It won’t. Very different animals. Sprout is a low cost 2-way in a conventional fold-up box. There the challenge for Chris is hot to make a speaker worthy of our company for a very low price as opposed to his challenge for the FR5 which is how to build a game changing state-of-the-art 2-way.
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Thanks for the reaction! My heart says to save money for the FR5, but $3600 will probably mean €4500 over here in The Netherlands (due to VAT + import taxes) and that’s almost twice the budget I had in mind…
I guess I’ll have to transform my audio system to a more audiophile system step by step. I think I’ll first upgrade my amp to a Sprout100. That will give me a much better amp, DAC and phono pre than the build in I’m currently using.
It also will give me the opportunity to see how the FR5 and Sprout speakers are going compare with speakers like KEF LS50 and Buchardt S400 mk 2.
For a “living space” vs a “listening room,” the “near to the wall” placement would need to be the move.
Do you recommend a hard wall or some kind of absorption/diffusion directly behind?
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Hello, in the Netherlands there are also some alternatives for small, high-quality speakers. You can build some yourself or have them built. Humbolt homemade, for example. The Sb Acoustic ARA textreme BE is also interesting. Ore a pair with purifi driver.Speaker shop in Germany also has a few nice models. Humbolt homemade Hifi .NL and some more. There are also a few interesting used ones on classified ads. It’s worth taking a look around, especially when it comes to small speakers. Greetings Andreas
interesting
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Thanks Andreas, I certainly will have a look. However, the main challenge I see, not only with build or assemble yourself, but also with speakers from lesser known brands and new speaker models is: How do they sound… Show rooms will always sound different. When buying online in the Netherlands, there is a return policy, but when buying abroad things are different. Although Buchardt has a 45 days return policy. Off course there is also the well known reputation with alle the reviews floating around of companies like PSaudio, KEF etc. I think I’ll have to tread carefully 
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Yes. Placing a speaker closer that 2-3’ from a call causes early reflections that cause comb filtering (notches in the direct sound) that are perceived as part of the initial direct sound from the speaker.
Placing absorption on the wall that is sufficiently thick (2-4" rockwool or compressed fiberglass) can certainly help.
There are some active speakers that have a cardioid response that can help with this issue but we didn’t go that direction with this speaker.
The FR5 is just a nice 2-way monitor speaker and so normal speaker setup and positioning techniques apply.
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I don’t think that comparing the price of a kit speaker to a finished product is an appropriate comparison.
I love to DIY things and came out of the DIY world (my dad had a DIY kit speaker company when I was a kid and I also worked at a DIY kit speaker company called Adire Audio). The cost numbers only come out ahead when you put your labor at $0. That’s fine if you enjoy what you’re doing and a lot of people love making things.
However, the resale on kits and DIY products is very low and it is far from a turnkey purchase and something that has been reviewed and documented rigorously. It’s like comparing a kit car to a real car you buy in a showroom.
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Having had to downsize to stand-mounted speakers from large Dunlavy SC-III.A+ PSA-M700s, I can provide an unqualified recommendation for the Buchardt A10s. As long as you are not trying to fill a 40Mx2+ room or play at ear damaging levels, these should be on anyone’s shortlist especially when coupled with the Primare SC15mkII.
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The Buchardt A10 use a very good Purifi speaker and are activated. In a similar way, I viewed these as passive. Consider using two passive Purifi drivers and an SB Acoustics Beryllium Tweeter or Blisma Tweeter. The SB Acoustics ARA with textreme membrane and beryllium tweeter should also be interesting.
Now that you mention the Buchardt A10, the NAD Streaming Dac immediately comes to mind. This has a room correction and an extra output for separate subwoofer. This one with the Buchardt and a suitable sub can definitely make a great combination.
If you look at most speaker lines, it wouldn’t make sense to have a stand mount model that is 1/10 the price from the next model up. If you use the same driver, enclosure and component quality, it usually puts you a 1/2 to 1/3 the price of the tower speaker counterpart and that’s where we landed.
We are working on a sprout series stand mount now as well, as Paul mentions (in the <$1000 price range for the pair).
Someday, as we grow our speaker offering, I’d love to do additional lower tier lines of speaker products as well.
We can start a new thread but I’m always curious as to what people would want to see from us, product-wise.
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The Primare SC15mkII has pre outs that can be used for a sub as well as room EQ plus programmable filters. I found that I no longer needed a sub for music and only use mine for HT LFE. Finally, the WISA connection eliminated noise I had between my SGCD and M700s without loss of quality.
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Chris, I understand and fully agree with you about the pricing of a stand mount speaker in comparison to a tower speaker with similar build quality and components. The Sprout speaker could be a very interesting offer but, as Paul mentioned, it won’t be comparable to the FR5.
My challenge is budget and that’s something you cannot solve for me The price gap between these two speakers is quite big. Nevertheless, I decided to take my time, save more money and then make a decision which speakers to buy.
I really want to thank you and Paul for the frank, open, honest and helpful discussions you’re having with us. I feel welcome and I wouldn’t know a better way for a manufacturer to get in touch with (potential) customers!
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http://www.troelsgravesen.dk/Diy_Loudspeaker_Projects.htm
An other interessting site.
Aaaaand…they are official! Very interesting speaker. Been thinking of saving for FR-10’s (still am), but these look really interesting. I don’t have a large listening space and wondering if this may be the answer (with my 2 subs…).Been reading about the Raidho stand mounts, but these look better to me at half the cost.
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Mmmmm… indeed, they look really good and if they sound as good as I hope they do, then maybe it’s better to save more money and buy FR-5 later than buying other speakers that are half the price and than keep on wondering the coming years weather I did make the right decision… geez. Paul and Chris you’re not making this an easy decision :-))
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Based on having the FR20 and hearing the FR30 on multiple occasions, plus Paul’s initial impressions of the FR5, my gut instinct, without hearing them, is they are/will be quite special. And add some subwoofers…
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I believe they would kick the LS-50 and similar sized speakers hiney.
They also look like a nice sized front L-R for a TV sound system.
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Oh, they do indeed. I have the LS-50 and they don’t even hold a sputtering candle to the FR5s.
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Really like the FR5. Will probably trade my LS50 in. Hopefully there is some sort of introductory offer.
I don’t think LS50 is the competitor. Maybe Borresen X1? Which are quite a bit more expensive. What else?