Any comment on Opera Audio Consonance M15 speakers

Ben,

I haven't heard the M15 but I like the format. You probably had to overcome a bit of normal audiophile skepticism to accept the notion of a 15" woofer operating well up into the midrange region - but as you heard, done right it can work very well.

Audiogon member Trelja is now the US distributor for Opera Consonance, and I have a great deal of respect for him. He would not have signed on with them if he didn't honestly believe in what they are doing. Hopefully he will join in, perhaps to comment on how your 40 watt tube amp would work with the M15.

Best of luck to you,

Duke
dealer/manufacturer

Audiokinesis,thanks a lot for your input,I would be happy if Trelja or someone
else know these speakers and comment on them
Ben

I know M-15s well, what would you like to know?
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>>>>>40wpc is fine. Heard M15s driven with Cybers 211 16wpc.
It was a fine demo indeed. Match with good power cord (V-D or Granit Audio)and IC cables - like Harmonic Technology's Pro-Silway MK III interconnect cables.

Integration between front loaded tweeter and 15inch woofer is fine-tune perfectly. As you probebly know tweeter & woofer is made with a help of germans. Cabinet, crossover and assembly is done by Consonance at home (as far as I know).

M-15 are a fine speakers and deffenitally worth the asking price. If it wasn't for a limited space, I would be more then happy with them for a long time.

Few things you might want to consider are:

- quality preamp & amp.(something not too laid back and fast with excellen high frequencies extension.
- they need a room to breath.
- speakers cable...well, Zu Audio Ibis or Libtec are good choice with high sensitivity speakers. There might be other choices but I have no experience to recommed any.

Mrjstark, thank you for your detailed observations about M15
I think my 40 watts tube amp might be good match with M15 and my SS Accustic Arts preamplifier is also fine for me, I am curious mostly about image
height and lowest bass region which my Total Eclipse speakers have very good
(real sized)images and deep enough bass.

I think the best advice that I can give you is,
to talk to your dealer about in home audition (if he is "OK" it should not be a problem). It is the only way to be sure. Trelia (importer of Consoance) is a very nice guy. If you call him, he might be able to help you with that.
How do M-15 (image size & aquracy) compare to your Total Eclipse....I am not in position to help you. Heard them ones in my friend's system (hard to tell).
M-15 bass is very well define with many shades and very tuneful and musical (for 15ich woofer). Low level detail and dynamics are also very good.

Hello, Ben!

Let me first thank you for your interest in our product, as well as the kind words offered up by Duke and Mariusz.

Despite what a lot of people think, I believe a horn speaker such as this benefits from a bit of power in order to be able to control the large voice coil inherent in most 15" woofers. While a lot of folks talk about using very lower power SET amplification, I don't feel that is the ideal match for this type of product.

So, I'm in the camp of your 40 watts of tube being a potentially good partner for this loudspeaker. The question I have is, what is the tonal character of the Leben, specifically, is it more on the rosy and euphonic or insightful and engaging side of things?

Of course, the ultimate answer as to whether or not this is the right product for you can only be answered via an audition. And, to that end, if I can assist in that, I would be more than happy to help in that.

Thank you again,
Joe

The man him self.......thanks Joe for outstanding service and always there when someone needs advice.
Mariusz

P.S
Joe have you heard about new Cybers 800 ???

Ben,
Sorry for question not on topic but could not help it.

Hello, Mariusz, I wish you and your family the happiest of holiday seasons. Actually, you were far more informative than I about the M15.

I wasn't aware there is a new Consonance Cyber 800, unless it is the product I am currently representing. This will be the amplifier we feature at CES 2008, we will be at THE Show.

One thing I neglected to mention to Ben is that my own longtime reference loudspeakers are Coincidents. It is a model that has not been manufactured for a while, the Digital Master w/Troubass subwoofers. Think of a lower power tube friendly WATT/Puppy design. My very close friend, Bill Legall of Millersound, modified them for me. They'll probably be with me forever.

At any rate, I am quite familiar with Coincident loudspeakers, and can compare/contrast them the to M15, which I also own. In my opinion, along with the Triumph, the Total Eclipse is the best of Israel Blume's newer (2000 - present) designs. For what it's worth, I've not heard the Grand Victory or newer, much higher priced Total Victory ($24K Reference?) models, so please factor that into things.

More or less, it comes down to the classic differences inherent in both front horn-loaded and dynamic loudspeakers. Both speakers give their best in larger rooms, and despite what most say, I believe both benefit from a bit of power - particularly, transformer coupled tube amplification. The M15 is richer, warmer, and a bit more forgiving. The Coincidents have a more open, detailed sound, with more precise image placement. The Coincidents will produce tighter, more extended low frequencies, while the M15 offers a bigger, more grandiose presentation. You have to be a bit careful with amplification, cable, and the room (especially) so as to avoid the Coincidents coming off as overly forward or bright in the presence region. Provided you do that, you'll also enjoy the Coincidents producing a sweet treble for you. Likewise, as we discussed previously, I believe you need to be cognizant of providing enough power to get the M15 to come alive. Otherwise, they can sound sluggish, and in my opinion, fall behind the pace of the music. And, the room - loudspeaker interface being especially critical with both of these products, the need to ensure the M15 have enough breathing room to play is most important.

All the best to everyone this Christmas and New Year,
Joe

Trelja,your detailed comparison answered more than I ask,I really thank you.
I agree with you that both speakers are very very good contender for tube power amp and big listening room owners.
I will first replace Solen caps with Jantzen Z superior caps at the crossover of TE
than I will see what direction I would go.

Thank you Joe and Merry Chrisrmas to you and your family.
I will see you in Vegas Joe.

In regards to Cyber 800, as far as I know it will it will have a switch for pure class A operation at about 40wpc.

Cheers

It will be a true pleasure to meet you in Las Vegas, Mariusz! I'm really looking forward to meeting you, and thanking you in person for all of the kindness and support you've been gracious enough to provide to us.

It's funny that you've brought up the Cyber 800 being offered in pure Class A operation, as it's one of the ideas I've been discussing with Consonance. Another thing I'd like to do is to move to a manual bias scheme so that we can use other output tubes, such as 6550/KT88 for people who would like to have that flexibility.

We'll be featuring this amplifier at THE Show, along with our new mini Droplet CD player, and the preamplifier and loudspeakers from a very close friend of mine. Should be a really fun time out there.

Two questions JOE...........

1. Why would you thank me for something that I can NOT take credit for..... Joe, the whole credit for such a successful and great products like M-15 speakers and Cyber line preamps/amps should be 100% YOURS & NAD (importer before UltraViolet Audio took over "responsibilities").
And, lets not forget OPERA AUDIO/CONSONANCE for outstanding product line and quality which is just getting better. I just hope that their principals and hard work and ongoing pursuit for excellence will not diminish.
I strongly believe that Opera Audio can become one of the most successful companies from the far EAST and one of biggest competitors on US market.
I feel privilege to know you Joe and Stephen Monte as a very few people I would do business with and individuals that I could trust. If we had more dedicated professionals like yourself, this industry as well as audiophile community would blossom in to something really special.
I also will be more then happy to meet you Joe in person and thank you for all your help as well as your true dedication and professionalism...which is always refreshing.

2. Are you saying Joe that new upgraded Cyber 800 will be in your showroom during CES....or Cyber 211 with the switch to accommodate 805 tubes(or was it 845...don't remember exactly) ???.
I am not sure but I think you meant 211.
But correct me if I'm wrong.