UNDERSTANDING THE SONIC CIRCLE
The Sonic Circle consists of the three major sonic groups with additional sub groups in between.  These main groups are Precise, Emotional and Refined.  The sub groups are Intense, Smooth and Vivid.  While it’s easiest to talk about equipment as belonging to these separate groups, you can also think of the circle like a clock with hours and minutes defining even more precise sonic attributes.  


PRECISE (12:00)
Precise equipment originates from the pro audio world.  With flatter-than-flat measurements and super-low levels of distortion, Precise equipment manufacturers strive to reveal every last bit of detail.  While all audio companies say their gear reproduces music accurately, Precise companies typically publish frequency and distortion charts to appeal to the recording engineers whose careers depend on measurable accuracy.  While there are probably more pro-specific speakers in the world than any other type, Precise gear for home listening is the smallest group of the main three groups.

POSITIVES
People who love Precise equipment trumpet the super-accurate sound and the ability to hear “every last detail” on a CD or record.  Precise gear is not for easy listening – the sound is forward, in-your-face and Precise lovers wouldn’t have it any other way.  Bass is large but not bloated – it measures flat, flat, flat.
NEGATIVES
People who dislike Precise equipment feel it is too precise.  That is, Precise gear will reveal every nasty detail and make your badly recorded albums sound, well, bad.  Detractors also describe the highs as harsh and the overall sound as cool and flat, rather than warm and lively.
BRANDS
While there are numerous pro-only speaker brands, companies such as JBL (the high-end division), Pioneer/TAD, ATC, PMC, Adam, Lipinski and others repackage their pro speakers with fancy woodwork and paint finishes to fit in with your living room decor.  Electronic companies such as Bryston, Chord and GamuT have pro and home divisions.  There are a few companies like B&W and Wilson who are known for selling to famous recording studios, but these companies are home hi-fi brands first and foremost and, more importantly, have a distinctly different sound.

REFINED  (4:00)
The Refined sound is the territory of the modern audiophile.  Cultivated over many years by the American hi-fi press, these companies champion a very specific sound that appeals to the bulk of current generation audiophiles who subscribe to Stereophile, TAS, Hi-Fi + and others.
 
POSITIVES
People who love the Refined sound cite the smooth and even presentation from top to bottom without the fatigue or harshness of the Precise group.  Additionally, they see Refined equipment as offering the best of all worlds with strong bass, smooth mids and mellow highs.  It's equipment for all seasons.

NEGATIVES
People who don’t like the Refined group point to the tuning of the sound to fit the audiophile sonic aesthetic.  While the equipment will have all the prerequisite bass and dynamics, the tuning of the speaker will have a detractor saying the sound is “weird” and doesn’t fit with their music choices.  It’s also worth noting that American audiophiles who love Refined gear tends to listen to -- and audition equipment with -- jazz and classical instead of pop, rock and hip-hop.

BRANDS
Legendary speaker manufacturers Wilson, B&W, Vandersteen, Thiel, Genesis and others are all part of this group.  Refined lectronics companies include McIntosh, Mark Levinson, Krell, Musical Fidelity, VTL, Halcro and Audio Research.

EMOTIONAL  (8:00)
The fastest growing (and oldest) segment in audio, the Emotional group is the funkiest of the bunch.  The bulk of speakers in this group run single full-range drivers with high sensitivity and low power handling.  Designers shun flat frequency response for a more warm and lively presentation.
 
Additionally, S.E.T. (Single End Triode) amps with their tiny power and coveted sound are the hallmark of the Emotional group.  Some companies will have dozens of models of amplifiers each with their own unusual tubes to appeal to the Emotional bottle-heads.

POSITIVES
The Emotional fans love the speed, warmth and emotion of the full-range drivers and tube power.  A full-range driver like a Lowther or Fostex is extremely fast in that it has very short excursion and super low moving mass.  Additionally, Emotional speakers and amps strive for signal purity by removing some electronic components and forgoing crossovers.  This simplicity is what Emotional lovers crave.

NEGATIVES
Detractors cite the lack of bass and roller-coaster frequency response as the major drawbacks.  A speaker with a single driver can’t produce the same bass as a 5-way tower with double 10” woofers.  Additionally, tiny watt tube amps don’t have the muscle of a 200 watt solid state amp and produce a very distinct sound that, some feel, is just too inaccurate for their tastes.

BRANDS
While there are few major Emotional brands, there are probably more boutique Emotional manufacturers than any other category.  Cain & Cain, Omega, Rethm and Beauhorn are some of the “big” companies while there are literally dozens upon dozens of custom speaker manufacturers using Fostex, Lowther, Supravox, PHY-HP, AER, Hartley and other drivers.

Electronics companies making amps with 300B, 211, 2A3 and other tiny watt tubes are just as numerous.  Audio Note, Art Audio, Cary, Air Tight, Shindo and KR Audio are the major players while many, many smaller companies are hand-crafting S.E.T. amps.

VIVID  (10:00)
Combining the in-your-face power of the Precise group with the warmth of the Emotional group, the Vivid category is much-loved though not entirely accepted by the American audiophile press due to the active tweaking of the frequency response.  The sound is really wild and lively up top with a ton of warmth and body through the midrange and, typically, a huge bass sound that, while not flat, is fun.

Speakers and electronics in the Vivid group range from very Precise to very Emotional.   The new “green” amps (Bel Canto, other ICEpower amps, Hypex, Tripath and chip-amps) retain many of the Precise characteristics while offering up a greater deal of warmth and smoothness.  Legendary brands E.A.R. and Manley are tube amp companies that straddle both pro and home markets and the sound fits accordingly.

American companies Joseph Audio and Tetra as well as the British legends Linn, Harbeth, ProAc and Spendor all fall into the Vivid group with their signature sounds.  The Vivid speaker sound is instantly recognizable and its fans are fervent in defending the sonic tastes. 
 
SMOOTH (6:00)
Where the Vivid group greatly accentuates certain frequencies for dramatic effect, the Smooth group takes the Emotional warmth and refines it for a different goal entirely.

New American companies Zu and DeVore embrace the high efficiency of the Emotional group while championing unique cabinets and driver technologies to achieve their full range sound and big dynamics.  But where the treble and bass of the Vivid group is in-your-face, these companies tailor these qualities for a more Refined presentation.

Many push-pull tube amps fall into this category.  Cary, Shindo, Air Tight, Rogue, Zanden and others offer amps with tube warmth and body but forgo the Precise edginess for a smoother sound.  Some solid state companies like Accuphase create amps with Smooth characteristics.

INTENSE (2:00)
While the other groups encompass brands from across the globe, the Intense group finds the bulk of its brands in a single geographic area: Northern Europe.  Measurements are uniformly flat but the sound is tailored away from the warmth of the Emotional group to what is routinely described as cool.  The sonics are further tailored away from the sharpness of the Precise group towards a more Refined and smoother sound.

Brands such as Kharma, MBL, Dali, Marten and Canton join with the offspring of Per Skaaning, founder of driver manufacturers Dynaudio, Scan Speak and, most recently, Audio Technology.  These three driver manufacturers form the backbones of such brands as Dynaudio Speakers (naturally), Peak Consult, Audio Physics, GamuT and many, many others.  While each company has its own specific sound, th Intense group as a whole is becoming more and more popular in American circles.

SYSTEM BUILDING
When building up your hi-fi rig, the easiest way to find compatible components is to pull from their respective groups – Emotional amps go with Emotional speakers, and so forth.  Now, you are probably wondering what happens if you combine, say, a Precise speaker with an Emotional amp.  More than likely, the results would be just what you imagine: a Vivid system.

But this is not always the case.  Some speakers and amps have such a defined sound that they swamp all other components in the food chain – your Refined speakers will make your system sound Refined no matter what other components you have.  On the flip side, certain speakers and amps are so transparent that different choices of preamp will make the sound go from Precise to Emotional to Refined.

THE SONIC CIRCLE MISSION
This guide is the first step in advancing the next generation of hi-fi.  In the future, the Sonic Circle will be tweaked and refined to best help people understand the differences in hi-fi sounds and move away from "the best of the best."  Share your ideas and thoughts below.  And if you think one piece of equipment belongs in another group, shout it out.  The goal is to have a comprehensive list of equipment to help everyone find the gear that matches their tastes.