Rockport Mira VS Verity Parsifal Ovation

Agree of most of the points made here except optimal driver integration distance. Verity is actually very good for near field and does not require any more distance betw listening even compare to minimonitor. Rationale is the midrange covers down to 60-70Hz and integration to the tweeter is seamless. It is almost like a minimonitor with (woofer/sub). I have measured this with ETF and no problems even at 7'10".

Rockport is also great design and has large amount of bass output and the bigger models does not need wall reinforcement in bass. I would guess the crossover is a little higher at 100Hz or slightly higher ( the three driver models). ( I could be wrong on this ). Because the side firing woofer handle frequencies into the lower midrange upper bass, this actually may take a little more distance to integrate. The four driver model Altair has three drivers at the front baffle which probably allow the crossover to the side woofer to be set much lower. I suspect this why Andy Pryor said this is the nearfield integration champion of th line. I also feel the dynamics of Rockport is largely due to very even off axis dispersion (power response). Verity's off axis dispersion cannot match the rockports in evenness. The midrange covers 60Hz to 3000-5000Hz depending on the model. The midrange cover a broad frequency range which makes for very coherent sound but a price is paid with restricted dispersion at 3000 to 5000Hz. Depending on the room and what school of thoughts you are in, there are advantages or disadvantage to this.

Bottomline is to understand the difference in design ( advantages and disadvantages) and find one that works for your priorities and the "fengshui" of the room .

I got a call from distributor telling me about some misunderstanding situations based on this topic. Before the situation get more complicated, I'd like to make it clear that most information I shared here are speculations based on point of views between me and distributor related.

The only fact I received from distributor was Rockport may release a new model based on carbon drivers this year or next year. The rest of these information are from our speculations between I myself and distributor I know. I guess I misunderstood Alya for new Mira or something along the lines.

This is miscommunication issue between distributor and Rockport and they tell me it's not certain where they'll plan to release a new ones after Alya. So I guess I'll take Ankaa for now.

I apologize for causing this commotion. I hope everyone who get above information will read this one to understand the real ones.

I am from Italy and interested at Rockport ankaa.
Andrew Payor wrote me some days ago:

"Yes the Mira II will be out later this summer but the entire first production run is sold already. It will have the same drive units as the Ankaa, but the cabinet is not nearly as ambitious in it's build as the Ankaa."

Hope it helps.

I heard from my local Rockport dealer that they will be releasing a 2-way floorstander soon aimed primarily at the Asian audiophile market where living spaces are generally much smaller, like in Hong Kong and Tokyo. Seems they are targeting the same market as the Magico V3. Not sure if this is the same as any of the models already mentioned.

Sorry to be a voice of dissent and not to pour cold water on anyone's choices, but I heard the Aquila recently and I was not impressed. I think there is something to be said about bass cancellation with the woofers mounted on the sides and pointed at each other. Like Madfloyd said, even though he was listening to the Miras, I found the highs of the Aquila to be very bright and prone to distortion on certain material. In general, the tonal balance was very lean. Mids were an issue as violas sounded like screechy violins, almost paper thin. For $45K, I think you can do much, much better.

And no, the Ankaa sounds nowhere near as good as the Wilson MAXX3, and certainly does not better it in any respect, that is some serious crack-smoking talk.

Dylanhenry...the new 2-way your dealer is referring to is called the Alya. Stereophile and Soundstage.com have reported on the new speaker from their coverage at CES.

As for your impressions concerning the Aquila speakers, I am once again surprised by your description of what you heard because Rockports sound anything but lean, shrill or bright. Do you remember what was driving the Aquillas and how large the room was that you heard them in? Was this at a show or in a dealer setting or at a friend'd home? Just curious. Thx