My long winded two cents worth :
Over the past 3 years I've gone a little crazy tasting the fruit of everything Pioneer Speaker, some have been a pleasure and others not so much.
Until recently I had 3 pairs of CS-99A, currently 2 pair. Somebody made an offer that I couldn't refuse and I sold a pair, likely gonna let go of another, but keeping a like new pair for grins.
My thoughts on the 99A are that it's by no means a horrible speaker as some claim, it's can be a wonderful speaker, but it must be paired with the right amp, and musical genre.
Listening to Thrash, Heavy Metal, Techno or Rap ? Yeah this is not the speaker for you,
Putting music of it's production era through them, be it pop, country, light rock, motown, easy listening, big band , new wave or alternative music, anything that does not require bass kicking you sideways, this speaker can be wonderful, especially if you are running 2 pairs of them. Everything is heard, in far more detail than many other Pioneers including the HPM's,
Like the HPM-100 this speaker needs to be pushed to begin doing its thing.
I read countless threads stating that there is no bass, that's nonsense ! There is plenty of tight punchy bass at mid to higher volumes, it's simply not the MTX gut punching make you sick to your stomach bass that so many grew accustomed to
during the mid 80s.
I will agree that at lower volumes, bass seems non existent, the mids being so upfront, I believe that perceived bass is diminished some. It's there, it's just not throwing you out of your chair.
Now I'll admit that I seldom listen to music at dinner table volumes, and if I do my HPM-40s' and 60's get the nod on a secondary system.
If you are looking for a stand alone, one and done speaker that can do everything well, the 99A is probably not that, but no speaker is that to me, including the big names dropped here on a regular basis, no matter what you have to spend.
I have friends that have $12-15k systems, that I thought sucked.
If you really want 99a's, then get 2 pair as they can sound glorious..A third pair for me was silly.
The earlier CS-99 really does nothing for me, boomy ,inarticulate, and lifeless comes to mind, maybe a recap would help, but the ones I've personally heard, I know that I wouldn't get spendy for a pair or put money into them.
The plain 63's, 77's and 88's to me are more or less the same as the 99's, pretty boring almost like someone threw a blanket over them, foam surrounds don't appeal to me, but they might shine with the right amp and genre of music. They are also quite a bit cheaper than the A series, so for some maybe a good starting point, but I wouldn't expect to get your money back should you get spendy then decide they aren't for you.
Every ear is different, tone is subjective at best , and we don't all have the same amps etc, and for someone they may be the ticket, and thats what makes the world go around. If we all wanted the same speaker, supply and demand would chase many out of the hobby.
CS-88A's were mentioned... They were the first pair I bought when I ventured into the Pioneer lattice style speakers. I really like my pair, the cabs aren't perfect but the drivers are mint. Again another speaker that gets a bad rap for lack of bass
and yeah, I'd tend to agree on this particular speaker, yeah it's tight and punchy, but the 12 doesn't really thump like a 15" in the A series. The mids are truly wonderful at all levels open and airy . I put Men At Work's first album through them and heard things in the song that I had never heard before.
It's another that I believe is not a stand alone speaker, but depending on what you listen to they can be wonderful.. I put a Rat Pack cd, Marty Stuart, The Fixx and a bunch of other music through them and they were nice in a smaller room.
CS-A700's were mentioned, I have a pair by default that I had to take to get my first CS-99A's. Very similar to the 88a's {same size cab I believe} however the bass extension seems / feels a little deeper than the 88A, I don't like or dislike them and have them listed, I prefer the 88a's over them .Though the A700 biamp triamp option is nice if thats what you are after.
Love my 63DX's, what wonderful speaker... The tweeters are the weak link, and if you want more bass than the 99A's this is it, and about half price of 99a's [aside from ebay.]
It's too bad Pioneer did not have a walnut veneered baffle on these, imagine the prices if they did !!
For me, none are stand alone speakers, I've run 2 & 3 pair of 99a's which can be nice, 88A's with 99A's , they compliment one another well.
I prefer the 88a's or 99a's with HPM-60s on top, as you still get the clarity and open airy sound of the CS mids, but you get just enough punch from the 60's to bring it all together, especially at lower volumes.
I was hesitant about buying them at first, but grew to love my quad of HPM-40's for lower volume listening, and 40's a top 60's is very nice as well. They take everything you put into them music wise. They are not the end all be all, but for the current prices they are still a great value.
In my main system I run an octet of HPM-100's with a Yamaha MX-1000U / CX-1000U , MX-800 /CX800 , MX-600U CX-600U.
I love them for many things, despise them for others.
Venturing down the Polk road soon, it will be interesting going from west to east coast sound.
It's all subjective, I've truly appreciated the tips and help I've received here and on other sites, so many good people eager to help, it's been a fun ride thus far.
