A brutal review of the Wilson Maxx


I enjoy reading this fellow (Richard Hardesty)

http://www.audioperfectionist.com/PDF%20files/APJ_WD_21.pdf

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g_m_c

Showing 4 responses by amperidian

Well a lot of people slander the above mentioned review, some based on their allegiance to the Wilson line, others based on their allegiance to the magazines that are insulted by R. Hardesty and some just purely due to their rebellious spirit which they feel needs to run counter to anything they read in stone ... but nothing is written this way.

I hope all who have posted replies here have bothered to read the review in question ... it's imperative to the discussion.

I think Mr. Hardesty does bring up some very valid points about the build theory of Wilson line. And true to a reviewer he should. Now, before the Wilson bandwagon jumps on my back and starts whipping me, hear me out to the end .... please! I'm not here to insult anyone. I do believe that Hardesty's review was brutal indeed. It blatantly showed his dislike for these speakers. I suppose if he reviewed all speakers in the world we would all be left with only one speaker to chose ... the speaker of his choice which, similar to the Halcro amps ... would have overall distorsion measurable in ppm (parts per million).

Wilson audio has gained wide acceptance in the industry for producing leading edge speakers ... are they the best in the world? who knows? The X-2 may sound outdated in 10 years perhaps, technology is bound to leave them and all speakers of our generation behind as it introduces newer and "better" designs. Is there a non-colored speaker on the market today? Maybe we should ask Mr. Hardesty, I really am curious as to what he would suggest.

Many people say that the B&W Nautilus series was the REFERENCE speaker for its utmost flatness ... based on the fact that it was used in remastering studios around the world ... right? can't say for sure! ... but B&W recently introduced the new diamond tweeter in this line ... what about the old REFERENCE line? were all B&W owners mislead previously? ... anybody willing to take a shot? And another thing ... does everyone own B&W speakers? I personally always found them a little dry sounding for my tastes.

I think that the vast majority of people in the so called audiophile sound prefer colored sound. I think colorations pervade the entire system ... from source all the way to speakers, so in reality the speakers end up doing their best to portray an already colored picture with some added bonus. Two questions: do we like the sound? ... and secondly does it fit our budget? if the answer is yes, well than go ahead and get it! Nevermind all this scientific measurement crap, who cares? We all knwo that the truth hurts, maybe not all recordings are recorded with the "BEST" equipment.

Overall, I found the discussion created here to be entertaining even more so than the review itself. I want to thank everyone involved for that, keep up the good work and add my 2 cents to it.
"Dave Wilson at the pinnacle of his game"? ... are you sure? ... that he won't put out an X-3? ... c'mon OB, let's be frank about it.

We all love DIFFERENT gear ... now can we all at least agree on that and just end this slander.

It's so silly.

Why do people get sooo worked up .... take a break .... and go listen to some music .... and return nice and relaxed!

WHEW
Hi Nilthepill,

Sorry for the confusion created, I should have been more specific. The Wilson MAXX and the X-2's are the ONLY cone speakers I've ever heard that have the speed of horns, if anyone has ever heard horns they will attest to their incredible response speed ... wilsons can match them here IMHO.
Opalchip why are you taking potshots at Samuel? Why can't a Wilson Maxx2 owner and "industry insider" defend his choice? ... seems like none of us could possibly defend our points of view then, because we don't all own the perfect equipment?

I own some powercords made by Samuel's company and can tell you that they are among the best in the world, and his identity is not that hard to find out ... just go and surf the websites of the leading 4 powercord manufacturers in North America (Elrod, Transparent Audio, Shunyata, Purist Audio Design) and you'll see the examples he used in the post you quoted will show up on his website. I've never met Samuel in person but I do have great respect for his products, and I consider them to be among the best out there. His top of the line powercords have never failed to impress me and it shows all the R&D that went into developing them because to my ears they sound amazing ... and yes, Wilson Audio does use them in their test room and so does Halcro (who actually provides them with their amps) ... I guess samuel knows a thing or two about high end audio and his opinions are - to a certain degee - driven by his vast experience.

I'm not a Wilson Audio owner or fan, but their speakers are among the few cone designs that can match horns in the frequencies where the horns excell. Not perfect of course, but they deserve some credit at least.