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  #11  
Old 04-30-2017, 09:04 PM
Exsg Exsg is offline
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Originally Posted by jakegt3 View Post
I just came across this thread and found it quite interesting. I recently bought the Sopra 3's but I auditioned a number of other speakers, including the 802D3, before settling on the Sopra's.

I was able to audition the Sopra 3's and the 802D3's at the same dealer, in the same listening room, driven by the same equipment (Audio Research Reference 75 amplifier and SP20 preamp). Among all the speakers I auditioned (8 in total), I rated these two as the top contenders. That said, they have a distinctly different sound character.

I would characterize the Sopra's as warmer and fuller sounding, with a larger and more open soundstage. However, I would not characterize them as being mellow or laid back. The beryllium tweeter is remarkable in that the high frequencies are all there but never harsh, shrill, or "in your face".

The 802D3's, to me, had a cooler tonal balance and the sound was more in the analytical camp. There was more prominence to the upper midrange and treble, but not excessively so. The low bass was outstanding, even better than the Sopra 3's which are also very good in the low bass. However, I didn't find the midrange to be as rich and vivid as the Sopra's.

90% of my listening is classical music and to me, the tonal character of the Sopra 3's was better suited to this music. For pop or jazz, I suspect the B&W's would be a better choice for many listeners.

As I noted above, at the dealer audition, the electronics were Audio Research because, as you can see in my signature, my home gear is also Audio Research. I didn't try any other electronics, so the sound character of these two speakers might come across differently with other gear, particularly solid state equipment.

Both are very good speakers. I think the choice of one vs. the other comes down to your personal preferences.

Thanks for sharing your experience. It was a good review.

May I know which other speakers you auditioned out of interest? I didn't have the privilege to audition much and am curious.
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  #12  
Old 04-30-2017, 09:07 PM
Kal Rubinson Kal Rubinson is offline
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Originally Posted by jakegt3 View Post
90% of my listening is classical music and to me, the tonal character of the Sopra 3's was better suited to this music. For pop or jazz, I suspect the B&W's would be a better choice for many listeners.
Fascinating. I would have written: "90% of my listening is classical music and to me, the tonal character of the B&W's was better suited to this music. For pop or jazz, I suspect the Sopra 3's would be a better choice for many listeners."

Might be fun for us to sit down together.
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  #13  
Old 04-30-2017, 10:18 PM
jakegt3 jakegt3 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Exsg View Post
Thanks for sharing your experience. It was a good review.

May I know which other speakers you auditioned out of interest? I didn't have the privilege to audition much and am curious.
Besides the 802D3 and the Sopra 3, I also auditioned:

Focal Sopra 2
Focal Diablo Utopia
Magico S3
Sonus Faber Guarneri Evolution
Wilson Audio Sabrina
Rockport Atria

Of those, I would rate the Magico S3 as the best of the rest, although that was auditioned at a different dealer than where I heard the 802D3 and Sopra 3, which makes a direct comparison a little less straightforward.
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  #14  
Old 05-01-2017, 09:21 AM
Exsg Exsg is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jakegt3 View Post
Besides the 802D3 and the Sopra 3, I also auditioned:

Focal Sopra 2
Focal Diablo Utopia
Magico S3
Sonus Faber Guarneri Evolution
Wilson Audio Sabrina
Rockport Atria

Of those, I would rate the Magico S3 was the best of the rest, although that was auditioned at a different dealer than where I heard the 802D3 and Sopra 3, which makes a direct comparison a little less straightforward.
Cheers.
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  #15  
Old 05-01-2017, 09:27 PM
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GregGale GregGale is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kal Rubinson View Post
Fascinating. I would have written: "90% of my listening is classical music and to me, the tonal character of the B&W's was better suited to this music. For pop or jazz, I suspect the Sopra 3's would be a better choice for many listeners."

Might be fun for us to sit down together.
Well I do not listen to any Classical music and primarily listen to the Blues and Classic Rock and the 802D3 is outstanding. They sound good at low volume or cranked up to live levels.

In my opinion if the speaker accurately reproduces the sound spectrum, with superior PRAT with low distortion, it should be able to reproduce all genres of music. The 802D3 has these qualities in spades.
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  #16  
Old 05-01-2017, 09:32 PM
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krustycat krustycat is offline
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Default 802D3 versus Focal Sopra 3

These are ALL good speakers [emoji344].

Let there be peace ✌️.
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  #17  
Old 05-01-2017, 10:23 PM
Kal Rubinson Kal Rubinson is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GregGale View Post
Well I do not listen to any Classical music and primarily listen to the Blues and Classic Rock and the 802D3 is outstanding. They sound good at low volume or cranked up to live levels.

In my opinion if the speaker accurately reproduces the sound spectrum, with superior PRAT with low distortion, it should be able to reproduce all genres of music. The 802D3 has these qualities in spades.
I was kinda fooling around.
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  #18  
Old 12-02-2018, 11:13 AM
FDPDK FDPDK is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jakegt3 View Post
Besides the 802D3 and the Sopra 3, I also auditioned:

Focal Sopra 2
Focal Diablo Utopia
Magico S3
Sonus Faber Guarneri Evolution
Wilson Audio Sabrina
Rockport Atria

Of those, I would rate the Magico S3 as the best of the rest, although that was auditioned at a different dealer than where I heard the 802D3 and Sopra 3, which makes a direct comparison a little less straightforward.
Hi John
Do you remember what the cabling was ? as it also plays a role But interesting read as there are a number of speakers that i consider myself. But don't have the luck you have to listen to all at the same dealer.
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  #19  
Old 02-16-2019, 12:55 AM
mike175gr mike175gr is offline
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Karl, I am very close to getting my 802D3 speakers. I currently have a Cary SLP-05 preamp, Mcintosh MC-501 mono amps, Wyred 4s Dac2, and lossless FLAC music server. What are your thoughts about that combination? Decent power for the 802D3 speakers?
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  #20  
Old 02-17-2019, 10:13 AM
joey_v joey_v is offline
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On the 802D3, I would suggest a different preamp. Try ARC.
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