I was more than happy to get more face time with SACD, but I turned him down on the integrated: one product change at a time. In January, at CES 2001, Mark Levinson tried to persuade me to audition the R3 using his Red Rose integrated tube amp and Sony's top-of-the-line SACD player. But I asked for-and received-far more than I thought possible from these little gems!
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The 87dB/W-efficient R3 played remarkably loud, too, and free of dynamic compression or strain as long as I didn't ask too much of them. Yes, I've heard more detail elsewhere, and better separation among massed strings, but the sweet, natural string texture and tone will be hard to beat at any price.
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The tweeter, silky-smooth yet fast, delivered satisfying violin tone and texture, and the blend of drivers proved adept at producing larger stringed instruments with their rich, woody tones intact, free of congestion and midbass bloat. The R3's midband was unforced, uncolored, and convincing. But I didn't miss that stuff what was there had that smooth, rich, three-dimensional, naturally-easy-fit Dockers sound. Jay Leonhardt's bass (or, on some tunes, Rufus Reid's), Donny Osborn's drums, and Mike Renzie's piano were equally well-rendered, though larger speakers deliver more "nightclub"-more ambience, more low-level detail from the rear of the room.
![ezpaycheck past w2x ezpaycheck past w2x](https://b.basemaps.cartocdn.com/light_all/9/88/205@2x.png)
The R3s almost dared me to jump up and step into the image to see if it was solid.
![ezpaycheck past w2x ezpaycheck past w2x](https://www.unitedbk.bank/assets/files/UUPo3lrs/WilcoxFamily2.gif)
The focus was dramatic, but without unnatural "etch." On my longtime reference disc, Mel Tormée and Friends Live at Marty's (Finesse W2X 37484), the Red Roses delivered an oh-so-vivid, airy, and effortless presentation of Tormée centered in 3D between the speakers, with a natural and convincing "edge" between his voice and the room ambience. What might you hear from the R3 when you listen to music? Small speakers are renowned for their ability to "disappear." The R3s didn't disappoint in that regard, but they "disappeared" in a particularly bold way. Whatever aberrations show up in John Atkinson's measurements, they have been so skillfully woven into the smooth fabric of the overall sound that I didn't notice them. I wasn't surprised by what the SPL meter told me: these speakers sounded great out of the box and during the entire month-plus I spent listening to them. Other than some dips and peaks around 3kHz, where the crossover must be, my pair of R3s behaved extremely well in my room. The R3's ribbon tweeter didn't seem to be quite as resolving as the ProAc Future One's, or as airy, extended, and detailed, but that may have helped it blend effectively, almost seamlessly, with the small woofer, instead of calling attention to itself. Parents are advised to leave the grillecloths on when not listening. It will be interesting to see how the R3 fares in non-audiophile homes-especially those with curious kids. Red Rose claims that this tweeter, designed by veteran Swedish ribbon designer Bo Bengtsson, "has overcome limitations of the past with new patent-applied-for technology that makes Red Rose ribbons completely practical reliable." Maybe so, but I wouldn't advise vacuuming near it. I don't mean "big" for a little speaker-I mean BIG, thanks to the smooth performance of the ribbon tweeter, which appears to have remarkably wide dispersion.
![ezpaycheck past w2x ezpaycheck past w2x](https://thumbimg.dealmoon.com/dealmoon/b6a/2ff/cfb/f43eab9367959339f90708c.png)
This small speaker could fill the room with a really big, well-focused sonic picture-even well off the center sweet spot. The R3's soundstaging was as surprising as its low-end response. The R3's low-frequency performance had me shaking my head long into many a night's listening. But whatever level of bass reproduction you expect from the R3 when you first see a pair-even after reading this-I bet what you'll hear will be far more, and better.
![ezpaycheck past w2x ezpaycheck past w2x](http://www.epcounty.com/sheriff/images/map.png)
However, it did provide musical bass that was otherwise richly satisfying and dynamic. And the R3 didn't deliver large-scale bass dynamics or high-volume bass slam. I never heard the lowest organ pedals, or the illusion of a large room space that can be developed only by speakers extending flat to below 30Hz.