Hello Lrsky,
So you got the hear the Sound Labs at CES 2003, eh? Which room - the once at Alexis Park with Parasound JC-1's, or the one at the St. Remo with Atma-Sphere MA-2's?
I happen to be a Sound Lab owner and dealer, as well as a dealer for both of these amps. So, feel free to take my comments with as many grains of salt as you need.
"How good are they"? At the things they do well (inner harmonic detail, natural timbre, coherence, long-term fatigue-free listening, lack of coloration) they are probably unexcelled. Their limitations are in the areas of maximum SPL (typically in the upper 90's at the listening position) and of course size, price, and positioning requirements. There is also a rather significant hidden amplifier cost to really get their full potential.
"Have you owned them?" I bought my first pair unseen and unheard several years ago, and liked 'em so much I crossed over to the "dark side" and became a dealer. I've owned or am otherwise familiar with all current models. In my living room right now are a pair of A-1's.
"What kind of power in an 18x21x two story room would they need?" There are quite a few amplifiers out there that will drive them well - some of which I sell, and some of which I do not sell. I would say 150-250 watts tube or 300-500 watts solid state ought to do just fine in your room.
"Are they biampable"? They normally come configured for single amplification, but can be factory-configured for bi-amplification.
"Tell me more if you have owned them, please". I have yet to hear a loudspeaker that is so relaxing as the Sound Labs. You can literally listen to them all day long and never get the least bit fatigued. You can listen to them at very low volume levels - say 60 dB or below - and still hear everything that's going on. You can sit way off-axis and still hear a convincing soundstage. You can literally listen from anywhere in the room and the tonal balance is pretty much correct (unless you are so tall that when you stand up your ears are above the diaphragms). Because you can hear all the details at non-damaging sound pressure levels, your hearing isn't taking a pounding (and at very high sound pressure levels the ear actually loses its ability to hear many details due to a psychoacoustic phenomenon called "masking"). The big Sound Labs do something very few loudspeakers can do - the create a reverberant field with the same tonal balance as the first-arrival sound. This contributes to natural timbre and long-term fatigue-free listening. Note that live instruments naturally give you a tonally correct reverberant field, but few loudspeakers do because their radiation patterns are not uniform across the frequency spectrum. Sound Labs have the lightest diaphragm of any electrostat; the most intelligent radiation pattern of any electrostat; and are the only truly full-range (down into the upper 20's) electrostat made.
Larry, I'd be more than happy to talk your ear off about Sound Labs, whether or not there's a potential sale for me (you may already have a dealer nearby, or you may be shopping for a used pair - I don't know and it doesn't matter; this is my hobby and passion first and my business second). Call me toll-free at (877) 473-7262.
Also, fire away with any follow-up questions you might have.
Best of luck to you on your quest,
Duke
www.audiokinesis.com
So you got the hear the Sound Labs at CES 2003, eh? Which room - the once at Alexis Park with Parasound JC-1's, or the one at the St. Remo with Atma-Sphere MA-2's?
I happen to be a Sound Lab owner and dealer, as well as a dealer for both of these amps. So, feel free to take my comments with as many grains of salt as you need.
"How good are they"? At the things they do well (inner harmonic detail, natural timbre, coherence, long-term fatigue-free listening, lack of coloration) they are probably unexcelled. Their limitations are in the areas of maximum SPL (typically in the upper 90's at the listening position) and of course size, price, and positioning requirements. There is also a rather significant hidden amplifier cost to really get their full potential.
"Have you owned them?" I bought my first pair unseen and unheard several years ago, and liked 'em so much I crossed over to the "dark side" and became a dealer. I've owned or am otherwise familiar with all current models. In my living room right now are a pair of A-1's.
"What kind of power in an 18x21x two story room would they need?" There are quite a few amplifiers out there that will drive them well - some of which I sell, and some of which I do not sell. I would say 150-250 watts tube or 300-500 watts solid state ought to do just fine in your room.
"Are they biampable"? They normally come configured for single amplification, but can be factory-configured for bi-amplification.
"Tell me more if you have owned them, please". I have yet to hear a loudspeaker that is so relaxing as the Sound Labs. You can literally listen to them all day long and never get the least bit fatigued. You can listen to them at very low volume levels - say 60 dB or below - and still hear everything that's going on. You can sit way off-axis and still hear a convincing soundstage. You can literally listen from anywhere in the room and the tonal balance is pretty much correct (unless you are so tall that when you stand up your ears are above the diaphragms). Because you can hear all the details at non-damaging sound pressure levels, your hearing isn't taking a pounding (and at very high sound pressure levels the ear actually loses its ability to hear many details due to a psychoacoustic phenomenon called "masking"). The big Sound Labs do something very few loudspeakers can do - the create a reverberant field with the same tonal balance as the first-arrival sound. This contributes to natural timbre and long-term fatigue-free listening. Note that live instruments naturally give you a tonally correct reverberant field, but few loudspeakers do because their radiation patterns are not uniform across the frequency spectrum. Sound Labs have the lightest diaphragm of any electrostat; the most intelligent radiation pattern of any electrostat; and are the only truly full-range (down into the upper 20's) electrostat made.
Larry, I'd be more than happy to talk your ear off about Sound Labs, whether or not there's a potential sale for me (you may already have a dealer nearby, or you may be shopping for a used pair - I don't know and it doesn't matter; this is my hobby and passion first and my business second). Call me toll-free at (877) 473-7262.
Also, fire away with any follow-up questions you might have.
Best of luck to you on your quest,
Duke
www.audiokinesis.com