8 ohm vs 4 ohm Taps- Prologue One/Monitor Audio RS6- Possible JA To Read This?

Both of these pieces have been reviewed in Stereophile. I've looked at both sets of measurements, and can't figure out which tap would provide me the flattest response. I'd also like some guidance on what to listen for when switching between the two. I ask this because I'm all over the map with this. I think I've got it nailed, then another piece of music confounds me; or, I'll experiment with speaker placement, again throwing me off the track. I figure if I can get the electrical relationship between the two pieces of equipment, I would then just use speaker palcement and room tuning to fine tune my preference...
I don't know if JA reads this forum much, but I bet he would be able to translate his measurements into some concrete advice...
PS- In addition to which one is 'correct', I'm curious as to how each affects the sound.
Thanks for any thoughts...

September 22, 2006 - 11:05am

Editor

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Re: 8 ohm vs 4 ohm Taps- Prologue One/Monitor Audio RS6- Possibl

Quote:
Both of these pieces have been reviewed in Stereophile. I've looked at both sets of measurements, and can't figure out which tap would provide me the flattest response.

In general, the 4 ohm output transformer will give the flattest response from the Monitor Audio speaker at the expense of a little bit of dynamic range. But basically, choose the output tap that gives the most sonically pleasing result with the widest range of recordings.

John Atkinson
Editor, Stereophile

September 22, 2006 - 11:47am

mrlowry

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Re: 8 ohm vs 4 ohm Taps- Prologue One/Monitor Audio RS6- Possibl

A lot of the new McIntosh solid state amps have auto formers which have different taps for 8 ohm and 4 ohm speakers. To my ears with the Thiel and Magnepan speakers (both 4 ohm speakers) both of those sound better on the 8 ohm tap. More dynamic presentation and more space in the recording. The 4 ohm taps make both sound slightly dry. Not your exact circumstance, but I figured that I'd share my experiences.

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