AXPONA 2013

Wharfedale's Great Deal

Jason Victor Serinus  |  Mar 15, 2013

Walter Schofield had lots to smile about besides his new trim and fit look. The great buy Wharfedale Jade 5 loudspeakers ($3199/pair), fed by an Avid Ingenium turntable with Pro-Ject arm ($1750) and Ortofon 2M Black cartridge ($719), Avid phono preamplifier ($7000), Marantz SA-15 SACD player ($2000), Marantz 150Wpc integrated amplifier ($2500), Audioquest Columbia interconnects, and PS Audio power strip—there was more, but I can't decipher my notes—produced a really nice midrange on Madeleine Peyroux's "Dance Me to the End of Love." The sound may have been euphonic, but it was also euphoric; the music swung so compellingly that I couldn't stop tapping my foot.

On my Channel Classics SACD of the music of Revueltas, the bass line on his seductive Sensemayá was a bit smudged, but the system conveyed the measure of the music in spades. We are talking good sound for far less than an arm and a leg.

COMMENTS
Et Quelle's picture
Submitted by Et Quelle on March 16, 2013 - 5:08pm

Now that is music when it make you get physically involved. That 2M, I guess would look cool enough on certain tables.

Audio nut's picture
Submitted by Audio nut on March 18, 2013 - 8:24am

This to me was a very real representation of Hi-Fi not having to cost as much as a house. When Walter told me the price of the speakers, I just knew he was going to say $8-10K a pair. I had also just come out of the Sony room and was not that impressed by what I hear for about 10 times the price. He was playing a CD through the Marantz CD player and integrated amp. This is a system most people can apsire to, espicially when you look at buying this equipment in used condition.

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