Centaur Minors by Apogee Acoustics

[NYListens]

I just scored a pair of these at the good will and was hoping to find out more about them. While I have heard high-end speakers in the past, I have never owned a pair at their level. I have read a bit on the web on them and I understand that they are "entry level" audiophile speakers (everything is relative.) I hooked them up to my 500-B and the mids and highs are just crystal (must be the ribbons). In fact, they were so good that I heard every snap, crackle and pop on a few lps that were fine with my other speakers. The staging is very impressive and the bass is ok. These came with a pretty heavy duty and I was wondering if they would perform differently at higher levels of amplification. Is there anything I should know about their placement, etc?

 

[wineslob]

Like all Apogees they will benefit from the "best" amplification, those ribbon sections are ruthless when it comes to hearing what your recordings and equipment really sounds like.
As far as place ment about 4 ft from the wall behind them is a good starting point. With a cone bass driver you may be able to go closer without "bloating" the image.

Here's some info for some very good speakers you now have. Congratulations!

http://www.apogeespeakers.com/


Look in the left hand column for "ribbon hybrids" The Stereophile review is the one thats "on the mark".

 

[NYListens]

Thanks! Your system is only as good as the source and these speakers certainly prove that out. I really had a lucky day at the goodwill, by far my best score and I feel real fortunate. I got them with a B & K amp, Luxman pre-amp/tuner and a pioneer cd player. I will hook them up to that system and see the difference betwen that and the 500-B. I am still amazed by the ribbons and their ability to stage things. I have a newly purchased Joy Division Unknown Pleasures LP and it is super clean. Wow, did it sound good. My trip to the good will for lps may be numbered with these speakers at the helm.

 

[terryfox3]

Your surely jokeing you found centar's at the goodwill?Thats the best score i have ever heard of bar none.wtg!

 

[NYListens]

Your surely jokeing you found centar's at the goodwill?Thats the best score i have ever heard of bar none.wtg!

No joke. I saw on here that someone a few weeks ago got a mac tube pre-amp in excellent condition. You never know.

 

[Satch]

Congrats, the Minors are very good speakers. As already is said, they do need some quality amps. They like power, and lots of it. As you already heard, the mid/high ribbon provides some of the best sounds you can imagine. While the low end is good, it doesn't really keep up with the excellent ribbon, but it's a good compromise.
Experiment with the placement: Apogees tend to be critical and a small change can make a bit difference. My own Centaur Majors like to have a lot of space around them and are slightly toed in towards the listener. But since every room is different, you might find another way is best for you.
Finally, by your description I think the ribbons are ok. If necessary, you can purchase new ribbons by Graz in Australia.These are the real deal, no phony substitutes. A pair of standard ribbons for the Minor will cost you 365 (Australian) dollars, the presumably better XLM2 cost 490 dollars: http://www.apogeeacoustics.com/repairsapogeeribbons.html

Enjoy this tremendous find!

 

[budgetaudio6]

excellent find nylistens. hardly any kind of find in my area. can we se pics of them? PLEASE?

 

[NYListens]

Thanks everyone. I hope each of you have double the luck I had at your next good will trip.

I should tell you all exactly how lucky I really was with this score. First thing .my wife has very nicely asked me not to buy anything more until I sell some stuff off. So I went to the good will yesterday anyway. I walked into the usual spot for electronics. There were a nice pair of three way Technics and a nice little set of small 2way ARs. I was good and decided to resist temptation. I almost didn't go across the store to where they keep lps (I was just there last week), but at the last second I went to check it out and then I saw all the gear. I haven't been in this hobby too long and there is so much gear I just have no clue about. I have purchased a few pieces of gear in the past at the good will thinking they would be worth something and have wound up throwing it out and wasting money. So when I saw this gear, it looked audiophile, but I wasn't sure and they wanted $150 for it and that is a ton of money to me. So I took the plunge anyway despite my wife's wish and the chance what I bought was white van like and that I was buying it without knowing if it all worked (it does). The only thing that gave me some confidence was the B & K amp, as I don't think they make white van amps that are that large and only have a power switch on the front and the speakers which had ribbons in them. So I talked them down a little on the price and took the plunge.

With my 500-B, the mids and highs sound unbeleivable. However, the bass is just muddy and dull. I hope to try them with the system they came with later. I'll take photos as soon as I can.

 

[wineslob]

I don't know if the bass issue sounds right, however you can try the adjustment switches on the backs of the speaker, as said in this excerpt. The Minor was set at a price-point that was rediculous compared to it over-all performance.

Although I found
the woofer switch's Normal position best,
I could hear how it would improve the Minor's
interaction with other listening rooms. The
colorations I heard in the bass were mitigated
with the switch in the Low position, but this
also made the presentation thinner and less
satisfying. The High position gave more
weight to the music, but also made me more
conscious I was listening to loudspeakers

 

[NYListens]

I don't know if the bass issue sounds right, however you can try the adjustment switches on the backs of the speaker, as said in this excerpt. The Minor was set at a price-point that was rediculous compared to it over-all performance.

I will play a bit more with the switch. I actually read that Apogee sold a port modification for them. I usually prefer a sealed box, but I am not happy with the bass in thes with the Fisher. However, my Fisher only pushes 25 watts per channel. The mids and highs are increible and the staging, the staging, the staging is still spooky real with the Fisher,

I see you also own Apogee speakers. I assume they are higher end.

 

[Satch]

As I understand, bass is fine with the B&K amp, but muddy with an other amp (500 B)? In that case, I don't think there's anything wrong with the Minor, but probably the amp isn't able to drive the woofer properly. If bass sounds muddy with both amps, and using the switch doesn't help, you could buy new woofers. The Minor uses Vifa P21W0-20-08 woofers, which will cost about 65 dollars a piece.

Oops, you already answered that. Your best bet is to use another amp, which combines the staging of the Fisher and the low-end of the B&K.

 

[wineslob]

I will play a bit more with the switch. I actually read that Apogee sold a port modification for them. I usually prefer a sealed box, but I am not happy with the bass in thes with the Fisher. However, my Fisher only pushes 25 watts per channel. The mids and highs are increible and the staging, the staging, the staging is still spooky real with the Fisher,

I see you also own Apogee speakers. I assume they are higher end.

The Minors need more current. :yes: I'm guessing the amp is "running out of gas". They may also need the higher damping factor of a SS amp.

I own Duetta II's, they were a bit farther up the model line, but those Minors are no slouch.

 

[NYListens]

Sure that would be the most reasonable solution. However, I really prefer the tube sound to solid state and need to sell some of my gear. I will play around a bit with everything before I decide anything. Anyway, playing around with the gear is half of the fun.

 

[NYListens]

The Minors need more current. :yes: I'm guessing the amp is "running out of gas". They may also need the higher damping factor of a SS amp.

I own Duetta II's, they were a bit farther up the model line, but those Minors are no slouch.

Nice stuff. It would be interesting to be able to put in a high effeciency woofer, or bi-amp it. However, I have a to-do list a mile long. I'll have to play around. They still sound great.

 

[thedelihaus]

I'm interested in the b&k as to what model it is- I'm a big fan of their products. The 140 is nice but the at-202 and ex-442 are outstandinng. Congrats on a great amp!!! Regarding the apogees- great speakers indeed- used to be built in the town next door to me, and in fact my company used to do the finishes on them.

Glad to hear of your great fortune!!!

 

[NYListens]

I'm interested in the b&k as to what model it is- I'm a big fan of their products. The 140 is nice but the at-202 and ex-442 are outstandinng. Congrats on a great amp!!! Regarding the apogees- great speakers indeed- used to be built in the town next door to me, and in fact my company used to do the finishes on them.

Glad to hear of your great fortune!!!

It is the 140 Stereo version. I must say that I also get a thrill when someone else in here has a major score. Like when www.records scored that storage locker or when byoung334 scored that Mac. I had to laugh when someone was telling someone else not to waste there time in thrifts. I suppose some parts of the country have bad thrifts, but in my area I have obviously had some luck.

 

[thedelihaus]

the 140 is a great sounding amp but can be a tad bass shy in some applications.

That said, it still could be better than the current amplification and I look forward to hearing your opinions. Those b&k amps re-sell for a pretty penny.

You've done real well!

 

[NYListens]

I listened to it again tonight with the Fisher and it was much better, I put the switch to the normal position and I think that helped. I have posted pictures of the stuff in dollars and sense.

 

[auralfixaton]

Wow great score!
Hope they sound lovely and you enjoy them but be careful! At four feet away from the wall these are supposed to sound amazingly lifelike.
If you fry the ribbon tweeter or the bass panel it costs a fortune to fix those.
There is a set of them in my local speaker repair shop and the owner showed me the bill for a $1200 including labour job for one speaker alone.
Impedance can drop below 4 ohms on some models,not sure about yours.
I am sure someone who knows more will pipe in with the actual figure.

 

[NYListens]

Wow great score!
Hope they sound lovely and you enjoy them but be careful! At four feet away from the wall these are supposed to sound amazingly lifelike.
If you fry the ribbon tweeter or the bass panel it costs a fortune to fix those.
There is a set of them in my local speaker repair shop and the owner showed me the bill for a $1200 including labour job for one speaker alone.
Impedance can drop below 4 ohms on some models,not sure about yours.
I am sure someone who knows more will pipe in with the actual figure.

Wow, that is a big bill. In fact, I think that was right around their original retail. I'll have to keep the kids away. I have them just about four feet from the wall and they are amazing to hear.