How do you like your Dahlquist speakers (1 Viewer)

I have been emailing back and forth with Marc over the past week about the Dahlquist QX-10 and matching center. I see there are a handful of people on this forum with Dahlquist speakers.

If you could do it all over again would you get them again?

What other speakers where you looking at before you decided to get the Dahlquist's?

A Very good spekers for the money. Bought my son the QX-9's and was very impressed. Comparable to the Paradigm Monitor line, but with a much better mid-range. Hard to beat for the cost. Also, Marc is a great guy to work with. If you have enough room and are willing to put extra money up for a sub, the Magneplanar MMG's have to be the best sounding $550 speaker I've heard.

Hi,

I bought a complete set of Dahlquist speakers, never heard them anywhere...sounds crazy especially after owning mega-buck speakers like high end Mirage m1's and Accoustat's and Maggies...

I found that Marc was and still is a very honest, forthright person, who makes a living at this , but unlike lots of other sales persons, he seems to genuinley care about his customers.

I would NOT hesiate to buy Dahlquist again. For my use in my modest 2ch stereo and HT setup they are absolutley amazing.

I have a pair of the QX10's for the fronts and a QX60C center, all are bi-wired.

I have the QX6's for the rear surrounds and one QX20R a rear center 6.1 speaker.

I also bought the middle of the line powered sub the 125.

They are being driven by a SONY STR-DA4ES receiver. In the 8 ohm position.

The sound is really good, very musical, I have listend to a set of B&W 803's, Vandersteen 2c's..etc all of which sound good too, but for the price the Dahlquist win hands down.

Mine were ordered on a Thursday and I got them two days later, FEDEX double boxed.

Like all speakers setups, you will have to play with the exact positioning to get the bass etc to work well.

I played with the QX6's's for the fronts for a few days and was really, really impressed with what these bookshelfs could do, female voice is awesome, and the bass is nice and tight, very well defined.

The QX10's in a small tower format, add to the low end and I am not sorry I got these at all instead of the smaller QX 9's etc...I have used the SONY receiver and a high end 200watt amp on them, both work very well. I now only use the receiver to drive them.

Marc sells other stuff, Axioms, Totem's and other stuff. Just bring money (smile!)...

I would buy them again, good luck in your search!

Tell Mark I said hello!

Alex

Alex, do you feel that the Dahlquist speakers sound as good as the other speakers you mentioned, or did you give up some quality for a big savings?

Also, are there any speaker lines that you would consider to be comparable? I have been listening to Studio 100's, B&W 604's, Monitor Audios Silver S8 etc.?

The QX series is very tempting, but if there is any sacrifice in sound, I'm afraid I'll soon have the urge to upgrade again.

I think if Marc had quoted me a higher price I would not be questioning their quality as much...LOL

Thanks

Leon

Leon,

You and I know only listening to the stuff in your room is where it really makes a difference. (or not).

I honestly do not feel like I gave up any quality, quality in what these speakers sound like. Not necessarily the build quality, which is as good as anything else I have owned.

I was quoted prices for a similar line almost twice as much, until I discovered these gems.

They sound as good or better than the 804's to me. As good as the Vandersteens to me, better bass but everything else in the same ballpark.

These speakers are NOT FULL range speakers, they DO NOT measure up to my old Mirage M1's (185lbs!!) and almost 6ft tall..But the Mirage were $4K plus back a few years. These were indeed FULL range speakers...

There are lots of speakers in the $4K range and above that are far better than the Dahlquists...but in the lower price ranges, these compete admirably, if you can get over the subjective thing and having a certain 'badge' on your speaker to impress your friends, if ya get what I mean.

I have blown over many Klipsch owners and B&W owners...they really are decent, speakers...the price just makes the deal that much sweeter, I now can afford those high dollar SACD's!! (smile!).

When you compare them to such a great speaker like a B&W that should tell you something...

From what little I know Dahlquist is working on a higher end line of speakers...soon to be out...ask Marc...but I am sure the price will be higher also...its all a matter of what you can afford, and in my case I have had lots of the high end stuff, and these speakers are a breath of fresh aire!!

Best of luck!
Alex

Thanks Alex, you're pushing me further towards Dahlquists

I've really liked the Monitor Audio & Paradigm speakers, but they cost twice as much for a 7.0 setup. The Dahlquists would leave room to improve the electronics. (and get new DVD's)

Just checking, which had better bass - Dahlquist or Vandersteen. And of course, feel free to go into detail...lol

Leon

Leon,

I was leaning towards the dahls based on feedback, but when I heard them, I was turned. I'm big on the paradigm sound myself, and found the dahls were a very different sound than what I was looking for (a paradigm like sound maybe?).

I heard them at visions on two different occasions, and both times, the treble was very laid back unlike my experiences with paradigms. I don't think they were broken in very much though, as reports generally find the dahls opening up more when broken in, but from my experience, the paradigm sound and dahlquist sound were very different. So if you've really liked what you've already heard from a paradigm setup, try your best to get a listen to the dahls before making a choice.

I haven't heard them myself, but I think axioms are probably closer on a sliding scale to the paradigm sound than the dahlquists were.

I have QX6's upgraded to QX10's, VERY much happy with my choice. The QX10's sound excellent, look great in my room and provide a more satisfying sound that I thought I would be able to achieve for the money.

I have studio 40's in my theatre, I enjoy the QX10's more for music.

Well, I've had my QX6's for almost a month now and I'm about to sell them (anybody want to buy a month old pair?). Somehow they give me listener fatigue. I guess its the aluminum alloy tweeter but they hurt my ears after listening for like 20 minutes.

So I bought a pair of Ascend Acoustics CBM 170 and I find them to be a much better all around speaker than the Dahlquists, except for bass. They don't hurt my ears either, which I attribute to the soft dome tweeter.

I really tried hard to like the Dahls, but my ears told me different. I really like them at first, but then they just started to make my ears hurt. The Ascends are much more suited for my tastes. I don't want to burst anyone's bubble, but I thought I would throw my opinion out there.

Man,

I thought that I heard it all, "makes my ears hurt"...I am in between laughing and crying!!! (big smiles!!)...

Its really amazing how we all react to sound, speakers and all the other subjective crap thats out there...

I guess this is why this hobby is so much fun...

If I hadnt owned a set of Magnaplanars and listed to Jazz at the Pawnshop for so many years I would not feel qualifed to even come close to offerring an opinion...

But the ear thing has really made me smile...

Leon...go listen to them before you buy them, even if you like meodicre speaker or equipment if you dont get what you want chances are that anything else will sound like crap to you and overtime your friends or neighbors will sound better than yours!

Its amazing that how a tweeter made out of aluminum would make someone think that the music would be harsh or brittle and make your ears hurt??? I guess if tweeters were made out of cloth they would most likely sound smooth and soft!!!
(more smile!!).

The Dahlquists sound pretty good here, no ear pain, and when Nora Jones is played she's like in the room!

The QX6's if placed far enough apart sound awesome, very neutral and lots of bass, tight for the size...ya just cant put any speaker in any room without spending a few days moving it around...

Best of luck!
Alex
(smiling a lot!!)

Paul,

My post was not intended to make you look like a dumb ass, I was just trying to make a point, please accept my humble apologies if this did offend your ears in anyway!! (smile!)..

I was just listening to Copeland's Fanfare for the Comman Man and was absolutely and very much surprised to hear how the QX10's did with this piece in my small room...they dynamic range of this piece is very awesome and startling to say the least...

I like modern jazz, and love to listen to female voice, and the Dahlquists do this very well.

The bass strings in Nora Jones's new album make me smile a lot!!

Crap sounds like crap on these speakers...as would most modern day speakers...man its a long way from those Radio Shack Optimus 1's!! and that Allied Receiver!!

Late!
Alex

Wow guys, that's just how it works. One person's bright is another person's soft. I for one have a tendency to prefer the supposedly "brighter" sounding speakers just because I'm used to that sound. It's really important to distinguish between a speaker that reproduces high frequencies more prominently, and one that attempts to do so but also sounds fatiguing or harsh. Additionally, a perfectly good speaker can be made to sound harsh because of a low quality amplifier or lively room.

Maybe I'm confusing my vocabulary here... I like a speaker that has a really clear sound and separates out the instruments more... and in my limited experience the "brighter" speakers, as long as they still sound pleasant to me, do a better job of this. So, who knows.

My speakers have soft dome tweeters which are supposedly soft or warm sounding... others who listened have called them bright... they have a relatively neutral measured response... and I'm happy with them! Funny how that works. Just an example to show that you can find the tone you like even with the huge variety of opinions and designs available.

So, Dennis and any others, go ahead and listen to the Dahlquists and see what you think. You can't judge a speaker's sound by what others say about them.

Alex, Paul, James, Ernie, Jack... Thanks for the input.

Paul, I took Alex's comments to be a good natured way to poke fun at the way WE all have different tastes. I certainly value your opinion and preferences.

It's funny, Ernie thought they were too dull, Paul thought they were too bright. One of my concerns about the Studio series is that they are just a little too bright to be ideal. However, my current system is extremely smooth, so I'm looking for something with a bit more snap to the highs. Although you two both preferred other speakers to the Dahlquists, your positions on the different ends of the spectrum actually lead me to believe that Dahlquists my be a reasonable compromise...lol

Unfortunately, I cannot demo them because I'm a full day's drive away from the nearest dealers. So, I'm trying to gather as much input as possible.

Have Fun!

Leon O!

Cool!, Yes my comments were meant to be kind of funny etc..Its all very subjective.

I bought the Dahlquists, sight unseen...what a walk out on the plank, I relied heavily on Marc's opinion and several other owners that thought they were a great buy for what they did....

Funny thing after this 'they were too bright for me" thread, I listened to them last night and thought man they are bright!! (smile)....depending on the source material, room cosmetics etc....but I still like the way various musical instruments, like a Bass instrument in a jazz band, (the bass in Nora Jones album, or Diane Krall's Live in Paris). The "snap" of a drum rimshot...

When I have listened to speakers that sound softer on the high end I found the crisp sounding stuff, like wire brushes on snare drum, and sparkling tingle sounds of percussion stuff was muted...so it all depends on what you want or like...

I used to and still do (but compromise..room and $$$$$) have my reference set as the band in my listening room. But that aint going to happen (smile again).

So a fairly good sysytem, and a can of beer!!! it begins to sound real good!!

Have Fun!

Alex

Hello Dennis (must have picked up Leon from an earlier post),

I also bought Dahlquists from Marc without any demo'ing. I read the professional review posted for them at the Audio Shop web site and checked with a few owners, as well as several calls to Marc.

I have had my set up (QX10's and QX60C across the front with QX6's and a QX4 across the back; run by a Yamaha RX 1200) since August 2002. They are well broken in, though I haven't really noticed a difference over time--they were exceptionally pleasing out of the box. My wife had been quite skeptical, but when I put Norah Jones on she just smiled and genuinely said, "Way to go, these sound great. I'm glad you bought them" (which was the most pleasant surprise of all!

As for specifics, the bass in incredible, fast, deep, not boomy, but with nice detail. All seem to agree on this.

The mid-range is powerful--I like good old rock now and then, and Boston, U2, Santana, and others get delivered in the chest. Acoustic guitars and piano seem real, not manufactured.

As for the tweeters, I have noticed a lack of the annoying sibilance in female vocals--very pleasing. Also, they are able to produce the "ting" of bells and the finger drags on guitar strings with delicacy or ferocity as the case may be. The highs are not "bright" compared to some other speakers--like Klipsch, etc. In that sense, they are accurate but not stinging. Unlike an earlier post, I have found that their great quality for me is long-listenability at even very high volume levels. I have heard "brighter" soft dome tweeters, but not any that can deliver the imaging and pleasure any better.

Build quality is fantastic. They have the right heft and solidity for my sensibilities and the WAF, as already mentioned, is very good (they are plain, which may be a key for my wife).

Perhaps as pleasing as anything about the Dahls is my friend's and family's reactions. They have Klipsch and Pioneer and Bose. They all agree that these are better than theirs. There's something of quality that they perceive. Demo'ing them with various HT and 2 channel material is a favorite thing of mine when company comes over--so far the report is excellent. Not one has said, "where's the _____" or "I've heard better at _______, or with _______".

I think for the money I've done very very well. I don't believe these are the best speakers every made. I know better, of course. Yet for the money I've not heard anything close! The only imaging I heard that was better was on an old pair of M&K satellites using dual Vifa tweeters. And those were nearly as much as my whole Dahlquist set combined ten years ago.

Good luck.
Phil

Well Dennis you may have read my comments on the Dahlquist's I purchased also. I have 4 Qx9's and the matching Qx60c center channel. I really enjoy them and believe they have opened up from being broken in. Now I like the sound of Paradigm(Studio & Monitor), PSB(Image & Stratus), B&W, Mission(M5), and some Energy(Veritas) speakers too, but I can't say how much more or less. They all sound good to me with each having it's unique characterisitcs. The dahls were every bit as pleasing, let's put it that way, but a superior value on top of it.

Have you been able to demo other speakers in your home Dennis? That too can make a huge difference in the way they may sound. What others are you considering?

In short, I would do it all over again.

Steve

Currently I have Definitive Tech. BP8's as mains and C2 Center. I really want it to be a big upgrade and not a minor one. I know my current set up really lacks in mid range and tight bass.

I have looked at getting some of the larger definitive tech. power towers but don't want a really boomy system. I went to the local retailer but they would not let me home audition (sounds pretty stupid to me). I have read a lot about the Axioms but from my discussions with Marc, I think the Dahl's are a better fit for me.

I have listened to some B & W's speakers (804's and NT series) Both sounded really good but the price for the Dahl's seems like a steal.

Dennis,

For what it is worth, my good friend has a Def Tech 5.1 set up with the 18" tower/subs. They were impressive, yet to my ears they lacked the soul of a midrange. In fact, at high levels they were kind of empty and actually fatiguing. I must admit those 18's were able to pump, but then again, they did not seem all that 'musical.'

My Dahls make me grin and can sustain that grin.

In fact, track 5 on Santana's latest (with Macy Gray--whom I don't care for normally) is absolutely amazing on the QX10's in 2 channel! There's a bass back-tracking that pops up at times that just makes you double-take and then shake your head everytime your hear it. Just a few days ago my brother (the latest victim of my gratiutous demo'ing) literaly said, "No way! What was that?!"

Enjoy the hunt...
Phil