$550 for These?! HTD Level 3 Bookshelf Speaker Review

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[@cheapaudioman]

Sith Audio Mug my-store-11536215.creator-spring.com/listing/sith-audio Home Theater Direct Level 3 Bookshelf Speaker bit.ly/3Fu8FTr ----Patreon.com/cheapaudioman ----------------Black Friday Crutchfield shop-links.co/cf1XR2sZzZS ---------------------Black Friday Best Buy shop-links.co/cf1XQaZw9uq -------------------------Amazon Music and Disney Plus Free Trial amzn.to/3DRAVj9

[@davidcoons89]

Beautiful speakers, thanks for the great review!

[@JonHunter80]

Congrats on just hittin 60K subs'... just seen a video you did n Jan' where you mentioned hittin 12K, your blowin up

[@redred-redred]

Hi dear😀 I need speakers with fun. Beatles, Rolling Stones. I need full sound by little loudness. I love 3 d sound. I love tube sound. Bookshelf. What you mean? Klipsch, Cabasse, JBL, or this? Greetings from Germany Bavaria Manfred

[@erics.4113]

The fact that they built them solidly with 3/4" mdf gets my respect.

[@glennjones6574]

These speakers have been on the market unchanged for years. A refreshing with magnetic grills would be nice .

[@tomnwmi]

@@glennjones6574 They need better bracing and a new tweeter.

[@therealmitch-a-palooza7262]

Why? Decent build quality should be seen as a given. Quality design is what should be respected. And unfortunately, the design of these speakers isn't that great.

[@erics.4113]

@@therealmitch-a-palooza7262 I agree that decent build quality should be expected, however it doesn't seem to be a given any more. That was the big part of the point I was making.

[@matthirn7858]

Thanks for the review Randy. I used a four-tower, center and sub woofer set-up from HTD for 19 years. I recently picked up their bookshelf speakers. I think your analysis is insightful. I like the fact that you found them to be transparent, easily hearing differences caused by pairing them with different equipment. I find them to be smooth and warm. The build quality is great. The grille attachment is a shortcoming. They're solid, faithful, speakers. Nearly twenty years of use and still going strong speaks to that.

[@royhandy8365]

Sith Audio has the best audiophile gear. I wish they made audiophile socks, though.

[@hlurpseed]

They do! Sith audio socks are vibration isolation dampeners. And they’re bluetooth!

[@steverogers7611]

I can’t find the link, I wanted the sith meditation, now that I know there is a hat 🎩 too. I am going to get the whole collection.

[@jimfarrell4635]

I had audiophile socks which had a picture of Santa on the side and played Jingle Bells when you crossed your ankles. A bit bright in the treble, I remember. Unfortunately I got dressed in the dark one winter's morning and didn't realise I had put them on when I started my GP surgery. So in the middle of consoling some poor woman who had just had bad news I must've crossed my legs and ..doo doo doo, doo doo doo, doo doo doo de doo came wafting up from beneath my desk. To my eternal shame I just ignored it and carried on while she no doubt began to think she was going insane. So audiophile socks ? Not a good idea.

[@cheapaudioman]

Sith Audio Mug... hot off the presses my-store-11536215.creator-spring.com/listing/sith-audio

[@pushslice]

@@hlurpseed Speaking of tooth, I really feel that somebody should develop a audiophile toothpaste. It makes all kinds of sense.

[@odwatchguy]

Nice Review Randy. The speaker looks great and the pattern on the veneer sets it apart from so many of the more mass produced products available.

[@MrChristopherMolloy]

I've been a fan of this relatively unknown brand for a long time. Excellent products.

[@rand9994]

I had a pair with center that I gave to my son. Always very impressed with them. I had a room in one house that I swear they would get below 40Hz in so they are definitely room dependent. I have four of their SB-1 that I use for surrounds and they look and sound great. Their speaker stands are very nice too.

[@willees6958]

Love your reviews!! I am glad that you were finally able to review them. (Especially as I requested it :-) ). I guess a shootout is in order ... Klipsch, Wharfd, Emos, HTD. Btw... I listened to the HTD Level 2 (only $300/pair) a long time ago which are also very very good.

[@markbrown3448]

Very nice video review! I've had these for a while and I got the nice Macassar Ebony finish bookshelf and center model right before one of the most recent price bumps. You don't find many reviews for these models or HTD in general, Audio Science Review measurements for the Level 3 speaker appear to be terrible yet my ears really like them and my wife loves the ebony finish/aesthetics despite the size of the speakers. Other speakers I've compared them to: NHT C3, Emotiva ERM 6.2, NHT SB3 for the bookshelf comparison. Center channel comparison is limited to Emotiva C1 3 way and the Emotiva ERM 6.2 in boundary compensation mode flipped on it's side. Out of the box my ears noted some issues with the center speaker version in terms of minor vocal coloration/pink noise during level setting sounded a little wonky so I went DIY and replaced the stock check the box side padding inside the enclosure with a denim variant and added a minor amount of acousta-stuff behind the two woofers/tweeter without blocking the port lanes. After connecting it back up and busting out the sound level meter to check channel balance I seemed to have induced a minor efficiency bump + got rid of whatever my ears didn't like about the center channel when it came out of the box. It is a two way horizontal center speaker so the usual suckage exists for WTW dispersion but in my smaller room + the kapton tweeter/waveguide, all seats are in the limited sweet spot and I have to move close to a non-seating area to notice the center channel dispersion limitations. Bookshelf version, my ears really liked them in stock form but since I got some benefit with tweaking the center channel by doing a little DIY work I did the same denim insulation for side lining + minor acousta stuff fill without blocking port lanes like I did for the center speaker. I didn't get any sort of minor efficiency bump but the timbre completely matched the revised center speaker. Cool. The other area I've noticed the HTD Level 3s shine is appearing to disappear in my room. The sounds are placed very precisely but the sound doesn't appear to just come from the speaker box, sounds float nicely in and around the speaker general area but I don't get that terrible speaker boxiness that I guess I should be hearing based on how badly the speakers measure in the ASR review. I don't find the highs screechy at all and I have extremely sensitive hearing, ymmv since some of the online reviews trash the high end on the HTD level 3s. I use these primarily for home theater/gaming and for that, they work extremely well for me. They are being powered by a JBL Synthesis amp and seem to scale nicely compared to when I had them powered with a more budget oriented receiver not entirely great at driving challenging speaker loads/less efficient speakers.

[@rasskall-aka-Luke_A.]

Jedi Sensei Randy, those are some gorgeous speakers. Looks almost sorta kinda like a modern day Infinity Kappa. Audiophile eye-candy. The fact that they sound good at that price is an added bonus. Like having a drop-dead gorgeous girlfriend, if she has a nice personality, it's just icing on the cake. Cake and eat it. Bravo!

[@welderfixer]

What a handsome speaker and it looks like it would perform very well. Thank you for another great review.

[@dawolyan13]

It’s a pleasure to see a speaker that is designed to excel at what it does, not trying to extend into something it is not, ie bloated bass or phantom ranges!🤷🏻‍♂️

[@CandBLawnCare]

Thanks for the review but the company is called home theater direct and the review was only about music listening and not movie watching. I’d like to know how they would be in a theater environment. I was looking at these a few years ago.

[@halkdc]

Thanks for reviewing these. I’m looking to update my home theater and haven’t found much about these before. Really interested in their towers and Center.

[@ginom407]

Never heard of HTD, but I'm very interested now! Thank you for sharing these with us! 👍👍👍

[@kennethabbott3856]

I happen to have a 5 channel level III theater powered by a Yamaha RX-A1050. I love them. BTW, thanks for mentioning Nina Simone "Sinnerman". I find a 10+ minute live version on Spotify that sounded awesome.

[@mattgiunt]

I use these as rear surrounds and lay them on their back on stands aiming at the ceiling. Works great creating bubble of sound in room.I broke off my grill posts when I first got these but company sent me another. I used WD 40 to slip the grills on and have never taken them off.

[@FOH3663]

Good application for a beamy tweeter

[@jmax6614]

I do the same and it's the only way to use surround speakers are on there back

[@JonHunter80]

Congrats on just hittin 60K subs'... just seen a video you did n Jan' where you mentioned hittin 12K, your blowin up

[@pekkatervala8476]

They sure look like serious business. They have all the right ingredients, which I associate with high fidelity sound.

[@mikeromero3077]

Got my coffee, my sith audio flatcap on my head, now I'm ready. Great video as always.

[@cheapaudioman]

my-store-11536215.creator-spring.com/listing/sith-audio

[@mikeromero3077]

@@cheapaudioman didn't realize you actually had a merchandise store. Cool. I was kidding about the Sith Audio flatcap obviously. Lol

[@stonefree1911]

Interesting speakers for a decent price. I'm always a bit wary of ribbon/AMT driver in a horn or waveguide tho. At a similar price point, the Martin Logan Motion 15's are a great deal and quite proven. If you can find a good deal on their Motion 35XT's even better... The HTD tower speakers look interesting. Twin woofs, a dome midrange, and ribbon tweeter....Kind of like a budget Wharfedale EVO 4.4...

[@choronzo202]

My knuckles are turning white of anticipation as my hand is grabbing around that cup of coffee Randy!

[@NeilBlanchard]

Thank you for the clear description of the sound qualities, as well as the details about the crossover. The 3rd order crossover is probably more likely to let you hear the differences between the drivers; since they don;t "blend" over as wide a range, as they do with 2nd or 1st order crossovers.

[@NeilBlanchard]

@@Openeyesopenheart42 You may be right, but whatever the reason, it is fairly high crossover point, and that stresses the woofer covering up that high. The wave guide does help the tweeter to work down at it's lower end, though.

[@RennieAsh]

If those little grill posts are tight, you can sand/file the ball ends slightly until they fit in easier. Just beware of taking too much off all around as you don't want it to be too loose. If I were keeping them, I'd convert it to magnetic. Use slugs in the baffle holes, plastic caps, - remove posts from grilles, put coin magnets in the holes (plastic/felt cap).

[@jonboy9912]

You are the man for the common man - man!

[@hwccheng]

Great review and good assessments on variety of situations

[@michaelwright1602]

I have never used their speakers, but I have owned their whole house audio system, they have fantastic gear.

[@johnnyonthespot4375]

I picked up a set of these never having listed to Ribbon tweeters and I couldn't be happier. I have my setup with 2 powered subs and I don't understand what his point of the Bass was - These are solid Bass performers particularly for Bookshelfs. Regarding the tweeters ?? I am now a Ribbon tweeter fan. I can hear things clearly with these that just blew past me with the others. I am tickled stupid that I got these.

[@JohnScheppler]

Great review and I'm liking the looks of this speaker. I agree it would be better with magnetic grills so you could leave them off without having the holes.

[@mirosaric2516]

I am really enjoying your takes on these companies I haven't heard of. I took a look at the HTD site and I see some inexpensive amps that I would love to hear your take. The PLA-240ADS is 219 and seems to be ideal for an office or small room. Any chance you would consider looking at the 2 channel amps from HTD? Ever since Cambridge increased their prices I am looking for a nice sounding amp under 250 to use as a second amp... Thanks!

[@harveylin3548]

I have a pair of those used that I scored from ebay for $260 for the pair a year ago. They are basically the better RP600Ms IMO. Same sound profile, very V shaped, mids are very recessed, treble a bit lifted, not a neutral pair of speakers. Bass tuning is great, but not good for vocals, if you use them for movies, must need a center channel. For music, techno and hip hop is great, Rock and anything that requires vocal? Not so much, but it is very detailed and imaging is above average as well. For the price I paid, I kept them instead of the Kef Q150 due to their extended bass responses. I still would like to own a pair of neutral sounding speakers with a 6.5' woofer, my sights are now aimed at the newer Polk models that came out recently, I heard them on the showroom floor of BestBuy and I was stunned at how good the sounded for the price they are asking.

[@Woodzyowl0309]

You know what I'm curious about? The Behringer B212XL and B215XL. $280 and $340 from Sweetwater right now. They seem to have a small cult following in both the budget home theater and audiophile markets. Someday I may get a pair to test...

[@edcolston2769]

Hey Randy I bought a Rockville blutube hybrid amplifier 7 months ago and really love it, seen a few reviews on KZbin but your opinion on audio has proved very valuable to me. What is your opinion concerning the blutube hybrid amplifier.

[@homeboi808]

They actually are only ~83dB throughout the bass and midrange. Amir recently reviewed these and said they sounded shrill (measurements back that up). But do note that HTD reached out to him to get the speaker back to investigate, so hopefully his sample was damaged (though that is bad for HTD in terms of QC or shipping performance). Amir did say though: “But the overall feeling of clarity that such overboosted highs present is hard to deny.”

[@davidcoons89]

Hey Randy, I wanted to pick your brain a bit here..I’m looking to get back into two channel without going over $1k (initially at least). I’ve been back and forth between the Klipsch R820F and the Fluance Reference and the Fluance Signature (both also in floorstanders). If you had to pick between the two at the same cost ($600/pair USD), which would you choose based off of a 60/40 split towards HT, and music library being primarily rock and hip hop and electronic primarily. I already have a comprehensive headphone listening setup and have a VMV D1SE I will be able to use for a dac. I lost my Denon X4300H in my recent divorce but still have a slightly older Denon S910W (95wpc/8 ohm load, 2 channel) to use for amplification in the interim. I plan on getting at least a somewhat decent class A/D dedicated amp for the setup regardless of the speakers I choose. I don’t mind adding a sub and a center down the line but don’t want to rely on such. I have a pretty big layout to fill (with an open floor plan). I want something with a good phantom center capability for use with the Denon and something a bit warmer and punchier than neutral for sure. Any thoughts or recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Anyone else who can chime in, I’d also absolutely appreciate the input! My last Klipsch set was the Synergy line f30’s and surrounds with a Polk psw505 to round out the 5.1 at the time. I enjoyed the Klipsch, especially when toed slightly out (this was in a much smaller space tho). I do want floorstanders for sure since I have such a large space and don’t want to feel the absolute NEED for a sub etc. Thanks in advance to everyone and I hope you’re all thoroughly enjoying your music!

[@davidgreen1504]

just picked up a pair rp- 280 3 months ago can't go wrong with these monsters pair with vintage Kenwood 5700 integrated amp at 40 watts and a rotel rx-603 vintage receiver both recap. good luck in your pickings 👊

[@davidcoons89]

@@davidgreen1504 thanks for the reply and relaying your setup! Thanks buddy, I’m sure I won’t go wrong regardless of what I end up with!

[@glennelliott4989]

Hey I just wanted to give you my 2cents. I’ll preface by saying that I’m new to this hobby so my equipment and my ear is not as sophisticated as yours probably is. I found a pair of Wharfedale Evo 4.2’s as open box for $899. These were my endgame speakers tat I thought I wouldn’t own for many years. But I bit the bullet and took the plunge. They replaced a pair of Emotiva b1+ speakers that are absolutely fantastic and would have been really happy with for, well, forever tbh. But the 4.2’s are so so good. I’ve had very little problems with off axis listening or placement. Maybe I’ve been lucky or my ears are getting old,lol. I just wanted to pass on my experience with great speakers.

[@davidcoons89]

@@glennelliott4989 awesome you got such a good pair at a great deal! My first decent speakers were a pair of Wharfedale 10.2’s from just about 10 years ago. I still have them and really enjoy them. I ended up purchasing a pair of Klipsch RP-280F speakers (what the RP-8000F replaced, but quite similar in overall sonics apparently) and am currently using a Fosi DA2120C to power them currently. I’m really quite impressed with the quality of the Fosi at the price and v specifically the feature set. I still have plans for better quality amplification in the somewhat near future and will still pair it with my D1SE for dedicated DAC duties. I hope you’ve been enjoying those awesome 4.2’s with your music library!!

[@jasonm3871]

I’ve long been interested in these. The tower version were on my shortlist. I had planned to make a visit to them, but recently snagged a good used deal on something else.

[@ComputerGeeks-R-Us]

I remember when Plano was agricultural. Amazing to see how it has become a 'burb.

[@AlarusOne]

Those speakers look way cool! ...But I really want to hear is your review of that AkcitikA pre-amp. I would love to hear how it sounds to you (I'm having one built for me because I have no skills). XD I would love to hear your opinion on the quality of sound that it channels into a power amp. And of course "old school rules" ;D

[@SwishaMane420]

Will these be good speakers if they have to be laid on their side? Ribbon tweeter wave guide up and down vs left to right like in the video. Have never owned a set of ribbon tweeter speakers like this. I would have to lay them on their side tho.

[@alexeym.1175]

Word you also test elac carina? These are great speakers. And I wish a comparison with wharfedale evo, emotiva and these pair😊

[@scottgmaclean]

Hi Randy - I just ordered the Jamo c93ii speakers based on your effusive reviews! Just wondering if you could recommend a vintage amplifier that would do them justice?

[@chutgowdingo-loon3212]

Randy, their 2 channel 125 watt integrated amp looks good on paper. Would make for an interesting review if you could get one in. Rated the old way - max output WPC RMS into 8 oms both channels driven, max THD at rated output - these days it's rare to find anyone who spec their amps that way. Whatdya think ? Worth checking out ?

[@cheapaudioman]

For sure. It's a class D and normally I'm not a huge fan for music applications. For HT use it's fine and great actually. I'll talk to them about it for sure.

[@chutgowdingo-loon3212]

@@cheapaudioman That would be great. Thanks. Ut's the DA-2125. Just spoke to one of their support staff. Yes it is a Class D amp, but they use their own modules - not the Icepower or Infineon stuff.

[@stevesmith3033]

Ah you're in Plano Texas! That makes a lot of sense

[@RennieAsh]

I wonder if pushing that tweeter so low creates some issues despite the efficiency due to the wave guide. Usually planar tweeters that small don't seem to like going so low. I have some cheap planar drivers that I'd only use for very high crossover frequency I think

[@barrywilliams606]

Are all the speakers you review for 2 channel set ups?

[@samk.871]

Randy, are you from Texas, you mentioned Plano?

[@FOH3663]

Interesting, I'm unfamiliar with these. They call it a ribbon, but it's a planar correct?

[@happytimeswithdave8670]

Hi Randy, nice video brother

[@You_Can_FOO_It]

How do these compare to the XLS-Encores for both music and home theater applications? Thanks!

[@cheapaudioman]

the HTD is a beefier sound. Encores are more delicate and will probably reveal a bit more in the music. Also have a better hand off between the woofer and the tweeter. The HTD is really a great speaker and actually competes with some of the DIY offerings where most factory speakers don't.

[@jakevonreyn7940]

Hope this means we get a review of the Akitika pre amp soon. Looks nice!

[@benjaminsylvester5003]

I like that Akitika is a palindrome.

[@davidandrewway]

I have that amp and some modded, and sealed X-LS encores in nearfield. Wonderful sounding. Holographic.

[@kaviyarasumanoharan1557]

Hi cheapaudioman, I wanted to buy a Sony SSCS5 but the import duty is crazy expensive in India. If you have more patreons from India, I would like to know if there are any alternatives to SSCS5 that I can buy? And I would like to know how Indian speakers/amplifiers compare to the speakers from rest of the world (And a lot of people benefit from your videos. Thanks a lot)

[@kingkongz88]

Ahem. I believe the pronunciation is Akitika not so much Akitika. The trick is to stress the Akitika more so than the Akitika. Hope this helps. Real question: Is there some reason that a typical good quality music speaker with good soundstage and music fidelity would be any worse at home theater usage than than a speaker supposed to be designed mainly for home theater? I never look at home theater speakers because I just assumed (perhaps wrongly) that many good musically apt speakers would do well as HT speakers.?

[@prayhenkumar229]

Sir shall use 5.1 amplifier back surround any blookslef speaker will use

[@Staybrown11]

Is there a video on how to stream 24/192 on Amazon ? I can’t for the life of me find how to stream hires…I use phone, iPad, or computer but then when I sit on the couch I might as well be playing Vinyl because I have to get up to change tracks/ albums…fml! Help!!!!

[@michaelmclane3683]

Polk R100 and R200 on sale $120 off regular price..

[@cheapaudioman]

Great deal for sure.

[@ELECTECHNUT]

Focused wave propagation gives you less reflected room-sound garbage. Sure, you've got a tighter sweet spot, but it's sweeter than hearing room colorations.

[@sean_heisler]

Burlap woofer cones! ha ha ha. You are so damn funny! 😂

[@karmaaffects1111]

Does anyone know if these would be an upgrade to the JBL Studio 230's ?

[@Primus54]

Hi Randy.New subscriber with a question: Per your recommendation I purchased the Sony SSCS5 speakers. I also purchased speaker stands (Perlesmith PSSS1), but the speakers have no attachment points. I assume I’m going to have to drill the speaker cabinets, so where would you drill… bottom or back panel? Any other thoughts? Thanks! ~ John

[@cheapaudioman]

Hey, John. Thanks for subscribing. I generally don't like to drill holes into stands. I will use "blue tac" occasionally to get them to "stick" better to the stands. If they're in no danger in being knocked over I'd simply get some felt pads and set them on the stands. If you do decide to drill I'd use maybe 1/2" course thread wood screws

[@bassandtrebleclef]

Sith audio hats. Ok, you win.

[@amazoidal]

I have Level 3 Center, Left and Right and they are awesome. Powered by an Outlaw 5000 and Model 975 PrePro. This is only the second review I have seen. Most reviewers avoid these high value speakers.

[@CandBLawnCare]

Zeos on z reviews did a review on these a few years ago.

[@jim010109]

Does Sith Audio happen to have its own coffee? Sith Audio Coffee in my Cheap Audio Man coffee mug, sounds like a winning combo.😎

[@erics.4113]

Of course they do. I drink it every day with Randys new video. Now with 20% extra bubble guts!

[@cheapaudioman]

my-store-11536215.creator-spring.com/listing/sith-audio

[@jim010109]

@@cheapaudioman I am now the Proud owner of a Sith Audio Coffee mug, well when it gets here, lol, but it has been ordered. I ll have to take a picture of it with my 2 channel OLD system. LOL. The Sith will approve, I think. LOL

[@Z3NSEI]

What I really need is that Sith Audio Beard Oil.

[@cheapaudioman]

Nice. We do need that

[@1SR71]

Sith Audios prophylactics have a higher sensitivity rate than the speakers do. Just saying.

[@jonboy9912]

You are in danger of stepping on Steve Guttenbergs toes!!

[@cheapaudioman]

Steve is the OG. He casts an awful big shadow in our world. But thank you for your comment if I'm taking it correctly.

[@mdocod]

Since ELAC figured out a decent implementation of a coax mid-tweet for the mainstream speaker buyer, basically everything else is yesterdays news.

[@stevezeidman7224]

I just ordered my Sith Audio audiophile sanctioned hat. It was on sale! $85.

[@erics.4113]

It's a fake. Everyone knows sith audio doesn't sanction any kind of sale.

[@cheapaudioman]

I think today a Sith Audio coffee cup maybe made available.

[@erics.4113]

@@cheapaudioman Randy. If you're serious, I really hope your sith audio coffee cups are nothing more than thrift shop finds that you scrawl sith audio across with a sharpie. $22.77 each or two for $50. Lmk where to send the $50 it will be cash

[@cheapaudioman]

@@erics.4113 I’m going to design something today and put it up. Ultimately I’m going to do some better merchandise when I have the time and bandwidth.

[@cheapaudioman]

my-store-11536215.creator-spring.com/listing/sith-audio

[@glennjones6574]

I think you need to review that new Polk s20 elite.

[@cheapaudioman]

I just did one on the ES15. Very good speakerkzbin.info/www/bejne/rZKlio2Nbr-Hhbc

[@glennjones6574]

@@cheapaudioman I know that silly! I was thinking the price/performance ratio might be the contender against the HTD based on your review of the Elite 15.

[@johnnycop77]

Reaching out, reaching out, reaching out. That phrase just gives me the shits.

[@RobertGerman]

I'd buy a sith audio hat

[@cheapaudioman]

my-store-11536215.creator-spring.com/listing/sith-audio

[@RobertGerman]

@@cheapaudioman I just got a new "I work hard so my cat doesn't have to" mug, so the cupboard is full. But I will buy a hat if the internet overlords allow it.

[@glennconatser6255]

To bad this speaker measures horribly as it looks really nice for the price. Measurements aren't everything but these are especially bad.

[@therealmitch-a-palooza7262]

Respectfully, I find it absolutely incorrect to compare these to the Elac Un-Fi 2.0. The HTD's have nothing on the Uni-Fi. The Uni-Fi's cost $500/each, whereas the HTD's are $500/pair. The Elacs are bested only by the likes of the SVS Ultras and Revel Concerta2 M16 when it comes to the $1000/pair category. And it isn't difficult to score either of those on sale for $750/pair, either. I paid $320 for a pair of HTD Level 3 bookshelf speakers back in 2016. In my opinion, they are probably worth that much. However, the price has increased a *lot* since then. These get loud, but I just wasn't that fond of them, especially now after looking back on them after having been exposed to more gear since then. I think I would be hard pressed to find them worth $500/pair. They're too boomy and mushy to be commanding that price. If I was in the position of having to spend less than $1,000 for fronts, I would get SVS Ultra bookshelves either at the SVS outlet, on sale, or used. I got like-new SVS Ultra bookshelves for $750 at the outlet. There's no comparison, they're just night and day better. Another option would be the RP-600M. The HTD's just lack far too much in both sound quality and build quality to justify their price tag considering the competition.

[@GizmoMaltese]

So you're recommending a more expensive set of speakers. Your SVS are 50% more expensive. You do realize this is CHEAPaudioman? If you criticize something you have to suggest something at the same or lower price that is better.

[@therealmitch-a-palooza7262]

@@GizmoMaltese no, I don’t. Do your own research as to what specific ~$500/pair speaker that fit your needs best. But alas…I did anyway (the Klipsch 600M) if you actually read my comment carefully. Even at their price point, the HTD’s are not speakers anyone should be buying. They’re muddy and boomy. I know this because I owned them for 2 years before upgrading. Cheapaudioman has recommended plenty of other speakers at various price points, and most any of them will sound significantly better even if they’re in the same price bracket as the HTD’s. In any case, home theater speakers are a luxury. Suggesting something that’s a little more expensive but sounds **worlds** better isn’t exactly out of line. I’d rather pay $1,000 for speakers that sound great, than $550 for speakers that sound like utter garbage. Plus, the dude himself compared these to $1,000/pair speakers in the video…so again, I don’t know what you’re on about.

[@GizmoMaltese]

@@therealmitch-a-palooza7262 Well he loved them and Z Reviews loved them. "Worlds better" is pretty subjective but they all agreed that there were better speakers at higher price points. I don't believe most people in a blind test would agree that your $1000 speakers are $500 better than the HTD speakers. But I can't prove that. That's my opinion. All that matters is that you're happy with your purchase. I was considering upgrading from the HTDs but I watched a blind listening test and I'm convinced that the differences once you go beyond $500 are marginal. But that's just my opinion.

[@therealmitch-a-palooza7262]

@@GizmoMaltese you're very much entitled to your wrong opinion.

[@GizmoMaltese]

@@therealmitch-a-palooza7262 Both cheapaudioman and Z-reviews reviewed the HTD Level-3 speaker and loved it. So what are you going on about? Were they "wrong"? Are you not able to distinguish between subjective and objective?

[@derrellgore1891]

This is off subject…but I see no other way to contact you. Have you seen anything CHEAP that would allow me to plug a 1tb hardrive full of .flac files into an amp as a component. Has to have a way to navigate folders and has to have GAPLESS playback. I bought a $600 Marantz cd player that appeared to do this until you read the manual. Had a 32gb limitation and no GAPLESS playback. I find it hard to believe a device such as this doesn’t exist but i have come up empty unless i want to spend $1000+. This shouldnt be that hard or expensive. I can stream from my pc to my phone and hook my phone to a usb port on a cheap Teac cd player…but i was true hi-res. Thanks, Derrell Gore

[@peterfernandezjr5914]

Fact, as we age we lose our ability to hear high notes, fact, most audio engineers and producers are up there in age, which means that their hearing has diminished. Food for thought. I cannot her anything higher than 10k Hz on my sound calibration DVD.

[@tomnwmi]

Jeez I'd like to hear to 10k Hz again. Still though, sibilance if there is a nasty thing to my ears. This one sounds to me like a speaker you have to make excuses for.

[@peterfernandezjr5914]

@@tomnwmi Actually, I was mistaken, on that calibration DVD I can only hear up to the 5k point, I hear nothing after that.

[@stonefree1911]

I'm at 12k at 57 yrs old

[@peterfernandezjr5914]

@@stonefree1911 I was diagnosed with tinnitus many years ago, sometimes it hurts to listen to headphones. I would hate to lose my hearing, I love music too much for that to happen.

[@tomnwmi]

@@peterfernandezjr5914 I've had tinnitus in my left ear for years. Bought a motorcycle 2 years ago and now I'm starting to get it randomly in the right ear. Ear plugs helped while riding, but still... I have the center channel boosted a couple db above1K and down 1db or so from 200 to 800hz. I also allow Audyssey room correction to run full range on the center as well and now I don't have to mess with the volume to understand most all speech when watching movies.

[@dv7548]

Heee ha like the hat

[@gvidas7333]

At least they opted out from calling themselves STD.

[@antoniosalles3134]

Cheap Audio Man. Here's a question for you. Did you ever own expensive gear? How did you come to your conclusions about Audiophile BS, and expensive gear?

[@davidcarr2216]

No, no, what you need to improve sound quality are Sith underwear or a bottle of Sith Scotch maybe.

[@joelopez7459]

they used to be 350

[@Klocaine237]

Fukyeah RANDY

[@generynkewicz4871]

Hmmm, audioscience review has measurements for these and they are one of worst measuring and sounding speakers he's reviewed.

[@TheLukemcdaniel]

how does a $550 pair of speakers fit on a channel titled "cheapaudioman"?

[@n815e]

It’s cheaper than a 5500 dollar pair.

[@gewamser]

Another bookshelf…? 😢

[@sturdyvw]

I heard these once, almost unlistenable. The highs are piercing and physically painful

[@calebb8013]

Ignore the reality of how they measure

[@sidesup8286]

Your average audiophile goes from one piece of equipment to another almost as frequent as the late basketball great Wilt Chamberlain went from one woman to the next. He scored a hundred points in a basketball game once. What the hell happened there? It was recently voted the most amazing sports feat ever. He claimed to have been with over a thousand women. Some would consider that the more amazing sports feat. Secretariat winning the Belmont by what was it, 40 some lengths was voted second. Some sports writer actually once called Secretariat a great athlete. Secretariat was a horse !... Anyway if the average audiophile who goes from one thing to another would ever tally up all the money they've spent doing that over the years, they would realize that if they would have saved that money instead, they would have been able to afford some of the finest equipment on the planet. So get your pencils out. Or would you be afraid to even look at the numbers.

[@alferro3149]

Only us and canada 👎

[@shaolin95]

Bad speakers, bad design. Only the Towers are decent because they are not pushing the tweeter pass that it can handle since the tower has a mid range driver.