Audio Physic Spark Question


I hope this question has not been asked before but it is too much to scroll through the many topics here .

Anyway ...I am looking into buying a pair of Audio Physic Spark 3 .
Now I have heard ( and I really can't remember where I did read this ) that one of their maintechnicians has left the company for quite a while . Due to that reason the quality of the Sparks wasn't as good as when he was in the company .
Now I would like to know which years this was since I am looking to buy a good sounding pair .
I have listened to them in the store and I think they are awesome. However they are a little pricy so I would like to buy an used pair ( the reason I did find this board ). Therefore I need to know what are bad years for the Spark .( if there are any )

Thanks for helping me with answers !
ekib
Actually, the older Sparks have just a midbass and tweeter loaded up high in the cabinet, very similar to the Virgo II's minus the side firing woofers. What you see down low is a large port, which adds a little bass. If you are in a small room, I think the bass will really suprise you. My room is about 13X25 in a basement, and I had a hard time loading the room correctly, so I picked up an ACI Force subwoofer, and this is a phenominal sound for the investment. Your listening habits will tell you if you have enough bass, if you don't listen to rap or techno, these should do the trick. High level transparency, period.
-Fish
Fishcat...thanks for your answer !

Yes ,my room is smaller right now .

Actually that aluminum tweet did scare me a bit but I take your word for it . I heard a pair of Spark's in a store and I was totally blown away by them...

Do you know if there is a big difference in the way speakers are placed in the speaker itself . I mean the new Spark series has 3 speakers on the top of the speaker itself . While the 1996 has 2 on the top and 1 on the bottom . Does this matter a lot ?
Also do you need an extra woofer with these older amps ?
I am trying to gather as much info as I can before I make a purchase .
Thanks,

Luc ( Ekib )
Hi Ekib, I have a pair of the original series Sparks, which have the same tweeter as the Virgo II's and a poly mibass dual voice coil woofer. Both of these speakers were designed by Joachim Gerhard, around 1996 or so. I have to say, for the 800 bucks I spent on them, I'm completely blown away with the performance. I think the newer Sparks have better bass response and are more efficient, but they are loaded with a radial ring tweeter, so they are probably voiced a bit differently. If your room is smallish, I would heavily recommend the older Sparks, don't be scared off by it's aluminum dome tweet, it is smooth as silk. I think there is a pair for sale right now. Hope this helps. -Fish