Sibelius Software Review

[Wynellewe Gr]

Forsound quality the Sibelius is very much amplifier dependent, so much so I made a video discussing some of the differences I experienced with the three amplifiers I had been using. I ended up using the Leema Acoustics Tucana II Anniversary the most because I preferred the overall synergy. The Leema is a high-power, high-current Class A/B solid state integrated amplifier.

I found the Sibelius sound to be quite precise overall, very tight, nicely focused and great for the small details in music, favouring those element over a larger and grander scale of sound. In various Hans Zimmer, and other movie soundtracks, the small details are clearly presented and the music flows wonderfully, but the overall grandness of scale of the music is a little subdued and less epic.

Interestingly YouTuber Ron of New Record Days, recently did a listening volume poll. From over a thousand audiophiles, it seems like most listen at a much lower volumes than me and so the 98db volume recommended maximum is likely going to be fine for the majority.

To summarise my experience with the Sibelius, they are great for giving you a very relaxed intimate and detailed musical experience with no listening fatigue and, regardless of my preferences of how I like music to be presented, at the end of many multiple hour listening sessions I enjoyed all of them, surely that is what is always most important.

Using a music example such as the Rodrigo Y Gabriela and percussive Spanish guitar I mentioned earlier, I think the Sibelius sounded more like a how a microphone might pick up the sound of percussive guitar playing. There were a lot of intricate details and a very focused sound, whereas the Missions gave much more of the overall energy and impact of the music, as though it is happening live. I have been up close to and recorded an exceptional percussive guitar player JonJan Kavlakagou so I do have a real world audible references to call on here.

The Leema is not the ideal amplifier for the Mission speakers, and so I changed it out for the Pass Labs INT25, which is a pure class A single-ended type design solid state integrated amplifier. Now the comparison was totally different. The Pass Labs combined with the Missions sound fantastic, especially with vocals. This is a great pairing because there is now real smoothness to the delivery and they sound significantly more cohesive between the bass, mids, and treble. As a trade-off, they are a little bit less attacking and live sounding.

I want to close out by saying this has not been an easy review for me. Critiquing another audiophiles twenty year speaker project is almost like criticising one of their children. It is not something you do without extreme care and honesty about your findings and that is how I have approached this review. If that is an approach to HiFi reviewing you appreciate, please subscribe to see my YouTube videos and follow my website and Facebook page.

Just recently I found pure magic in my all new AGD Duet amps and Alto MKII preamp. I just adore these end game amps but they are not the only amps I am enjoying the heck out of these days, but more on that later. See my review here of the AGD amps if you missed it.

As I sit and write about this speaker and my experience with them I am listening to them at the same time so as my words flow, the music is flowing as well. The Sibelius came to me all the way from Belgium several weeks ago and I have been enjoying them ever since. This speaker looks pretty simple but do not let that fool you.

For me, these are as close to the word magic as a speaker can get, for most (but not all) music. They have a special way of transporting me to other worlds when listing to certain kinds of music. They also have a beauty, an inner depth, warm glow and solid projection that really can bring artists to you, in your space, in a big full way. Again, do not let that single small driver trick, fool or confuse you my friends, as these can really paint a huge scale wall of music. The brush they use is fine yet the shading is extraordinary. What I mean is, the way these bring forth music is in a gentle yet broad dramatic way. There is so much information coming out that is rich, fluid and delicate and this allows the music to flow in a way I have not heard before. Not in the Borresen speakers or even my main reference, the OGY/BOB combo. These are also, like the X2, beautiful at low volume listening.

The brands founder and main man Harley Lovegrove says these are end game speakers and they do not ever plan on making a MKII or different version. How incredible is this. A company that made a speaker so good they never want to mess with changing it or swaying their customers into new speakers with minimal change like some companies do.

Most companies want to keep bringing out MKI, MKII, MKIII, etc. This is what brings big profits as people feel the need to upgrade all of the time in this hobby. Not with Pearl. These are so good according to Harley that they are made to be with someone for life. I can say right now that yes, they are that good and the price is absurdly amazing for this quality of sound and minimal nature of the speaker.

Since the Sibelius arrived I have been addicted to the artist Briq a Braq. This is an artist I discovered a year ago or so and I love the way these piano pieces are intertwined with other instruments to create lovely and very spatial presentation that, at times, can surround you with music. These recordings can sound very 3D in the right setups and with the Sibelius powered by these AGD Duet amps these recordings sound otherworldly, the best I have heard them. Powered with the Galion A20 Class A 20 WPC amp, again, pure magic but more density than the AGD. More warmth in the mids, a bit thicker and without the all out refinement of the reference AGD. Both amps though are simply gorgeous with the Pearls. These do very well with GaN Class D and Class A.

Yes, these one driver speakers have a way of creating a direct connection from the music directly to YOU. I talked about this a bit when I was reviewing the Daniel Hertz Amber speakers, also a single driver model. The Amber had a much larger driver than the Sibelius but I swear the Sibelius sounds more real, even richer and without question more involving.

Sure, all speakers are designed by a human but most are tuned by using gear/machines/electronics that tells them how to tune and create them. This can work well also but now I know why these Pearls sound as they do and I would do the same thing if I were a speaker designer. I always say, measurements mean nothing to me, nothing. I only go by what my ear tells me and always will. I have heard some gear that measured so well and yet left me uninspired and cold. The Pearl Sibelius is handcrafted using real wood, no crossover to get in the way and they were voiced by one mans ear. Pretty cool and unique.

After much testing, lo and behold, they sounded best in my space without the stands but with the stands there was a somewhat cleaner midrange. After a few days of back and forth tests I nixed the stands and placed some wood panels under them that I made from the wood on our property. If I owned the Sibelius I would probably permanently attach some wood bases to them that are larger than the base of the speaker. You may enjoy the custom made metal stands for these as they do also come with spiked feet. If you plan on setting them up once and not moving them often, then the stands will be just fine.

When I put in a new set of speakers I test them with all kinds of music right out of the gate. Seeing that Pearl breaks in the driver before even shipping the speaker, I knew that they were ready to roll. I also think these were review units that have been with other reviewers anyway, so well broken in for sure.

As I listen to this album from an artist I never heard of (was recommended to me on Spotify, I then listened on Spotify and Tidal) I was soaking in the lovely gentle music, vocals and the three dimensions that the Sibelius was somehow creating. The instruments were separated from the mix, playing in their own space with a golden glow around them. Vocals were soft and sweet coming right at me down the middle and slightly moved up into the room.

The result was a very intimate experience as if the band was here, playing gently and sweetly in the room. I was listening at low volume and there was a fullness and sweetness to the sound. Every detail was heard but they were all exposed and up front.

Every detail and I mean every detail will be exposed within the music here but the Sibelius do this in a way that is gentle, fluid and smooth. There is weight from the Piano that is conveyed. Guitar strings can be heard individually yet at the same time there is a body and glow to each string. Hard to describe but so good.

Now there is the Pearl Sibelius and they have also infected me with what they can do and they are unlike the others in many ways. These sound the purest. They sound like they have a direct connection to the music, as they do. Nothing is here to congest or redirect the frequencies to other drivers, rather this one small little driver handles all of it from treble to mids to bass. Having no crossover inside allows that deeper connection, at least I believe this. Less CAN really be more and the Sibelius proves it.

While they are not the best you will hear for big music like metal, hard rock and maybe even some EDM what they do for all other music is beautiful and serene. All in all, these are probably the most magical speakers I have reviewed to date with music they excel at reproducing. When I throw on some ambient stuff and sit down to write, these Sibelius wrap me in the mood more so than the X2, Duettos and even the OGY/BOB. There is something going on here that is outside the norm but so so good.

The imaging is surreal and superb. The soundstage is very tall and massive in size and scale. The vocals come out a bit with a fullness and clarity that may just bring goosebumps to your body. There is a naturalness and revealing nature as well but also a touch of fullness all around and the way details are brought forth is incredible. I am hearing things I never knew existed in very familiar music.

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