Ampion Xenon Speakers.

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oldcameraman3
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Ampion Xenon Speakers.

Unread post by oldcameraman3 »

Anybody heard or had any experience of these speakers,I believe room and positioning are critical.My main concern is driving them on smaller amps, they are quoted at 86db but my Audiomaster LS3/5a speakers drive well and are supposed to be demanding.I have a choice of 30 watts per channel with my NVA amp or 60 with my Aurex.Any input on the subject welcome but please don't suggest high end amps as my budget would only allow me to buy the speakers at what looks like a cheap price if not a lot of folk bid.

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jandl100
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Re: Ampion Xenon Speakers.

Unread post by jandl100 »

I had a pair and was disappointed.

Lots of people rate them highly but I found them lacking in rez and 'get up & go' - quite bland, imo, compared to many others at the same used price or less.

I rate the smaller standmounts by Amphion much more highly.
Jerry - unrepentant boxswapper 8-) Life's too short for boring hifi !

Current system ... MBL 116F speakers, ... various and varying electronics and cables ... Laptop (TIDAL hirez)

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Re: Ampion Xenon Speakers.

Unread post by _D_S_J_R_ »

May I respectfully suggest you buy speakers that are pretty well known and easy to move on if you don't like them overmuch? I appreciate this is a boring thing to do, but the predictability is high for a known sonic 'flavour.' Old LS3/5A's are around 83db IIRC and yours are nominal 15 ohms too. The careful tinkering with the design did help them to sound bigger than they are - and Alan Shaw of Harbeth rated some Audiomasters he had in for repair (many many years ago, he wouldn't lower himself now!), as better than his own 11 ohm 3/5A models, which are now regarded as some of the best of the breed.

For neat looks and a lovely midband, Rega RS3's are easy to drive and fun, if not the most refined out there (one of their charms). I'm still fond of the Spendor 'S' series and the S6 or S6e is easy to drive and a very good listen on a wide range of music - beautifully made too and well under a grand now (avoid the S5 models though).

Just a few thoughts. Sorry if they clash with other recommendations, such as the Cubes here for sale ;)
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BilliumB
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Re: Ampion Xenon Speakers.

Unread post by BilliumB »

Hi. I've got a pair of Amphion Xenon II speakers and am very happy with them, no plans to change (paid £800 second hand in excellent condition about a year ago). Not sure that I can really answer your questions though - I'm powering them via a Conrad Johnson CA 200 'control amp' which is basically a 180 W integrated with a passive pre - I'm told it was designed with minimal/no global feedback. I've not tried other speakers in the same room. They didn't sound as good using my old Rega Brio amp, but I guess that's only to be expected.

I have read that the original Xenon speakers are nothing like as good as the Xenon II's - but I've only heard mine, so who knows!

As to positioning, I've got mine about 5-6' from the side walls and 3' from the rear walls with about 10' between them - I sit about 10' away. The room's got loads of clutter in it, so probably quite good sound wise - certainly standing waves would have a hard time! The complicating factor is a great big fireplace that comes out about 3' into the room and is about 9' wide (and 6' high), so the speakers are only about 6" away from the fireplace that is between them. The fronts of the speakers are set about 8" in front of the fireplace. I've got the base drivers firing outwards towards the side walls.

I get a great wide and deep soundstage and the speakers seem to simply dissolve into the background. However, as I've discussed with Jerry in the past, I really need to listen to some other systems to hear what really good HiFi sounds like! Mine might be great, but until I compare, how do I actually know - it might be rubbish!

Cheers. Bill

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Re: Ampion Xenon Speakers.

Unread post by Yomanze »

jandl100 wrote:I had a pair and was disappointed.

Lots of people rate them highly but I found them lacking in rez and 'get up & go' - quite bland, imo, compared to many others at the same used price or less.

I rate the smaller standmounts by Amphion much more highly.
Yes, the Amphion Argon3 is an absolute belter of a speaker. I would also be tempted to listen to Amphion's newer Argon floorstanders, the 7L and 3L - Amphion updated the tweeters on these to address the "res" issue. I used the Argon2 and then the Argon3 for many years - they are ridiculously well tonally balanced, HUGE soundstage, very flat in-room response, very pure... made the equivalent offerings from B&W and Spendor at the time sound boring and lifeless.

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Re: Ampion Xenon Speakers.

Unread post by _D_S_J_R_ »

In-room responses should gently tail off at hf apparently. Which equivalent Spendor was it that you tried please?
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Re: Ampion Xenon Speakers.

Unread post by Yomanze »

_D_S_J_R_ wrote:In-room responses should gently tail off at hf apparently. Which equivalent Spendor was it that you tried please?
I have tried: Spendor S3E, Spendor S3/5, SP3/1R2, B&W 805 Sigs...

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Re: Ampion Xenon Speakers.

Unread post by jandl100 »

Spendies and B&Ws are just boring and lifeless, I'm afraid. :sleeping-blue:

Interesting that later Amphions had a higher rez tweeter - might indeed make them a bit more listenable.
Jerry - unrepentant boxswapper 8-) Life's too short for boring hifi !

Current system ... MBL 116F speakers, ... various and varying electronics and cables ... Laptop (TIDAL hirez)

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