A knowledgeable industry insider with zero affiliation says the Diamond is still the more musical. Revels fanfare in industry rags has been so overwhelming; can this possibly be true?
Chuck+1, as I see it the most help that can be given a query such as this is to give ones direct in home experience, with a clear description of ones system and in the case os speakers, the room.
We can appreciate the intensions of those who profess their degree of experience. Unfortunately describing casual impressions from stores and shows is quite useless.
The only thing I take away from auditioning speakers at shows and stores is any glaring higher frequency sonic issues and the idea of living with the looks of the product. But that's me.
Anyone out there who wants to get a pair of perfect balance speakers? I have two for sale and you are welcome to bring your own gear to my place and try out.
Although I appreciate your candor I do not agree with you. Guess what, that is what makes this hobby so great. Your Thin and Thin out is someone else's perfect balance. Maybe it is because we have different equipment, different rooms and differing tastes. Herein lies the rub in Audio. You never know how a component will sound until you get it into YOUR system. This is why many sage audiophiles tell potential buyers to demo the unit(s) in their homes through local dealers. It is not a B.S. line it is Wise practice. Psst will only learn of each speakers sonic merits through trial and error.
Agreed, more than 50 sets of top tier speakers in my career. 10 sets of transducers right now. Can't make the mistake of narrowing down to one set of colorations when you are in the business. One is used to check another, to check that, and so forth.
There are many different flavours and that's a very positive thing. And yess you can choose your own stuff to make it even more your own personal sound. Every speaker will Always have there own sound and how the image is projected. There is one thing very common and that is many people stick to the same brands for a long time. Hearing other brands is sometimes what they try to avoid. Narrow thinking is what many do in this business. Wenn you open your perspective you will hear that there are more brands. And sometimes it is even better than what you own now.
Avalons do have their charms, the airy imaging, clarity, and a similar character top to bottom.
But they absolutely have a sound, which is one of being leaner and colder than the Revels, and the OP wanted a comparison.
This "sound" can be tiring to many, though plenty of warm tubes in front of them can help.
This "sound" (as opposed to some speakers having very little of their own "sound") is likely a reason, or the reason, they don't make it to mastering studios, which the Revels have. This is also why I prefer the Salons. My experience has been that most folks who don't like Avalons don't like them for this exact same reason, the lean colder sound. However, my posts are not intended to be Avalon "slams". They are more refined and more seamless than the vast majority of speakers including those 2 big currently very popular brands that are so hot on the market right now.
I've heard the Avalons in very limited audition only and in less than ideal setup in a very small and cramped room.
For sure, I can say they are a unique breed of sound with some unique charms. Lots of mid-range energy and a sound that was more lean than bloated was what I recall. I left with a favorable impression, though I would have to do more time listening to them under better circumstances in order to get a better feel. These were heard at JS audio in Bethesda, MD a few years back.
Just to be clear... My comments are only in response to Bo1972's characterization of the Avalon sonics. (I simply do not hear in my own system what he ascribes to them.) My comments are not intended as a comparison to the Revel speakers. A friend has Revel Studio Ultimas in his system and I find his system completely captivating -- I get sucked in every time I visit. I haven't been similarly captivated by the Salons but I've not heard them in well set up, either.
I live in Holland.I am addicted to music since I was 6. It is not about my system. I am thinking in tools. An amp, source, cable, speaker etc is a tool for me. I label all tools. All parts were you Judge a sound system at I call the properties/talents of a tool. Wenn you know the poperties it will become more easy to use them in a system. In 15 years I have done hundreds of tests with different tools in audio and in vision. This gives a lot of information. This give me more freedom to adapt a system. The first thing I do for clients is only change the place of there speakers. Normally withb a few cm's maximum. I let a client play his favorite music for about 25 min. After this I use a few cd's to adapt it to the acoustic of the room. And to get the right dimensions of instruments and voices. After this I ask the person to play the same numbers as wenn he started. Then I often see a very big smile on there faces. I say: and this is for free. It is about using the right stuff to get a very high level in sound. In the last 2,5 years I did a lot of testing with roomacoustic measurements. I developed my own way of doing measurements. Next week people of a famous shipyard comes to my house. We will talk about sound and vison for yachts. With Audyssey pro I can get a much higher level in sound than what is even possible without it. All the different parts of Audyssey Pro I can demonstrate. Roomcorrection is just 1/3 of the whole system. I let people here wehat it does. I can put them all out. My way of measurements has a lot more dynamics and resolution compared to Audyssey does. I measure at different places and hights. I even get people hear what my measurements do with the sound. This is not the acoustic part.
Omsed that makes me realize I am a horse hoarder. Three thoroughbred Avalons and a bastardized Focal. Heard the rockport Mira driven by lamm hybrids and audio research ref5 a few years ago. Ouch!!! Thin and sharp as a butchers cleaver.
Yes, Bo1972, we know you have superhuman hearing and can hear things differently and better than normal humans with the best human hearing. You have told us of your superior ability many times. I am surprised you have not been hired by musicians, musical instructors, and loudspeaker manufacturers. Given you have such gifts, it is amazing you remain so humble about them.
Where can I hear your system? If I sold all audio I own and bought your system components I would save hundreds of thousands of dollars AND have better sound!
The level what I have at home is so stunning, that it is very easy to let people hear what a 3 dimensional image is. Like it is easy to make Avalon owners aware about the difference in touchabel image. We are talking about superior difference. They understand directly what I mean with a small and direct touchable 3d image. They all use the same words. I never heard my music this touchable. I can think about 3-4 steps further in sound than other people in this business can. My photographic memory in sounds makes it a lot easier to come to this level. Of every single part in my system I know exactly what it does. Wenn you use Wilson Audio speakers with Pass labs and Shunyata cables you will get instruments which are too big in proportion. Wenn I would do a demo I ever would be a f..fool to make this combo. Because I know exactly what all the different properties are. I also miss the timbre in the mid freq of the Avalon. I see this as a personal thing. I use the word thin wenn an instrument or voice is not sharp like a knife in touchable 3d focus. Wenn I listend to classical music at my friends house I was pulled to the voice like a magnet. This is intimate sound like I want it to be. I never heard an Avalon doe this. Why? Because it does not have this property. It is that easy. My new Audioquest 2013 Redwood cable ( older have less silver) is the first loudspeakercable what I heard and tested which is capable of giving an extreme intimate sound like I experienced in real. The Oak has many of the same talents but is just made of copper. I sold this one with Avalon speakers. Now it is the Avalon speaker witht the best touchable sound I ever heard. But......what my Pl-200 does in this part is still superior. Now I blow every person away with ease. They all say: mmmmmmmmm...this is heaven and I would love to have this as well. What is the main problem in audio? Show's are done by people with not enough knowledge about all the stuff they use. They often make misstakes with the combination of gear. Cable use they really do not know what the properties are. In many shops I still hear this misstakes as well. I visit many people with audio sets from 12000 dollar till 180.000 dollar. Only a few had a good balanced audio set. Most of them had combination flaw's.
The words "thin" and "thin out" are exactly what I was pointing out about the Avalons. The words and concept is said in above many times, because it is true.
For some folks this thinning exposes more detail (or APPARENT detail) and makes them feel like they are hearing more, so they are more convinced by the presentation. As for me, I have never heard muted trumpets, unmuted trumpets, violins, oboes, operatic sopranos and tenors sound as thin and borderline screechy in real life, especially when played at realistic volume levels (and I don't mean screaming levels, I don't listen to rock). This includes demos by Avalon themselves, Avalon dealers, Avalon importers, Avalon home user systems, and tests in my place.
It is a sound that many find compelling, so we will read more "my Avalons are SPOT ON tonally", "my Avalons using this B.S.XYZ cable don't sound this way" in posts after this one. Despite that previous above, and upcoming below baloney, this is the general house voicing and it is well known in the industry. If it appeals to you great. My comments about the Revels were to point out that their voicing is richer, which is positively a fact. The Revel voicing is more like the Rockport voicing.
The sound of the 2 speakers is quite different and in the same system you would clearly hear this.
I have no horse in the race, I currently own neither. As usual, beware of posters who own only one or the other piece of equipment, look up "internal dissonance theory". When someone owns it they automatically gravitate toward the attitude that their love object is perfect. Better to find the guy who is not satisfied with anything and can quickly name the faults of everything. A curmudgeon like that will tell you what to look for and hold back nothing.
Many dealers sell the brands they have. These days the prefer what delivers the most money. I am only interested in the best sound for a client. Ayre has not the same quality as Pass Labs. Stage is less wide, and less deep. The sound realism is not in the same league as Pass Labs. With Avalon you get a smaller stage in dept and in wide wenn you use Ayre. Wenn speakers use faster speaker units, you will get less acoustic problems. Speed is the key to sound realism and less acoustic problems.
If there's a problem with Avalon speakers its the need to have someone who actually knows what they should sound like properly locate them. I heard a pair of Eidolons set up correctly only once years ago at dB Audio's second location on Shattuck Ave, In Berkeley California.
I remember they were driven by an Ayre V-3 with Cardas cable but little else. Subsequent installations at shows and other stores never came close to the dB Audio setup.
Bo1972s accounts with Avalon are completely understandable. While Avalon provides fairly detailed setup instructions not knowing what should sound like is a huge handicap. I guess this could be said of any speaker.
From memory I thought I had mine dialed in until someone in the industry with this familiarity moved them about eight inches back and less than two inches wider apart which created a substantial improvement.
Disagree with Rushton. I still have the ascents and they are side by side with the eidolons. The ascents by Hansen don't go high enough nor do they go deep. But they are more coherent and do not thin out as much as eidolon when driven with trl Samson (the only thing that has enough power for them). Image size and body are slightly superior.
Maybe ex dealers / reps have gone deaf from too much listening??? Or have caught that terrible affliction, analyzitis--must be very painful; perhaps a good reason for a negative attitude?
I listen to many many Avalon speakers. As well the Eidolons and the Diamonds. Yesss they need room, but that is not the problem. I have doubts about the sound, but I Always say: sound is a personal matter. Beside this; I like the shape and how it is build. I love the wide and deep stage as well. I never heard the extreme realistic small and direct touchable image of voices and instruments what I experienced at my friends house with classical music. I miss the intimacy. At audio shows I hear that most people who give a demo are not capable of what they are doing. They do not know the properties of al the parts they use in there demo set. This is the key to the absolute sound. Many use cables which are not capable of giving the right small dimensions of instruments and voices. Avalon has not a lot of extreme small and touchable image of instruments and voices. Often they use MIT cables with Avalon. I sold it and I owned it. MIT can make a wide and deep stage just like Avalon speakers. Both they are not able to give an extreme 3d touchable image like you have the feeling if they are in front of you like in real. So you need cables with other properties to get a more intimate sound. I think many people in this business are f.... blind and deaf. I heard the Sentinel a few times. One time I asked to play Nils Lofgren acoustic live. The guitar was much too big in proportion. This I really hate. Was the same wenn I listend for 1,5 hours with my own music to Wilson Audio Alexandria 2. This was even worse. Because Nils Lofgren had a very very big guitar. Wenn I played Jacintha light my fire the crossflute was in the same line as her voice was. In the recording it is about 3-4 meters behind her voice.
My experience with Avalon Eidolon's is consistent with Trcnetmsncom's description. Tonally spot on. Acoustic instruments sound supremely real and timbrally accurate. I don't hear that same outcome with many systems displaying Eidolon's because I'm hearing the thin inaccurate sound of the electronics preceding the speakers.
As Bjesien points out, the Eidolon's and Isis speakers need room to breath. They need to be well out from the front and side walls of the room.
Curiously, I note that Bo1972 consistently references "Avalon" not Eidolons or Isis models. If I recall correctly, he described his principal experience as being with the models preceding the Eidolon and subsequent designs from the Neil Patel era of the company. Just noting... .
To be honnest I saw them at shows a few times. They did not wake my attention. I se you use Tact. I sold it and to be honnest it is not that good. I sold the Millenium to one of my best friends. 2 months ago I apologized to him to say: witht the knowledge I have now I never would have sold it to you. This week I sold his Millenium at last. 2 months ago I was a t a show with my own set. Many said that I was the absolute sound by far of the show. Lyngdorf were here as well. With the 2.2 and samen subwoofers as you have. It was one of the most worst demo's. I was watching the people of Lyngdorf in there eyes during listening. And I thought; they are not even aware how bad it sounds. My demo was superior in speed, timing, 3 dimensional image, naural sound, extrem sharp touchable image. I see you use Nordost. I owned the Valhalla for over 12 years and I sold a lot Valhalla as well. This is not a good combination with Tact. Why? because you need different properties for the talents and sound of your system. For me sound is often like 1 and 1 is 2. I have a photographic memory in sound. I can Always compare the first option with the next. In 10 sec I know what is missing and what is good of every set with my own music. Wenn people use cables, amps, sources etc I tested I know what will be the sound of them togheter. I can discribe it in words before I use a number. I do this many times wenn I have to Judge a set of a client or at a show.
I use my own DIY preamp based on an MFA lumi. It's ability to convey "body" and "image density" compensates for the tendency to thinness of the avalons. I have owned a few BAT pcs before.
Regarding moving up. I realized I moved up by moving down to a DIY modded utopia divas hence the eidolon moving out of my house. The diamonds are definitely all round better than the eidolons, and doesn't have the bass issues of the utopia. But when it comes to chamber music nothing comes close to the infamously bad made for home theater utopia divas I spent time modding. As for the avalons, no access so no mods possible.
I've heard Avalon speakers many times at a high end shop in Boston. I think they are misunderstood by audiophiles with good intentions trying to fit them into the wrong room. These speakers need room to breath. I've heard them best 10 feet from the rear wall and 6 feet from the the sides. Listen to them in a good room before ripping them apart with uninformed opinions.
Johnsonwu. I can't imagine why you'd listen to"grainier" sounding speaker where "both" have a tendency to "thin out"; instead of buying something to enjoy. Maybe it's time to move up?
I'm using a BAT Rex preamp & mono-block amps. Violin as well as other stringed instruments sound tonally spot on. The image size and focus amazes me! Hope you find what you are looking for.
There are only a few brands who are exeptional good in a very sharp individual focus. Many make instruments too big. Audioquest and Purist Audio are one of the few who can give a very intimate focus like in real. I listened a few times to the Eidolons with classical music. A violin sounds a lot different in real. The thing I hate most is the individual touchable focus of Avalon. There is a lot of depth but I miss the intimate sound a small classical recording can give.
The sound of violins is very hard to "tame" on both Eidolons. Any time I use a stock non-triode tube amp or Solid state amp they thin out very noticeably. Much more so with the Eidolons. I recall using all Audio Research gear (stock) and boy I had to reach for Advil everytime a violin concerto is played. I have no problems with the sharp focus, likely because of a smaller room and I did a lot of experimentation with rear wall distance and toe in. BTW My experience is that Cardas speaker cables for some strange reason will make the vocal image unnaturally large, at least with the old Eidolons.
With classical music I never liked Avalon. Because the sound of instruments is a lot different in real. I also use the word 'thin'in de mid freq. The other thing is dat the stage is deep and wide but within this stage instruments and voices are never sharp focussed and toucable as in real. My Pl-200 is superior in individual focus and a touchable image. I did a few tests and it was a big difference in how much beter the Pl-200 can focus comparred to Avalon. Because the stage is also very deep and wide as Avalon can.
I concur with Omsed's opinion posted on 5/27. Both my eidolons and diamonds have a tendency for the mid high to thin out. The original eidolon is a bit grainier and misses the ultimate in resolution vs the diamonds. The diamonds have a more accurate sounding mid bass that no longer excites my small room. But my low ceiling really reveals their tendency to thin out and a slight exaggeration of the mid highs, which make them sound so 3D and airy when playing certain material. I don't know anything about the Salons but I do find the inefficiency and current requirements posing a challenge to amps and speaker cables. Much much more so than "easy" speakers like Utopia.
I am surprised by the level of detail related to the sound comparison of the Salon 2 and the Eidolon. I honestly thought one of them would sound more musical, nuanced, dynamic, flowing and involving than the other in a way most would be able to agree on. You know, toe tapping, rhythmic, party inviting, involving, close your eyes and flow with the music presentaion. I seems to compare them is not that simplistic. I had been hoping for a higher degree of concensus. Maybe they are both great speakers; perhaps not that different?
Tempted to sell both my Eidolon and my newly acquired Eidolon Diamond. I think the combination of the problems with my room and a gradual change in sonic preference has gotten me to gradually drift away from Avalon's mega precision kind of sound.
@ vicdamone, Well, Do not envy me to fast!,LOL!, Currently I own a pair of JBL L7s that are not horn loaded speakers, that are the last High-end dynamic driver speakers JBL produced that are not the mass junk audio tower speakers!,They are 4 way 30hz to 27khz speakers mated with still points ultra ss footers and Taralabs omega jumpers, with Taralabs omega gold speaker cables!, They sound very good!, My next pair of speakers is going to be the JBL DD everest 66000 speakers that are not the new current offering, the new 67000 speakers are better sounding!, The 66000 I am going to get on the used market for around $25,000.00 to $28,000.00, they did retail for $60,000.00, and the new JBL DD everest 67000 speakers retail now for $75,000.00,, Their is a audiogoner selling a pair of the new 67000 here on the gon for $55,000.00 2nd hand new in the boxes!, He got his self in a financial situation where he is forced to sell them!, out of my price range!,LOL!, If you get a chance to hear the 67000 speakers, I believe you would have a smile on your face!, Happy listening!
powered by Marantz 8Bs and a Twin Reverb wired as the preamp. This Rube Goldberg (pain in the ass to move and setup) of a system served me well until the first commercially available loud Bass amplification my 69' acoustic 360/361 horn.
In the sixties JBL was unbelievably helpful regarding construction and componentry. Their other offerings outclassed Altec hugely. My audiophelia began with lens and cone and the advent of the new Everest line is very intriguing to this old fud. I can't help but recall the incredible low volume dynamic unique to these designs. I can only imagine what modern refinments have contributed. I envy you.
Just picked up a pair of early Eidolon Diamonds. Still have my Eidolon and Ascent. Took a "detour" in recent years and decided to go the JM Lab Utopia Be route and experimented with redoing the crossover of an infamously bad Utopia Divas. While there is no way a stock Utopia Diva Be can come close to the imaging dept of any of the 3 Avalons, let alone a muddy bass, a tweaked out Utopia CAN image as well as the Diamonds and the smooth fluidity of the Be tweeter mated with the right crossover caps in my opinion beats the diamonds any day.
My experience in a small room for about 65 people was that a voice ( like an instrument) was a lot more direct and smaller in dimension than I would have thought. I used Always 2 fingers to make a proportion wenn I clossed my eyes. Also at a bigger live concert with a very good acoustic situation I had the same experience. We were amazed how easy it was to point out the instruments. Also the differences in depth were the instruments were standing was easy to hear. Wenn I hear Avalon with MIT at audio shows and the speakers are about 3 metres from eachother. The voice is often over 1 metre wide. This I really hate. I love cables like Audioquest and Purist Audio because they are capable of giving a small and direct 3 dimensional image of a recording. Purist Audio uses a panel of 41 people to Judge there new cables. Also musicians. AQ and Purist are both aware of the small and direct sound of instruments and voices. The both have exeptional good blacks. I used my set for a big audio show last month. Many ( distributers, customers and audio journalists)said that I had the absolute sound. Cause of the natural sound and 3 dimensional paupable image. I want a system to sond as natural and 3 dimensional like in real. Good is never good enough for me. Every part ( tool) in my system I Judge for a long time before I use it. Since I was 6 ( I made my own recordings from the radio with a stereo taperecorder with tubes) I am addicted to music and sound.
I thought I would weigh in here for those who may not of had a chance to hear the Eidolon and or Diamond version properly set up with the associated equipment being of commensurate quality.
For what it may be worth to the reader my opinions are also based from my experiences of being a professional musician for 40 plus years, audiophile for nearly as long, but most importantly, music lover. Yes, yet another musician!
As a few others already pointed out the Eidolon Diamond really does reflect back what is put into it. It will simply mirror the sonic character of everything that proceeds it in the chain. Hopefully if all components are up to the task the personality of the recording will come through untouched. It does not add any tonal bloat, muck, thickness or slur. I find it to be one of the most tonally correct distortion free speakers I've ever heard. Though the quality I enjoy most is the way it relates all tones, notes, timbres, etc. of the recording as a cohesive coherent whole. There is a fluid nature to the sound that I miss with other speakers. Massed strings is especially revealing of this quality. The music just seems to flow, all notes perfectly related in time, and thus the sound coming out now makes more musical sense.
When I listen to live acoustic music I never ever hear the pin-point, etched in stone, chiseled carved images that have been mentioned. Now, that's not to say with a studio recording we hear these types of recordings with images of such solidity often. But to me this is an artifact of hi-fi and has nothing to do with real live music being performed and recorded in a real acoustic space. The Eidolon/Diamond can image like crazy and totally disappear in a room when properly set up better than any speaker I've ever heard. Really!
Where this speaker does fall short for its considerable cost is in dynamic authority without any sense of strain, and a bass response that does not give the full weight of the bottom octaves. For many these attributes are very important and I could certainly understand why some would pass them by. Be forewarned though, if you live these speakers for any length of time I think their qualities that have been discussed would be impossible to do without. Well, for me at least.
It is at home. Audyssey Pro gives me much better controlled sound. I use a Monitor Audio PLW-15 subwoofer. I use it from 16hz till 140hz. It is exeptional fast so I can use it till 140 hz easily without any stress.
It is as it is, I Always say. Both Avalon and Revel make good speakers. There is no doubt about this. They have both there own sound and talents/properties. It's a free world to talk about speakers. At the end it is about a personal taste, this is the most important part in audio. You never can Judge about the personal taste of a person. It is the same as you cannot say; vanilla ice is better ice than chocolate ice. I do not like the sound of a Avalon speaker. Because in my world ( it is only my world) there are better ones. We are still only talking about a personal preference. I want a 3d sound were instruments are small and exeptional palpable when I listen to my music. Because this gives me the intimate sound I experienced with live classical music. Wenn I listen to Avalon speakers the level in 3d imaging and level in touchable sound is less good then wenn I listen to Monitor Audio Pl-200. Why? because the emotion ( for me) is bigger. Voices and instruments are sharper focussed and so it is more near to me. Avalon gives more distance to me and the music.
@ Vicdamone, I am a retired touring musician, I believe you should go and audition the JBL DD everest 67000 speakers!, You would be impressed!, and, If you have that kind of money, It is my belief you will not hesatate aquireing a pair for your self!, These are the new released JBL everest, replacing the 66000 model, JBL made a whole lot of improvements with this new model!, My opinion, everyone has one!, Is that this 67000 speakers are one of the best available speakers today!, I also believe that musicians will love them!, Happy listening!
Ptss, It's impossible to intelligently disagree with the subjective negative comments here regarding either of the speakers you're interested in.
First of all, both of these speakers systems are incredibly revealing of EVERYTHING upstream as well as is the room and their setup within that room.
Some years ago my initial encounters with Eidolons at shows and in showrooms were similar in some respects to what some have mentioned here. On three occasions I chose to purchase speaker that seemed more extended and vibrant than the Eidolon, which seemed sleepy and underwhelming in direct comparison in an unfamiliar environment.
Once home my choices never satisfied as I was always found myself listening to the system and not the music. I replaced cables and electronics in an effort to attain the cohesive musicality I wanted without success. Frankly, I was an uneducated listener.
I'm a working professional Bass player with a great deal of time spent recording. During a session in Los Angeles I was called on by a very famous music producer who asked me to record a simple twelve bar bass line on Upright for another project. I often ask people what they listen with at home. Interested in audio this producer invited us to his home. There I believe I heard ceramic Eidolons at a higher potential for the first time using unmastered mixes and much later, as I said in my earlier post above, at home.
The Eidolons sonic accuracy and musicality could be a very subjective topic. I have a great many unproduced track recordings of my Bass playing on 1/4" magnetic tape and digital files. I've used the digital files to audition other systems at shows and stores. So far the only other speaker that sounds musically correct to me is the Vandersteen Model 7. This could easily be a product of my ears comfort with the two speakers similar attention to time and phase in their design.
I recently switched back to tube amplification and Cardas cabling. I use Hypex nCores to power my Avalon two way studio monitors. Powering the Eidolons with the switching amplifiers offers a completely different presentation of high resolution and transparency.
Opinions can be very helpful if the context is clear. Beware of generalities and absolutes as there are simply far too many variables in this hobby. If you're ever fortunate enough to hear a system that speaks to you make note of every aspect of it as well as the room.
I agree wholeheartedly. There are plenty of Good brands out there that sound great. Many times on the Agon forums the conversation disintegrates into a pissing contest. I feel dealers should be upfront and tell agoners that they are dealers and that Caveats apply. You should never let someone who is only behind a computer typing words on a screen determine what sounds best to you. Go out and listen to the equipment. There are plenty of shows all across the country and with the current climate in high end audio many brick and mortar dealers should be salivating at the prospect of having interested parties in their showrooms.
Commenting on Audiogon threads have, more often, become a pissing contest, or possibly a venue for those with an agenda. I would like to iterate the responsibility of commentators making overall assessments upon any one piece of equipment. I have heard Wilson speakers sound amusical within certain systems and absolutely magical in another. This has held true with several other assembled systems. Genesis, Vandersteen's, Proac's, Tidals, YG's MBL's, Aerial's, Spendor's, Green Mountain, Venture's... with each the experience has offered a distinct presentation. Associated equipment, including cabling and isolation, typically varied; and, of course the space and room differed. These contestable fusses about what sounds more real...Magico or Rockport...or fill in the mfg. is too often foundationless. It is in line with judging the quality of a live performance by the sound quality of the room. I usher a number of shows each year, with the opportunity to roam the theater. As vantage points change, so does the sound quality. Often, the sound is unacceptable. Denouncing the performers, I believe is poorly directed. My objective in responding to Bo1972 is in defense of a speaker, I know from experience, is capable of impressing both audiophiles and music lovers. I also believe this to be true of most high and mid end systems...if the effort is put forth.
I owned the B&W 800 Signature in the past. Classical music was so much more natural than Avalon speakers. But B&W is very poor in cross overfilters. There is almost no depth, so I sold them. I still don't like the sound of Avalon. But this is a matter of personal taste. The thing I disslike most is the average touchable 3d image with very sharp individual focus of instruments and voices. Wenn you compare a Monitor Audio Platinum speaker with Avalon you know how big this difference is. And you can not go back to the average focus of instruments and voices anymore. A friend of mine had a concertroom with a Steinwaywing. A room for about 65 people. Here I learded how direct and small a voice or instrument sounds in real. I call this intimacy. When I hear Avalon speakers you are aware how much less focussed instruments and voices are and the lack of this intimacy in sound. I could not life with this with the differences in real in mind.
@ bo1972, Nice speakers, I took a peek at what you have and use at the shows, $8,000.00 s.r.p is hard to believe to sound better than an exspensive speaker like the Avalon Edilon Diamond!, If this is a reality?, kudos to monitor audio!cheers!
The Salon 2 camp is busy listening to MUSIC, not dissecting the sound of speakers, or the SOUND coming out of the speakers, which is what the Eidolon Diamonds are good at. The Salon 2 reminds you of music, not hi-fi. The Avalons are one of the several examples of speakers using the Accuton drivers that sound thin and resonant to many listeners. I never thought they could sound natural until I heard the Estalon. That's an example of a speaker using Accuton but with the naturalness that the Eidolon Diamond miss.
I own none of the speakers in my post so I have no built-in prejudice.
The Revels give you music. The Eidolon, sound. Big difference.
The Revel is maybe not the best looking speaker, but they make good speakers. At the end it is a lot different comp[ared to Avalon. A speaker is also a matter of taste. Nice that there are so many flavours. Many Avalon owners use MIT cables. I recently sold a Audioquest Oak. We were stunned by the difference in quality. Audioquest is superior in every aspect you Judge a cable for. Mid's are a lot more open, musical and touchable. Audioquest have the best blacks in this price tag in cables these days. Many people follow what is said. I would suggest open your eyes ( ears) and compare. MIT gives a wide and deep stage just like Avalon. But you need a sharper and more natural and real focus. MIT never will give you this. When I compare a Audioquest loudspeaker cable you understand what the MIT is missing.
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