Yeah, Govt Mule is a classic band founded by Warren Hanes and Allen Woody of the Allman Brothers. Lots of stories with this band. Great musicians. (Tidal has them. Check out the Dose album!)
Tekton Impact Monitors
Hi All,
I'm relatively new to Audiogon but have trolled the discussions for a few months. I have been listening to Spendor LS3/5As driven by a Quad 34/306 combination since the late 1980's and decided that it was finally time to upgrade my speakers. I love the Spendors but they are very limited in dynamics and scale. I auditioned the SVS Ultra Bookshelf speakers and while they brought some additional scale they simply didn't have the sweet midrange that I can't live without. I listened to some open baffle speakers (Emerald Physics) and loved them, but their size and need for space worried me, and I found them less satisfying at moderate and low volumes, where I do a fair bit of listening. I was fascinated by all the discussion regarding Tekton speakers and was considering getting a pair of Enzo 2.7s, but after a short discussion with Eric I followed his recommendation of the Impact Monitor with upgrade. They have the 7 tweeter array and a pair of 6.5" woofers and are rear-ported. I use a pair of SVS subs (the sealed variety). The Impact Monitors are simply amazing. The midrange is oh-so-sweet (very similar to my Spendors, but with more air) and the detail, even at low and moderate listening levels, is superb. The imaging is even better than my Spendors managed and the scale is huge and is much more music-appropriate. My system is really quite modest but now when I walk into my listening room (doubles as our living room - thankfully my wife appreciates Hi-Fi) I get the audio-show feeling of "being there". I have a Denon DP59L turntable with a DL110 HO moving coil cartridge running through an Emotiva XPS-1 phono preamp and the Tektons are absolutely incredible with classic rock on vinyl. I'm not sure how Eric managed it, but these speakers are superb, even with my 30 year old Quad electronics. I believe they are basically the top 24" of the Double Impacts, but are rear-ported rather than front ported. I can heartily recommend them and Eric and his team are great to work with. I'm not sure how many other Impact Monitors are out there since the pair I have are S/N 0005 and 0006!
I'm relatively new to Audiogon but have trolled the discussions for a few months. I have been listening to Spendor LS3/5As driven by a Quad 34/306 combination since the late 1980's and decided that it was finally time to upgrade my speakers. I love the Spendors but they are very limited in dynamics and scale. I auditioned the SVS Ultra Bookshelf speakers and while they brought some additional scale they simply didn't have the sweet midrange that I can't live without. I listened to some open baffle speakers (Emerald Physics) and loved them, but their size and need for space worried me, and I found them less satisfying at moderate and low volumes, where I do a fair bit of listening. I was fascinated by all the discussion regarding Tekton speakers and was considering getting a pair of Enzo 2.7s, but after a short discussion with Eric I followed his recommendation of the Impact Monitor with upgrade. They have the 7 tweeter array and a pair of 6.5" woofers and are rear-ported. I use a pair of SVS subs (the sealed variety). The Impact Monitors are simply amazing. The midrange is oh-so-sweet (very similar to my Spendors, but with more air) and the detail, even at low and moderate listening levels, is superb. The imaging is even better than my Spendors managed and the scale is huge and is much more music-appropriate. My system is really quite modest but now when I walk into my listening room (doubles as our living room - thankfully my wife appreciates Hi-Fi) I get the audio-show feeling of "being there". I have a Denon DP59L turntable with a DL110 HO moving coil cartridge running through an Emotiva XPS-1 phono preamp and the Tektons are absolutely incredible with classic rock on vinyl. I'm not sure how Eric managed it, but these speakers are superb, even with my 30 year old Quad electronics. I believe they are basically the top 24" of the Double Impacts, but are rear-ported rather than front ported. I can heartily recommend them and Eric and his team are great to work with. I'm not sure how many other Impact Monitors are out there since the pair I have are S/N 0005 and 0006!
255 responses Add your response
@sbayne Terrific review. Well written, easy to follow and understand, and very informative. It's interesting that your Impacts are similarly positioned as my Double Impacts are, and in similar sized room. I also agree on the flexibility of amp pairings. It's great that you are using a higher powered amplifier. There has been a lot of discussion vis a vis the DIs, at least, with very low powered amps...good to see a happy pairing and recommendation with higher power output tubes. Looking forward to hearing more about your journey with your Impact Monitors. |
@david_ten - Thanks. I’m in North Carolina and was honkering-down for the tropical storm this weekend so I had some spare-time to work on this review. As to liking the higher powered amps a little more, I guess that is turning into a personal bias of mine. I have a pair of 100db horns and listen to SET but it just seems that extra power fully fleshs-out the sound on most speakers. That’s obviously a big generalization but that’s where I’m at for now. I continue to tweek the Impact Monitors and I’m getting better and better sound. But, I go through a lot of equipment so I wouldn’t be surprised if I own a pair of Double Impacts (or higher) at some point. Let’s stay in touch. |
What is with the different tweeters? I've been reading a lot about Tekton, and one thing I keep reading is that he's changing the product "on the fly". How can you know what you're buying if the product keeps changing? Also, I know everyone hates his website. But, I also hate the way he names things. - the "compact DIs" are called Electrons. - The Impact Monitor seems like a DI design, and then there is the Impact. - Impact design is different from the Impact Monitor. Logically you'd have DI, Impact and Impact Monitor all with the same design, but different size/scale. How does he come up with this stuff? I think his business is that he likes to play with speakers, design whatever his flavor of the day may be. It seems like everything he sells is just another experiment. While I understand that he's a brilliant speaker designer, I have this feeling that I won't really know what I'm getting. It could be different from day to day. I've gone from being ready to order to walking away, then back to ready to order, then walking away... |
Its a very unorthodox way of doing things and hopefully it will work out for him in the end. Marketing wise I would agree the name logic is a bit messy. If I didn’t dig further in his site, I would have never known a mini DI (Electron) existed. I would rename it personally. He desperately needs a good web/graphic designer (me) to get his presence in order. |
I completely agree on the marketing, website, naming of products and the need for betting information differentiating the products. Regarding the product itself, at least for the Electron, i do not believe the change was "mid stream" or on the fly. As discussed in the other thread, very few Electrons were ever produced. I don't know of anyone actively posting about them on any web forum. So perhaps a few prototypes were made and Eric decided to tweak the design, which, for a very small company, is a good thing. I believe the flexibility to make something better in this context is a very good thing that you would not get from a large speaker company. Lastly, the most important thing here is the ability to audition in home. If i am not satisfied with the product as delivered it is going back. 300 bucks for return is fine and reasonable to me for the in home audition as i have found that in store auditions are of limited value. |
@soundermn - I think you are right. From what I can tell a number of the new Tekton speakers have had changes in their components over the life of the speaker. Some of them are announced and others aren't. I would just clarify with Eric when placing your order. I wouldn't think that's a reason not to buy unless you are stuck on one driver over another. |
@danoroo - "I listen to a lot of rock music at fairly loud SPLs. The 2.7s are slightly more sensitive and the 8" drivers should offer more impact in the lower mid/upper bass region. Also the the tweeter in the 40.5" tall Enzos is at perfect ear level in my room. I'll give you guys my opinion of these speakers after I've evaluated them for a few days. I'll have the luxury of comparing them side by side with the Usher Dancer Mini One DMDs I'm using now." What are your impressions of the Enzo 2.7s? |
@sbayne Having listened to the 2.7s about three weeks now, their characteristics are becoming evident. But, before I get to how the speakers sound I want to mention a couple of things that happened after I got the Enzo 2.7s. The first afternoon I had them, I put on Beethoven's 9th symphony just to get a quick listen before working on placement and spacing. The next thing I knew, the final movement was drawing to a conclusion as I sat there pondering Beethoven's genius. Loudspeakers? What loudspeakers? The other thing that caught my attention was on the second or third evening after they arrived, my charming wife, who is a music lover but prefers to spend her evenings in another room watching TV, suddenly came into the room and asked me to play a couple of songs she liked. Shortly after that she was grabbing the remote and wanted total control of the music menu! She never does that! The 2.7s, like other Tektons, are decent looking speakers but no where near the polished look of the Usher Mini One. They are rather industrial and would probably be eye catching if painted in a nice metallic silver or industrial gray. But I didn't buy these speakers for their looks, so I'll get to how they sound. I'll say up front the DMD tweeter in my Ushers are more convincing than the 2.7s. I just listened to an SACD of 2Ls "The Nordic Sound". The first piece on the disc is Mozart's Violin Concerto #4 in D Major. The DMD tweeters in my Ushers render the violins in a convincingly sweet yet resonant way. The 2.7s not so much. They come across as slightly harder. The same thing with a ripped FLAC file of Jethro Tull's "Aqualung Live" CD. Ian Anderson's flute is more cogent via the Ushers as there is a transparency the 2.7s can't quite match. That being said, once the frequencies descend into the mid range the 2.7s shine. Human voices sound awesome through the 2.7s as does percussion and I don't mean just drums. The leading edge of a note from a sharply struck piano key has a percussive sound that many speakers can not render. The Enzo 2.7s do it well. The percussive properties of the leading edge of the guitar notes in Dire Straits' "You and Your Friend" from the "On Every Street" album are stunning. In that same song there is a series of soft, rhythmic rim shots behind Mark Knopfler's singing that sound real, which is impressive considering they are not loud, just pleasantly crisp and correct sounding. Did I mention vocals? The 2.7s have vocals down pat. On Paul Simon's "Graceland" CD the song "Homeless" started playing and I just sat there in astonishment. It sounded like these A Capella singers were performing in my living room! The 2.7s do a very good job in the bass region as well. Not only do they go reasonably low, they do it with speed and tightness. The two 8" bass drivers seem to start and stop on a dime. Referring back to the "Graceland" album, the 2.7s present the bass line on "You Can Call Me Al" in a tight, staccato way with obvious space between the notes......beautiful! Another nice thing about the 2.7s is the fact that my amp has never had it so easy. My amp is probably thanking me for buying the 2.7s given the fact that I sometimes howl at the moon and crank up the volume. My Ushers are far less sensitive than the 2.7s. The combination of excellent imaging, the ability to just disappear and the properties I have already mentioned, make the Enzo 2.7s a real bargain. They have certainly made listening to music a lot of fun again! |
@danoroo - Thanks for the great review! I was surprised by your use of classical music. Based on your previous posts I thought we were going to hear a lot about rock and SPLs. You think a subwoofer is needed or are the dual 8” woofers sufficient? The specs show 40hz but that doesnt seem right - not low enough. My Impact Monitors are also rated at 40Hz but they only have 6.5” drivers. The Electrons have dual 6” drivers and are specified at 30hz on the bottom end. So all that is a little confusing to me. Since they are front ported did you try them close to the front wall? What did you use for an amp? Thanks again. |
I have used the 2.7s with and without subs and have come to the conclusion in my smallish room they are not needed.
I have the speakers positioned on a long wall with about 2' between the wall and the front baffle in a 16 x 12 room that opens to other rooms on both ends. The listening positions on the opposite wall are also pulled out into the room about 2'. I haven't tried them closer to the wall because the right speaker sits in the alcove entering another room and I didn't want the unbalanced wall reflections. I have pulled them farther out into the room though and the imaging is excellent either way. The speakers are positioned about 7.5' apart and toed in so they are facing the sweet spot. Even though the bass is good I'm thinking about buying a couple of Rythmik F12G subs, not because I really need them but because I am an audio junkie. The subs I have now are an HSU ULS 15 and two 10" Dayton DIY sealed kits, none of which are state of the art. The Enzo 2.7s will flat out rock! You can't make them distort no matter how loud you play them. Your ears will give up long before these speakers will. AC/DC has a 1978 live album called "If You Want Blood You've Got It". I bought this CD many years ago and have listened to it more times in the past two weeks than the previous 10 years. It sounds great over the 2.7s as does almost all my music collection. The front end of my rig is modest equipment consisting of a PC I built specifically for playing audio files.
This feeds into an ifi micro iDAC2 which is connected to an Emotiva
XSP-1 preamp which is connected to the power amp section of a Harman
Kardon HK990 solid state amplifier rated at 150W per channel into 8ohms /
300W per channel @ 4ohms.
I use JRiver MC as my player and Dirac Live room correction suite to clean everything up. I have also thought about getting a modestly priced tube preamp (under $1200) to try in front of the HK990, but I know nothing about tube gear so I have refrained. Anyway, I am happy with what I have.....at least for now. |
Thought I'd pass along this assessment of the Impact Monitors found on the Audiomatters blog: "The monitors delivered.....tremendous body and detail, and provide stiff opposition to many other monitors at the $2k price point. I could easily see a great music system being built around them." http://audiomatters.blogspot.com/2017/10/rmaf-2017-part-ii.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium... |
Here is a rave "first impression" of the Impact Monitors: Jason Victor Serinus of Stereophile : https://www.stereophile.com/content/jvs-runs-out-clever-titles-day-three-continues |
Here is another rave "first impression" of Tekton’s tweeter array. Read this article carefully. I’m really starting to think the Impact Monitors with a subwoofer is the way to go for now. If I decide to go up Tekton’s line I hope Eric comes out with a powered woofer version of the DIs based on perhaps a direct servo like the Rythmik. Thoughts? http://v2.stereotimes.com/post/rmaf-2017-page-4 "The Tekton Double Impact loudspeakers ($3k), driven by Parasound mono amps produced a sound that was quite remarkable from the midrange up. The bass was somewhat too weighty for this typical shoe-box shaped hotel room. Despite the woofers exaggerating from time to time (depending on the music), the midrange and top-end was simply superb........This was my first-time encounter with this smaller model as I do have the Double Impacts in-house for review (stay tuned), but I must admit, that as much as LOVE the Double Impacts, I can see where a lot of small apartment dwellers will go bananas over this more petite Impact Monitor version. The Impact's speed, dynamic dexterity, transparency and overall musicality coupled to its amazingly low asking price, makes it among the best deals in audio period. REGARDLESS OF PRICE." |
Here is another one! https://www.stereophile.com/content/herbs-rocky-mountain-coda "It was not subtle. The $1800 Tekton Impact Monitors were doing it all: singing, drumming, shaking the air, drawing me in, and making every CD or LP pure pleasure to listen to. A little soft…but not too soft. Imagine a gentle but guiding touch with a most perfect sparkle—and then firm and impactful when necessary." |
| Post removed |
| Post removed |
| Post removed |
@giantsalami - "I have the monitors with 2 REL subs and love it." Nice! The sound of these monitors when used with a powered sub(s) really is something special. I’ve thought about going with stereo RELs as well. @stfoth - Agreed. Not a big deal on the $200 price increase (don’t blame him I guess based on the crazy good reviews from RMAF) but if Eric took away the upgrade option that doesn’t make sense since I’m sure he was making a decent profit off it. |
I went back and re-read the "first impressions" from RMAF regarding the Impact Monitors. I don't know why I didn't quote from Stereophile previously but I thought I would now: "The Tekton monitors, in this excellent system, blew me away. "What does 'blew me away' mean?" John Atkinson would surely ask. Well, for starters, the sense of three-dimensionality on my CD of Lou Harrison's Violin Concerto was astoundingly good, and the impact and color of his wacky assortment of percussion were simply superb. Soundstaging width, height, and depth in the nearfield were tremendous, with the computer-generated/symphonic music by Mason Bates, recorded by Jack Vad and released on SACD by San Francisco Symphony, astounding in its depiction of particles whirling back and forth in a Fermi particle accelerator. In addition, the speakers totally disappeared on a Michael Hedges LP, and the sound was extremely smooth. Richard Schram of Parasound contacted Tekton to arrange a joint demo after his friend, Warner Bros. Records VP Michael Howe, told him that he uses both Parasound and Tekton equipment in his studio. This was wise move on Richard's part, because the Parasound–Tekton pairing sounds stupidly good. And not just for the price. It sounds STUPIDLY GOOD, period. Yes, I'm resorting to capitals, because I want you to take notice. If you can afford this system, you must hear it. Its sound, at least during my admittedly brief audition, far surpassed any number of systems costing way more. A notable achievement, worthy of both review and acclaim." |
| Post removed |
@stfoth - I tried mine with some low powered tube amps and a Class A solid state amp. Frankly, I don’t think 8 watts or less is not enough for these speakers. I’m sure they would sound fine but it won’t get you what these speakers are capable of in the lower midrange and bass. I ended-up using my 200 watt tube monoblocks. (Its possible a powered sub that reaches up to 100Hz or so may work-out with a low powered amp) |
David ten, I’ve been an audiophile for 25 yrs , I have never experience this kind of music coming out from my speakers, on my Tekton I can almost see the instrument and feel it, and it’s like truly live...they sound different than many speakers I heard. I heard the $750k , Austin acoustic this year at Axpona for the price there was no weakness, For the price the Tekton monitor has no weakness, I felt iam feeling and hearing that $750k Austin Acoustic in a small way with the tekton I have..I did spend so much time on Austin Acoustic Room, why I remember it so well.how they sound.. |
@lula - I think any solid stand that places the middle tweeter at ear height will work. I now have mine on the Rythmik subs but had to add some wood platforms and Herbies feet to get the monitors to proper height. I've never heard the ML Dynamo 700 sub (I don't think) I'm sure it will be fine and at least, worth a try. |
Scott (Sbayne), After 20 Hrs I have on my monitor, I felt so bless that I bought them, they sound so live, macro micro dynamics are to die for, music come out fresh and touch me. They are really fast, with my amps viva, concierto, Mf 550 , My favorite combo is the Plinius sa 100, the speed is there, the transient is amazing. Vocal is also sweet , bass is just about right in my room, this is it for now. |