What I liked about the JBLs was the effortless dynamics/stomp, albeit with that vintage sound. I did a search on various forums and read very favorable comments on the 7pi and some that compared them to the Klipschorn.

Thanks.

The 7pi looks like a steal if what I read is true and it can keep up with the Hartsfields.

Just wanted to know if I'm talking apples to apples or apples to oranges.

Dave

"The best speakers I heard at the Midwest Audio Fest were probably the Edgarhorns; they just don't do anything wrong and are sonically competition for speakers many times their price. The most butt-shakingly fun speakers I heard were the Classic Audio Reproductions Hartsfields. I actually enjoyed them more than the Edgarhorns, even though they had obvious audible colorations and didn't image worth a damn. The third best speakers were the 7 Pi's. Very musical and engaging. I knew they were something special when, from around the corner and way out of line of sight, they sounded wonderful. Few speakers can do that - it means they're getting the reverberant field right, because from around the corner all you can possibly hear is the reverberant sound. But live instruments still sound right even from around the corner, so a speaker that gets this right is getting something important right.

The 7Pi's image better than the Hartsfields and probably have less midrange coloration - my recollection is they sounded smoother. They didn't kick butt quite like the Hartsfields, but then nothing else I know of does either.

Now I didn't hear the 7 Pi's until the very end of the show, and even then not for very long, but they sure did make a good impression on me. They sounded very good at low volume levels, and from outside the room - two things that few speakers get right and that in my experience are reliable predictors of long term enjoyment."