I have dedicated audio room 14.5x20.5x9 ft. Currently have Marantz Reference CD/Intergrated paired to Magnepan 1.7's with REL T-7 subs. For the vast majority of music I love this system. The only nit pick is that it is lacking/limited in covering say below 35 hz or so. For the first time actually buzzed the panel with an organ sacd. Bummer. Thought of upgrading subs to rythmicks but then I will need to high pass the 1.7's. Really don't want to deal with that approach.
Enter the Double Impacts. Many interesting things here. Would certainly have a different set of strengths here. Dynamics, claimed bottom octave coverage in one package, suspect a good match to current electronics.
I've read all the threads here so we do not need to rehash that. Just wondering if others out there have FIRST HAND experience with these or other Tekton speakers
cmss2000 - I agree there is no product that is for everyone. However, we now have good experience with setup, placement and tested lots of equipment with the DI. Perhaps we can help you optimize the setup? If you wish to discuss further, feel free to PM or call.
I've decided not keep my pair and will be exercising Tekton's return policy. The website says they may not be for everyone...that's why they offer a 60 day return policy. I called to see if they would send me a shipping label because their charges would be much less than mine (which I would pay), but have not heard back from them yet. I'll keep everyone posted.
Hey mac48025 - Since we can sell the Ulfberht, I suppose we will get a pair! So stay tuned!
kdude66 - I keep missing Eric, but if I have it right the SE will indeed fill the gap, between the DI and the Ulberht. The SE will have upgraded everything over the standard DI and it looks like the Ulfberht already has upgraded everything from the start.
After hearing about the big boys called the ULFBERHT, I forgot all about the DI SE model.The SE might fill the gap between the standard model and the Ulfberht.
If anybody has any info on the SE model please let us know.
Waiting with bated breath to hear your impressions of the Ulfberhts. While I absolutely love my DI’s something tells me the Ulfberhts are going to take things to a whole new level......and at $12k a pair they should. While I could be very happy for a very long time with the DI’s, I’m thinking the Ulfberhts could be in my future. He ain't heavy......he's my speaker :)
On a different topic I finally ordered my LTA MZ2 and should have it in about 3 weeks. I’ll give it a try as an integrated amp but I’ll most likely be ordering the ZOTL 10 with the upgraded power supply which should be available early July.
Just want to share, many Emails asking this question, that a decision was made that instead of Eric sending me a pair of SE Double Impacts to review for hometheaterreview.com I'll be getting the much larger and brand new model called the ULFBERHT, which I believe is Viking for a special sword. ( Don't hold me on that one!) The estimated date of arrival is the middle of June.
Any technique questions regarding what drivers/transducers, wiring, caps, etc. will be answered by Eric on his website and on this thread. By the time this speaker gets to my house for review I'll have a least two more amplifiers to drive it with to get my take on it. Fortunately, my acoustic space is gigantic and would allow any speaker to breath and preform at its best, including this new Tekton. My only concern is how my back will feel after setting up this baby, I think it weighs around 170 pounds, but I'll manage somehow!
Thanks for your reply. I was just curious given the sensitivity of the Double Impacts. I suspect at moderate listening levels you may rarely exceed the 1st watt of power.
Charles, when the family is around, I generally listen at a moderate level, which barely moves the needle on the meter on my 508 at all. When they are out, I will let it rip, but this amp and these speakers excel at any listening level, which I have not always found to be the case with other amps and speakers. One thing is for sure--the 508ia will drive the DI speakers with a ton of headroom to spare. Some might even call it overkill, but the sound is so beguiling and so great with all types of music, I would call it a great match. If all goes well, this week will be telling as I finally have some time and opportunity for some extended listening sessions.
Waler, Hello, I must say that I am not surprised your amplifier and the DI are such a fine match. Given your typical listening levels what is the power range/watts your amplifier meters are displaying? Charles
Glad to hear it Walter. Again it's remarkable how consistent the impressions of this speaker are in terms of dynamics, sound stage, etc.in all our different systems I'm sure your LM 805 is a great match. Will look forward to your comments down the road. I do believe that subtle improvement will be noted as crossover caps, suspensions settle in.
They are sounding terrific. I just finished up the last week of a particularly grueling semester (I'm a college English teacher), so my listening time this week has been somewhat limited. I probably have somewhere between 20-30 hours on them. Last night it was easy to tell that the bass has both deepened and tightened, and the sound overall has opened up. I was impressed immediately with how dynamic the DI are, and impressed especially with the sound stage and imaging. From the start, it was very easy to "find" the instruments in their correct places on the stage. I felt initially that maybe the upper frequencies were just a touch veiled compared to my Ulysses speakers and that the DI might not be quite as "musical," but I did not have that same impression in last night's listening session, which was glorious.
My plan is to put another 40 hours or so on the DI and then do a fairly intensive A/B comparison with the Ulysses. One thing is certain--the DI are just as amazing as all of you have said they are, and they can hold their own with anything I've had or heard.
70" tall and 16" wide? I'm even more intrigued now! They must put out some serious sound, especially bass. Like Charles I'd like to know about their sensitivity and impendence.......along with frequency response.
Mike,
Whether you get the Ulfberts or not a trip to your place is in my future......getting the Ulfberts would certainly expedite that trip ;) I know I'm crazy for even contemplating removing the DI's from my main system but something tells me the Ulfberts are going to be insane.
Hello Eric, The Ulfbehrt is larger than the DI and has increased internal volume. Does it have a higher sensitivity than the DI and will it be available as a 4 and 8 ohm version ? Charles
From what Eric told me, the Ulfberhts are HUGE. Over 70 inches tall, 16 inches wide. Scanspeak drivers, upgraded internals, too. Placing my order soon!
I've been running my Double Impacts with Carver Crimson 350's for a few days now, as my Nat amps are in the shop to replace some caps and resistors. The DI's really like these big tube amps, bass is glorious on them.
mac48025 - I learned from Eric/Tekton that we can sell the Ulfberhts at Audio Archon. However, they are much larger than the Double Impact and not sure how much space is needed yet? Especially, since the DIs work so well in our rooms! If/when we get a pair you are very welcome to stop by for a listen!
Then, on the flip side... I check in again on this Audiogon thread and read garbage about me. How sad! Someone saying I tell "lies" and produce "hype" and "pseudoscience". It's so frustrating to be defamed and slandered like this.
If I where you I would'nt worry one little bit about this,you are always going to have some negative comments no matter how good your products are.Just keep doing what you do and not look back.
Audiophile's are the most picky bunch of folks around,but I'm very happy with my Di's and I honestly turned down a set of Magico q3 instead of.
I'm Intrigued and also interested in your new one on down the road,I can always sale my Zu's and move the Di's too my 2nd system.
Could you give us any details about your new Ulfberhts.
Well Eric, after months of owning the DI's I think I've found a speaker I'll like even more.......the Ulfberts! These new speakers of yours intrigue the hell out of me. I had no idea what I was getting into with your DI's and something tells me the Ulfberts are going to take things to a whole new level.
Regarding the science behind your designs. It's all over my head and it concerns me not. I do know that two best sounding speakers I've owned in my 35 years of audio are the Enzo's and DI's. That's enough for me to know!
I'm thrilled! Thank you for discerning the truth! I'll make a prediction... the positive reviews and believers will continue to mount going forward. The group I cater are the most persnickety, finicky and discriminating listeners on earth. In hindsight, I'm even smiling about some of our dialog together, your hesitance and skepticism about the DI's ever proving out for you for example.
Seriously, how could I get mediocre hyped speakers to do this?! Impossible! I've had a number of people cold-call me to congratulate me for simply getting Terry London's stamp of approval. All have directly stated to me: "You don't know how picky Terry is - nice work."
Then, on the flip side... I check in again on this Audiogon thread and read garbage about me. How sad! Someone saying I tell "lies" and produce "hype" and "pseudoscience". It's so frustrating to be defamed and slandered like this.
I'll make heavyweight predictions: I'm right and I know I'm right. This is audio news. Without reservation, I'll present and defend my patents, my work and my theory's at AES. I'll do real-time switching A/B comparisons with even the most highly regarded speakers - we'll pass with flying colors. Simply because I haven't published research doesn't mean I don't possess it. Scientists will support me and validate my conclusions. Honestly... I don't know what audiophiles would prefer to listen to. Knowing what I know... I can't think of anything.
Goodness you are a lucky man Kenny! If I had a set of the DI speakers I would go to town! I would place the crossover outside the speaker for sure in its own special box with vibration control etc...
I would use the best parts in the crossover and the beauty would come from the inside, not the outward apprearance of these babies😁Well the beautiful sound would surely help me forget about the looks. Actually the beautiful sound may well help me to see them as outwardly attractive over time.
I bet they sound very good. My wife would cry, not laugh, at first sight. No way they could could ever be in our living room. I would love to hear them however.
I would love to read about your journey rewiring and redoing the crossovers on these,oh my take forever. LOL.
I'm a lucky guy my wife thought they are very cool looking and already asked me if I'm going to get a pair.
Bill, (Grannyring), I agree with your assessment regarding the visual/aesthetic impact of these speakers. My wife and I suspect many women will find them overbearing and physically unattractive. They are not going to be an acceptable addition into most living rooms IMO.
I have a separate listening room in my finished basement but this is not the case for many people. I don’t doubt that these are beautiful sounding speakers, however more attention payed to an elegant and more refined appearance would be well worth the effort. I place higher priority on sound quality than cosmetics, yet I do appreciate attractive visually appealing audio products. Charles
I believe the PMD line are only going to be sold through authorized dealers like yourself? If you get a pair of these in please let us know as I'll definitely come hear them. As much as I love my DI's I bet these Ulfberhts are better yet......more than $8000 better? It will be interesting to find out. The DI's have set the bar quite high. Let us know if you get any specs on them. They look like they might be about the same size as the DI's.
The PMD line is confusing. The Ulfberhts are Eric's ultimate speaker yet the PMD Pendragons are priced $8k/pair higher? Maybe the price for the PMD Pendragons are wrong on the site, initially the Ulfberhts were shown as $40k per pair!
Lol grannyring. I like the look of them, but guarantee like your wife, mine wouldn't. Thankfully I have a dedicated music room and aesthetics aren't an issue.
I bet they sound very good. My wife would cry, not laugh, at first sight. No way they could could ever be in our living room. I would love to hear them however.
Whoa! I thought the DI's were crazy looking when I first saw them.....these are insane looking! I'll definitely make the trip to Chicago to hear these if Mike carries them. Hope they post some spec's for them soon.
@david_ten Not to sidetrack the conversation, but Israel Blume apparently decided the sound quality of the remote version of Coincident's preamp wasn't up to standards and discontinued it. I'm sure it's still great, but that also makes me curious about alternative approaches.
Another method of sending a PM is to click on the member's screen name in one of his or her posts, then click "Details," then "Marketplace Feedback," then "Send Message."
BTW, the "Explore" tab David referred to appears on the main Audiogon home page, and on the Buy/Sell part of the site, but not on the Forum part of the site.
@mofojo It isn't straightforward. Go to the Explore Tab. Hit the member lookup link to the left of this window. Type in the member name. Click on result link that matches the member name you want. This should put you in the page that offers a send message button.
Being the owner of the very first pair of DI's I am happy to hear when the likes of you, teajay and others find them equally as astonishing as I do. When first getting them I couldn't believe what I was hearing and was apprehensive to review them, but went ahead and did so in hopes I was really hearing what I thought I was. I had no one else to compare notes with for the first month or so until the others recieved their DI's. It was a relief hearing all of the praise the speakers were garnering and to realize I wasn't crazy! I still scratch my head wondering these speakers can be this good......but they are. Thanks for sharing your impressions of them and I agree completely with your accessment of them.
@rlphillips Sorry I am not ignoring your request to hear the DIs at my house just can't figure out how in the hell to send a PM. I'm sure it's simple and I'm an idiot but can anybody help me out? Thanks
Jonathan, Your Art Audio Diavolo 300b SET has earned a reputation for beautiful sound quality and aesthetics as well. I’m glad it has mated so wonderfully with your pair of the Tekton DI.
Given yours and other recent commentary on this thread it does seem as though the DI is an ideal speaker for those interested in trying a SET amplifier in their system as it is apparently very easily driven with low power amplifiers. Charles
Just chiming in. Received my DIs a couple of weeks ago. A little about my background: In the past I've worked in the high-end audio retail side for about a decade and the engineering and manufacturing side for part of that time. I've owned Von Schweikert, Dali, Analysis Audio panel speakers, Klipsch, and now Tekton. I don't like push-pull amps (tube or SS), period. I gravitated to SET Amps early on and have never looked back with the exception of a few CLASS D amps which were purchased because the speakers dictated it.
I currently own an Art Audio Diavolo 300B Copper Reference SET Tube Amplifier (10wpc) from the UK made by Tom Willis. This is the 2nd one I've owned, which might speak volumes to some regarding my feelings toward their beautifully crafted and seductive sounding amplifiers; albeit my feelings toward their price point is a bitter pill to swallow. I use a Benchmark DAC2 HGC for my digital/preamp front-end and ROON's Software for music management. I use Analysis Plus Big Silver in a biwire arrangement and love their build quality, double 9awg size, and their utter neutrality, but not for any placebo related perceived improvement, per se.
Compared to the Klipsch's 101db sensitive @ 8ohms I can tell you that with only 10wpc the Double Impacts play much louder and do not soft-clip like the Klipsch easily do. It's been said they fudge their sensitivity a bit, but then again, many others do. I can tell you I'm able to push my amplifier much farther to very loud satisfying volume levels in my 16x14x9ft room.
Im very pleased with the Double Impact' s horn-like dynamics and appreciate that it doesn't have to come at the expense of the subsequent horn-loaded sonic aberrations that I find compromise their sound in a deleterious way. The DIs are a very musical speaker when compared to analytical or hyper-detailed speakers such as a few Wilson's or B&W offerings. They image incredibly well with an exceptional soundstage height, width, and depth that leaves me wanting for nothing. A big pet peeve of mine with regards to perceived sound quality is top-to-bottom coherence, something many speakers manage to fail at surprisingly often, some more than others (ie. Most lowered tiered Martin Logans as an egregious example...there, I said it =-P). The DIs to my ears present a very coherent top-to-bottom sound which I suspect lends to their big and bold wall-of-sound presentation and it's sure to please and beguile the owners of electrostatic or planar magnetic speakers. The most two important things that must be present in spades for me to be satiated sonically and emotionally are micro-dynamics and palpability in the midrange. SET amps of good engineering will get you part of that equation only to have it nefariously raped and robbed by lesser or simply incompatible speakers. In my system, the DI's reproduce micro-dynamics and palpability in spades, and with startling delight, with all the accompanied emotional hair-raising, tear-jerking, and goose-bump inducing pleasure that comes with it.
I'm very fortunate to have found this thread and the one on Audiokarma before going down the rabbit hole of spending 5-10 times more for a speaker that would provide nothing more to my enjoyment. For this reason, I applaud and kindly stand in ovation to those of you who pioneered the way and contributed to this thread which helped me find such a rare unicorn in the audio world; extremely high value with no audible compromise which lurks in these pages of this fine thread.
Sincerely,
Jonathan Carcopo Raleigh, NC Music lovers are always welcomed to my home for a listen!
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