A brutal review of the Wilson Maxx

Well. I got no beef in this. I was at CES last Year and will likely be this year and so I get to hear room after room of high end stuff with a wide variation in price.

I do think that reviewers speaker reviews can be and in fact are biased by advertising dollars. This doesn't mean folks lie; it does mean that negatives are couched and underemphasized and positives overly glorified. I saw this even with my own speaker line that I personally own ( and paid for). In addition, while we all like differently colored speakers ( or types of sounds so to speak) I'd like to see some objective comparisons to a standard, such as response curves in anechoic chambers. I think its a good piece of data among others.

The writer of the article critical of the Wilson's really did come across as quite hostile to me as a true non-partisan in this one; but he did raise good points as well.

Unsound is correct of course. You need a standard reference point for comparison. So KHRYS poster, your cigar filled space station where you have your speakers is unique to you as a listening environment and speaker results there mean nothing ( similar to your post) in the way of useful information.

My example of an anechoic chamber is only a point; meaning--hey- these were the frequency responses of these 6 speakers in an anaechoic chamber- its something we can all look at in an apples to apples way. BTW- Testing frequency responses in an anechoic chamber is pretty standard stuff for speaker manufacturers- Khrys- sorry you didn't know that. Wilson stuff should be tested in the same way. Quality manufacturers need not fear comparisons like this.

Khrys- I don't feel that you are comparible to a sophist or a speaker philosopher. A bit grandiose! WE are discussing being able to agree upon a standard evaluation of speaker frequency responses across speakers that could be included in reviews as a basis for comparison. Very straight forward; you talk of cigar filled space stations and sophists. Pretty ridiculous.

Anechoic chmabers are usuful because they can be reproduced as testing sites across geography. Your listening room cannot.

I'd certainly like to be able to hear every speaker of consideration in my home but the best I can do is go to stores, go to CES or the like, occasionally demo at friends homes, and of course read articles of interest.

It is important to me to have some basic data including frequency responses in an anechoic chamber tested environment for the reasons described in several of the above posts. It is NOT the only determinant, but it allows one basis of comparison. I do measure as best as I can in my own home for a variety of reasons after I purchase.

I'd like to see that done for the Wilson speakers as well as part of any review article. Its pretty basic. Why not include the info? perhaps the tests have in fact been done! I did think Mr Hardesty's article was hostile in tone but did raise some good points as well.