw here was from Bee. I can't imagine anyone thinking these speakers aren't dynamic. The associated equipment sounds fine, but jeez! I can run my friends out of my house. Not only will they play so loud that any of my friends ears will ring(not that I do my listening this loud), they do it without straining and still very musically. These speakers have been great on every genre I listen to. Which includes Rock, Jazz, Blues, Classical, Bluegrass, and New Age-There is something wrong with that person's equipment. With the Goldi's I feel less like I am listening to a speaker, and more like I am listening to the performance. Everything seems to be there soundstage, detail, midrange smoothness, bass-I don't know what more I could want. Associated equipment-Acurus-Act 3 A250 200x3, Sony DVP-S7000, Pioneer Elite PD-65, PSB C6, and Stratus Mini's. Tributaries Interconnects and MIT cable.