Recently we all wrote about the RL 60's vs the BL 8000's/....

 What's the opinion of RL 140's driven with a very strong, very clean amp.......vs......BL Pentas?????

 

 

Another one which comes down to personal preferrance.

I've owned both and they are both very imposing speakers. Soundwise I much prefer the penta's but the RL140's are equal to them in other peoples opinions. The wife made me get rid of the 140's as she hated the sheer size & design. She wasn't over keen on the look of the Penta's either at first but soon grew to love them and wouldn't let me change them for anything she has since heard.

Chris.

I wonder what the RL140s and Beovox Pentas would sound like driven by the same amp? That would surely be a fairer comparison as then the sources and the amp could be kept the same. I suspect the Pentas would win in the looks department, but I wonder what would sound the best - has anyone ever done this exact same test?

I have John and the Penta's won easily as far as I was concerned but my opinion may be biased by the fact that I am a HUGE fan of these speakers. It would require a blind test for me to be totally impartial.

BTW the amp in question was my beomaster 5500.

 

 

Chris.

Your answers to the original post are all very much missing the point. The question asked about RL140's driven by a strong, very clean amp. The 5500 certainly doesn't qualify in this respect being fairly modest 55w output. A boys amplifier really!

I drove my RL140's with a QUAD 405 power amp which provides at least 100wpc into any reasonable load. The difference was amazing particularly control of the bass. Pentas sound muffled and laid back to me. Sorry people, I just don't like them. The RL140's when driven my way sounded clean, clear and like being in the audience at a rock concert.

Don't mess about with any amp made by B&O 'cos with the possible exception of BM8000 (which I have not heard) they don't make one powerfull enough to show off the 140's to their full potential.

joeyboygolf:

Your answers to the original post are all very much missing the point. The question asked about RL140's driven by a strong, very clean amp. The 5500 certainly doesn't qualify in this respect being fairly modest 55w output. A boys amplifier really!

I drove my RL140's with a QUAD 405 power amp which provides at least 100wpc into any reasonable load. The difference was amazing particularly control of the bass. Pentas sound muffled and laid back to me. Sorry people, I just don't like them. The RL140's when driven my way sounded clean, clear and like being in the audience at a rock concert.

Don't mess about with any amp made by B&O 'cos with the possible exception of BM8000 (which I have not heard) they don't make one powerfull enough to show off the 140's to their full potential.

Not surprised really Chris. The Pentas are hard to beat and I think that's reflected in their value on the second hand market compared with the RL140s. A real shootout would be to see what the Beovox Pentas/RL140s/MS150s/M100s sound like when driven by a decent amp and the same sources. I wonder......? 

Graham - Perhaps I should have been clearer in my post. I have a Beomaster 8000 (recently serviced and sounds great) connected to my Beovox Pentas, so in my mind the kind of test refered to would be to use the Beomaster 8000 with the Pentas/RL140s. That said, what about a pair of Beolab 150s? Then you could keep the source and the amps the same.

Maybe I'm biased, but I absolutely love the BM 8000. When they're looked after and set up well, nothing comes close in my mind :)

My quest at the time was to find a pair of Lab 150's but there were few available. The QUAD blew my mind such that I just gave up looking!

I must get to hear a BM8000 one day but I fear that a direct speaker comparison is no longer possible for me. Somebody visited and heard my set up and offered so much money that I couldn't refuse!!

We compared Beolab Pentas against M100s and felt the M100s were better - and that was using a BM5500! The 4400 is quite capable of driving difficult loads by the way - I prefer it to my 8000.

joeyboygolf:

Your answers to the original post are all very much missing the point. The question asked about RL140's driven by a strong, very clean amp. The 5500 certainly doesn't qualify in this respect being fairly modest 55w output. A boys amplifier really!

I was really answering John question regarding how they compared being driven by the same amp Graham. You're absolutely right though that the 5500 isn't a particularly powerful example.

 

Chris.

Peter:

We compared Beolab Pentas against M100s and felt the M100s were better - and that was using a BM5500! The 4400 is quite capable of driving difficult loads by the way - I prefer it to my 8000.

Is that a fair comparison though Peter? You're using two different power amps, though I accept what you're saying is that despite being driven by the 'weaker' power amp in the BM 5500, the M100s still overcame the Beolab Pentas. I'd be interested to hear what the M100s and Beovox Pentas sounded like driven by the same amp.

I've not heard a BM 4400. Must get round to that one day, but I do love my BM 8000. Didn't you once say you thought yours needed servicing Peter - perhaps with a service you'd change your mind?

Thanks for all the input guys....interesting..we drove a pair of MS 150.2's with some large clean power (160wpc @.003%) and I really have to say they were OK...but that's about it, nothing super impressive. I was hoping that the 140's might be a step up..

Surprised - MS150s do have a fantastically flat frequency response and good bass extension. I doubt RL140s are as good. I must confess however to not liking the sound of MS150s as much as other speakers - something about the top end - but I have been informed that this might be down to my Beomaster 8000 rather than the speaker.

I was suprised too Peter....it's the mids and tops that I look for in sound.....we really went the extra mile with high quality powered subs so the bass has never been a problem...we're in-fact driving the Pentas with 3 notches down on the bass to improve room filling....and this works really well...