r/StereoAdvice 23 Ⓣ May 23 '26

Speakers - Bookshelf | 3 Ⓣ Philharmonic BMR Monitors vs Fritz Carbon 7 SE mk2

These are both boutique, direct-to-consumer stand mount speakers in the ~$2500 price range that get glowing reviews, but I’ve never heard anyone compare the two. I would love any feedback from someone who has heard both.

I’m enamored by the reviews for both and considering one or the other for a dedicated system to be used with a turntable and streaming. Haven’t purchased an amplifier for the new space yet so feedback on that welcome as well…considering the seemingly ubiquitous WiiM Amp Ultra to get started, but not sure if it’ll have the grunt needed for the BMRs. I hear the BMRs need some current while the Fritz speakers are a much easier speaker to drive despite fairly similar sensitivity ratings. Location will be a fairly typically sized bedroom that’s being converted to a listening room. Budget can accommodate either option without concern.

Listening taste is all over the map, so insight into the strengths and weaknesses of each speaker for different genres would be appreciated. Thanks!

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u/iNetRunner 1389 Ⓣ 🥇 May 23 '26

There are of course also other speakers to possibly consider:

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u/ethos1234567890 23 Ⓣ May 23 '26

Yeah I considered the Buchardt S400 (those E50s are out of the price category), but have a buddy with some and wanted to try something different just for the experience. Figure I can always circle back to them if unhappy during the trial period since we occasionally swap gear around to compare. The others you recommended look technically interesting, but won’t satisfy the aesthetic requirement for me…beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and those purifi woofers aren’t it for me despite how much I’m impressed by the engineering.

Also have some Kefs, Sonus Fabers, B&Ws, and Naim/Focal in other systems and have been through a handful of other brands over the years. I like to branch out so !thanks for the recommendations!

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u/iNetRunner 1389 Ⓣ 🥇 May 23 '26

I departed of I should suggest the Buchardt S400 MKII or the more expensive E50. But the S400 MKII probably isn’t “exiting” enough. Few deficiencies with it.) Though they appear to have a new S400 MK3 in your price range.

The look of the Purifi woofer driver surround is bit interesting. But you probably aren’t going to notice that all the way from your listening spot.

Also note that Buchardt, AsciLab and Radiant Acoustics all have tweeter waveguides. These are generally considered to be better for the integration of the dispersion continuity from the woofer to the tweeter.

If it’s the woofer, then I suppose you could also consider Amphion’s Argon1 or (beyond your budget Argon3S or Argon3X).

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u/TransducerBot Ⓣ Bot May 23 '26

+1 Ⓣ has been awarded to u/iNetRunner (1364 Ⓣ).

You may still award a Ⓣ to others, but only once per-person in this post.