RMAF Oct 2-4 09
RMAF was cool, though people said it was much smaller both in terms of participants and visitors. I, however, couldn't complain, being my first time. We got to listen to so many systems, that my wife said 'you need coffee beans for your ears.' True you can't 'really' audition a speaker in a hotel room, with little room treatment, with noise creeping in from adjoined rooms and from people chattering (not everyone softly) in the back. But the manufacturers, distributors and most of the dealers (not all) tried their best to let you have a decent audition. Met quite a few interesting folks - members from audiogon, audiophiles from elsewhere and people in general, that are interested in and some highly knowledgeable about stereophonic audio. I had a long list of speakers thanks to the recommendations here, and although many of the companies hadn't participated, I still had quite a handful. Of course I knew I couldn't go through my usual auditioning ritual, so I picked three albums - Saint Saëns Piano Concerto 2, Mahler Symphony 5 (1st Movement) and Tchaikovsky Symphony 6 (1st Movement). Not all the three pieces have great recording quality, but my music collection is a mixed bag anyway and I'd still want to enjoy most of it. Besides, many of the legendary performances of yesteryear were not recorded well. I also realized (thanks to a friend's friend) I could not really test imaging or deep bass extension (both very important for classical) in a set up like that. In the end I didn't have a new pick, eliminated a few and bookmarked a couple for further exploration.
Well... that was a pretty long intro, let me come to the speakers and what I thought of 'em. And once again, this is just how 'I' felt about them in a less-than-perfect setup.
Daedalus Ulysses 11K
This speaker is a tad on the warmer side with decent soundstage width and horizontal imaging, but lacked in stage depth (may be room). Piano notes didn't float too well. They aren't very detailed but more than made up in the drama / energy however. Good price-performance especially if you could take advantage of the 30% show discount.
Bamberg Audio 5TMW 8.3k
I was in fact pleasantly surprised by them. These speakers use active woofers, like the Vandersteens. They are more towards neutral and quite detailed. The notes floated nicely between the speakers. But the music was probably a bit big for the room.
German Physiks 35k
I entered this room not knowing the speakers were worth 35k and came out not knowing why they are worth 35k. May be my ears were in desperate need of coffee beans by then and I am sure many people would have loved them. But I must say they looked cool, kind of like space-age retro (I just made it up). The piano lacked body, subtle notes didn't come up good. By now I came to know the price and didn't have a reason to pursue the test any further.
Wilson Beneche Curve 10k
The speaker, on good recordings, sounded like I am sitting in a recording studio with the singer singing into the microphone in the next room. Very detailed and super clear - these speakers will make my Bose-loving friends go wow. Just kidding, couldn't help. The piano lacked body however and the soundstage was unusually low, almost at the bottom of the speakers.
PS: you must check out the 50A amps designed by a local Denver lady called Kara.
Avalon Indra 19.9k
Though well above my price range, these were the speakers I liked the most. The soundstage is behind the speakers and quite high, almost like sitting on the 10th row of a symphony. Most neutral presentation that I heard, with right amount of drama - neither held back nor too melodramatic. However unfortunate it might be that I couldn't do a full audition of all the three classical pieces here, Indras will be in my shortlist for further exploration.
Focal Utopia Scala 30k
Cool (not the kewl cool), sounded somewhat metallic, lack of drama. Could not image well in a small room. Could not connect with them emotionally.
Emerald Physics C2.3 4.8k
Overall nice but lacks the body and energy of orchestral music or the piano concerto. But they are going to have a bigger speaker towards the end of the year, which would be good to check out.
Audiomanufacture SLS from Boenicke audio 12k
These speakers use a reverse horn technology (doesn’t Bose use the same?) and they sound much bigger for their size. But I wasn’t totally sure of the tonal accuracy of the horns, bassoons or trombones. However these are done by a young designer from Switzerland and I think they will improve over time. The other issue might be being side fired they have somewhat higher room dependence, especially on the side walls.
Analysis Omega 22K
They did well on a good recording (Saint Saëns) but were merciless on not-so-good ones (Mahler). The piano sounded very musical (my wife said ‘notes dipped in honey’), the subtle / soft background orchestra came alive, behind a very energetic pacing of the piano. But they tended to get somewhat muddy on the fast movements of Mahler. Soundstage depth wasn’t great either. Crisscrossing of instruments on the Tchaikovsky wasn’t reproduced to my satisfaction. I have heard them play better on a Maggie 20.1, in a properly set up room at a dealer no less. But I want to give them benefit of the doubt and explore further.
There were several speakers that I went by either not being able to or not wanting to audition. I don’t want to talk about those first impressions, as it would be an injustice to them. I wish I could check out Dynaudio or Usher, but unfortunately could not do as their rooms were crowded every time I tried. Since my return last night I have been listening to my Spendors a lot, with renewed and invigorated interests. They don’t do a bad job after all and for the money (1.8k pair) they are wonderful.
