Soliloquy 6.2i vs VS vr4jr , Zu Druid & Usher 6371

One concern I have with the Druids is that it seems to be a small handful of enthusiasts that rush to claim how great they are at every opportunity. The fan base does not seem as wide-spread as for components that I would consider true classics such as Quad ESL-57's. That said, I also very rarely hear negative comments regarding the Druids. Unfortunately, I haven't heard the Druid's, so I can't comment on the sound.

I plan to change that this weekend. I am finally going to hear the Druid's, and I hope they are as good as the claims. The Druid's are up against some tough competition for a place in my current system, but if they outperform my current speakers, Zu had better get a pair ready for me.

Jeff

I finally heard the Zu Druid. I posted a review in the review section.

Jeff

Here's the link:

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/frr.pl?rspkr&1145981156&read&3&zzlJeffreyds&&

Evita,

Thanks for the response. I can't explain how two watts and a speaker that rolls off at 40 Hz performs with so little compromise. I'm sure that's a secret that Zu and Yamamoto want to keep.

I have auditioned countless single driver, high-effeciency designs powered by low powered SET amps. I agree that most designs of that type make compromises and are certainly not suited for all types of music. The Zu's simply do not sound like those other designs.

I tried a variety of different music types during the audition. None of it was what I would consider "lighter fare". No chamber music. No string quartets. Most of the music was either jazz or rock. While the amplifier certainly would run out of juice before the speaker, I never felt like I needed more volume or that the sound was thin or constrained. In fact, just the opposite, the sound was full and round.

Also, I did try the speakers on serveral occasions with the Method sub. The sub extends the bass down to 20 Hz. While I could definetely tell the difference with the sub powered, it was not dramatic. The speakers played just fine on their own.

Jeff

Evita,

Your experience with the Druids was very different from mine. Please give a few more specifics about your auditions. Where did you hear them? What were the associated componenets? How long did you listen? What types of music did you listen to? I'm curious about what could have made our experiences so different. Also, just for reference, I did not detect any room treatment whatsoever during the audition. I can see how that could potentially lead to disaster at a stereo show, and I wonder if Zu just got lucky in this instance.

Also, in response to your other comment, I think that recreating the dynamic composure of live music is less important to me than some other speaker attributes such as tone, timbre, speed, transparency, and texture. Of course, since I have yet to hear the perfect speaker, everything becomes a tradeoff. Those are just a few of the attributes that are important to me. I did mention in the review that you won't mistake listening to the Druids for a live event. Other speakers replicate those kinds of dynamics better. Avantgarde comes to mind. If that's important to you, I would keep shopping. Hope that helps you understand what I like in a speaker.

Jeff