Price Paid:  $1100.00

Summary:
Great speaker system. You'll have to spend much more to eclipse the performance of the Snell D type.

Strengths:
Sound quality is excellent. Bass is substantial, but not overwhelming, no real need for subwoofer unless you want to reproduce the 32' organ bottom end at full volume. Soundstaging is good, speakers capable of better soundstaging are not in this price range. I've auditioned many full-range speakers at more than double the price, but still chose the Snell D. Cabinet construction is excellent. Effective speaker fuse system prevents damage. Product service is great, the followed up right away.

Weaknesses:
Woofer construction is surprisingly light, it doesn't seem to matter as the speaker reproduces 30 Hz and handles 200 WPC. I was expecting a beefier driver.

Similar Products Used:
Comparably priced Mirage, Energy, Vienna, Sonus Faber, Klipsch, were all auditioned and this was the best. The only thing which equaled the Snells is the slightly more expensive (comparing list price at the time) Martin Logan Aerius

Summary:
Beautiful cabinet work, fit and finish first-rate. Has real binding posts, not cheap plastic. Gets real low in a real room. This speaker is probably better than the rest of your system if you've bothered to come here. Improvements in your amplification show up cleanly. Full range, nice-looking, big but not too big (60 lbs) to move or scare the decorator. Has a switchable rear tweeter for your pet bats and a pot for the front tweeter but you probably won't hear this either unless you're young enough but then you can't afford the electronics to drive this speaker properly anyway. Get a used McCormack amp, you can have Steve fix it for you when you have more money (SMcAudio@aol). The entire Snell line is good listening but the "D" and "E" models are a great value and deliver the goods. I use mine for casual listening and dancing with the kids or watching movies. My critical listening room is too small for the bass power of these Snells, but others say the imaging is fine for this price point. I love them with Chapman, Mitchell, and Kottke: intmacy is great. Can handle any acid rock, synth., or Mahler you can dish out. Use the spikes, and get them clear of the walls and corners or your house will fall in. At this price, get two pair and a used pair of the big-mother Adcoms and blow-up your darn house with a 5.1 DVD movie. You can't hear anything above 10kHz anyway--who are you kidding! Have some fun now, you won't even hear the midrange when you're old enough to afford the high-end stuff. Oh yea, leave the grills on, they're kid proof.