Thanks for your insight Chris!
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Stereophile magazine has a strongly positive review of the FR5 in their December issue. It ends with, “They consistently achieve one of audio’s elusive goals: They disappear into the music.”
I’ll post a link once the review is available online.
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It is a great review yet I was disappointed it didn’t mention that Chris Brunhaver designed this speaker and all of the other Aspen series of speakers. I’m sure enjoying my FR5s!
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Thanks for mentioning this. Yes, I’m glad Kal seemed to like them and I thought the review was very well done.
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This review is now posted online
https://www.stereophile.com/content/ps-audio-aspen-fr5-loudspeaker
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I just finished reading it.
Congratulations Chris! What a spectacular review.
No kidding. Congratulations to Chris!
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Even through earphones, the FR5 sounds ravishing with some nice equipments.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ci2vlN5eOBQ
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Here is part 2 of Jay’s audition of the FR5’s. Again with my earphones, not bad sounding at all. Check it out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6xF5T2WYJ8
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I don’t know if this has been posted yet, but Audio Excellence Canada seems to like them a lot, to put it mildly.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVM8oynxy4s
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Two different reviews on YouTube have now raved about the flat panel ribbon tweeter.
I love my FR20’s, more and more as time goes on.
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Final installment of Jay’s review of the FR5. Nice speakers!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fb5RYm3_ApA&ab_channel=Jay%27sAudioLab
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My name is Hudson i was among the first to recognize the virtue of these speakers. I made my purchase before production was completed before any reviews or accolades posted. My spouse who is not an audiophile told me from the very beginning that the FR5 will go down in history as the best purchase i have made in over 40 years. To those who made the same choice, Merry Christmas and happy holidays. To Paul and Chris of PS Audio keep up the good work the future looks bright.
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I really need your help at this moment. I have 30m2 room, where speaker placement can be made on isoacoustic isolation pad aperta, on the bookshelf at the distance in between speakers 112cm and 20-25cm from the back of speakers to the wall (with bass traps treated straight after the speakers back) and the listening position is 200cm from the speakers. Its not an ideal triangle, but still, i do also like toe in advantages. So regarding placement possibilities this is what agreed with my beloved one:) my gear is Chord Dave DAC straight into Chord Etude Power amplifier which is rated 150w into 4ohms. Cables are Furutech DSS and DAS 4.1 series RCA and Speaker. 1 - Would you think placement would suit and work , 2 - is such power in watts enough to drive? Huge thanks, i am looking forward! P.s previously i had Harbeth P3ESRXD but they lacked extensions in highs and bass , but had really good vocals to my taste, how should i expect vocal presence to change/ be different than harbeths? I have had once Proac d30rs their ribbon was really fatigued…. In my headphone experience using Dan Clark Audio Stealth plannars for 2years was purely heaven and best thing i experienced in music. Thanks for advices!
Well, I have heard those harbeth’s because my friend and former colleague Darren has a set. I really like the sound of the harbeths in a more nearfield setup\ but their limitations can rather quickly be heard as you push them a little because they are a fairly small midwoofer in a sealed box.
The FR5 has a similar cone material and rather smooth midrange sound not completely unlike harbeths but the planar tweeter presentation is airier and the speaker has much much deeper bass extension and is a significantly larger speaker, physically. (2" taller, .5" wider and 5" deeper).
The tweeter technology in the FR5 is much more similar to your planar headphones than the proac (which uses a very narrow pure ribbon transducer). Our planars are fairly airy and detailed but generally lacking the sibilance or metallic coloration of some domes and pure ribbons. You can adjust the amount of airiness with toe-in and get a balanced presentation.
The sensitivity is basically the same as your harbeths but they can use the full power of your amplifier (unlike the harbeths) and so you will be able to drive them to a good level with that amplifier (peaks in the mid-90’s at your listening position).
Maybe others could comment further but probably the ultimate test would be to try a pair and see what you think.
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What is between the stands and the floor?
I finally took the plunge after so many months of thinking about it and waiting to see if a “Sprout” speaker might be in the works.
The FR5s arrived Monday (happy birthday to me!) and for those who have been following my audiophile journey here, it was another one of those amazing leaps.
My base system:
Stellar Strata MK1
Cambridge Audio CNX CD Transport
Eversolo DMP-A6
My speakers were upgraded from the Elac UB52 2.0s.
Previously, I had upgraded from a Sprout to the Strata and I immediately noticed the fuller body of the cellos and how the orchestra seemed to be a bit more of separate instruments rather than just one big mass of sound.
The FR5s have taken that to a major step in my meager listening space.
Now, after only about 40 hours of burn-in, I get a much better sense of the individual instruments. I can get a better sense of what those instruments are doing.
I never had room for a subwoofer and the Elacs, while going down to 45hz, I always had a sense that I was missing a good bit of musical information in the bottom. And boy, was I right. I immediately put on “Uranus, The Magician” from “The Planets” as I know there were places the bass drum was hitting, but I never did hear it (I grew up in a house with Infinity Speakers). Well, there were those bass drum strikes as soon as I put on the track.
Over the course of the last two days, I get a much better sense of the overall space in the recording and just an overall fullness to the overall recordings. And the details…little details I never noticed before. An interesting interplay between a mandolin and a double bass in a Vivaldi concerto…the lower registers in a clarinet in a Mozart concerto…and the way the walls shake from “Look What You Made Me Do” by Taylor Swift.
Yeah…these are keepers. A bit on the higher side of my audio budget, but there is no way I can go back now…
Thank you @Chris_Brunhaver. Simply amazing work you have done here!
I have these audio memories from growing up…and you have brought me so much closer to realizing them in my current kit.
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Oh! Scroll back up to post 138 and you will see the space the FR5s now occupy. And yes…I think they sound amazing in that configuration.
This is such a wonderful review to read. Thank you for this. It really made my morning. Few speakers at anywhere near this price range have ever floated my boat and fewer still have gotten my jaw to drop and my head to shake like the FR5s. I never tire of closing my eyes and being bloan away only to open them and see this remarkably small form. Chris killed with these.
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