Tonal balance, ease-of-placement, power handling

None

These are the best mini-monitors I own. I've compared them with Celestion 100s and Paradigm Reference 40s. I own all the speakers and I've listened to all of them for extended periods.

In all cases the set-up is the same, the speakers occupying the same stands. I've also operated all of them in conjunction with two Velodyne sub-woofers--for stereo bass.

The PSBs throw a natural and enveloping ambient envelope within which all sonic detail is naturally rendered. Their frequency response and tonal balance are geared for a slightly warm upper bass. Many mini-monitors are purposefully voiced this way so thay they don't sound harsh. The Velodyne subwoofers have a high-pass filter set at 85 Hertz which eliminates the slight bass warmth.

I think the comarison with the Celestions is very interesting. The Celestions are acoustic suspension speakers in cabinets built like bank vaults. They are voiced without a mid-bass boost. In comparison with the PSB Stratus, the Celestions give a more analytic and cooler presentation. Since both speakers are dead-smooth, the differences are more recording-dependent than anything else. Some recordings are bloated and sound better on cooler more analytical speakers. Other recordings are so bone-dry sounding that a little warmth from the speaker is welcome.

The Paradigms are really a two-and-on-half system, with a midrange and woofer. They can play louder than the Celestions or the PSBs. They also have a slight mid-bass boost even though they go lower than the Celestions or PSBs They are more exciting sounding than the other speakers. But that is becuase the the presence-range is more prominent. On most recordings that adds a sparkle and immediacy to the sound. The problem is with older recordings or those with a 'hot' high-end. In those cases the Pardigms can sound un-forgiving and over-bright and make you reach for the volume control.

If I could only keep one pair of speakers, it would be the PSBs. That's because they do everything well and so easy to live with.

I'd miss the Celestions, though.

Similar Products Used:

Paradigm Reference 40, Celestion 100

TRANSPARENCY, SPEED AND NEUTRALITY

CLUMSY STYLING AND POOR STANDS

USED WITH SLATE AUDIO STANDS AND A GOOD PRE/POWER AMP THE MINIS REALLY SING. THEY ARE HONEST ACCURATE SPEAKERS WHICH STRIP BARE THE NUANCES OF RECORDING. THEY LACK A LITTLE WEIGHT AT THE BOTTTOM END BUT USED WITH A GOOD SUBWOOFER FROM REL THEY GIVE A CONVINCING PERFORMANCE. THEY ARE NOT EASILY AVAILABLE IN THE UK, I WAS FORTUNATE TO OBTAIN MINE FROM AUDIOSOURCE IN GLASGOW WHO AT ONE STAGE WERE CONTEMPLATING IMPORTING THESE UNITS. THE MANUFACTURERS REALLY OUGHT TO LOOK AT THE POSSIBILITY OF MAKING PSB SPEAKERS AVAILABLE TO THE BRITISH HI FI COMMUNITY.

Similar Products Used:

MERIDIAN ARGENTS, EPOS ES11, HARBETH HL3

GOOD MIDBASS, AND GREAT EXTENSION FOR A SMALL SPEAKER.

LACK OF UPPER MIDRANGE AND HIGH FREQUENCY SOUND, TO LAID BACK. IMAGING SUCKED.

MY CURRENT REFRENCE SYSTEM CONSISTS OF AN ARC DUAL 76A TUBE AMP, CARVER CD PLAYER, AUDIO ALCHEMY V.3 D/A CONVERTER, PERREAUX CLASSIC SM6, THORENS RECORD PLAYER W/ SUMIKO BLUE POINT CARTEIGE, MUSIC FIDELITY X-PHONO PHONO STAGE, AUDIO QUEST WIRE, CARDAS INTERCONNECTS, ROOM TREATMENTS, AND A PAIR OF INFINITY QUANTUM II'S.
I TOOK THE PSB STRATUS MINI'S HOME FROM A FRIENDS HIGH ENDS SHOP ALONG WITH A NEWER ARC AMP, A PAIR OF REVEL BOOKSHELF SPEAKERS, AND LATER A PAIR OF REVEL ULTIMA SALONS. THE PSB'S WHERE OUTCLASSED, BUT I DONT HAVE THE 15 GRAND THE THE REVEL'S COST. SO I LISTENED TO THE PSB'S FOR AROUND THREE WEEKS. I LISTENED TO EVERYTHING I COULD ON THEM. I MOVED THEM ALL OVER AND CHANGED EQUIPMENT A LOT. I COULDN'T GET THE SOUND RIGHT. THERE WAS A BIG LACK OF DETAIL, LIKE SOME ONE HAD REMOVED SOME OF THE INSTRUMENTS. THE SPEAKERS DIDNT CREATE A TANGEABLE SOUNDSTAGE AND LACK THAT IMPORTANT SWEET MIDRANGE. I DONT UNDERSTAND WHY ANY MAGAZINE WOULD RATE THESE SPEAKERS SO WELL. I REALLY DIDNT LIKE THEM. WHEN I HOOKED THE REVEL BOOKSHELFS(I CANT REMEMBER THE MODLE), THEY SOUNDED MUCH BETTER. NO BLOATED BASS, VERY SWEET MIDRANGE, GREAT DETAIL, AND THE SOUND STAGE WAS TO DIE FOR. I REALLY LIKE SOUNDSTAGE AND THE PSB'S COULDNT PUT UP MUCH OF A REALISTIC SOUNDSTAGE. I HAVE HEARD THAT THIS SOUNDSTAGE I LIKE IS CREATED IN THE STUDIO AND WOULDN'T REALLY EXIST. WELL, I DONT CARE, IF ITS ON THE CD I WANT TO HEAR IT. SO WOULDNT RECOMEND THESE PSB'S TO ANYONE. I HONOSTLY THOUGHT THAT FOR THE MONEY THEY SUCKED.

Similar Products Used:

TOTEM MANI 2'S, PROAC TABLETTE 2000, PARADIGM REFRENCE MONITORS, TANNOY R1, R2, R3; VARIOUS REVEL SPEAKERS.

Wonderful build quality; great "smooth" non-fatiguing sound

none

...After owning these speakers for 4 years I continue to marvel at their terrific sound. Before owning these I had a pair of Polk Audios which grated on me after 3 or 4 songs. I can listen to these for hours at high-volume and never tire of the sound. ...Some have criticized these for being "laid back" - I couldn't dissagree more! ..The sound is always musical and involving; precisely what great speakers are suppose to be.

It is also worth pointing out that the speakers are beautifully built. The extruded-metal "edge" pieces blend beautifully with the wood and as an added bonus, they make the speakers far more resistant to dings and dents. Though 4 years old, you would thing mine came out of the box ten minutes ago (despite having a three year old!).

...Highly recommended!

Similar Products Used:

prior to buying, I listened to KEF, B&W, Pro-Ac, and Spica models in same price range

GREAT BUILD QUALITY, EXCELLENT IMAGING, PRICE, LOOKS

CANT HIT THE LOW LOWS

I HAVE OWNED THESE SPEAKERS FOR 3 MONTHS NOW AND THEY ARE OUTSTANDING. THEY PLAY MUSIC AND MOVIES WITHOUT ANY STRAIN. ALONG WITH THE C-6 CENTER THE HOME THEATER COMES ALIVE. AT VERY HIGH VOLUMES THEY MAY CUP BUT THAT IS AT BEYOND COMFORTABLE LISTENING LEVELS. THEY WONT PLAY THE LOW LOWS BUT ADD A SUB AND THIS SYSTEM WILL PLEASE MOST EXCEPT THE SNOBBY AUDIOPHILE. I WOULD RECCOMEND THESE SPEAKERS TO ANYONE. I LOVE HOW NATURAL THEY SOUND.

Similar Products Used:

PINNICLE, CELESTION

Midrange, Imaging, Well built

Big for a mini monitor. Needs good 24" stands. (No shelfs)

I've owned these speakers since 1993. I have used them with all types of receivers and amplifiers from the humble $200 Kenwood receiver that I had when I first purchased them to the $10000 Integra Research setup that now powers them. They now are the main speakers in my home theater along with the PSB C6 center channel and the super Bag End Infra 18 subwoofer. While I've upgraded my electronics several times during their 8 years of service, I've never felt a strong need for a speaker upgrade. The lack of deep bass made me consider upgrading to the Golds, but then I decided that the money was better spend on a quality sub. I feel the combination of the Minis and the Bag End is ultimately better then the Golds because of the placement flexibility a 3 piece system gives you. In addition, the Bag End goes way lower than the Golds (and just about anything else.)

The only negative is that the minis can sound strained when pushed to extremely loud levels. So if you're the type who likes to crank up the volume to deafening levels you would be better served by the Golds. While their named Minis, they are not small as far as mini monitors go. They are fairly deep and heavy, so they are not suitable for shelf life. They definitely need good 24" stands, which makes them take up as much space as a tower.

PSB updated them a couple of years ago, so the new ones are even better. I'm amazed that my eight year old speakers, which still look like new, are still one of the best speakers $1000 can buy.

One of the most musical speakers I heard at this price and size.

none

I have read reviews on these speakers before going to audition a pair of them. The sound stage was incredible, as well as the depth. It took a couple of weeks of leaving them on from morning till late at night to break in. But after I am well pleased at their performance. I wished I had bought a pair before I purchased the Definitive bp10's. These mini's blow away the bp10's. They handle everything from rock to jazz to blues without sounding like a small box. They do need a sub to fill the bottom end of the freq. If you have limited space for speakers I highly recomend the Psb Mini's. You will not regret it.

Similar Products Used:

Mirage, definitive techs.

Transparency, range, timbral accuracy

lack of 'musicality'/colorations, power-hungry, un-romantic

[This review will be most helpful to those who already own Stratus Minis and are embarked on the considerable task of extracting their peak performance. While the author is very happy with his pair, the speakers should be paired with significantly more expensive equipment, which makes for an awkward market position.]

While I have always been fond of my Stratus Minis, I have recently made an amplification upgrade that has catapulted them into another realm of performance, and which has forced me to completely re-evaluate their standing given their low price point.

I purchased my Minis while I was still in school. As such, they were driven, barely, by a NAD 314, rated (conservatively) at 35 watts, and the venerable Marantz CD-63se. I bought them from a Cleveland dealer (the name now escapes me) where I was auditioning the B&W 601/2/3 line. After purchasing the 602's, I returned them because of a very prominent mid-bass ripeness that I could not tame with placement, damping, or whatever.

Unfamiliar with the Minis, I spied them, on their unique stands, and asked for a listen. The soundstage was larger by an order of magnitude, and the bass quality was much better than anything I had heard from B&W. I took them home without much further consideration, thinking they would last me some time based on their high (at the time) price, and enjoyed them thoroughly.

Six months ago, a friend of mine bought a Bryston 2B-LP. This amp is near-legendary in the circle that consider clarity and S/N paramount in amplification. When I ran the (variable output) Marantz straight into the Bryston (through AudioQuest Rubys), I almost fell over. The clarity was unbelievable. The bass sounded an octave deeper. The rendering of space was fall-over good. (This is all in comparison to the NAD, mind you, not in absolute/Krell/whatever terms.) Through a lucky twist of fate, this friend hasn't needed his Bryston since then. The sound of the Marantz/Bryston/Minis has made me very happy--I am not [too badly] afflicted with the upgrade bug.

Until yesterday, when I brought home an Acurus DIA 150 from my new local dealer (in Toronto). The so-called 'direct-input' integrated (passive line stage mated to a very sensitive amplifier) retails for $2700 Canadian; I brought home the floor demo for $1750. After comparing favorably to several Musical Fidelity integrated in the store (with PMC FB-1's), I decided to try it with my system. The amp is conservatively rated at 150 watts into 8 ohms; the dealer measured this one at 185. The unit weighs about 40 lbs; take that for what it's worth.

The change in performance was easily the equal of the NAD to Bryston upgrade. I should say here that I have the greatest respect for the 2B, and would recommend it as an affordable reference product to anyone with reasonably efficient speakers. The Acurus gave it a sound drubbing in every aspect of performance.

Bass performance, for starters, was fantastic. Plucked basses and bass guitar lines had more texture and tonality that I've heard in much more expensive floor-standing speakers. In one sense (lack of one-note, inarticulate bass), the performance was better in quality if not in quantity than the ca$3200 PMC FB-1's. The vibraphones and bass drums on the exquisitely-recorded soundtrack to 'Todo sobre mi madre' (All about my Mother) took on life-size heft and definition, the Acurus finally letting the Minis move enough air to re-create the gut-vibrating quality of the live instruments. Did I mention 'Slam'? Listen to Bjork on this system: it SLAMS. No boom in sight (after much experimentation, I've found a way around my room-bass problems). The speed of the woofers, even at the very bottom of their range, is now exemplary.

Instrumental timbres and textures were incredibly fast, transparent, and real. On several well-recorded piano discs (like Lilya Zilberstein playing Brahms' Paganninni Variations on DG), I could identify the make of the piano (Steinway) definitively for the first time.

Vocal work on the Minis were extraordinary with the headroom and finesse of the Acurus. Ambience-rich cd's like the accapella Robert Shaw recordings on Telarc (Poulenc & Rachmanninoff) are immersive, rich, textured and uncompressed for the first time. Orchestral climaxes are unstrained, natural and gut-wrenching. My reflexive cringe before fortsissimos and timpanic outbursts is gone for good. Try the Gardiner Beethoven 9; but you'd better sit down, and hold on to something.

What is most remarkable about the Minis, given this latest revolution (I can only call it that) in performance, is the scalability of the design and the transparency of the speaker. Every component I have dropped into this chain is laid bare. The difference between the Bryston and the Acurus, beyond the power difference, was immediately apparent--space between instruments, the size of the soundstage, the more relaxed presentation of the Acurus, etc. The subtle difference between my Marantz 63-se and my Pioneer DV-414 is increasingly obvious now--the exaggerated high end of the DVD player pales to the Marantz' more relaxed information retrieval--the CD player is more detailed, but not forward.

From a system-building perspective, ths Acurus purchase took the place of a new Rega P3. I had decided to get into vinyl while waiting for SACD/24-192 to get sorted out; I assumed the problem with my system was a lack of source resolution. I now hear so much detail, slam and pure musical essence from my (6-year-old) digital source that I am not anxious to upgrade until there is a clear paradigm shift (which, unfortunately, includes software). I am also confident that my next digital source, be it SACD, an upsampling dac or whatever, will be put to very good use in this system, even if I spend as much on a digital source as my current amp's retail. I cannot wait to hear good, pure analog through this chain. There is currently nothing I can throw at it that is not resolved to the limits of my hearing and absolute lowest bass extension of the speaker. Obviously, that will change once I start buying reference or near-reference components.

I am not a blind devotee to PSB, or to the Minis. I have heard several PSB Gold setups, and even the best was average considering the cost. As far as I can tell, the whole Century/Image line is boomy mid-fi crap. The Minis definitely have limitations: frequency response is what it is. I live in a small space, so the total output limit is moot. The ability to sort out very complicated orchestral or studio-mixed textures can never match a well-implemented three-way. The speaker's ability to throw a very wide, deep soundstage is limited by the cost constraints on the tweeter, and by the lack of perfect phase linearity.

If I were to buy new speakers today, I would not buy Minis. I would be spending around 2500-3000 (us), and would probably forego the entire PSB line. As it is, though, the Minis are so fundamentally transparent within their performance limits that I consider them highly accurate system-building tools as well as enjoyable, detailed, listenable transducers.

**Other notes on extracting max performance from the Minis:
- Factory stands are essential, and should be filled with lead shot and spiked.
- Verify that the bolts between stand and speaker are as tight as possible.
- My stands are sitting on top of 60-lb granite plinths. If you have a sprung hardwood floor, you need more isolation than spikes alone.
- Cable changes are very audible, as expected. I'm getting fine results with shotgunned Kimber 8TC. I will certainly be upgrading sometime soon. (Nordost Blue Heaven?)
- The top of the cabinet is not as well damped as it probably should be. I have experimented, with varying degrees of audibility, with bags of sand, bricks, books, etc. Books, for reasons of aesthetics and pragmatism, are doing fine for now.
- Like any speaker, weeks or months of experimentation are necessary to find the position that best avoids room nodes without handicapping imaging.
- As explained in great detail above, these speakers need POWER. They are almost done a disservice by their low price point, as they get thrown into low-end home theatre setups or paired with value-oriented integrated amps. I would go so far as to say that you're not hearing even half of what these amazing little speakers have to offer if you're not feeding them 150 very clean watts. Consider a Bryston 3B-ST a minimum. I would expect audible improvements in my system with a top-tier (Classe, Krell, VTL...) amplifier of 200-250 watts.

SYSTEM CONFIGURATION:
Marantz CD-63se
Acurus DIA-150
PSB Stratus Mini

AudioQuest Ruby II
Kimber 8TC, shotgunned

Spiked, reinforced Salamander 2-shelf rack
Granite plinths
Wool persian rugs

Pioneer DVD-414
Sony 27" Trinitron

Similar Products Used:

B&W 601, 602, 604, CDM series, <$2k Missions, Totems; PSB Stratus Silvers, Golds; ProAc Tablette, <$2k Triangles

I listened to these speakers while auditioning JM Labs at a dealer in Va. Just for comparison sake I had him hook them up. He said if I was interested in the Jm Labs I would not like what I heard from the PSB's. He was right.
In a word, the sound these speakers produce is boring. Some would interpret them to be nuetral but I would protest. They excel at little and present a very shallow soundstage.

I quiclky went back to the Micron Carats.

Triper

I have had a pair of PSB StratMini's for three days on loan from a store and have been comparing them to Sonus Faber Concertino's on a system comprised of CAL Tercet III CD (old, but still cookin! Very laid-back and natural. Like a Rega Planet with better bass); Adcom GFA-555II preamp and Rotel 980BX amp. Bass end is a 10" passive box (no brand) run by a Carver amp and an AudioControl Active crossover. All in all, fairly flawed and pedestrian stuff by audiophile standards, but better than anything you can get at GoodGuys.
The previous poster used "boring" to describe these speakers and I'm not really going to contradict him. Now, after few days listen, I'm rather suprised by their place on Stereophile's reccomended class 'C' list (though I do know the typical audio-reviewer's penchant for "laid back" sound). First off, the good stuff: Very good bass - round, taught and focused. Also very polite, meaning easy to listen to. Nothing hard or intrusive here. Highs are crisp, but perhaps too restrained. Cymbals are light and never brash - but shouldn't they be? I mean, last time I was in a room with drums, the cymbals blew my ears off. Also, the high mids (around 1.5K) seem to have been sucked out. This combination of good midbass, slightly (but narrowly) sucked out midrange and crisp but thin highs, like I said, make for easy listening, but fairly take the passion out of music. Another problem I could not fix with much tinkering of placement and direction: soundstaging is of the either here-or-there variety, meaning something is either left speaker, right speaker or center, and there is no front or back, up or down. I noticed this in the store on their Classe rig and I couldn't shake it. I could never get the speakrs to do the proverbial "dissapear."

An interesting, if obscure, example: Autechre - a German techno duo working almost exclusively in machine-like sounds and rhythms. Very, very mechanical and electronic, to be sure, but also melodic, with suprisingly facinating textures. Anyway, through the Mini's, everythig's fine, the electronics not too harsh, the bass drum punchy and staccatto. Even if you HATED electronic music, especially on dreaded CD players, you could listen to this for hours, as long as you had a magazine to read or some housework to do. Then the Sonus's. Flawed, yes in other ways, but WOW! MUSIC!
Suddenly you are glued. Passion, performance, musicianship, dance, dance, dance. FROM A COUPLE OF GERMAN KNOB TWIDDLERS!

I won't totally review the Sonus'here - and they also have serious flaws, but that is true of all speakers in this size/class. If you are thinking of buying a pair of small, sub $1K speakers, you are going to have to give up something. The PSB Minis go for realistic bass, big sound and 'listenability' but sacriffice accurate soundstaging, musicality and have an suspiciously thin hi-mid range. The Concertino's have a tendancy to get brash and unruly - you find yourself constantly adjusting the volume, they tend to emphasize bad recording and mixing practices, and they don't even bother with the low end (which, in another way is a strength since if want any bass response whatsoever you have to go and get it seperately) but they sure can sing! Music is musical, involving and exciting, which is what it's all about.

Guess my pick.

By-the-way, If anybody has any suggestions on other speakers I should hear before buying, let me know. I'm looking for something in a small bookshelf-type to use as satalites at $1K or less.