what exactly does warm/bright mean? (1 Viewer)

[Christ Reynolds]

i'm in the process of shopping for speakers to replace my old ones, and i keep hearing about warm or bright or mellow sounding. could someone describe what these sound like? for my sound, i like to hear a lot of the highs, more than most people. i would also like to hear lows as well, but they arent as important as the highs, in fact i dont have a sub and probably never will. the spk companies i have been looking at are axiom, paradigm, klipsch, swan, and totem, so far. so what should i be looking for, warm, or bright, or something else entirely? i will be driving them with a pioneer elite 45tx, possibly upgrading to an outlaw 770 amp in the future. thanks for any help.

CJ

 

[ChadLB]

The klipsch to me are bright.....they produce alot of highs which for myself I didn't care for. Great speakers just not for me. I liked the paradigm more than the klipsch.
Everyone has there own tastes...

 

[NickSP]

I believe you can tame a lot of those highs by experimenting in speaker position itself.

 

[DanaA]

Chad is very correct. Speakers are a very individual thing. I own Klipsch and love them. Others can't stand their brightness. While on that topic, I'll mention that Klipsch are very sensitive to the electronics paired up with them. I have a warm sounding amp and the match is very nice...for me.

As far as warmth and brightness, it sounds to me like you like brighter speakers. They tend to emphasize the higher frequencies and have a crisper, more detailed sound. In my opinion, brighter speakers are better for HT, but that's just my personal taste. As far as not having a sub, obviously you need to look at speakers that have a frequency range lower than most. I will say that you seem to be looking at some very nice brands of speakers. Take your favorite CD's out for a spin and try and audition as many as you can. One very wise poster once said, "When you find the right ones, they'll reach out and grab you." My only proviso to this is that I've always felt first impressions can be very misleading. You might be bowled over by the initial impact of a bass sound, as an example, but later that same sound might be too muddy for you and eventually drive you up the walls. Here's the biggest hypocrit in the world saying, avoid the impulsive buying, but be very deliberate and judicious.

 

[Christ Reynolds]

thanks a lot for the replies guys. the htf is certainly helping to kill my wallet! when i first joined, i learned about receivers, as i knew nothing, now i know a good amount. speakers are my current 'learning project', and amps are next.i guess it depends on what i need to buy, and when. ive heard that klipsch are a bit bright, i think i should audition some of them. any other speaker companies i didnt mention that i should check out? or more importantly, are there any that i mentioned that i should avoid, given that i seem to have a liking for bright speakers? i have been leaning towards axiom, is this a bad idea? thanks again.

CJ

*edit* ---i just realized that this is the wrong forum, i believe. sorry admins, move if you like---

 

[ChadLB]

Your best bet if possible is to find a store that carries both klipsch and paradigm. It would also be nice if they had them in the same room. That way you at least are listening to both in the same environment. Listen to a music cd you know well and maybe a movie. The speakers may sound different once you decide to bring them home due to room acoustics and receiver amps. Like Dana said the klipsch seem to match well with HK recievers and probably denon since from what I have read they are warm/soft amps.
Don't listen to what the sales people say either...listen for what you like...not what they think....they will be yours not theres....