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Ownership and Review of a pair of Ohm Super Sound Cylinder

Greetings all - I recently ordered a pair of Ohm Super Sound Cylinder speakers, or SSC-4900's. They are in the middle of the Ohm Walsh lineup, and are about 38 inches tall and the cylinder cabinets about 12.5 inches in diameter.

Specs are listed at 88 dB for a 2.8 V input, and a response curve of +/- 3 dB from 25 to 20,000 Hz. 

This whole process is part of a "high end, high value, USA made two channel system" thread I started a couple of months ago on another forum. The electronics are the PS Audio Stellar Gain Pre-amp/DAC and a pair of PS Audio M700 mono amps.

The PS Audio equipment has already elevated the Axiom M100's and Martin Logan Electro Motion ESL speakers in terms of performance. The Axioms have a "twin" available in Brick and Mortar outlets from Bryston called the A1's. 

For reference, other speakers which we have or still have in house include: Klipsch LaScala II's, Legacy Signature SE's, Infinity IRS Sigmas, Ascend Sierras, PSB Strata Goldi, VMPS Super Towers and a host of other speakers. 

The Ohm Walsh speakers have been something about which I have read since 1977 (the year I got the audio bug), but have never had the chance to experience. The SSC-4900's sell for $4900 per pair, though the name and pricing are coincidental. The "4900" is due to the idea that the speakers are "almost a 5000", but with less controls - one switch vs. 4 for the 5000, but also a lower price.

John Strohbeen, who is he president at Ohm and who has been with them for almost 40 years, was gracious enough to spend an hour talking on the phone about our room, the associated gear, and also that there would be a review thread. It was after this discussion that we decided on the SSC-4900's. 

I am purchasing the speakers, not getting a review pair. They are under the 120 day return policy. John is well aware that my daughter sings opera, my son is adept at classical guitar, and that live music is the reference. He was actually quite pleased about this. 

This will be fun (at least for me), and hopefully informative. Comments are welcome. 

I honestly have no idea what to expect from the Walsh sound. They are so different from other speaker designs that the only thing to do is set them up properly and hear what happens! 
craigsub
snapsc
674 posts
 
@ craigsub
You are in a unique position given that you have the Cylinders and many other respected speakers.

I think that any comparisons you make to other loudspeakers will be helpful to most readers. I'd like to suggest one tweak for your consideration.
Knowing that this is a gross oversimplification, most loudspeakers often get classified as either analytical (highly detailed) in nature (think quad electrostatic) or musical (dynamic, punch, scale) (think Zu or Devore or Tekton)...and obviously many are in between...trying to do both.  And usually to do both well, the price reaches the level of "unobtanium" for most of us.
Obviously, there are a lot of people that want a system that is highly resolving...and there are a lot of people that want a system that approximates live music.
In the months to come as you continue to post your thoughts about the Ohm Sound Cylinders and how they compare...please consider trying to include some comments about how you assess their position....analytical tools or live musical presentation or both...and how that stacks up to the other speaker you are comparing them to.
Thanks


roysq
32 posts
 
@jstrohbeen I read your post with great interest.  I too believe in the law of diminishing returns in just about everything, including audio.  That said, always interested in those that push the envelope. If you were to do (and maybe you have) a "cost no object" design.  What would the increased cost look like to get a significant performance upgrade?  There are only so many parts in a speaker and it sounds like a capacitor is a capacitor for the most part... so would it be the driver or tweeter?  Or some super high-tech cylinder as a cabinet?

Just curious.  Thanks for being on the board.
joefish's avatar
joefish
66 posts
 
I've had my 1000's for about 9 years.  I love the way immerse me in sound.  The sound stage gives space and depth with proper weight and bass.  I feel no need to add a sub, the Ohms do just fine.  They're the best chance I ever took.
craigsub OP
63 posts
 
This is a quick summer night update - I listening to Steely Dan's 2 against nature last night, and it NEVER sounded this crystal clear across all frequencies along with that huge soundstage. This disc does have bass notes that go deeper than the Ohm's can hit, and I am looking forward to adding the Axiom EP800 to the system - it's flat to 13 Hz in an anechoic setting, and the most musical subwoofer I have auditioned. 
bondmanp
1,810 posts
 

@craigsub - Thanks for the update.  To us Ohm owners, your experience is not at all surprising. 

I also run my Ohms with powered subwoofers, and I am thrilled with this combo.  Obviously, care should be taken to position and blend the sub(s) optimally with your mains.

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