bass, soundstage, price

nothing major

These speakers are an incredible deal. The people at Pinnacle are very helpful as a well and the 10 year warranty that comes with the Classic Gold's really shows commitment to their products. Great bass that gets better as they break in. Great soundstage and an awesome price!

I like to share something I found with you guys:
1. Use the best speaker wires for these speakers, bi-wire them, this is the cheapest way to "upgrade" your system. The difference of sound quality is Huge.
2. A higher gauge wire is not better than one with a lower gauge (i.e. 14 is not better than 18) due to the skin effect. Use Larger gauge wire (I use 12 gauge) for Low and
Small gauge wire(I use 8 gauge) for High.
3. It is better to use multiple wires of lower gauge (18 AWG-21 AWG) in either a braided, twisted, or a Litz construction.
4. Read Article in http://www.geocities.com/m_churches/wire.htm

These speakers are made with very high quality materials. The binding posts are Gold plated biampable/biwireable--not plastic!. The feet that they stand on are made from Solid brass--heavy! I love how the "long throw" woofers are crossed over with the bottom woof independantly driven if so desired. They have 3 ports that are on an angle to deepen the bass (patented design). I almost hate to use the phrase "for the price" because they are a great value for double the price--however--For the Classic Gold series is an exceptional value IMHO.

distortion-free solid bass; smooth mids; nice highs

Finish is "thin" on edges

I've been an audiophile since age 11 (currently 39), and have had some very good equipment through the years. These speakers are the first that I have ever purchased soley based on reviews and reputation--never auditioned them. I am extremely pleased. The key here is amplifier power. I believe the folks reporting "shrill" highs are probably running too small of an amp. My system has 2 amps bridged for 600 watts/rms @ 8 ohms--and the I have none of the shrillness in treble that has been reported by a few. I have the speakers bi-wired, but not bi-amped. Bass reaches very deep and is distortion free, mids and highs are airy--very nice. The soundstage extends beyond both sides of the enclosures and imaging is clear and concise. The only speakers I found to approach the mid/high quality of the Paradigm Reference models, in my opinion. Take it from someone whose been through alot of equipment--these speakers display the tonal qualities you'll only find in +$2500 speaker range--I know, I've owned them. Give them a listen before you pluck down big bucks on anything else.

My review given with the folllowing equipment:

Yamaha C-65 Preamp
2 Soundcraftsman PM840 amplifiers (bridged)
Rotel CD Player

(Tone controls flat @ 150 Hz [bass] and 2.5 kHz [treble])

Similar Products Used:

B&W, AR9Lsi's (1987), Bose 901 VI, Polk Audio, Infinty RS-3 (1984), Paradigm

Resonant, clear and alive!!

nothing stands out

First, for those who were disappointed with these speakers being bright..thanks for letting us know, they are BRIGHT and sound wonderful..particularly Miles Davis's trumpet!! The bass is deep without drowning the high notes, no matter how loud you crank your amp..I don't profess to be an audiophile (who is one anyways?)..but I love jaaz (miles, rock (peter gabriel), classical (artur rubenstein and Chopin), world (nusrat fateh ali khan)..these speakers sound great and are an amazing value..I tried Polk RT600's (about the same prie)..they are not even a close match..well done Pinnacle!!

Similar Products Used:

JBL, Infinity, Polk

deep bass, great imaging, bargain price for tower speakers

mid-range, mid-highs

I just got the pair direct from the factory in new york 5 days ago, at a bargain price i must say, and very much in my initial stage of evaluating them. Here goes my first impression.

I must say that I was a bit disapointed. I feel my built-up anticipation for an 'audiophile quality' sound was not fulfilled. While the bass is astonishing (comparable to my velodyne sub), i feel that the midrange and the mid-highs a bit lacking. It almost feel that those higher frequencies were no match to their big bass sibling. My first reaction was to crank the treble high - NOT a good idea. Maybe that's what all the 'bright' fuss is all about (i think).

I'm still in search for a perfect placement for the pair in my living room. Hope I can find it. I hate to think that I have made a wrong choice.

Three star for my initial evaluation.

Similar Products Used:

bang&olufsen, infinity

Purchased the Pinnacle Golds about a year ago and still enjoy every second listening to music and movies with them. In fact, I can delay the purchase of a subwoofer because they do a good job in the lower octaves for movies. For $600, unbeatable!

Bass

Midrange

I'm driving these with a single Carver 65WPC amp and Carver tuner/pre-amp. I have a Nakamichi deck, Carver CD and an old (yet very good) Hitachi turntable.
The only complaint I have about these speakers is the upper bass and midrange seem a bit weak. I've only had them in one household so I'm waiting to see if it was just the acoustics of the room. (I just moved and haven't hooked them up yet.)
My plan is to get another Carver Amp identical to the one I have, then either bridge mono for each channel or bi-amp.
I'll try both and see which sounds better.
I did have one of the isolation cones break off but I guess that was my fault.

Similar Products Used:

None

Clarity, imaging, bottom end.

None

Purchased these unheard from egghead (7 pair were left)after reading reviews on this site. I must say, they sound better than I had hoped for. They make every CD I play sound like I am listening to the recording for the first time. I know the speakers I have used in the past (I still have them all) were not expensive (well, the AR14's cost about the same in '78 as the Pinnacles), but the difference is startling. A local chain store is selling a pair of similar Wharfdale towers for 369/each, it is hard to imagine they sound better than the Pinnacles.
I am bi-amping these with a DBX150 subwoofer amp, and the bass is powerfull and tight, not boomy. The clarity of the mid and high end is terrific, the soundstage is excellent.I do not hear any "brightness" at all, and I have only had these for a week. I am using a run of the mill Sony reciever (80 wpc)and CD player, so my next step will probably be a reciever upgrade to Yamaha or H/K.
If you are in the market for speakers, get one of the last pair from egghead, you will not be dissapointed!

Similar Products Used:

AR8 BXI's, AR14's, Polk studio monitor 5JR's

I am very happy with the pair of the Pinnacle classic gold towers. Their base is first rate, and there overall sound is amazing. I paid $750 for the pair at PC richards. Stereo review has a report on these speakers at there site. Look for the report in there archives.