There's No Question

@stringreen Maggies are very quick speakers and difficult to match to a sub. The subs I thought might work were pretty expensive.

@hilde45 There's a lot of truth to that. It is a relationship that has taken a lot of work. Ups and downs, but when it's good it's really good.

     Thanks for that. 

The Tektons are entirely room and ear dependent as far how to position them. I have noticed a lot of people like them closer together. I really don't like the way they sound when they are closer, somewhere around 3-4 feet. The soundstage does some weird things. I get a nice clean center image with the speakers much farther apart, but that may not work for everyone. I use a lot of sound diffusers along with some well placed absorption to mitigate the rules I break.

@jtcf I've also been curious about the Zu Audio speakers. I like that company. I think they also care about what they do, and probably do it very well. Good luck in your journey.

For those who are curious, the DIs have zero problem pressurizing a room. They can do bass like no other tower speaker I have heard. Room and source dependent, but they can really slam. I love tubes. I'm running a Manley Chinook through an Ayon Scorpio II, with only about 55 watts per channel and the room will pressurize like an American Airlines jet. If I do end up divorcing these speakers, I can tell you I am definitely addicted to high-efficiency speakers. Maybe Klipsch? Who knows?

I feel like I also have to admit that these speakers are actually kind of ugly. I did a lot of my growing up in the 80s, and latched onto the big speaker is cool thing early on. So yeah, there's that. I'm not sure you can get a beautiful looking Tekton. They aren't going to occupy my living room, of that I can assure you. That's why I have a dedicated listening room in my basement.

@carlsbad2 For sure. My philosophy about the hobby has more to do with sound than looks. But I also have to admit that my room, though not large, is based on symmetry of sound, i.e. stereo. I am guilty of wanting my room to be fairly distraction-free because I want to listen critically without distraction. It makes me feel good. There is enough in this world/lifetime to make us not feel so good. For me, a left-biased sound is super distracting and never fails to put me back to work, no matter how transparent, full, or whatever. So there is an asthetic involved. I genuinely do not care if a speaker is sexy. I want the sound to be sexy, but I also don't want my room treatments to be pillows and eggshell foam. So I have to admit I care about looks, and I cannot judge someone else because they like pretty equipment. I also very much enjoy pretty equipment to the extent that it doesn't interfere with the sound.

      For the record, these speakers disappear better than you would expect while listening. But just looking at them such an idea is next to impossible in probably anybody's mind.

Foghat- Fool For The City

Also intrested in Focals. I have doubts about their capabilities in relation to cost vs. performance comparded to the DI, but I am open to opine. I did take notice of other members' comments as the DI's were "monitors" and I don't disagree. I have first-hand listening experience in a couple of studios with a couple different studio monitors. I can say that the DIs are very much like studio monitors in that they convey any colors injected into the system. I don't have the expertise to lable the DI absolutely neutral, but in my experience with them, they are really pretty neutral. It's the garbage in, garbage out thing you have probably read or heard so many times. When l have them to what I believe to be absolutely right things like Foghat- Fool Fir The City sounds like never before. For example, the bass drum resonance is so strange, like it is also reflecting one of the toms with each stroke. I am also a drummer. Maybe I should have mentioned that, but I didn't think that really was a qualification for what we have been talking about. I am not 100% sure what you mean by "empty sound" but there is a chance I experienced that sound you are describing as "less than interesting."

I like them, too. There are so many things about this hobby that you must get right, I definitely do not prioritize the beauty contest, although as stated before I prefer the smooth surface audio listening experience with few to no listening distractions. These speakers are easy (and by easy I mean a millimeter of displacement can sent you down an almost unrecoverable rabbit hole tail spin). It also should be noted that if anyone is looking for that silky consistency across the room, they should look elsewhere. These are really good from any seated position, but perfect side to side, not exactly.

@mijostyn It may be true about inexpensive parts and cabinatry, but the parts in my Maggies that I gave away were also cheap. What you pointed out was that sound matters. What are we even into this hobby for? Is it furniture? Or is it sound? Better yet, isn't it about music and how that makes you feel? I, for one, listened to FM radio as a young man and wondered why I couldn't always understand the lyrics, but the beats and harmonies moved me. Now I can understand the lyrics, plus I am moved by rhythm and harmony. Is there any crime in paying less for that? The real crime, IMO, is paying stupid money for basically the same thing, if our goal is the same: Listen to amazing music and be moved by it. No, I don't need a box of tissues next to my listening position. But I damn sure enjoy music regardless of how my equipment looks. I am so tired of posers. Glad you guys have super fat pockets. I'm not mad at you for that. But quit dismissing good sound because it doesn't go well with your decor.

Absolutely true. My father-in-law is all about the math. But the math just doesn't work in every room. I know there are a lot of people who do the Cardas thirds rule and call it a day. But that just doesn't do it for me, unless I am in the mood for super boring. My room is stupid weird at 11 feet, 11 inches wide by probably 40' long. Very challenging to get it right, and it does sound right. But sometimes the mathematically unexplainable realm of the 5th dimension comes into play here. For the record, my father-in-law has a perfectly square listening room, which presents its own challenges. Every room takes work, every speaker takes effort as well. I think if you work at it, you can have an undeniably great sound system regardless of how "cheap" your parts are.

Just because I have spent over 100k on my persuit of happiness doesn't mean that I hit a home run off the bat.

@mijostyn Please, by all means, get started. I've greatly enjoyed the conversation. I've been reading Audiogon for years, read every single review of every piece of equipment whether I could afford it or not. This was my first actual post, and I felt the input was all good enough to make for a good conversation. I don't care if you have an opinion that differs from mine, but I am curious why. What speakers did you invest in? Did you try the Tektons? Or are you dismissing them because the design doesn't make sense and they may or may not use "cheap" parts? Trying to figure out your beef. If you invested in some Legacy speakers, I guess I can understand a little jealousy if you just couldn't make them sound as good, even though they are very pretty and use "expensive" parts. Interested in what you have to say.

@mijostyn The speakers are the "cheapest" thing in my room. My cabling cost at least as much. The room treatments cost as much, and I went the "cheapest" on those. My source components outweigh the cost of the speakers by a long, long, way, including multiple high-end cartridges. I have a stack I call the "boneyard" of high-end amplifiers I don't use because they couldn't accommodate my non-golden-but-ultra-demanding-ears.  Please edify me. I am absolutely interested in the best sound ever.

As stated before, Eric Alexander was not a born businessman. They have to work on some things before they can really be competitive. Alexander is a really smart dude, though, and has kept his company going no matter what the individual issues were.  I live in Kansas, and Texas before this, and I can tell you I had no issue other than the amount of time it took for my speakers to be made. I haven't been disappointed in anything but my own obscurity since.

I ordered my DIs in November 2020 and didn't get them until February 2021. Maybe I was just one of the lucky customers, but they were worth the wait. When I listen to mine I just can't imagine how another speaker can do better.  There really isn't any point in arguing about them. If anyone came to my listening room, from the first few notes to well into the night they would absolutely say, "Okay, I see where you are coming from." But again, maybe I was just one of a very few lucky customers.

@ozzy I paid in full up front. Unless they've changed something since then as far as I know they don't start building them until paid. Their speakers are made to order.

My last response was removed by an Audiogon moderator because I used the "F" word. Is this forum run by China? WTF? We all listen to music. Is it edited for profanity in some places? I am completely done with this forum. Good luck finding great sound, guys. I will not be censored.

@nonoise, you are absolutely correct. The Audiogon forum is not a "watering hole." I shouldn't have used a "bad" word, even if it wasn't directed at anyone. I guess I forgot the forum rules.  This forum is supposed to be a meeting of the minds among people who share a common interest and a higher understanding of great sound.  Often it turns into a bunch of bullys insulting each other's equipment.

On that note....

@ditusa If you don't have any experience with the speakers, why do you feel it is worthwhile to pass judgement?  To me, Tannoy speakers don't "look" like they can do a very good job. But I'm sure it would be a mistake to make that assumption since I don't have experience with concentric drivers.  If you have a better suggestion, a more productive one, I'm all ears.