A pair of Quad 2905s arrived at my house today. Imagine that!? Carl helped me unpack and set them up. Thanks Carl.
I like these speakers. They are very easy to listen to, and seem to have infinite, non-fatiguing resolution. Bass is just 'there,' just like the mids, no drama, nothing special - which is actually pretty special. Tone, space, PRaT, are uniquely excellent in my limited experience. The performances sound very deliberate and conscious with the tempo seeming slower. The emotion these speakers emit is intense. I can't do anything else when I am in the room, which is a problem because it is connected to kitchen. Dinner is late tonight. I will need a pair of crappy inwalls for cooking. Detail is effortless and allows hearing the most subtle recording artifacts and tonal colors. But detail is not annoying or aggressive, it's just there, like live music. I just might keep these for a while...... ;)
I didn't realize Quad had come this far... Last time I'd heard them they were boring at best. That was 5 or 6 years ago and were about half the size... and on Conrad Johnson gear... and poorly setup. Given the short demo and the time that had traversed, I didn't really know what to expect from Rich's new Quad's but I was excited to hear them.
I had the most emotional connection with the music that I've ever had at Rich's house listening to these speakers. If these aren't a long-term, perfect solution for Rich, his room, and his tastes, I don't know what is.
The music was effortlessly flowing and all the detail was delicately presented. They're really hard to describe... The detail and transparency is all there.. but it's not that simple. The presentation 'style' isn't a coloration... so, they're not warm, veiled, or sterile... but they are delicate-sounding. They reproduce the whole instrument... As if you could turn 1 mic on a violin into 10, spread out to capture the whole instrument's sound at once.
The decay is unreal... It's like everything gets arranged where it should be when presented.
Even with no expectations, I came away surprised at how thoroughly enjoyable these Quads sound. Just amazing at the emotion, detail, and beautiful presentation of these speakers. I greatly appreciated gettng to hear them.
-C
Rich and Carl:
First of all, congratulations on the new speakers. I have heard anything but positive comments about the new Quads.
To both of you, I am very envious that you were able to spend time with the new babies tonight! :rofl:
Ken
It made me wish I had a room to listen in.... It inspired me to come home and setup my secondary system and then re-arrange all the furniture around it so I could at least listen to something...
I had asked our local EE, Sol, to take a look at my Musical Fidelity X-150... and it is now sounding better than ever... but it's just a taste compared to the whole buffet at Rich's right now. I do feel lucky to have had a chance to hear that tonight.
-C
Rich,
You lucky dog! :drool:
I'm curious about how you have them set up. I've read that they need to be a good distance from the back wall and are best a short distance to the listener.
Phil
Phil,
I think you're right. I want them to be louder on peaks, and less room sound, so I will try your suggestion today. I have them in same spots as the other speakers but it is not ideal. The Quads are very lightweight compared to what I'm used to so sliding them around is easy. Once I find a spot there are feet and counterweight to add to the bottom.
Loud organ music and orchestral crescendos hit the SPL limiter but compressed rock plays loud and clear with no strain. The Snappers seem to be a good match, so far. Room needs treatment, too much echo.
Glad to hear you got something setup at home Carl. You'll be in the new room very soon! Should I bring home the Macs and we'll set up the Piegas in the LR? :drool:
Rich
Quote from: richidoo on April 15, 2008, 03:19:16 AM
Glad to hear you got something setup at home Carl. You'll be in the new room very soon! Should I bring home the Macs and we'll set up the Piegas in the LR? :drool:
Rich
I'd rather put you to work on the basement... ;) But if you're ready to remove the Mac attack, that's fine. I can see how you'd want to get everything you're not using out of your house. It's a sign you've got something you really like. ;)
-C
Selfish as I am, I think living without hifi is torture, so I am thinking merely of your sanity. I think you manage pretty well with the Era's.
Gotta go rearrange the LR now.... :lol:
The SPL rev limiter was my tube amps, the worn out power tubes were not too happy with the reactive load (I think.) With ss amp the volume is more than enough for any kind of music. I have been playing Shostakovich Symphonies 5 and 9 all day today with no want for power. I think it is just old tubes. New tubes going in tomorrow, then some burn in. Gonna try the Korato tomorrow also. THAT will be fun!
I moved the Quads out about 8 feet from front wall, with the seat about 7 feet back from speaker plane, And speakers spread 90+ degrees apart, toed almost straight out. That sounded best so far after some fine tuning. Then I put them back in normal spot, but even closer to the wall, like 2 feet, with absorbtion behind them, good but not wide enough and more aggressive and grumpy sounding. They wanna be out a bit, wide and listening up close, just like Phil said!!! Thanks Phil! Question is do I have a place like that (for the long term) in the house?? I'll try some furniture rearranging tomorrow, maybe in another room.
Bass is big and very clean. It plays 40Hz flat, 35 is -6dB and attack is great, detail of a cello or bass violin down low is WILD! There is great bass here, it is not a 57.
Rich
Quote from: richidoo on April 17, 2008, 06:43:05 PM
.......... detail of a cello or bass violin down low is WILD! There is great bass here, it is not a 57.
Rich
That got me thinking... about why I had such a 'wow' moment w/ the Quads. They really do allow you to hear the
complete sound of an instrument.
For instance on a violin, they reach to both extremes and play the quircky/wavy resonant sound of the deeper notes and the tiniest of highs that seem to jump out of the neck... all at one time, without any peaks in one area or another. THAT's the one thing that I found very unique about the Quad's. I have never heard another speaker do that as well.
It accurately provides tone, but then it also provides the tone of every part of the instrument... You could easily pick out what strings, bow material, etc. if you knew the instrument. Those details are there but they aren't over presented... it's a finesse-thing.. Those details are there if you want to dig in but because they're so easily preseneted, you can just relax and enjoy the music. What more could you want?!
-C
You guys have me drooling =P~ again. I used to run panels exclusively (have had Acoustats, Maggies, and Sound Labs). Regardless of their shortcomings, there's just something about panel sound that is something very special. Quads are a different animal yet IMO in terms of coherence. I've not heard the new ones but the olds ones were truly something special.
If I had the time and could find a cheap airline ticket, you might have an uninvited guest...
Bryan
Yeah, very nice! Are those full stats, or a hybrid? I haven't heard Quads before. I've heard some big Maggies (don't remember which) and the Martin Logan Summits. Neither of them did it for me for different reasons but there were elements that I could understand people falling for.
Maybe these close the gap and further the art. Certainly the descriptions don't make them seem "hi-fi". It's funny how that term has a negative connotation now.
The Quads are full stat. My old Acoustats and Sound Labs are full stats. The Maggies are EM and ribbon. If you've never heard the Maggie 20's, you're missing something. They're a whole different animal than the rest of the Maggie line.
My first intro to Quads was a LONG time ago with Harvey Rosenberg at CES. He was showing the small quads (57's!) driven by Futterman OTL-1's. Not much bottom end but the rest was simply staggering. To this day, I've still never heard mids and lower highs like that. Quads emulate a point source by having larger and larger concentric 'rings' in the panels that propogate properly in time and also use proportionately larger sections (and more sections) for bass reproduction than for mids and highs. It's kinda like the ultimate 'coax' speaker but with a diaphragm that weighs next to nothing so it's lightning fast, delicate, smooth, etc. They get ALL the harmonics and overtones right. I'd love to hear the new ones.
Bryan
We'd love to have you, Bryan! I got a spare bedroom... This meet will be pretty fun. Is that what that smiley means, drooling? I thought he was smoking weed... haha
The no crossover aspect is awesome. Having heard that with Feastrex and now quads I think it is really a great thing to go for. I think that's a lot of the coherence. The other thing that is just wicked is the imaging. The mass is so small that the speakers can track each other down to the most minute details which show clearly in the center image. Vocals just hover in space right in front of you (on good records).
Carl, you heard them in the normal speaker position before they were fully charged! Wait til you hear them out from the wall and sitting close up.
They are not hifi like hyped EQ to be more stimulating, but in a way they are hifi in the John ATkinson sense of low distortion. Takes a little getting used to from higher distortion speakers. But not hard
One of the things that keys my interest is no/low XO design. I have found there is a higher incidence of enjoying speakers with a minimized XO footprint. These sound super, I will have to find out if there are any around these parts I can hear.
EDIT - it seems there is a dealer in town but I'm 95% certain they don't stock them. :? Bummer. Or, maybe for the best. There is No Way they would work in my room.
There definitely is something to the minimal crossover implementation... I heard it in a pair of GMA Europa's which used a very simple, 2nd order crossover. They were special in the mids, for sure. Not refined enough for me long-term and the owner talked down to me so, I had no problem selling them. But this whole cross-over thing has me thinking now... 8)
-C
The xover is part of it - but don't underestimate the point source aspect. If you ever get a chance, listen to the Nomad Ronins.
Bryan
Now I KNOW there's no dealer for those around here! :rofl:
Yeah - that's unfortunate. It really opened my eyes as to the importance of the point source thing. Paul came down to StLouis and brought the Ronins for the GAS guys to listen to. I was sitting probably 3-4' outside the left speaker and was amazed at the wonderful 3D soundstage I was still getting in that poor position.
Bryan
I turned the listening room sideways, going the long way now, sounds good. I can get the speakers 8 feet out and about 12 feet apart. These things can really fill up space with sound. The interesting thing is that without the speakers playing straight in to the long kitchen area, the reverb from there is reduced. Being quads with their sides pointed into the kitchen, it is very low levels in the kitchen, so I think there will be a good benefit acoustically to staying this way. I do need some treatment on the front wall, there are windows, fireplace glass and marble there. I put a picture up later.
Rich
Rich...it must be nice to be able to so easily move your whole listening area 90 degrees :lol:.
Anything to report on the WAF...for the new arrangement?
Congrats on having all of the TOYS to play with...looking forward to the May GTG :drool:.
Rich,
You are very welcome (getting back rather late to your earlier post). Glad I could be of some help in your quest.
Sounds like you are having fun. I'm curious too about what your wife thinks. I've got my speakers on the long wall but there isn't enough room behind them for something like the Quads. Keep the reports coming. Very interesting reading and I'm getting that vicarious thrill. Next best thing to being there. :lol:
Phil
The hardest part of rotating the room was moving the Ushers - haha!! :shock: But I am really glad they are still here. I have them behind the Quads so I can switch to them easily. I haven't heard them in a while so it will be fun to compare to the Quads tomorrow. Feel the thump again, and the more tangible dynamics, even on soft stuff.
WAF has been very good so far. She said she likes it better, because she can see me while I listen while she cooks for me. Is that a great wife, or what? The room looks and feels more balanced, symmetrical, better Feng Shui? It allows better speaker placement when sidewalls don't matter like on dipole. Shooting the sound out into the kitchen just to get screwedup and reflect back as noise is a dumb idea and is much improved. To me the room arrangement looks silly, speakers still dominating, but sounds good so I will keep quiet. It is still shared living space though, so the background noise continues to be a problem. Kids jumping off beds right above my head give me a heart attack in the middle of a soft gentle passage. :x I wanna try moving the whole thing up to another room that is smaller but could work well with dipoles and have a few closed doors between me and the kids and refrigerator. I think the Quads would like being in a smaller room. Tube amps sound bad up there because the mains circuit is lousy. But the McIntosh doesn't seem to care if dedicated 20A or switched shared 15A, another plus for it.
In the first couple days I was concerned that the Quads were not quite dead-on with tone in a couple recordings. After moving them around to present spots far away from front wall that improved to solve a couple of the recordings, but not all. Today at Kens I heard the same "problem" on those recordings so those were not Quad's fault. I can hear the very slightest plasticish tone but it is so easy to sink into the music and it is so subtle that it is not worth mentioning. It is only noticable in contrast to paper full range single drivers which are delicious tone, but more distorted, in a good way! Quad is not delicious it is accurate. Big difference, but both are good.
(http://www.arkivmusic.com/graphics/covers/full/97/978200.jpg) (http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/Drilldown?name_id1=11167&name_role1=1&label_id=2674&bcorder=61&comp_id=2752) (click)
I listened to this record today, some at Kens and the whole 5th at home. Super! Big ballsy, brassy, perfectly recorded Shosty manly-man symphonies. It could use another 10Hz on the bottom though, in both systems. Kens had a little lower louder bass but the Quads bass is cleaner. Oooh that mac is incredible. My tube religious faith is being tested. Carl you are a bad influence on tube devotees.
Some pics of the room now:
(http://www.audionervosa.com/gallery/128_19_04_08_5_53_11_1.JPG)
(http://www.audionervosa.com/gallery/128_19_04_08_5_53_11_0.JPG)
Today I was thinking how cool it would be to have a couple/few systems set up in different rooms for the meet. There's enough gear here to do it, so I will try. My wife will shit with 3 rooms dedicated to audio. "It's just for one day, dear..." "Yeah, but that day 2 weeks away!" :oops: haha
Rich
Great pics of the new arrangement, congrats! :D/
Do you find that the open space on the right affects symmetry of the soundscape?
Happy listening,
Michael
Quote from: canyoneagle on April 19, 2008, 08:11:56 PM
Do you find that the open space on the right affects symmetry of the soundscape?
Good eyes Michael! I didn't think about that until the damage was all done, and yes I did hear it. But since the sound thrown to the sides is so soft, it only manifested as a slight tilt of the image to the left :? - center panned voices were about 3 degrees to the left. I finally figured out how to fix it by sliding the left speaker backwards closer to the front wall by about an inch and a half. Crazy psychoacoustics!! The brain and hearing system is truly amazing. Now the image is straight again, no side effects that I can tell, yet. A cool trick for the toolkit.
Happy listening to you too!! I wish there was a way to teleport to share our systems easily.
Rich
My quest to find a tube-like amp in the mids with SS authority has been long and arduous. The MC402 (or 501's) represent 5+ years trying to find the right balance of tube and SS with the least amount of compromise. Ever since I bought the 402 I haven't heard anything else I'd rather have (other than their big brother, the 501's)... I bought it over a year ago so, that's definitely a new record. I'm glad you're enjoying it... The convenience factor is ridiculously high on that amp also... I hope to hear it in my room one day... :drool: (drooling)
I think the 3-room thing sounds great... but maybe a little ambitious... Maybe just do 2... I may not be much help on the upcoming event.. depends on my hand... (I dislocated a finger and sprained it) Typing hurts. :( But who knows... a little Arnica, ice, and Advil might speed things up.. I hope so.
-Carl
Fun with Quad's....looks good Rich. 8)
Good luck with setting up a few systems....why not....
just to compare...its always a fun experience.
And Carl....sorry to hear about the finger...a little Oban might help... ;)
Thanks Chris. We are "decluttering" the house this week, which in theory should leave 2 rooms empty, which are currently full of high fi boxes, workbench, and useless junk. The idea is to put systems in there temporarily for the meet, but there is no way to seal off the rooms, they have no doors so not sure it will work, but I will try it out.
Seems a shame to have gear piled up not being heard. Shane's Ushers are still for sale (http://www.audionervosa.com/index.php?topic=266.0), so it would be nice to have them playing with everyone over. We had so much fun with them last time. I'm hooking them up today to get some low bass back in my life, and dig the Korato too.
New tubes went in the Snappers today. Only one year old, but they were getting very weak and 2 had blown already. I play the amps almost every day for 10-12 or more hours, so it adds up. It made a big difference in power and confidence. They handle the Quads much better now, although I think it is still a little underpowered. I think I heard some clipping on loud organ music. But the rest is awesome. God I love tube amps - the breath of life! I just need 200W! That second hundred is expensive! Time for DIY????
I can feel the absorbtion in the front wall now. With the mac I could not feel it there. More fine tuning of the setup to come. Funny, bass feels better on the Snappers than the mac. Snapper has 5ohm output tap, mac is set to 8ohms. I should try the 4ohm tap for curiosity.
(http://www.audionervosa.com/gallery/128_23_04_08_7_52_24.JPG)
My 7yo Henry helped me replace the tubes this morning. He did everything except the final bias. The hypersensitive pot adjustment is beyond his patience. He tried it about ten times then got pissed. I told him I feel exactly the same way, but I still have 7 more to do. He said, "OK I'm going to pull weeds," and ran off. If that's not the perfect argument against tube amps, I don't know what is. Rather pull weeds... :D 2 hours later the first bias process is almost done (with lots of listening.) But it sounds great - Snapper is back! The Quads LOVE tube amps.
Rich
looking good Rich. Enjoy.
charles
Good to see you back rollo. Please PM your phone # so I can call you to catch up
OK, I outgrew the Quads pretty fast. Sold em today. Some things I will miss about them, but overall they just didn't do it for me. I was spoiled by my first speakers, Legacy Focus, which have deep bass and excellent dynamics and (mostly) very natural gentle tone. The quads have compressed dynamics most of the time, but occasionally can jump out, I guess it depends on the music, but the obvious compression was not for me, especially on classical music which gets a lot of its excitement from the macro and microdynamics of the compositions and phrasing. I heard it when I demoed them, but I thoughtt was the preamp doing it. Nope...
The quads also have limited bass extension, so the feeling of fulness and power is missing. The sound of the Quads bass is so crystal clear and beautiful though that the impact of the bottom octave is hardly missed, unless you are spoiled by square feet of dynamic woofers. I will probably not hear a clearer more transparent bass again, but I gotta feel the power more than the hear the fine texture.
After listening to the Feastrex, I have really come to appreciate the idea that paper is most beautiful and natural sounding material for speakers. The quads have a very slightly plastic sound to things. It is kinda sterile, but not really, not like Focal beryllium tweeter or aluminum mid drivers. It puts a plasticized buzz on brass instruments. In the Quad fest listeners noticed it on familiar tracks, especially vocal sibilants, etc.
The quads are an intellectual listener's perfect speaker. If you think about the sounds, and analyze the phrasing and think think think, listen to cables, and power conditioners, and guitar strings and woodyness of violins, or even for a music major studying compositions as I used to do, then these would be very enjoyable. It is not as ultimately detailed as the beryllium Ushers, which are also more musical (emotional?) but the distortion is so low that the details just flow into you easily. The information that comes from them is intense. Emotion and beauty seem less pronounced.
Aside for those areas, the Quads were mind blowing. The imaging is like watching a movie. I would have to open my eyes often because I would get distracted by the "visuals" which were really "audios." The bass and midrange was utterly real. Rich, thick yet detailed and fast. Hard to describe. Very revealing of electronics, so good stuff is required to get the most out of them, which I don't really wanna upgrade that much. I was able to easily hear the deficiencies of the $1000 minimax preamp compared to Hantras Cary SLP-05 in areas of detail, tone and bass, and the mini is a mighty good preamp.
I thought that the Quads might be more of a small band speaker, bluegrass, jazz, etc. But it played very strongly on rock that was already compressed. It plays plenty loud and the bass is so clear it is enjoyable and "interesting" to listen to rock. But without the deep bass and impact of pressure wave the rock out feeling is hard get just by imagination. Smooth jazz was incredible, these are perfect speakers for Chris Botti or Fourplay type music. Absolutely perfect, plenty of bass, cold withdrawn feel just like most smooth jazz. I wish Ken could have heard them just for that!
Another great thing about them was the way they behaved in the room. Once pulled out far enough they had minimal effect on bass nodes. Swapping in a monopole speaker really showed how good the Quads were in minimizing room reaction. There were more midrange room zingers than bass. I could not hear any bass anomolies at all, but Shane heard some and described them enough that I could start to pick them up. But comparied to Ushers and Focus they were extremely minimal. Some of that is probably the somewhat limited extension (only 40Hz flat) but also the velocity transducer instead of pressure transducer may have an effect? To me sound is sound, so I don't know.
The Quads taught me a LOT in a very short time. Including that my amps need new tubes every year, and that the amps sound bad before they pop tubes. The quads just couldn't play with the old tubes, so I was forced to replace them, and upgrading made a big difference in all the speakers I have played since. Also, I was again reminded the cardinal rule of hifi, to listen at home for an extended period before you commit to buying. My quad demo was too short. But even if it was longer, that demo setup would not be able to reveal the things I heard later in my own house.
It was fun, and didn't cost me very much, so glad to have live to tell the tale. Very interesting speaker. I doubt that I got the most out of it, I'm sure it is capable of MUCH more, and the problems I found could probably be greatly improved with better electronics and acoustic treatment. But some things like the dynamics were inherent to the speaker, so it was a no go for me.
Rich
Congratulations...Rich...on advancing another step forward on the path to...'I'm pretty damn happy with what I have'...and now I can just listen to music :lol:.
Yup. Everybody has to got through that to understand 'what the big deal is about panel speakers.'. They can be very seductive and do many things SO right - but they have their limitations in most cases. Now, if you have the space for Acoustat 8's or 2 pair of the big Sound Labs (1 to listen to, 1 to have in the shop - kind of like a Jaguar...), then you can have that coherence and timbral purity along with dynamics and killer bottom end. Short of that, it's really tough.
Bryan
Thanks Steve. Upward and onward!
I would love to hear those big planars Bryan. A friend in Raleigh has the Sounds Labs, not working, of course, so I've never heard them. But they are really BIG!
I need a short pause from the insanity... pretend to be normal for a while. :D
Sound Labs M1-PX (http://gon8.audiogon.com/i/c/f/1211659940.jpg)
Acoustat 8 (http://ferrstein.com/MVC-001S.JPG)
Rich,
Reading your post really hit home for me. In many ways, I have the same feelings toward my Omegas after having owned Canton Ergo 120's (the classic series before their use of aluminum drivers), which are remarkably similar to Legacy speakers in their design and sound, and my sorely missed Castle Howard S3's, which are cut from the ProAc/Totem cloth.
I am really enjoying my omegas, but I am beginning to question whether they are the right fit for my needs. I tend to do alot of "general" listening while going about my business, and listen "in the zone" less than 7-8 hours a week on average. The Omegas are phenominal with the right source material, but I find them to be a bit hard to listen to with a wide variety of music (translation: not always premier recording qualities/engineering).
I will (hopefully) be demoing a pair of AudioKinesis Jazz Modules to see if they are a better match for my needs, and find myself researching my options in the 90+ dB efficiency category.
Like you, I think I am learning that I am willing to trade a little bit of texture and detail for a more "laid back" speaker that can produce the full dynamic spectrum of the music even at low listening levels (the cantons excelled at this) and has a slightly "warmer" tone.
In the mean time, I am happy to continue my current love affair with my MaxHemps as long as the next step in my journey may require.
Warm regards,
Michael
Maybe the Omegas are more of a transition speaker for you, like the Quads were for me. A step along the way, a chance to learn more about what you really want. A contrasting perspective. ;)
Rich:
Good luck on your quest for a new pair of speakers. I really hate I missed hearing the Quads!
Ken
Don't get me wrong. Panels are great and someday I'll have a system with them again. Just have to wait until I have the cash to get the ones I want that will do everything I need them to do. Maggie 20's come close but you have to be a bit careful 'rocking out' with that ribbon tweeter.
The old Acoustat MONITOR 4's (not the model 4's) that I had came pretty close in something reasonably sized and priced.
(http://www.prairienet.org/b-wallen/Audio/Monitor4s.jpg)
They'd rock pretty well, had good bottom end, and imaged like mad. Good luck finding them though - and they had integrated direct drive amps built into the back - 4 6HB5 tubes in each amp push-pull. +/- 5000V to the grid direct and the ground floats at + 1000V. Not something to have around nosey pets or little kids.
Pic of the back of the Monitor X - same amp shown here was on the 4's
(http://www.prairienet.org/b-wallen/Audio/x_1.jpg)
(http://www.prairienet.org/b-wallen/Audio/x_2.jpg)
Bryan
Yeah the quads are phenomenal, no quad bashing intended at all. They are Way far deep into the high end. But nothing is perfect. Stravinsky chamber music and smooth jazz just awesome. But every speaker has issues, most have more issues than the Quads...
Nice pics Bryan, were those yours?
No - those weren't mine. I have some pics around here somewhere of my set. Mine were basically the first upper left pic but in the lighter fabric. I sent the amps in to 'The Mod Squad' if any of you remember them. to have parts upgraded and get the auto-turn-on circuits tamed down a bit.
Absolutely loved those speakers. The only reason I got rid of them was when we started having kids, they just weren't safe.
Bryan
Wow, I step away for a short while and the lovely Quads are already goners ... :?
You've really had the yin and yang of speakers there (Ushers and Quads), so is the next one middle of the road? Or maybe a Dr. Geddes rooted descendant to really hang out there? Maybe a line source?
BTW, after having the Ronins for a couple weeks (sans onboard bass amp), I second Bryan's thoughts on those. They do so many things so well, are fairly simple to integrate (at least compared to active XO biamped CS2's), and are even "normal home" environment friendly. Very nice design overall and worth a listen.
Hey Tom! They were an exceedingly rare impulse purchase for me, usually I take 6 months to decide anything! These I bought in 24 hours. Lotsa fun but not a keeper. Good experience overall. No point keepin them after I decided no. But the new owner is VERY excited for them to arrive.
Where next? Actually I have these Feastrex full range drivers which I have a few projects hovering around. A horn design by planet10 which plays down to 50Hz from 4" driver, a closed field "body-phone" cocoon, and an open baffle with the DCXC2496 and either a pair of Perrless woofs or maybe those new paper cone Rithmik servo drivers GR is selling.
But I will be enjoying the Ushers while they are still here. Maybe they will lure me into the web. I'll be trying some different 100W tube amps on them this month. I would love to hear those big electrostats too. I read the Sound Labs website yesterday, so cool. I also will audition the new Legacy Focus HD this summer. shit it already is summer, I better make plans. Deadbeat Legacy dealer in Raleigh won't stock anything, said as much to my face. Oh well....
Rich
I was at Eric Heider's house in Michigan several months ago and he had a pair of the big Whispers just sitting there gathering dust (among many others including some Epiphany 20-20's). Never have heard them though. The RSA Sasons were holding court there (Dodd battery pre & amps) and sounding very good that day along with a pair Salk HT-3s. Must be nice.
No such thing as too many speakers! :rofl: One for every mood...
My Quad seller had quite a collection too. 2 pairs 2905s, Focus HD, Salon2, Mac XLS360, plus Mac and Marantz amps, Vettes, lake house, fun to hear about it all. Nice guy - likes his toys!!
Rich,
The audio dealer downtown on Hillsboro now carries Halcro and Pass electronics. Its my opinion that you might get a fresh new take on your Legacys with good SS electronics. The big Mac and the Korato are probably not really representative of all SS.
I borrowed a Bryston 4BSST amp and the authority, control and refinement on my system was just amazing. Even with my rather slow AE-3 tube preamp.
Chris
Rich,
Sounds like you had a very worthwhile and reasonably economical short course in what makes you happy. We should all be so lucky. Hate that I missed hearing the Quads - they would fit my tastes much moreso than yours. If you ever get a chance to hear the bigger Hornings, I bet you will like them very much.
I have heard the big Soundlabs, and even though that was at a show several years ago and with the typical room constraints, they are still on my mind. When I think I want planars, that is the image I immediately bring to mind. Hadn't heard about their reliability issues though, so these comments might save me a lot of grief and $
Inscutable, we do have a Quad dealer in Raleigh: The Analog Store (http://theanalogstore.com/). He does a good job, and has generous discount. He has 2805 on display. They are excellent. He has Cayin amp that compliments it well.
chrisa thanks for the advice. I think you are absolutely correct. There are some great amps out there, and we are very blessed to have so many brands represented in our town. Bryston has been intriguing me lately. Do you know the name of the Hillsboro place?
I split off the Legacy discussion:
http://www.audionervosa.com/index.php?topic=1004.0
Audio Exchange. The owner has been at that location (across from Char Grill) since 1978. He's a Hokie no less, has a cockatoo guarding the place, and always has some interesting brands on display.
Chris
Rich,
Thanks for the split, and sorry for hijacking :oops:
Michael
Thanks Chris!! I will go see visit the cockatoo.
Michael, no problem, easy fix point and click. Nobody hijacks more than me.
Been to Audio Exchange a couple times. Good guy. Got a belt and cartridge there once. Wonder if they still have any inventory of Innersound?