Avalon Opus Ceramique vs B&W N802's


I have the N802's now and am looking to upgrade. I was originally considering a used pair of Avalon Eidelons after listening to them at an audio shop a few months back. I am also considering the Avalon Opus Ceramique, as the cost is less than the former and they are a more recent Avalon model. I have the Bryston 4BSST now, Rowland Synergy IIi Pre, Esoteric DV50S Universal Player, Transparent Reference cables(All), and Transparent Power Isolation devices. I am also looking to upgrade the Amp to the Rowland 312 in the near term. Has anyone had the opps to listen to both of these speakers?
gocubs999

Showing 1 response by gregm

I have, as have many others surely. My quick take is, as you are looking to upgrade, Avalon Eidolon would be more the ticket; otherwise just stick to your B&Ws... If you're itching for change, change the spkrs cable to a single-core for example.

The Av Opus are slightly drier & more accurate, the B&W more authoritative & liquid sounding. This is hardly an complete analysis, of course.

Of course they are slightly different sounding overall, the most obvious differences coming from the driver cone material used and the different treatment of the bass frequencies. Regards