Review: Alon Model V mkII Speaker

Category: Speakers

I listen to mostly jazz and some classical music. I like to use Diana Krall, Patricia Barber and Howard Alden for testing purposes. I prefer a smooth and rich (tubey) sound. I dislike a system that is overly clinical and sterile.

I have had the Alons in my system for over a year now. They replaced an original pair of Definitive Technology BP-10. Immediately, I noticed that my system's clarity, smoothness and detail improved. The treble is grain-free smooth and detailed. The bass is deep and generous with a very natural sounding quality. The midrange on the Alons is almost magical, since it benefits from the AlniCo driver and has an open baffle design. In fact, I found it closer to the midrange sound of the Martin Logan's than any other regular driver speakers I have auditioned. However, unlike the smaller Martin Logans, the Alons have a large sweet spot, which makes them great for home theater applications.

The overall strengths of the Alons: huge soundstage; large sweet spot; smooth clear neutral midrange and treble; great bass; and, plenty of detail. As indicated in the owner's manual, the Alons are designed to be and should be tri-wired for best sound, at the very least bi-wired.

In summary, I am quite satisfied with the sound of the Alons, which do double duty in my home theatre system as front left and right mains. If money was no object, I would probably keep my Alon V MkII for home theatre use and create a secondary audio only system. For this system, I would stay within the Alon product line and go for the Circes.

Associated gear
Classe 10 amplifier; Melos SHA-Gold preamp;

Similar products
B&W; Martin Logan; ProAc;