Royd - Let's Dance.

edited March 2011 in Loudspeakers
By way of a public service announcement: A pair of very interesting Royd listings on eBay at the moment, after a while of nothing of much note...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ROYD-EDEN-Hi-Fi-Loudspeakers-New-/180633337666?pt=UK_AudioVideoElectronics_HomeAudioHiFi_HiFiSpeakers&hash=item2a0e95ff42

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Royd-Sintra-High-Quality-2-Way-Bookshelf-Loudspeakers-/280637894224?pt=UK_AudioVideoElectronics_HomeAudioHiFi_HiFiSpeakers&hash=item4157526e50

Some nice abbots as well, but they're a bit boring really....
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Comments

  • I'd seen the Abbots, but not these.

    The Edens look very nice.

    You bidding, Alan? :-)
  • I'm sticking!

    I would if I didn't have to choose though, probably on those Sintras.
  • I don't think I'm in, either. My pockets are feeling a bit light ATM.
  • Edens - £410!! New in their boxes though, lovely wood finish, but sheesh!

    Sintras are still on at £85 odd, but for how long?
  • There's nearly a week left on the Sintras. Plenty of time to climb.
  • Yes. Tried hard to ignore them earlier.
  • I might get a tin of emulsion on my old garage set!
    $-)
  • How about a nice mustard yellow?  :0&
  • My daughter would like pink, but the boys blue. One each?
  • So conventional!
  • Ooh - white Minstrels. Very nice!


    http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260763632414&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT
    Looking at them they're White and black minstrels, surely... :-/

  • Ooooowwwwwwwww!!!!  b-(
  • Am glad to see the buyer qualifying why there is a drill in pic 1  :)
  • I thought that was hilarious...
    What a bizarre reference point...!
  • I'm not buying unless the drill in included.
    [-(
  • thanks alan for the pm on wigwam...  are the rr2's you mention available ??  link ?
  • Hi Jon,

    No, as I mentioned, the chap who got to the RR2s before you did is a member here, the speakers are not available as far as I know. At least, we haven't heard any impressions from him yet, though I'm sure we will. He liked his RR1s enough....

    @Uglymusic put a link up the other day in a dedicated thread (he spotted them first) and they were gone in minutes.
  • Maybe there will be a pair of RR1s coming on the market sooner or later?
  • Yep. Saw them and scratched my head.
  • edited June 2011
    The 'Big' One....

    The legend, apparently....raved about as one of the best small speakers  - Royd Sintra II.

    http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ROYD-SINTRA-II-SPEAKERS-BLACK-/280694749348?pt=UK_AudioVideoElectronics_HomeAudioHiFi_HiFiSpeakers&hash=item415ab5f8a4

    Watch how much these go for.....I've only seen two sets of RR3s for sale and this is only the second pair of Sintra IIs I've seen.
  • Not sure what to make of them Royd Sterlings. They do look identical to my Royd Apex, with just the metal base seemingly a spot narrower. Pity there's no dimensions give, or side shot to compare the tapering of the cabinet.

    Appear to share the same external crossover setup, mounted underneath in the base. So should handle active bi-amping like the Apex. Royd recommended the Naim Naxo 2-4 for this.

    Didn't go for much in the end, £43! I guess, as with collection only auction, you're really limiting your target market.  If there anything like the Apex (or the Rega Ela Mk1), the duff tweeter is probably just a Scanspeak D2008 and readily available.
  • edited September 2011
    Da business:

    http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/110747499183?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

    Royd Merlins, kind of like Minstrels - but definitely better. More boogie (yes, more)

    Gromit has these, they really are rare. I could totally live with these forever.
  • Alan....I can't believe you just let this little kitten out of the sack :-)
    Andy
  • Go for them Andy - maybe they won't give you the scale of the Shahinians but they are one of the few I would recommend as having a good chance.
  • Da business:

    http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/110747499183?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

    Royd Merlins, kind of like Minstrels - but definitely better. More boogie (yes, more)

    Gromit has these, they really are rare. I could totally live with these forever.
    £255 , wow , i was gonna take a punt on these wee bad boy's , thought they would get £150 ish , hope the new owner (anyone on these boards ? )takes care of them ,
    :-?? :)
  • That's around what I thought they'd go for.

    Not a bad price if they're as good as some people say they are.
  • I was watching them. Fancied seeing what all the fuss is about....Would probably have topped that bid too if I'd remembered.
    But closing the auction on my curry/Pinot grigio/bluray night. How very dare they...?
    I haven't bought any hifi for ages and am getting twitchy. I need to indulge. And a pair of functioning Royd's would be easy to sell on if I buy and no-like.
  • The sorcerors are still there...
    >:-)
  • Alan, Which are the k9's nuts and bolts when it comes to Royds? I'm feeling a bit "not-in-the-clique" without a Royd in my signature. I'm keen to secure the "royd experience", and want to make sure that I net a top recommended royd. I'd heard lots of good things about the Merlins thus my interest there.
    Are the Sorcerers good?
    I'm in no immediate hurry. (I'm tres joli with my Cubes.)
  • edited October 2011
    I don't know anything really, but I have heard a few & have some views - IMO the Revelation Range (RR1, RR2, RR3) are pretty wonderful things (I only heard the RR1 & RR2).

    On a budget the Minstrels are infectious, they bounce along wonderfully. They show everything up in the system, they never become a bottleneck. They do have slightly over-exuberant treble though, which can be just a little coarse, but the mid-bass is to die for. Nothing comes close in terms of performance & VFM at any price point.

    The Merlins that just sold are stand-mounted versions, and even better in all respects AFAIAC. Interestingly, in the Revelation range, the range-topper was also a standmount, the base being a re-worked Minstrel and the mid being a re-worked doublet Well I say re-worked - they have the same form to look at, but aren't really the same at all.

    The Sintra 2 is talked about in hushed tones, I haven't had the privilege myself. The Sorceror was after, I think, very high quality and a lot more refined than earlier Royds. I think Alan Sircom reviewed them once and seemed to love them. (Interestingly, in the review he referred to an acquaintance who had a set of Minstrels in a top flight system - was that you Dave?) Some Royd fans didn't like them so much as they were smoother, less foot-tappy. A chap on PFM (VUK) rates his as the best small speakers - in the world.[/clarkson} He is wrong. Mine are...

    The Revelations get some of that fot-tappiness back, but are completely transparent. They just improve and show up everything which goes on upstream. I could have bought the R&D version of your speakers at a good price Ben, but not at the expense of my RR3s. I will say the minstrels still get the foot tapping more easily than the RR3s, but I'll take the improvements elsewhere in compensation.

    Others, like the Doublet & Abbott get uniformly praised - I should think thy are pretty wonderful too. I'd like to try them all - I think a chap on WW & PFM has done just that, Steve 'Bourney'. He wrote some reviews which are on Arfas Royd Audio site.

    The Minskies would be the cheap & definitive Royd experience imo.
  • edited October 2011
    I'm not sure I was the person to whom Mr Sircom was referring. I've never knowingly met the man.

    I agree with most of what you've said above, but having lived with Minstrels and RR3s, I would say the RR3s are no less foot-tapping than the Minstrels. The other thing is that, reputedly, Revelations benefit from amps with a fair amount of grunt. Not because they're particularly inefficient, but they just sound better that way.
  • Thanks guys.
    I can see that this is less clear than I'd hoped. I'll check out that Arfas site. Obviously I need to hear some for myself, but I'm not going to grab every pair that drops into eBay, I need to narrow things down a bit.
    You've helped me open my file...
    :-)
  • Start with some Minstrels, everyone does. They're good and usually got for around a ton, depending on condition. There's also plenty about, in case you need spares.

    There's some Doublets on ebay right now, which is what I'm running in my main system currently. Very good, but the chap is asking a bit much TBH.

    I have some Apex too, which are basically a better version of the original Rega Ela, lovely sound, bit gently on low end bass, but you can't drive them hard. Big external crossovers, which can be teamed up with a Naim NAXO 2-4 for some funky active bi-amping action. Getting on a bit now, but spares are about, as they shared drivers with the old Rega Ela's.

    As for standmounts, I haven't actually tried many, only the Envoys. I hear the Sintra 2 are top trumps. But he Sorcerer's are highly regarded, with the SE version of the latter sharing same bass driver as the Revelation series. However, all these high end stand mounts are pretty rare, don't come up often. Similarly, if you've got duff drivers, you're pretty much screwed. :(
  • So these good ....? Hope the mobileweb link works on your grown up pooturds...
    http://item.mobileweb.ebay.co.uk/viewitem?itemId=190583740694&index=0&nav=SEARCH&nid=76301242262
  • Yup. Those are good. Page looks a bit odd, though.
  • So these good ....? Hope the mobileweb link works on your grown up pooturds...
    http://item.mobileweb.ebay.co.uk/viewitem?itemId=190583740694&index=0&nav=SEARCH&nid=76301242262
    I saw those - it looks as if the chap has painted them battleship grey?
    They should be cheap as a result, you won't have more sonic fun for less
    for sure.

    I am surprised he won't post them, they are small really.
  • Don't forget my funky hifi search engine, handy for hunting down Royd's from all over the forums and ebay:-

    http://hifihunter.com/?s=royd
  • Nice website Arfa.
  • Don't forget my funky hifi search engine, handy for hunting down Royd's from all over the forums and ebay:-

    http://hifihunter.com/?s=royd
    Too late! I had forgotten.
    Now remembered. Thanks.
    :-)
  • I see there's some abbots and some Sinatra 2s on eBay at the mo'.
    The sinatras appear to be a well respected model, what about the abbots?
  • The Sintras are fabled as the best Royds made (by those who haven't heard mine!)

    Abbots have lightly bigger drivers, don't they? A bit of a departure for Royd, they seem to be well liked though.
  • "the best made"...
    Hmmm.
    I am watching. 8-|
  • RR3s are the Kings of all Roydiness!!
  • I'm just keen to run something good against my Nva cubes. By way of comparison. Or hopefully affirmation.
    Currently I am totally satisfied with my system from a musical performance point of view. Happier than I've been since I started my hifi in 1993. Sounds utterly as I want it to. Wonderfully realistic.
    But the hobbyist in me wants to play...
    The sinatras enjoy a huge reputation. Most importantly, a huge reputation among those with similar ears and systems to me. Also, the fact that this pair are collection only may make them cheaper than they might otherwise be.
    They'll be no problem to shift when they turn out to be risable in comparison to my cubes....;-)
    I'll follow these sinatras closely.
  • The Merlin was one of the speakers that really stood out to me at the Scalford show this year.  Those and some Snell Ks, lovely.  I'm going to have a go at doing a room in 2012; show me 'umble system off to the torfs with electrostatic every things :-).  Ignoring anything I do, I strongly recommend the Scalford show to anyone interested in music/hifi.
    Andy
  • I've never been, would you believe? I really must wrestle my diary to the floor and subdue its need to fill ever corner with irrelevancies (compared to hi-fi, of course)!
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