PMC Prodigy5, A Force To Be Reckoned With

[@thebingaling1105]

I’ve got the Prodigy 1’s and they’re fantastic to my ears. Great match with my Exposure 3510.

[@jos5067]

Always nice 😊 to see Steve again! Thanks 🙏 for this review, Steve!

[@tylerhutchinson9483]

Pretty excited for the Van Alstine review

[@redstarwraith]

This was a wonderful review. Thanks, Steve!

[@bbfrid88]

I watched a review of the Zu DW 6 yesterday on the G-R Research channel and his contention was that the Zu was way too bright for multiple reasons (lack of internal bracing and a large metal ring adjacent to the tweeter that makes the high frequencies excessively bright), so I wouldn't be surprised at the comparison although I haven't heard either one. Love your enthusiasm as always.

[@johnpischedda6951]

Yes that review by G-R was an eye opener ! He didn't pull any punches !

[@dougdavis8986]

His 2 goals are: 1. Get people to buy his upgrades and 2. Get KZbin subscribers.

[@bbfrid88]

@@dougdavis8986 Except sometimes he compliments the speakers and recommends very little changes. I certainly would not rely totally on bench measurements though.

[@MikeK6046]

@@dougdavis8986 You're "possibly" right (?!?), however many people like/ use & believe in G-R upgrades. IMO, "many" KZbinrs are out to gain/ promote something, be it money or fame.

[@pushslice]

Ohhh…That guy. I don’t think he actually bothers to listen or enjoy music. In my circle of music-enjoying friends, we’ve l come to look at him as a meme now; we typically favor the opposite of what his instruments and propeller-hat are compelling him to preach* .. * And yes, I picked that word intentionally; that’s how he comes off , which is doubly-offputting

[@Brunodc4694]

That's a groovy shirt Steve. You'd really make an impression if Chritof had a party at his killer pad. Great review, you killed it.✌️

[@normansoh]

Thanks for the review Steve.. I have a pair of Prodigy 5 at home and I have them running with a REL T/7x subwoofer which helps with overall sound performance and stage..

[@adamswift1747]

Hi this was exactly the combo I was thinking night work for me! What frequency have you got the REL handing over to the Prodigy, and would you mind letting me know what size your listening room is?

[@normansoh]

@@adamswift1747 Hi, I have the Rel sub crossover set to the 9 o'clock position (about 7 clicks of the crossover dial from min). The Hi/Lo level is set to about 9 clicks from the minimum. The subwoofer is connected via the Hi Level Input. My listening room size is about 4.5m (15') long, 4.0m (13') wide and 2.5m (8') high. Speakers are positioned about 2.5m (8') apart and my listening position is about 2.5m (8') away from the speakers (forming an equilateral triangle). I have the speakers about 36cm (14") from the wall. I have about 1.5m (5') space from my seating area to the back wall.. Hope these dimensions and listening position helps dial in your setup..

[@adamswift1747]

@@normansoh Thanks very much indeed for such a detailed reply. Extremely helpful many thanks and happy listening!

[@homerjones3291]

A funny thing- I typed “Steve Guttenberg” into Microsoft Bing and to my surprise, you are not only The Audiophiliac but am an American actor/producer/director and is married to TV reporter Emily Smith. Bing combined all of these and remarked how accomplished you were. Way to go, Steve - you might have some explaining to do to Mrs. Audiophiliac, though.

[@michaelvaladez6570]

Steve Guttenberg your shirts are great the sensitivity level is what...and jow many DB's 👌 😀...what would we do without Steve Guttenberg. This post is greatly appreciated !!!!

[@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac]

Nice to hear, thanks for watching

[@brighton_dude]

Being of similar vintage to Steve I always find his experience of growing up with music to be really interesting.

[@johnmurray1293]

Can't wait for the review of the Van Alstine CA1. Thanks, Steve!

[@attrktmarketing4582]

I am keen to hear these, so thanks for the review. I listened to the stand mount version which had a lovely tone.

[@richardelliott8352]

another log to place on my fire of private skepticism , called " why would somebody buy bookshelf speakers on a stand , over floor-standing designs." glad to hear a good word about the van Morrison live effort. As a kid, I played the Hollywood bowl back when it was still on wheels set on a track, but no longer moved , but seeing Edward G. Robinson dressed for a formal concert, complete with a red carnation on his lapel, looking like little Caesar, started many good memories from the place, so owning that album would be nice. plus the bowl acoustic are much improved, instead of a bandshell, it is now a series of spaced arches with a laser show projecting images very much used as stage settings. one of the fun projections utilized the shape of the bowl's arch to create an effect to make the venue look like the top of an old colorful jukebox, with a little miniature symphony feverishly working away where the record would play. The Star Wars effect flew the whole stage past asteroids as it traveled in space, set to the tempo of the music. . As a Morrison fan, I wasn't always thrilled with his later work. I don't mind some less than easily accessible music, but some of it was as if his ego was cranked up past his ability to create anything that wasn't self indulgent.

[@NeilBlanchard]

Thank you for this review - transmission line speakers are capable of much more than many/most people know. I am listening to the Bertrand Chamayou "Cage²" recording now on headphones, and I will be listening tomorrow on my Tower 6 speakers.

[@Ricky-cl5bu]

Love PMC speakers

[@chrish.4067]

Again, I learned something new today!. Good review Steve. I always wanted to try the DWs.

[@sudipdutt9699]

Was waiting for your review. Best wishes from Kolkata, India.

[@carlosbauza1139]

I built a pair of the Very Similar "DALine" DIY project published in "HiFi News" years ago. It used the KEF B-110 woofer/midrange and KEF T-27 tweeter with a dedicated crossover by UK Falcon Acoustics. This is a hybrid bass-reflex VENTING into a Transmission Line (!) designed by Robert Fris. Truly impressive! (Amazing!). It stayed in the DIY realm, but never took hold of the manufactured domestic market.

[@carlosbauza1139]

"Speaker Builder" magazine published my cover DIY article of it.

[@Radfordperson]

There were two versions, the one you have and a version using KEF B110, KEF T15 and Coles 4001G. I still have a pair of the 3 way, yes, they go down very low!

[@carlosbauza1139]

@@Radfordperson Ah, yes! And the Coles is crossed-over from 7 KHz-up (very high). The only drawback here is that the 5-inch woofer driver has only modest power handling at the lower frequencies...it is working very strenuously down there!

[@carlosbauza1139]

@@Radfordperson Part of the original intent of this design is to promote a Linear Impedance throughout its range. We know that dynamic (cone/coil) speakers have wide impedance variation over the response range.

[@chrislj2890]

I was at first intrigued by these, but I'm wondering about that material inside which looks like standard egg crate foam. I'm wondering if it could degrade over time and start falling apart. It just seems like it's a bit over priced for what it is, and another $140 for cloth grills? Although I upgraded the finish on my standard Zu DW6 speakers which cost $2,000, the basic finish is only $1,600. I bought the DW6 because of Steve, and although I'd like to experiment with other speakers I can't imagine ever getting rid of them.

[@PlaybackMansion]

That shirt is fantastic! Great review

[@fletchermunson6225]

That transmission line diagram reminds me to schedule a colonoscopy.

[@spirosk7984]

😂😂😂😂😂did mine recently

[@CarlVanDoren61]

Go in groups nowadays 😮

[@tictocdoc6958]

I am very familiar with pmc. I suggest, at the very least, moving up to the 25 series or custom installation as a good entry point. I have pmc. They are a bit overpriced for sure, but they are also a joy to listen to.

[@gihanj666]

I have the opportunity to buy a pmc twenty5 24 for around £2000 ( obviously used ) I can get the prodigy 5 brand new for same price , so u recon Twenty5 24 is a better sounding speakers than prodigy 5 ?

[@octothorpe12]

It's like the Sibelius. It's a single tiny driver, but due to the transmission line design gets down very low, but still tight.

[@maximburgman]

Would be interesting to see the comparison

[@guilhermedealmeida2299]

Not a single tiny speaker as the Sibelius. This one, Prodigy, has a 5¼" mid-woofer and a tweeter. Sibelius has a 4¼" full-range and no tweeter at all...

[@analogueman5364]

The sebelious is a single full range driver in a Voight pipe. Not the same.

[@guilhermedealmeida2299]

@@analogueman5364 ok. The question was, concerning drivers, Sibelius is a single unit full range and Prodigy is a 2-way speaker. The transmission line and pipe are, of coutse different concepts.

[@timothyfreeseha4056]

It is true that some music is about loud and will sound it's best playing that way. Some music will be about bass and will sound best with a capable speaker . So many considerations beyond and as well as preferences.

[@datbaguettedoe6436]

I'm curious about their new Active twenty5i series. It seems to have a similar form factor with the advantage of being active

[@MH-rl9ep]

Great review, Steve…I’ll have to put these on my shortlist. Conversely, I was seriously considering the DW6’s, but now I don’t know. I don’t like bright!

[@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac]

In that case PMC is the way to go

[@MH-rl9ep]

@@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliacFunny, because in your review of the DW6, I don’t remember you saying they were on the bright side….will have to re-watch that one. Maybe just bright in comparison to the PMC.

[@milkman100001]

i have the PMC IB2 se's ,and vocals sound so real..

[@josefbuckland]

That looks nice. I love the design on the base. I’m really uneasy with seeing a single woofer but you can’t argue with results. It was like the when I say AC/DC go from monstrous looking PA to single banana hangs good news is lost time I saw them Claire Bros had the best best of all worlds with a sound that sounded even better than it looked. Looks are not not everything in this passion but if your peepers work let them Indulge too.

[@matthewjoy1864]

Praying for a comparison vs. your Pass references when you review the Van Alstine CA-1, Steve. To my ears it's in that league at Schiit prices.

[@RedSinter]

And the Dirty Weekend has a boat load of ringing and defraction.from not only the baffle but the mounting ring. Among its other issues.

[@Harrisongrey19]

Did you find this from your own listening or a you another Danny dick rider

[@CohibaJoe]

@@Harrisongrey19 I have a pair of DW MKII and after 200hrs of listening I put them in the closet. I said, "That's it"? Danny's testing shows what a mess these are. I will purchase the kit and will give these to a buddy who is starting out with audio.

[@markcoyle6878]

Hi Steve if you like the PMCs small floor standers check out the Ophidian Mambo2s similar size and concept. Love the reviews

[@jakus514]

Great review as usual, Steve! Hey I have a question that I can't seem to get a solid answer on... when you're measuring your noise levels, are you in DbA or DbC?

[@TheBTG88]

I remember speaker shopping more than 20 years ago when I lived in Singapore. There is an audio mall that is filled with dealers that facilitated listening to lots of equipment on the same day. I clearly remember listening to PMC speakers and wanting to like them, but I felt that the clarity was just not there. Mids and highs were soft and somewhat muffled. This was made even more apparent as I had just come from listening to some Joseph Audio speakers of similar size and that experience was night and day. It seems like their house sound is similar some two decades later.

[@ML-rm3vk]

Fine review like always music on steve try bach cellio suits with that speaker.

[@mediascapes2011]

I am interested in the Patreon channel, is it also sales like this channel or actually about audiophilia?

[@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac]

The Patreon is a fundraising outlet for my channel. It does have some exclusive content that is not on the KZbin channel.

[@mediascapes2011]

@@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac is the content HIFI sales or about audiophiliia?

[@romainmarchese9935]

Elles ont un air de ressemblance avec les Acoustic Energy

[@wesleyruffin137]

Hey Steve did you see Danny from Gr Research hatchet job of the Zu Dirty Weekend? It was Brutal😢

[@EskWIRED]

Did he say anything that you disagree with? What was your impression of his remarks about their cabinets?

[@CohibaJoe]

@@EskWIRED The speaker needs Help and I can also agree as I have the DW MKII and after 2 months they went into the closet. The cabinets are hollow and rings as to the main driver. It's a mess.

[@RogerBergqvist]

The man of 3000 shirts 😂

[@keeferdog5617]

AND ONE “CRAYON SHIRT”

[@Projacked1]

[@Suaveone1]

Hes got more speakers than shirts

[@CarlVanDoren61]

Work hard enough to wear them out?

[@jonathanscull7712]

Another enlightening review of reasonable priced speakers, exactly how they sound, who they're for, all very precisely. "Pretty pretty good," eh Steve? Larry David been around again? (-"

[@paulburke9198]

Good to hear you giving P M C it's due , my favourite (scuse spelling) my "i want this" brand , 'stralian pensioner no can afford but it is indeed Very Nice. have not heard this version, probably just as well , PMC kinda spoils it for any thing else .

[@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac]

Nice to hear from you Paul, thank you for watching.

[@dirtymull]

I am presuming the prodigy 1 has the same drivers so is there much difference between 1s and 5s or are prodigy 5 just more bassy ?

[@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac]

And dynamics

[@hamidrezahabibi8111]

How do they compete with KUDOS loudspeakers 📢 from the UK 🇬🇧?

[@ballstadt]

This is similar to what B&O used for the BeoLab 8000, right?

[@drp1036]

British loudspeaker sound is soft/mellow, no? I have a pair of MISSION 700-LEs, and I bet the sound of them is comparable to the PMC Prodigy5s.

[@louismozdzen7238]

How does one go about entering in to the System Of The program? Thank you

[@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac]

Great, send jpegs and descriptions to [e-mail]

[@bengleason508]

What speaker have you heard that gives up the least sonic qualities at lower volumes?

[@dksculpture]

Horns.

[@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac]

Horns yes, and high sensitivity speakers in general.

[@enrico-nx1ow]

do they work in 17x13 feet room?

[@johnsteven5430]

The PMC design is similar to the DCM Time Window. The Dirty Weekend was recently measured by GR Research. Those measurements are atrocious and correlate well with Steve's review of the sound.

[@bradleydurbin6784]

Does it come in a bookshelf design

[@nathanbell6962]

Yes

[@1974gogo]

Yes, Prodigy 1

[@contemporaryartist6542]

That Cage album has been non repeat.

[@chrish.4067]

I could see the Prodigy 5 in a living room where the speakers need to blend in with the room using a 100 watt solid state integrated.

[@robmaxwell3678]

Are PMC speakers sold anywhere in the US?

[@SteveGuttenbergAudiophiliac]

They have a new US distributor, so I hope so.

[@prabhuchinnakonda2711]

Vinyl revivers in MD (Russel Katz); Forefront Audio NY (Lance)

[@davids2214]

You can get them online via The Music Room I see

[@robmaxwell3678]

@@davids2214 I've purchased from The Music Room before with good results. Good choice for PMC.

[@cremersalex]

Raised treble!

[@brahand]

I think you forgot to tell the negative side effects of this transmission line system. If a transmission line speaker with a rather small woofer could play as loud and as deep and with the same sound quality as a ”normal” speaker with a ”normal” sized woofer why dont every speaker manufacturer use transmission line?

[@chrish.4067]

I suppose that PMCs have their benefits as well.

[@5thlevelweb887]

Because the cabinet construction and design is very tricky ... and if you want really low bass, the cabinets can be huge. I've been tempted to DIY some transmission line subs - lots of discussion about those and the Horn Resp software for their design on that DIY Audio site,

[@piotrkaczmarczyk1792]

Depending on what you prefer to listen: 1. Direct bass from modern e.g. 3 way speakers given by mechanic move of the low distorsion woofer or: 2.Impression of a big scale of bass produced from relatively small midwoofer supported by the long airy sounding tube ("transmission line"). Do not forget about inevitable dip in frequency response around 100 to 250 Hz that can be masked but not eliminated. 😊

[@scottmcclements7566]

@@piotrkaczmarczyk1792 My 4-way Sony SS-TL5 have the 8" TL woofer crossed over at 150 Hz. Its all in the design.

[@5thlevelweb887]

@@piotrkaczmarczyk1792 there are plenty of ways to mask any dips in FR ... and it can be tricky, hence their rarity on the commercial market. The reward, supposedly, is an ease and clarity of low bass without any sense of "boxy" sound. I write "supposedly" because I don't have personal experience with one yet, although I am considering buying or building one.

[@joedeegan3870]

How good a speaker could PMC make to sell for $100.00 /pair ?

[@kenp9073]

PMC= Provide More Coin

[@piotrkaczmarczyk1792]

Indeeed. Now it is PM2C (Provide Much More Coins). Smart guys. The old idea to couple transducer to the organ pipe for enlarging impression of a big sound is astonishingly still alive and the tool to build the respect of speaker maker.

[@enrico-nx1ow]

very nice review, thank you 🙏

[@rapier5]

So they were 3 feet, 36" that is, from the records, and you moved them back, closer to the records, to 50", 4.1 feet.

[@Madmart54]

…or was that 15” 🙂

[@DanielWilliams-l7j]

Peter Thomas looks like Walter Brennan with long hair...

[@36karpatoruski]

Grandpappy Amos and the girls and the boys, the family known as the Real McCoys approve this comment.

[@DANVIIL]

If you have the ability to move these speakers 4’ to 5’ off the wall, the Giant Killer for even less money is the Magnepan .7 speaker system. They cost $1995. You do need some current to drive these speakers, but I use the $1,900. Rogue Sphinx v3 and I’ve never heard anything to rival this system for under $50k and even then it would be hard to beat this combination. Moving the speakers around is a simple matter because they only weigh about 35 lbs. Must be heard to be believed.

[@peter_in_alaska]

You were a teenager?

[@RoverWaters]

what production? that album sound really badly recorded

[@PanAmStyle]

I’ve heard this speaker, with the local rep in the room at the time. And … meh. There are other PMCs that are OK or even excellent. Not this one.

[@jumpingwhale]

pmc is getting too expensive

[@rvbsoundfactory]

$140 for the cloth grills. Very hard pass. pmc

[@Brett1334]

Shame it only comes in black

[@christopherstorrier5560]

Not their best at loud volules, great at low volumes, like all good quality transmission line speakers..Amazing speakers for a 27mm soft dome tweeter & 5 1/4" bass/mid unit down to 35hz...nice...but your originally from the UK why just prices in US dollars ?, we can't afford to move....c'mon bud , remember the UK ?...1 day i'm gonna build my own designed transmission line speakers, only took a year to design as buying the right bass/mid unit is not easy with tranmission line speakers...they have to have a heavy cone but be very fast, high qtc etc, not your normal Thielle Small Paramaters with transmission's.....nice small speakers

[@Carl-yx1ww]

Saw this in person.. its tiny and cheap . Stay away guys looks plastic . Rubbish.