As I mentioned in my earlier initial review of the R1 speakers the new R3 floor standing models are the replacement of the SR3 series. While we were huge fans of the SR3 models the new R3 Arrete is simply sensational. Like the R1 series the new ribbon tweeter is derived from the £50,000 R8 loudspeaker and other improvements include new midrange drivers, upgraded crossovers and the ability to add the new Freedom grounding cables.
While the price has gone up to £8999 which is about £1000 more than the previous models the improvements are significant. There are also two other new R3 models the Avantgarde at £6999 and the R3 Signature at £4299. All the R3 models are still in the same compact floor standing cabinets of their predecessors and stand only 103 cms tall yet can fill even a large room with huge soundstage and really deep bass. Remarkably for a compact floor standing speaker the R3 Arrete can go from 23Hz in the bass to 54Khz in the treble.
As with the R1 models I first heard the R3 at the Munich Show earlier this year and was seriously impressed with the sound of the R3 speakers. Now having had the chance to listen to them in room and with equipment I know I am just as impressed as I first was and these speakers are just remarkable.
While I was very impressed with the £600 Freedom grounding cables on the R1 Arrete model the cable gives an even bigger improvement to the R3 models. It has the same effects with reduced background noise giving more detailed and sweeter treble, cleaner more open midrange and deeper, more controlled bass. I would go as far as to say if you are buying the R3 Arrete the freedom cables are a mandatory buy.
We are happy to loan out these cables to customers to try or we can easily demonstrate the Freedom cables in both our stores but honestly these are a no brainer.
We have both the R1 and R3 Arrete speakers available for demonstration in both stores however please book a demonstration ASAP as we already have significant back orders on the R series speakers.
We look forward to letting customers hear just how good these new Audiovector models are and of course as well as the standard finishes you can also order them in a range of incredible colours. We recently supplied a pair in Porsche Biscay Blue which looked absolutely stunning.