Thiel Owners

@tomthiel, of course you would know better than me. But, aside from being able to make the under hung motors more available across the various models , which  is somewhat negated by the lowered price point models using different woofers anyway, I think the sealed boxes were the better choice. Other manufacturers such as Dunlavy with similar performance goals were able to do it. Though to be fair the Dunlavy’s used more drivers in bigger boxes or used acoustic floor volume reinforcement. All of which created a different set of concerns. I’m not sure all would agree, but I for one think those, and the previous use of eq were worth it.

Unsound - I agree with you. The equalizer does everything right sonically. The bass extension rolls off at the bottom at 12dB/ octave like real unamplified output. The upper frequency electronic ’tizz’ is solved with the new unit.

Our problem, especially in the early days, was under-pricing what we were delivering, and therefore living under very strict budget limitations. Note Dunlavy’s price multiple vs a similarly-reviewed Thiel. I did some cabinet consultation for Dunlavy. Behind their curtain, Thiel’s component quality and overall performance / cost and was far higher. The Audio Upgrades re-design of Jim’s EQ is significantly better, but would have come in at about double the cost of Jim’s design.

As you know, our plans include reintroduction of retro-fittable midrange and tweeter to remove the obsolete product concern, and then offer this new EQ as an upgrade for your upgraded model 3 equalized models. There were 10,000 pair of model 3s with that equalizer (combined 03a, CS3 and CS3.5). Quite a few of those are still in use.

As background, I advocated for a higher performance line of our speakers which would have allowed greater budgets. Think Lexus / Toyota. That idea didn’t fly primarily because they felt it would cheapen the perception of our stock products. Marketing would have been more dimensional, but I think we would have shone brightly in that arena. I would have preferred that business model vs diving into Home Theater for survival as value-priced 2 channel faded against emergent HT.

devinplombier

You are correct the CS5i is sealed and CS 7.2 passive radiator. When I mentined sealed speaker I was referrring to the CS5i.

As Tom mentioned all the upgrades will be implemented across Thiel product line. 

I've listened to the CS 5i and CS 7.2 the past 8 months or so. 

In new room they are both dialed in and its a roller coaster ride of emotion. 

The CS 5i takes massive power for her to clear her throat and really sing. You havn't heard a botton end until you hear the CS 5i. When it hits it hits hard, fast,and with authority. 

Going to the CS 7.2 it takes time to acclimate as it cannot match the slam of the CS5i. The CS 7.2 has better tonal balanced though.

With the deep dive Tom has taken with extensive upgrades, these two models will rival speakers north of 50k very easily. 

Regarding using  silver cables  I have found that soft annealed silver is what you need. It has a very distinct characteristic. Fast, clarity, heightened soundstage and a natural decay so notes dont linger longer than what is natural. 

Any members here in N. Carolina are welcome to come on by for a listen and compare copper vs silver.

When you see a man tapping his foot with a smile on his face you know you arrived at the right place. 

duramax747

Thank you, this is very informative. 

I’ve been searching for speakers for over a year at this point. I narrowed it down to CS 5i and Infinity IRS Beta, and maybe Revel Salon 2. I say "maybe" because on principle I’d rather stay away from ported enclosures, but they got much praise that I would still like to seriously audition them.

I set up searches for all three, but the CS 5i and the Beta are rare as hen’s teeth here in the Pacific Northwest; and those outside the region are usually for local pickup only.

I would love to hear the CS 5i but unfortunately I won’t be able to take you up on your kind offer due to distance 🙂

devinplombier

Indeed the CS5i are difficult to obtain. To find them in your region of the US and with shipping cartons becomes even more difficult. 

They have plywood crates so cannot understand why owners would not have the crates other than the space they take up and they threw them away. 

When buying always ask this question "What amps did you use with the CS 5i"?

If they were cared for the amps would be massive with high current. 

I will share a purchase I made on a rare pair of CS5i.

I was not looking for a pair of CS 5i as I had a pair, but came across this pair in dark walnut. I emailed the seller and told him I wish these speakers went to a good home and ended it there. The seller started to communicate with me and his fear was someone would hook up an inferior amp to these beauties and blow the drivers and ruin these speakers he had cherished. 

We eventually struck a deal on price and I was going to own another pair. 

This gentlemen had the odacity to not honor our price but instead lowered his price substantially and white van the speakers to my place for free.  He stayed in a hotel from the day’s driving and arrived early the next morning. 

When he arrived he had the odacity again to offer to "set them up properly for me" and get this for free.

Well scratch my back with a hacksaw as I thought I was in the midst of a Twilight Zone episode. 

We started talking and come to find out his grandfather was one of the original Thiel dealers in the country. Thiel dealers would come into your home and set up the speakers, "properly".

Not only did I get a pristine pair of CS 5i with a campfire type story, I also received the plywood shipping crates and all the original accessories. The footers came in a case that were foam fitted with the manual.

When you come across the right seller for CS 5i he will take point in the conversation and ask the questions interviewing you to see if you are a candidate for these speakers. They are that special. 

When Tom came by on his Thiel journey I shared with him the story of the newly acquired CS 5i. He saw the crates which broiught him to a time past and I could see he was having a moment as he was beaming with pride. These were the shipping containers so I did not dare show him the speakers. 

He shared the story that the gentleman that brought the speakers was the grandson of one of their original dealers. He said he knew him when he was a boy at his grandfathers shop. 

We did not listen to this pair of CS5i but instead a pair of ultra rare Brazilian Rosewood. When Tom saw them he was telling me how he acquired this rosewood through the jungle of Brazil/Boliva. He went on to say this was real Brazilian Rosewood acquired legally as it is almost impossible to lay your hands on any today. 

This is another story but they were also white van delivered to our place for free which was over 850 miles of traveling. 

My point. If you find a pair of CS 5i there should be a story behind them and the seller will be very accomadating to make sure they go too a good home. 

This to me is the Thiel Legacy.