”When I listen to mine I just can't imagine how another speaker can do better.”
🤣
Oh My …. You really are the second coming , Shiller Carbon would be so very proud of having spawned you.
There's No Question
I get it. There has been a LOT of hype about Tekton speakers. I also understand why some guys have been disappointed with them. Allow me to qualify for both categories by saying I bought into the hype. I found some of the hype to be real, but I know there are better, or at least more convenient solutions to audio bliss.
I bought my Double Impact speakers after reading and watching every available review. I had been an owner of Magneplanar 1.7i for a couple of years, loved them very much, and there is still a place in my heart for them. I still think they are some of the best sounding speakers you can buy at a very reasonable price. But after well over 2000 hours over two years (and I am not exaggerating), I really needed some bass in my life. The Maggs only do 40hz, which is almost enough for some applications. Naturally a speaker claiming to comfortably accommodate down to 20hz was appealing for this guy. I think it is fair to say that almost no speaker manufacturer claims very far below 30kz.
I make a decent living but am not wealthy. I had noticed the Double Impact speakers as a "hype" ad in a magazine I read, then started really reading the reviews and getting interested. It has always been my goal to build the best sounding system for the least amount of money possible. I am pretty sure most audio enthusiasts and music lovers can at least identify with that. We all started somewhere.
I realize this is an expensive hobby, and the sky is no limit for how much you can get carried away with spending.
The point of me writing now is to inform the naysayers as well as the potential buyers/dreamers about a process. I won't lie. It's an extremely painful process.
I think it is an important reminder that you can take a million dollars worth of equipment, set it up in a room, and it can sound like absolute garbage. It should also be pointed out that less expensive equipment, set up with great attention, can sound significantly better than that million dollars worth of equipment that was set up poorly.
That said, I bought some Tekton Double Impacts with some upgrades. I can tell you that in two different listening rooms my experience has varied from wanting to smash them to pieces with the earliest available sledgehammer, to utmost enjoyment to the point of truly wondering if it could get better, to "YES! That's it!" And back again.
I thought the Magneplanars were difficult to position, and had similar experiences. But after three years of ownership, I can tell you with absolute certainty that the Double Impact speakers are NOT for the newb. They are very, very hard to position optimally. When you get it right you know it down to your toes. When it's OK, you shop for other speakers. When it's bad, there is no measurement for your buyer's remorse.
I really think some people on this forum have been unfair to Tekton. Alexander is good at making speakers. He may not have been born a business man, but he really made some special (not for beginners) speakers. I have found some tweaks and methods that work for me. I have literally built my current listening room around these speakers. Are there better? Sure. More expensive by a long, long, way, but sure. Bang for the buck is in abundance, but only if you have the patience to study about things like parametric wave patterns in relation to your seated position, sound treatments, invest in some better amplification, position, reposition and repeat 30,000 (exaggeration, but not by much) times. The results really can be extraordinary. But you will definitely work for the dollars you save.
75 responses Add your response
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@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. |
@ditusa , That is the effect these speakers have on people who have trained ears. People who are familiar with loudspeaker design and construction do not even have to listen to them to know they are going to be awful. I don't pull punches. If I can save a few people from the mistake of buying them I have done them a service. I have no irons in the fire, not a single one. People will say this is just my opinion. Not. |
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ozzy and OP My experience has been different with Tekton (although I have respect for ozzy’s opinion since I had a very bad problem with a different company who sell amps, preamps and speakers). I have had very decent dealings with Eric and Tekton. I ordered a pair of Double Impact SE and they came on time with grills coming a few weeks later. I have really enjoyed mine and they sound fantastic in my space. In my opinion, they mostly target budget oriented audiophiles like myself and perform beyond their price point. But if I were looking for speakers above, say $10K, I would not be looking at Tekton. There are other brands, like B&W, TAD, Focal, Vandersteen, Legacy, Sonus Faber and many others that spend more time on aesthetics, finish and even some make their own drivers. I would expect more from those brands and even though Tekton makes a higher priced speaker, I really don’t think THAT MARKET is their target group. I have two audio systems and I have not spent $12K for either one. Some say the Tekton speakers are ugly, but with my grills on, I think the speaker looks like 80% of the box speakers out there. Sorry to say, I think many of the Focal speakers are ugly (although I liked some of the early JM Labs Focal with the BE tweeter). Beauty is in the eye of the beholder I suppose. As to Eric himself, I have heard stories about him being rude and not very nice. For me, Eric and Dana have given me great customer service. I had a driver fail recently and they were very considerate and prompt in finding out the problem and sending me a new driver. No problems there. |
2psyop, Original price was pretty close to the same since I bought them used. However, the Focal Sopra’s actually went up quite a bit since I purchased them, they now sell new for $21,000. Whereas I don’t think the Tekton Ulberht model is still being made/sold new and I have never seen one for sale used, probably didn’t sell many. They are kinda ugly. mofojo, I have only heard the DI model and was not impressed. However, many people seem to like them. I wonder why they made me pay full price up front for whenever they would be shipped, and you did not have to? Maybe they didn’t trust my ozzy moniker, he has been known to be a wild one... ozzy |
mr_m, I think at the time, he probably had more orders than he could handle. And as has been noted, he does not have much in the way of customer support/service. In the end, I am glad I did not purchase them. I ended up getting better looking, better performing, with better resale value speakers. ozzy |
Eric Alexander seemed like a great guy when he was .aking a sale or filling an order for his speakers. But as soon as someone noted a problem to him, he became a very different person. Telling a potential customer like Ozzy who put money up front, waited a long time, and then they cancel his order because he was too much trouble, well, that kind of response from a company is unacceptable. |
benmeadows, I guess that is what annoyed me. I can perhaps see paying full up front as long as they respond to emails or phone calls or just provide periodic updates. I didn’t get any return replies until one day they just said they were returning my deposit and cancelling my order because I was too much trouble. ozzy |
@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. |
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. |
@benmeadows Wrote:
Phil disagrees! See below: Mike https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/topic/62843-very-disappointed-with-tekton-double-impacts/ |
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. |
When I was thinking of getting a pair of these speakers, (I think was called Ulberht $12,000 at the time), the problem’s I had was: 1. They require full payment up front with a promise of perhaps 2+ months for delivery. Non-committal. 2. Very little return communication. 3. Tektron ended up cancelling my order because I guess I was too much trouble. Code word for PITA. ozzy |
@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. |
@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. |
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. |
@tsushima1 , Please don't get me started:-) |
@mijostyn , I think that you are being a little too kind 😆 |
@benmeadows , Has absolutely nothing to do with decor. It has to do with cheap parts and construction, not to get better sound to the masses but to make money. I have not even gotten into the silly design philosophy yet, not to mention the terrible sound. Telkton established itself by making cheap garbage. At least their speakers actually work. PS Audio established itself by making garbage that was a hoax. I don't care if they make the best amp in the world. I would never buy it out of principle. The only company I find more disgusting is Synergistic Research. Now that I got that off my chest.... |
@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. |
@benmeadows , What you noticed is true with any conventional loudspeaker. They are much more prone to room interaction and placement issues than dipoles like the Magneplanar. Dipoles have limited dispersion. They do not radiate any sound to the sides, up or down. This limits the number and volume of early reflections making placement much less critical. I would have preferred adding subwoofers and a two way crossover to the Magneplanars than switching to Tektons. Forgetting about how they sound, Tektons are inexpensive loudspeakers made with inexpensive parts and inexpensive construction. |
I too went for value over looks, Crites Type B. They are the size of Cornwalls with better crossovers and cabinests(birch plywood. They are not braced internally. I have seen finished examples are quite good looking. I chose these for efficiency. This was also a cost savings as i built the system. It took many things to wring out better sound. I would do two things. Buy 2 subs. They don't have to be big. Once again, placing them can be difficult. I got lucky. This will make your mains sound much better. Subs should also help stereo imaging. Second, I would isolate the speakers. I used $30 springs. I would say in all likelihood the change would be very good. |
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. |
Great thread… I started on the Tekton bandwagon with a pair of the Impact Monitors (well, actually had a pair of Lores back in the day, but todays multi-driver arrays are vastly superior, imo). The monitors are tremendous values for sound and imaging they put out. After I had them for quite a while, properly positioned, and singing very nicely (say about 6mos. or more), I went to Axpona. They had the monitors there powered by Parasound gear. Honestly, that room sounded horrible, and if I’did not already have them, I would have crossed them off the list. I now have a pair of Tekton’s Perfect SETs, and will be upgrading to the Moabs shortly. Nothing touches them for the $$ invested, jmho. As for looks, I like them… to each his own! |
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@ronboco The cabinets are well made and well designed. they aren't beautiful. Jerry |
Tekton Design make an array of speakers at different price points. They have a specific design philosophy. They have certain target groups of people. They don’t spend alot on cabinets. These speakers have a tremendous designer and sound great. Vandersteen make a smaller array of speakers at different price points. They have a specific design philosophy. They have certain target groups of people. They don’t spend alot on cabinets but for higher end speakers (different potential buyer) they offer a much better cabinet than a fabric sock. These speakers have a tremendous designer and they sound great. Salk Sound make an array of speakers at different price points. They have a specific design philosophy. They have certain target groups of people. They custom make beautiful cabinets. These speakers have a tremendous designer and sound great. My point is that there is a really good speaker for everyone. You find what you like and it will sound great. If you want a beautiful cabinet, you can have it. If you just want good sound, you can have it. In my universe, I can live with ALL these choices and not be upset. Live and let live. |
@boxcarman: Do yourself a favour and look into the open baffle/dipole servo-feedback sub offered by Rythmik Audio in collaboration with GR Research. THE sub for dipole planars such as Maggies. Magnepan itself will soon be offering their own dipole (sealed enclosure) sub, for use with their loudspeakers. |
@benmeadows I've always been a form-follows-function guy myself. |
