The thing nobody is talking about is what I’m up to tonight. I’m up late trying to write a spot for my employer. It has to do with coffee. I’m drinking Hop Butcher For The World and have had, frankly, too many. And, for reasons I can no longer recall, I’m engaged in a speaker shootout. The speakers in question are neither relevant nor desirable. A pair of Rega R1 and a pair of Precise Monitor 3.
To conduct this epic shootout, I’ve listened to Kenny Dorham/Cafe Bohemia, Herb Hancock/Maiden Voyage, and now The Grifters Ain’t My Lookout, an epic album that puts me, with fierce urgency and disarming quickness, back in college. (How long does it take to travel from 2026 to 1995? About .01 seconds when The Grifters are involved.)
I have the Rega pair and the Precise pair set up next to each other and am alternating.
REGA: Boxy. Smaller. Fuller, not necessarily in a good way. Low-mid presence. Limited highs maybe? Sounds capped around 10K. Smooth. Balance OK. Bass not articulate, but could be this Kenny Dorham record from 1956. Less air around everything. Far from bad!
PRECISE: Bigger. More comfortable. A bit more high end. Not boxy. More air. More ease. More headroom. Don’t feel like they’re laboring at all.
Both sets of speakers show the limitations of this live recording from 1956, which is like 200 years ago.
OK, continuing to listen, continuing to analyze…
REGA: Really good! Maybe more immediate, more urgency? Can hear this with jittery rock like Grifters. And, really REALLY good when you work super hard to put your ears in exactly the right spot.
PRECISE: Bigger, better, more ease. Bigger in every way. More extension in both low and high end. More extension laterally. More “elegant.” More ease. More air. Less struggle, so sonically less urgent.
But kinda surprising how good the Regas sound!
FINAL THOUGHTS
REGA: They sound smaller, and that’s not always a bad thing. They add some urgency and energy.
PRECISE: Sound kind of aloof, like they’ve been there, done that. More ease, more wisdom, plenty of room. Can handle the music with ease. More confident, not trying as hard. On the Grifters record, tighter and more open at the same time. Again—more effortless, and that’s mostly a good thing. MORE OF THE MUSIC FITS IN THE SPEAKER. More ease, more collected, more controlled, less volatile.
So there you have it. They’re both pretty goddamned good, and I’m pretty sure they’re both pretty cheap. Speaker companies: send me your finest wares so I can write about them. I will tell the truth and/or lie my ass off if it means you’ll give me free stuff.
THE OWL HEAD SHOE HORN 