You make a good point, @bradleygordon
I haven't seen any of the budget rooms covered. Stereophile in particular seems to have kept the entry point to being mentioned high.
Best,
E
|
sfischer1 :
Possibly. We were going fast and I didn’t take many notes, but I only recall one pair of ML’s.
I heard the top end ML’s in Oakland and man, the room was terrible. The ASC room treatments sucked the midrange out of any room that was over treated.
|
larry5729
I did not hear Monitor Audio speakers at the show, but I generally like them. I have a pair of their slim piano black speakers in my bedroom. They're the only speakers in the home I didn't build myself. :)
I'm afraid the Magico demo I heard at THE show was also not very good. To be fair, I've heard them demo'd at BB and they weren't very good their either! <hah!> They were chesty (as all Magico speakers I've heard) but also showed stress at moderate listening levels. Diana Krall literally made me wince. I once reviewed the S1 Mk II as being a weird little speaker, but having heard other demos, it may be the most neutral and least colored of the family.
Best,
E
|
You know, oddly, one brand I saw underrepresented at THE show was Pass. I don't recall seeing a single piece of their gear, while at the last Oakland show, they were literally in every room.
E
|
Oh, I almost forgot to mention, I really like Butcher Block Acoustics' racks.
Pretty, very sturdy and functional. For those of you obsessed with vibration damping they won't be the last word, but for those of us who want gear that can handle a 65 lb receiver, and a TV and look reasonably pretty for under $2k, I really really like them.
Best,
Erik
|
I agree that we can have some sort of idea about speaker capabilities from these shows and also that rooms should not be treated as best possible demos.
That is, go see what you like, what is the right size, and not too ugly, and when you are ready to buy, go find a dealer to give you a proper sounding demo.
But I also seriously question anyone who thinks they went to this show and had a spiritually transcendent experience.
Best,
Erik
|
Hi @bigkidz
For making such a long, personal statement about me, I'm ignoring you from now on.
|
Nice post. You realize that "show sound" is not real, right? I’ve always known rooms could be bad, but for whatever reason, this was the first show where I noticed just how far the rooms were from ideal. Even the best rooms didn’t give me spaciousness, imaging or even color. It was all awash. Like looking for a photograph but finding impressionist paintings. Based on the show, I'd have to conclude I've assembled a system that sounds significantly better than $300k demos I heard. Maybe I should just stop and be smug about it? :D Best, E |
Thanks for your kind words, Prof.
I'm very much afraid I've never heard MBLs! :(
I didn't have a lot of time at the show, and given what Stereophile and PT Audiophile noticed, it's clear I missed at least half of it, and certainly some interesting rooms.
|
I may disagree with others about what rooms were better, but the god’s honest truth is that for the entire show I was picking among bad sounding rooms.
I heard more or less bright systems. More or less bass, pain inducing or not. I didn’t really hear sublime, natural, transparent, believable. I also heard very loud or not very loud. I also never heard magical, liquid midrange.
It was like going from a room to room of hell, where you could choose to be burned, or punched, or lightly tapped on the head with a hammer.
I’m going to go to Can Jam and that may very well be the last time I go to one of these shows.
Best,
E
|
I found the Vandy room sleepy (as usual) Based on the majority of the rooms, it does seem my own tastes are in the minority here. I don't find them sleepy at all. The other systems were bright and/or hard to me but I also didn't hear the Vandersteens playing large scale. As for the ML, no, I did not hear any sort of woofer integration issues at least where I sat, same at the Sanders room. Yeah, the speakers in the Thrax room were best suited for a dark home theater. Best, E |
Hi @greencup
I believe it was the member of the Renaissance family, the ESL 15 A.
Looking back, I also have to say that it was perhaps one of the best integrated hybrid speakers I've heard. I have argued for years that integrating a 15" sub with an ESL is very tricky, but can be enormously satisfying, and these speakers seem to have done just that.
Looking at the ML page it seems they are using a 600 W class D sub with Anthem room correction. AHA! That explains it. Highly recommended.
Best,
E
|
Curious side note: The Legacy speakers on the stage seemed to be using 18 gauge or thinner solid core speaker cables.
|
