Showdown in O-town!

I just ordered M22 V3s. I'm picking up Klipsch RB61s tonight and maybe even the Energy CB20s (If they have the RC10 or the RC30 I'll get those instead).

Time to find out how they sound in my listening environment.

Big thanks to everyone that responded to my "Basement Theater Upgrade - Advice please" thread. I love this forum, lots of helpful knowledgeable people all in one place!

Excellent! Let us know the results. I always like to hear how other speakers compare.

Looking forward to the write up

Warning: I am no audiophile. My untrained ears are just that.

My configuration: The room is 113 Inches Wide, 83 inches tall (7 foot ceiling), and 316 Inches Deep (great for multi rowed seating). SVS PB10-NSD Sub. AVR is a Pioneer 1019. Music source is my HTPC. Music testing is done with 80% lossless tracks (FLAC), 20% high bitrate MP3. HDMI to my PC with straight pass-though via PCM, no interference. Movies are DTS or Dolby for the HTPC, DTS HDMA and TrueHD for Bluray on my PS3.

Picked up the Klipsch RB61 and Energy CB20 today. Just waiting for the M22s to get here. My previous speakers are Sinclair Audio BT25s. Sinclair is a small Canadian speaker manufacturer.

SInclair Audio BT25s:
SPECIFICATIONS
Price: $330
Description: 2-Way,Double 5.25” Driver Tower with DALtech Sound Damping
Woofers: Dual 5.25”Woven Fiberglass Hybrid
Tweeter: 1” Polymer Integrated Soft Dome
Impedance: 8 Ohms
Sensitivity: 90dB
Power Handling: 150 Watts
Frequency Response: 45Hz-20kHz
Dimensions, mm (HWD): 850mm x 180mm x 222mm
Dimensions, inches (HWD): 33” x 7” x 9”

Opinion: I've had the Sinclair BT25s for about 8 months and they are decent. I compare them to a $800 pair of Mirage towers I bought second hand and they lack the warmth and bass of the Mirages. Like most new speakers these days they are bright and fatiguing. They look nice but thats the highest praise I can give them. I find them shrill and lifeless. Hence the upgrade.

Klipsch RB61:
Price: $370 - Sale price - Regular: $620
FREQUENCY RESPONSE 43Hz-23kHz +/-3dB
POWER HANDLING 100W RMS / 400W Peak
SENSITIVITY 95dB @ 2.83V / 1m
NOMINAL IMPEDANCE 8 ohms compatible
HIGH FREQ CROSSOVER 2000Hz
HIGH FREQUENCY DRIVERS 1" (2.54cm) Titanium diaphragm compression driver mated to 90x60 square Tractrix® Horn
LOW FREQUENCY DRIVERS 6.5" (16.5cm) Cerametallic™ cone woofer
ENCLOSURE TYPE Bass-reflex via front-firing port

I'm testing the Klipsch RB61 with Music first. The horn tweeters do sound different. With the smaller bookshelves pulled out from the corners of the room there is an improved sound stage. I'll give them a couple day break-in before giving my final opinion but initial impression isn't positive. They sound bright, not warm like the higher end Totems I've heard. They do blend MUCH better with my sub than the Sinclairs did. At higher volumes they are clearer than the Sinclairs but nothing like the Totems.

Thanks for doing the comparison. It’s always nice to have impressions from new members. Helps dust out the cobwebs of groupthink.

I don't think either of those other two speakers will put up much of a fight against the M22's. Still, I do love to see a good showdown. Thanks for your time and efforts. I look forward to your report.

I hope and expect the M22s to trounce all three other speakers, including the larger Sinclair towers and more expensive Klipsch. The Energys aren't really a fair comparison. The Energy RC-10s would be a better choice but I can't find them nearby.

Gave up on the Klipsch RB61. They really don't do it for me. They just sound shrill and don't cause any emotion. The Klipsch RB61 has a wide and accurate soundstage but the bright highs are annoying.

The Energy CB20 has a killer midrange. They sound rich and definitely don't sound fatiguing. Not quite warm like I was expecting, just balanced. My Pioneer 1019 has no trouble driving the CB20s. They have solid base and I can't believe they only cost $350 regular price. I like these so much I would love to try the Energy RC70 towers. I bet they sound brilliant. The CB20s make me smile.

Energy CB20
System Type 2-way bookshelf, magnetically shielded bass reflex with rear-firing port
Frequency Response 60Hz - 20kHz
Recommended Amplifier Power 20-150 W /channel
Impedance 4 Ohms min./8 Ohms nominal
Tweeter 1-inch (25.4mm) hyperbolic aluminum-dome
Woofer 6.5-inch (165mm) w/Ribbed Elliptical Surround
Sensitivity (2 speakers in a typical room) 92dB

Love that "2 speakers in a typical room" sensitivity spec, which probably translates to about 86dB anechoic.

I nearly bought a pair of Sinclair BT36's a couple of years ago from a local dealer. Since the speakers were new to the market, they were offered at a pretty steep discount, but who knows what the "real" price was. Anyway, they were selling them for half what I've seen them for since(up to $1200 Cad pr), not a bad speaker for the money(at half price)...didn't sound as good as the Paradigm Monitors I auditioned around the same time though.