Speaker Asylum: Re: Quad L series owners, help me decide between 21L and 22L please.. by machani

Thanks Nathan, for your detailed post.

I've read your posts in AA and A'gon and thay have been very insightful and helpful. The GoodSound reviewer also states that the 21L is his favorite among the L series.

Other than the crossover issue and the bass issue which Duckman has spoken about, all the owners of 22L seem to love their speaker. Even Duckman's opinion about the bass on the 22L is seemingly contradictory.

In Duckman's post of December 14, 2004 (see http://db.audioasylum.com/cgi/m.mpl?forum=speakers&n=180119 ) he says says he preferred the 21L's tight and fast bass to the 22L. However, in his later post of January 02, 2005, (see http://db.audioasylum.com/cgi/m.mpl?forum=speakers&n=181893 ) Duckman states that the bass in 22L is very good.

To quote Duckman verbatim:
"THE QUAD 22L HAD LOW BASS THAT ONE COULD FEEL AND HEAR. NOT LAID BACK LIKE VANDYS. DIDN'T HIT LIKE PARADIGM. BUT VERY GOOD. ADD TO THIS, THE ACCURACY, TIMING, SOUND FIELD, DEPTH, CLARITY (ESPECIALLY MID AND UPPER RANGES - THE ONEW WHERE WE HUMANS HERE THE MOST - MID) AND MY CHOICE CAME TO ME FOR MY APPLICATION. "

Coming to the crossover issue, the higher crossover point of the 22L is interesting. Now the only other brand I was considering in this price range was Odyssey Audio (the Epiphony and the Nightingale). In the TNT Audio review of the Epiphony, the reviewer states that its crossover point is set very high at 4KHz and that it might contribute to its excellent imaging. The higher crossover point is at the cost of a slight veiling in the midrange. I wonder if this higher crossover point would have a positive effect on the 22L's imaging ability. (See AA inmate Manek's post about 22L's imaging here: http://db.audioasylum.com/cgi/m.mpl?forum=speakers&n=163707)

Finally, regardless of whether I choose the 21L or 22L I will be conscious of upstream components (thanks to your and other L series owner feedback). Currently I am using a highly tweaked Cayin TA-30 tube amp, BizzyBee TAD-150 preamp and Marantz CC4300 CDP. The ICs are all silver DIY recipe from Greg Weaver's SST design - really smooth and detailed, with articulate bass and non-fatiguing. I'm also using decent power filtering (Panamax) for the source components. Due to budget constraints I won't be spending much on speaker cabling for now, and plan to use RadioShack 12AWG copper cable and bi-wire, but decent spade connectors.

Cheers!
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C N Machani

TNT review of Epiphony and the higher crossover point... (Open in New Window)