DE NETSPOREN (P)

ProAc One SC: "Post-script to my 11/9 review: After formally auditioning the Martin-Logan Aerius i, I no longer rate it above the ProAc [see my 11/15 posted Aerius review]. I still think the M-L is better in the mids and the treble, but I found that the cone was noticeably slower than the panels. In other words, the ProAc's suffer from sins of omission (lack of low end, small soundstage) without doing anything really wrong. The Aerius does many things extremely well, but gets the cone/panel integration just plain wrong. At the end of the day, I wouldn't purchase either one of these speakers. But if I had to choose, I'd choose the ProAc's and save my money to add a REL subwoofer later. As it stands, I wil continue my search for the best $2,000-$2,500+ speaker by auditioning the Joseph Audio RM22's, Hales Revelation 3's, PSB Stratus Golds and NHT 2.9's...."

ProAc One SC: "The Pro Ac One SC's has to be used with the right equipment and cabling to sound it's best. With regards to the last two reviewers, I almost totally disagree. I have actually owned the Tablette 50's the Tablette50 Sigs and the One SC's all at the same time, also have the Totems One right now. The ProAc's are among the most musical,involving, well made speakers available. They are very system dependent. My last system with the Ones SC's was Sonic Frontiers tube Line One, Audion Siver Knights, Anthem Amo One and Audioquest cabling, Tice line conditioning, Sony es 707, Cal cl 15. This system make you listen to your cd all over again. The Ones Sc's are transparent, effortless and well balanced, alyhough on some recording get a little bit harsh sounding. But the soundstage is THE BEST I have heard better than the Totems which are also very good. The one review mention "puny"? Not a possibility with the One SC's, at time the effect is almost 3D it so stunning. I know everybody has diffenent tastes etc, but I have owned a lot of diffent brands over the years, no speaker has made listening to music as enjoyable as the ProAc's."

ProAc One SC: "I, too was not all that impressed with the Response One SC, especially when evaluated on a price/performance basis. Pluses are the soundstage imaging (although the Tablette 50 Signatures are even better at this), clarity and neutrality. Build quality is superior. The negative from my perspective is pretty much what the last reviewer said. The sound, although pristine, is puny. There's just no getting past that fact. Once you get past the initial thrill of the jaw-dropping imaging (and it is truly thrilling), there just isn't alot there, in my opinion. The last reviewer used the term "majesty" in describing what is missing. I know that might sound snooty to you, but don't take it that way--it is really a dead-on, accurate, adjective. The majesty and grandeur that you get with a speaker that can really fill a room just is not there. Is it just that the bass is missing in action? You tell me...I don't know. But why would you try to cure that problem by adding a sub, something many of the reviewers discuss like it's nothing at all, when you could just do it right from the outset with any of the several really good HEARTY speaker systems available for the same or less money? Two grand or so just for the speakers, plus the required stands and maybe a sub? Add it up. I would urge anyone interested in the Response Ones to also audition speakers such as the Thiel 1.5s and Hales Revelation Threes (just two that immediately occur to me as being in the same price range) to make sure you're making a fully informed decision. Your room is small, you say? The Thiels (and others) are physically smaller than the ProAcs on stands (not to mention plus a sub), and they don't pump out enough low end to be a problem in a smaller room."

ProAc One SC: "I do not own the 1SC's, but I recently spent about 2 hours auditioning them at Stereo Exchange in NYC. I have spent the last few years studying up on what it takes to get state-of-the-art sound, and listening to a variety of speakers, amps and front ends. I decided to give the 1SC's a detailed listen because of the glowing Stereophile review and because I wanted to settle the monitor vs. big box debate for myself. The system reviewed included a Meridian 508-24 CD player (Stereophile Class A) and an E.A.R. 16-watt integrated amp (tubes). Also included in the audition was a REL Strata II subwoofer (on which I will have more to say presently). The music used spanned a broad spectrum: Beethoven's 9th, Kathleen Battle/Wynton Marsalis, Art Pepper, Acapella (all male) and a variety of R&B. I was looking to "benchmark" the sound of a high-quality monitor, so my comments will focus exclusively on the sound of the product."

"This speaker is world-class in terms of "truth-of-timbre". Voices sounded gorgeous and spot on in terms of creating a believable illusion. Art Pepper's alto sax sounded like...an alto sax--I know what one sounds like since I used to play one myself. I have heard mega-buck systems (2C3D, Watt/Puppy's, etc.) that merely equal (or slightly better) this $2,100 speaker in terms of timbre, so this is its best feature. However, I would have to demur to my colleagues in terms of the treble, imaging and soundstaging characterisitics of the speaker. While the speakers did give me a good sense of the venue of the recording--e.g., Kathleen Battle was clearly singing in a large hall with glorious, natural reverb--it was not world-class caliber. Nor was the treble the airiest I've heard, even taking price into the equation. Specifically, I listened to the same recordings on the M-L Aerius i (on the same day) on clearly INferior equipment (Acurus all around) and the M-L was still superior in terms of natural, airy highs. Still, I would rate the 1SC's midrange and treble very highly for the price."

"I would greatly encourage any 1SC owners to audition a REL subwoofer. After listening to the 1SC in conjunction with a REL Strata II ($1,200), I can unequivocally say the monitor sounded much better--with NO downsides whatsoever. I found the monitors to be too lean sounding generally. They were excellent for vocals, string quartets, and small-scale jazz ensembles. But I like a BIG sound when I hear powerful, majestic symphonies like the 9th. The REL added a solidity to the sound that firmed up the soundstage and gave the music more palpability. Even on acapella male voice, the sub added body to the sound that made it more believable. Of course, it also added the majesty and slam on orchestral or R&B pieces that the 1SC simply can't muster. If you like the 1SC, the REL simply gives you the 1SC down to 20 Hz!"

"Overall, I enjoyed the speaker immensely on smaller scale pieces. My only craving here was better holograhic imaging, but that costs big bucks. I was disappointed on bigger musical works, however. I found myself clearly craving a bigger, more majestic soundstage for large-scale orchestral works. The M-L Aerius clearly floated my boat better than the ProAc. For roughly the same money, it bettered the monitor in the treble and soundstaging areas, as well as adding a much better low end presentation that contributed to a better palpability factor. While the addition of the REL worked wonders with the 1SC, that would make it non-competitive on price with the M-L and, in any case, the M-L still wins in the treble sweepstakes."

ProAc One SC: "Even before the 1SCs were run in they sounded great. After a week they were magic and were perfect at reproducing everthing except real deep bass (deep bass is something you don't want in a speaker if you don'have a large room).The soundstage they produce is awesome, and nearly no speaker other speaker in the world makes an improvement over the 1SCs in this area.I use a Sonic Frontiers SFCD 1 CD player and Audion Silver Night 300B monoblocks into the ProAc 1SCs with MIT cables.After extensive comparisons I have found these are the best speakers for their price and size availble anywhere!"

"The ProAcs has been with me for almost 8 months now and I can assure anyone interested in standmounts not to look any further. The openness and detail coming out of them are unmatched; to add to that, there is none of that boxiness etc that you might expect from a floorstander. Overall, a truly first class performer. The only hitch will be for a heavy rocker looking for bone-crunching bass. Not that the 1SC is poor on that but it is limited by its size. However, easily rectified by matching amps or a quality subwoofer."

"Definitely a firm choice among speakers and a must for standmount hunters."

ProAc One SC: "The ProAc Response - 1SC's are truly a world class speaker! The soundstage is wide and deep, extending well beyond the speakers. They truly disappear, all you hear is a razor sharp 3-D image floating in front of you. The sounds of the instruments and the voices of the performers come from exactly the place they would be if you were at a live performance! These speakers are very, very detailed. The Response- 1SC's are so detailed they will expose the weak link in some systems. It has never been so easy to hear the diffrences between diffrent cd players, amps, preamps, and speaker wire! Other than missing some low bass these speakers are in my opnion unbeatable! I have tried just about all of the better monitors and a lot of full size floor standing models in the less than $3000.00 price range and these ProAc's really outperform about 95% of them. If you really are used to more bass or cant live without it the ProAc Response 2 might be a good choice, though I feel they do not have a large and as accurate a soundstage. The Response - 1SC's only weak point is they require very good stands either from Target or Alantis. For $2100 for the speakers and about $400 for a pair of Alantis stands you have a KILLER speaker, small but mighty, just think of David and Golith! You might get a bit more low end from a full size floor standing model but you will not get that other 98% of superior soundstaging, imaging, detail, accuracy, and just plain "Am I at the concert" feeling! If you don't believe me go and listen to a pair, and rember to bring a blindfold! These speakers get a very high 5! "

ProAc One SC: "I purchased the Response 1 S over 2 years ago and loved the detail, the fast bass, the neutrality, and the detailed ability to hear every change in my system. This allowed several improvements to properly match the the system to my room, mainly with cabling. Two months ago, I upgraded to the 1SC version. If you own a pair of 1S's, upgrade now. Everything Wes Phillips recently reported in Stereophile is true. The "touched by magic" statement is a testimate to the incrediable openess of these speakers. Air, ambience, bloom, detail, however you want to describe a sweet detailed open naturalness, these speakers have it, and the charastic is readily aparant (not subtle). The original 1S's were best in class. I would call them very good, detailed, neutral Hi Fi. They were at least a head, and sometimes head and shoulders above the other speakers I auditioned. The 1SC's propell your system to the very penticle of the High End (with one superior, which I will get to in a minute). The open naturalnes is like hearing single ended triodes for the fist time, or the detailed clarity of the Audio Research Reference 1 Pre Amp. The 1S's had industry leading low distortion, but the 1SC's are noticeably lower in distortion. There is also an inprovement in the lower trebel that renders horns with a little more weight and substence. Shrill instruments, like voilens, some horns, etc are rendered womderfully realistic. And suprise, electric guitar is now an enjoyable, tunefull, blending of tones that can be drunk in and enjoyed, not the distorted chaos I find on lesser systems. I find myself listening much louder without fatigue, which is saying something since I like to listen at low volume. These speakers are wonderful off axis, listening from 1 or even 2 rooms away is sweet and natural. The Bass is 15 Hz lower than the earlier version, which is a nice bonus. As is the greater sensitivity and the power handling."

"The only speaker that out performs the Response 1SC in the air and space department, in my experience, is the Pro Ac Tablet 50 Signature. Yes, believe that this smaller version is even more open, but noticeably more lacking in the Bass. With the Tablet sig, I would want a subwoofer. With the 1SC I am quite happy without one."

ProAc One SC: "What can i say? They're magic! Didn't know music could sound like this before I bumped in to the Response 1 SC's. Yeah, they don't do the bass thing, but that's what the subwoofers ar for, right? I'm in love..."

ProAc One SC: "I have to agree with Yee Fung's assessment on the mids and highs on the One SC's but disagree about the bass. The lower mids down to the bass is full for such a small woofer. Using sand-filled Atlantis Reference stands, Audioquest Midnight Plus speaker cable (excellent bass) 40 watt tube amp, and a 20 watt 300B amp the One SC's is magical in the mids and super clean extended highs. Cymbals are gorgeous, soundstage is the best I've heard. The bass? I have no complaints, neither is it too bloated or super tight. Sounds just right to me."

ProAc One SC: "The Proac One Sc's are very revealing but also ver Musical and exciting if you use good tube amps with them. Cabling is important also, anything neutral will work well. Audioquest is good, Discovery and Tara Labs seem to work magic with the Proacs. I tend to agree that they can get forward in the upper mids, but that more a of an attribute to the equip that feeding them. Build quality of all Proac's I have owned has been the best I seen. The woodwork is incredible and attention to detail is excellent. Jay mention Thiel and Signet as being better? Thiel's seem okay but Signet? Signet and Proac are for two different shoppers of speakers, I'm pretty sure Signet is vinyl covered. Anyway, the Ones Sc's are among the best you can get for what they are, small monitors touched by magic."

ProAc One SC: "I heard these briefly while looking for a new amp. I was highly impressed, they're at least as good if not better than my Totem Ones."

ProAc One SC: "I had a pair of the new One SC's for a short while borrowing from a friend. Well the speaker is really special in the mids with a airy transparent reproduction here. The bass is really good for a speaker this size, the bass actually had some heft and "air" on some recordings that was surprising at times. Sounstaging and focus of images was really good. The Proac is able to sound really big and stay focused at the same time. They disappear at times, staring right at speaker and the sound seems to be part of the room and not the speaker itself. Fun. I have only one nitpick and this could possible be cured with differnt cables and or another amplifier. The upper midrange and treble sometimes was "too open" and had a slight "hifi" quality to it. I don't know how too say it, too much zip to that frequency range."

"The One SC is not as neutral and true to the recording as the less expensive Tablette model 50 and Sig 50, both of which are drier and i think more accurate though not as excitng a listen. Anyway, this slight emphasis could probably be minimized with a diffent setup than mine(Sony 707 ES CD player, Sonic Frontiers Line One, Anthem Amp One amplifier and Audioquest. Anyway, a great little speaker that is my favorite at this price and size. It makes you listen more often and usually longer than your used to. My friend has been listening alot more to his collection and loves them. He too has the Tab Sigs plus bigger Proac 2.5's, Response Three's among other brands, Acoustic Energy 2's, Coincident and small Aerials. He says the music has never sounded better."

ProAc One SC: "The ProAc Response - 1SC's are truly a world class speaker! The soundstage is wide and deep, extending well beyond the speakers. They truly disappear, all you hear is a razor sharp 3-D image floating in front of you. The sounds of the instruments and the voices of the performers come from exactly the place they would be if you were at a live performance! These speakers are very, very detailed. The Response- 1SC's are so detailed they will expose the weak link in some systems. It has never been so easy to hear the diffrences between diffrent cd players, amps, preamps, and speaker wire! Other than missing some low bass these speakers are in my opnion unbeatable! I have tried just about all of the better monitors and a lot of full size floor standing models in the less than $3000.00 price range and these ProAc's really outperform about 95% of them. If you really are used to more bass or cant live without it the ProAc Response 2 might be a good choice, though I feel they do not have a large and as accurate a soundstage. The Response - 1SC's only weak point is they require very good stands either from Target or Alantis. For $2100 for the speakers and about $400 for a pair of Alantis stands you have a KILLER speaker, small but mighty, just think of David and Golith! You might get a bit more low end from a full size floor standing model but you will not get that other 98% of superior soundstaging, imaging, detail, accuracy, and just plain "Am I at the concert" feeling! If you don't believe me go and listen to a pair, and remember to bring a blindfold! These speakers get a very high 5!"

ProAc Response 2s: "Fabulous speakers, smooth and clean sounding. Requires quality amplification."

ProAc Response 2s: "Wonderful! This page is finally restricted to reviews of the R2S! Graeme's review in particular is I feel quite perceptive - the only problem I've had with them was a VERY slight over-fullness around the port frequency (as my room's main resonant mode is at almost exactly the same frequency), which I initially solved by stuffing them with foam. However, very careful placement and further running in have rectified the problem pretty much completely (I leave the ports open now). They do seem to be balanced more for small to medium sized rooms than my very small one, but their musical rewards and exceptional overall balance made them very well worth the effort. Graeme is right on the money when he says they have you digging through your entire music collection for hours on end!"

ProAc Response 2s: "Wonderfully musical speakers - natural, pure, smooth and effortless; not an annoying "Hiss" or "Buzz" to be found, if you get my drift! Kudos! "

ProAc Response 2s: "Some of the posts about this speaker are ridiculous in the extreme. I have listened to it on several occasions totalling about 12 hours with amps ranging from C-J to Gryphon and ARC, and I have never failed to be impressed. It is an outstanding all-rounder with many virtues, namely its cohesiveness, faithfulness to the musical message, imaging,and seductive rhythmic presentation, and it has that one quality which IMHO is paramount; It makes me want to play every record/CD available-NO listener fatigue."

"Having said that, I do not own them as 1) The bass around 40-80Hz is a little too full for my room 2)The price in Australia is appx. 2.5X SF Concerto, which to my ears,(my taste!) is about equal to it. Given a different room I may well have made a different decision. These are my genuine thoughts about a speaker which I believe is one of the few classics in audio, and I know of several people who spend many happy hours listening to them."

ProAc Response 2s: "Sorry to repeat myself, but I just HAD to post some more comments in order to get my babies out of the hall of shame! I would like to address the issue of imaging raised in one of the reviews of the 1SC. Yes the 1SC (as well as the Tablette Sig) does indeed focus images a little more precisely than the 2S (as do some other fine super minis, such as the Acoustic Energy AE1, which I owned before my pair of original 2s, which I upgraded to the 2Ss) - this is simply a function of their small size. But by the same token, they are unable to reproduce image SCALE as well as larger speakers, not just because of radiating area but also because of bass extension - a lot of information about the size of a recording venue is carried by deep bass. But of course big speakers lose out on imaging precision to smaller ones."

"Anyway, for me the 2S strikes the optimum balance between these two extremes - they reproduce a wonderfully large scale soundstage but with precisely focused images that have just the right amount of body. Of course, this sort of thing is largely a matter of tatse - as well as probably being very dependent upon the listening room and setup - but hey, your taste just might match up with mine!"

ProAc Response 2s: "I forgot to mention the R2Ss extraordinary scale and dynamics for their size - once again, very real and natural. I drive them with a Pass Aleph 3, which shows that they are both quite easy to drive and CAN be used with solid state, though to make the most of their capabilities it had better be clean and well-behaved."

"Their naturalness, resolution and balance adds up to a special kind of magic that is the domain of VERY few speakers anywhere outside the ProAc range."

"BTW, I've found the also marvellously natural (rather than overtly hi-fi) Harmonix Strings speaker cables to be a very good match for them."

ProAc Response 2s: "Okay, I've gotta put in my two cents worth here. The ProAcs - right across the range - simply sound more like real, live music than anything else out there. They don't impress with boom and tizz, just sheer out and out naturalness and transparency. I strongly disagree that the Electa Amator IIs are a better speaker - they just aren't as musically well balanced a transducer, and the R2Ss extract more REAL detail from recordings. I find the bass to be extraordinarily extended for such a small speaker (as much as I could ever want in my small room actually), and has just the right balance of weight and tautness - basically, just like the real thing. And the rhythm and pace of the ProAcs is unsurpassed - boy, can these things rock (or swing)! Then there's that legendary ProAc mid and top end, in the case of the R2Ss adding up to near-as-damnit pefectly balanced whole - they seem to NEVER sound too bright OR too dull, no matter what style of music or what kind of recording you throw at them. Oh yes, let's not forget that also legendary ProAc imaging - once again, simply just like the real thing."

"Forget about trying to compare these thoroughbreds with other speakers in a dealer demonstration - other speakers might impress you more in this context, but they won't give you anywhere near as much lasting enjoyment of your music collection as these babies will. Compare them instead to real, live music - against almost all other speakers, there's just no comparison."

ProAc Studio 150: "I finally purchased these speakers after a grueling search through the hordes of $2000 floor standing speakers presently out on the market. I found most speakers in this category tend to have metal-dome tweeters, that usually do not blend well with the high-quality, sweet midrange that is possible in this price range. I compared these speakers to NHT's B&W's and Dynaudio. The NHT's and B&W's (ps-p8) had metal-dome tweeters that were just too harsh to the ear. The Dynaudio's sound incredible, but were waaay more expensive."

"Then I found the ProAc's, which embodied all the great european characteristics of the Dyn's but a (slightly) more reasonable price.. At first I fell in love with the famous Tablette Signatures. The (all-important) tweeter was a detailed, sweet and non-fatiguing softdome. The midrange was unparalleled, and the bass, though no over-powering, was tight, and accurate. I've noticed that most american speakers tend to over-do the bass and also scream with their really bright tweeters. Perhaps we have a cultural tendency to overdo things in all areas of life with loss of subtlety, but hey, we're not discussing that here. We are discussing the difference between european speakers and american speakers, and it seems that the british have it right with their much higher incidence of turntables (and audiophiles) per capita than we can surely claim! They also build speakers with extremely accurate blossoming midrange."

"The studio 150's take the basic balance of the tablette success and apply it to a floorstanding model with duplicated mid/woofers. This increases the bass response without subtracting from that famous ProAc midrange. I do listen to a lot of rock and electronica, but also have acoustic and jazz in the mix. Yes, the proAc's do not do bass like most americans want it- loud and juicy, like a cajun steak. Instead, it brings out the nuance of midrtange- where all the music really is, and honestly replicate the bass without over-doing it. (more like a grilled portabella)."

"I matched the speakers to a Golden Tube SI-50 integrated tube amp, and the Rega Planet. I also have a Technics turntable for occasional use. I've noticed that these speakers really shine when given a lot of breathing room- and sound much much better with the grills removed. (no blaring treble to hit you ) the finish is impeccable, and the quality of build is like a tank. ProAc is a wonderful company that is building speakers for those who appreciate subtlety over flamboyance."

ProAc Studio 150: "These speakers were somewhat different from most of the other $2,000 floor standing speakers I have been reviewing. They have two five inch woofers mounted above and below the dome tweeter. As a consequence of the two smaller drivers, this speaker easily had the most detailed midrange of any other the other speakers I have reviewed thus far. The soundstaging was top notch as well.

The construction quality and wood veneer finish on the speakers is excellent. There are a variety of veneers to choose from at no extra cost. So many speakers in this price range use just use a cheap black covering on thier cabinets that it was a real pleasure to see a speaker that didn't look like a big black box.

The big drawback of these speakers is the bass extension. The bass reponse was excellent and very controlled, but it didn't extend very deep at all. Bass heavy music like rock or HT really sounded poor on these speakers. On the other hand, music that didn't require deep bass extension such as classical, folk or jazz was beautifully presented.

Overall, I give this speaker five stars for construction quality, five stars for reproducing acoustical music, but only three stars for rock or HT uses. Overall, I give this speaker four stars."

ProAc Tablette 50: "I have had a pair of Tablette 50's for about a year and a half. They are the best small speaker I could find. I don't normally like boxes, but these are pretty good boxes! I used to own Maggie 2.5Rs, which spoiled me on open sounding speakers. The Tablettes have a better midrange around 1k-2k, where the maggie crossovers give their dips. But the tablettes shine."

"Well made, and easy to listen to. They are "musical" in the best sense of the word."

ProAc Tablette 50: "The search for MY ideal spks ended 2 years ago when I got my Tablette 50 Sig.Best driven by tube amp."

ProAc Tablette 50: "I have had a pair of Tablette Signatures for several months now, and I would like to echo some of the comments already made. These are little gems of a speaker, offering highly detailed and accurate musical reproduction along with a top notch build quality. If your tastes lean towards classical or other acoustical music, you should give them a listen. Some other points:

ProAc Tablette 50: "I agree with these first two assessments: they're great speakers. Mine are the Response One upgrades, however. & I have a Carver True Sub-Woofer crossed over at 50Hz. My pair took forever to break in (100 hours) during which time they were all over the map. But really worth it ! I agree they seem slightly warm in the mid-bass, esp on a record like Double-Bass Delights, or the 25th Anniversary of the Double-Reed society. But overall they are terrific, esp on voices, and esp on instrumental timbre. Mine are about 4 feet out from the rear wall & they produce a wonderfully deep sound stage, with the music sometimes coming way out into the room. Really an education in Hi-Fi at a modest price. The Aerial NT10s and the Hales are similar in sound quality. The Egglestons are incredibly hollow-sounding by comparison, which bears out the "warmth" "fullness" feeling."

ProAc Tablette 50: "This small sweet tabllets are exellent in a very special way.They aren´t ´´crowd pleasers´´so earth shaking bass power isnot to be expected anyway.However,the bass is very good for the speakers of this size.Dynamic, tunefull and well behaved.Bass reflex ports(two of them)are on the backside so don´t even thinkof placing them close to the wall.That leeds us to another point:imaging. When placing ProAc´s some extra care is needed to balance depth of image with bass quantity.If you do this carefully you will be left with speakers that produce pinpoint,breathtakingly real 3D images. High ferquency reproduction is sweet and detailed.Vocals: clean and natural. This little things give you a taste of high life at a low price!But be prepared to accept ProAc´s minor drawback.Carefull listeners will notice some warm coloration which some suspect to be of a boxy kind. I can tell you only one thing about that:when I play music trough ProAc´s images jump into the room and they´re as far from boxiness as you can get! In this respect they give a run for money to many ultra expensivehi end loudspeakers.I´m not ProAc employee and have nothing to do with any of their dealers."

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Bijgewerkt op: juli 12, 1999