Vienna Acoustics 'The Music'

bump. This design is 16 years old now. My concern with VA designs has always been their early x-over to the midrange. The Mahler mids pick up at 80 hz, my beethovens at 75hz, those designs at least had 2 cone drivers to split the work. The VA website claims 'The Music' woofers hand off at 100 hz to a single 7" flat cone driver and tbh I'm skeptical that any flat driver can handle 100hz with authority while covering another 5 octaves. Are owners of these speakers noticing spl limited output? My Beethovens struggle to deliver above 95 spl in room. There's a pair I'm considering and will appreciate owners feedback. My source is mc611's now so power shouldn't be an issue. tia

USAM has a free listing options with affordable listing upgrades, they don't have the rep ag does yet, but we could communicate there

put them away when my grandkids began to walk.

not sure I'm want to go through setup process again at my age/health.

endgame for sure, but time to downsize.

stored in their coffins.

maybe

 

anyone still looking for a pair?

I bought a pair of Kef Blades since starting this thread and while I know the two companies have different target sounds, part of the VA appeal is the voicing by Peter Gannister, I take it you could never quite eliminate the midbass hump? pm me with your asking price. 

Hello Steve:

Sorry I did not respond to you. I live in Midlothian, VA which is near Richmond.

Thanks,
Sam

Whereabouts are you located Sam?

Hello Steve:

Are you still interested in a pair of Vienna Acoustics -The Music. I am going to be selling my pair which are 2 1/2 years old. They are a wonderful speaker, however I update every 3 years.

Thanks,
Sam

Since my initial inquiry I still haven’t gotten to hear a pair. Audio Consultants did list their demo pair on ag and while we came very close to closing the deal after I pm’d a few of you owners and learned what I would expect to invest in components necessary to make them sing properly I decided they were above my price point. I would have to give up 1 or more of my other hobbies to go all in on ‘The Music’.  The Ushers are gone, just too big for my room. The dsp 8000se will probably be my end all system, but these paradigm persona 7f are for real and sound excellent with my modest components.

OK here’s a fresh update: The Tweeter on the right speaker that blew in January 2019 gave out again today. So a $2100 Driver went kaput at two years And five months. I imagine that makes it $850 a year of listening. Previously I had thought of replacing the drivers and selling the speakers but now I’m going to throw them away as a loss. Can’t  imagine somebody else going through what I did. Not so bad having speakers for 11 years at a cost of $27,000 worse things happen to people in life. Time to buy new speakers and now going to write an email to the designer and the top brass at Vienna acoustics. I hope nobody else goes through what I did. The Music is a great speaker only as long as it works.

my coax kef R105/3 baked a tweeter when the wires inside my antique RGR amp shorted and the design with those was a hole in the center of the mid magnet and a stem soldered to the back of the tweeter which was about the size of 4 quarters stacked. Get this...$125 ea or $250 for the matched pair. 

This is what I believe, or at least think, what most likely happened. My Devialet was being fed directly by the roon music server and I enabled this Within the software. Then I connected the music server to a dCS Network Bridge which was connected to the Devialet through a digital XLR. It was a mistake to enable both of them. During switching, there was a lag time phase in which both inputs fed the speaker. That means double the power and twice the current. I heard a clicking noise from both speakers and the left one died on me (The tweeter in the mid range driver but unfortunately the whole unit has to be replaced). What some experts have told me that maybe the right one sustained some damage as well but did not malfunction immediately. Over time, and I listen at moderately high volumes, It eventually malfunctioned as well. It is their opinion that after having replaced both units the speakers would be fine. Hopefully that is the case but this problem has ended up costing me $4200 in total. Just about everybody has told me that this is an astronomical tag for a mid range/Tweeter driver. I have to admit that I was less than enamored by the response by Vienna Acoustics. I then sent an email to Eton in Germany that make the driver to see if I can get it at a lower price but have not heard from them yet. One thing is for sure: I am now going to save up for a new speaker; in the event the speakers fail again I’m going to get a new pair. It is a great bargain at $27,000 and one of the finest because on the market: kudos audio triton 808. Buying A high-end speaker is like buying a luxury automobile. You just don’t pay for the car, you also pay for the support and service later. After speaking to the owner at Kudos audio I was satisfied that they have a much better approach than Vienna Acoustics

Be glad you do not own Avalon speakers with diamond tweeters. They charge $8100 per tweeter. Taking about a rip. 

I own VA The Music as well and really like them. Being that the tweeter is a coaxial mid range driver, I see where the cost would be higher than a tweeter itself. I do agree that $2100 is high, however I think their sound is spectacular. Good luck with the new tweeters.

I used to love VA, but I've heard they are an awful company to deal with lately and they have perhaps the worst distributor in all of audio. Every dealer I have been to in my area has voiced this, any time the Vienna distributor comes up. It’s overwhelming and seems like a running joke in the industry.

$2100 for a tweeter is unacceptable. VA is proud to say they have their tweeters made for them and even giving them 50% markup after getting the ScanSpeak/visa/seas unit there’s no way it should cost that much. Sometimes you can figure out which tweeter it is and order directly, we used to do it with the salon 1. And the beethovens use off the shelf, top shelf but still. 

I have had VA music speakers for 10 years and the sound is spectacular. On the downside, in February 2019 the left speaker blew the tweeter inside the midrange driver. Ordered it directly from Vienna Acoustics in Austria and it was a whopping $2100 replacement. Two days ago, in early August 2020, the tweeter on the right side went bust this time. Now I’m looking at another $2100. These are very expensive replacements. The problem is that the people at Vienna Acoustics were very quick to blame my electronics and I know for sure there’s nothing wrong with them. I have top-notch cabling from Nordost and Crystal cable and using the speakers with the Devialet expert pro1000. I’ve tried other speakers with them without any problems. I’m not really sure what to make of this but let’s wait and see if a replacement solves the problem. It appears to me that at some point some current spike damaged both tweeters which eventually gave out at different times. With both being replaced perhaps the problem won’t recur again. 

Hello Jon:

Thanks for getting back to me. Currently I am using Isoclean Power Tip Toe TT-009 bases under my spikes. Do you think the Harmonix brand will be an up-grade? I have hardwood floors and love how the Isoclean bases slide which makes it easy for fine tuning their location. 

Also where can you buy the Harmonix brand. 

Thanks for all your feedback.

Sam

Just a note, I have put my Liszt speakers on the Townshend seismic podiums.  They work better than no spikes or spikes.  My system is on a suspended floor on the second story of my home. 

I really wanted to hear these speakers. I live just outside NYC and there are some major highend audiophile dealers especially in Manhattan that can carry any brand.  Also in Brooklyn, Long Island, parts of New Jersey and CT, but none of them carry this speaker or the brand for that matter. Would have to go to Philly to hear them, so what doesnthst tell you. 

Hello samgar2,

My speakers are 3 feet from the front wall and 4 feet from the side walls. My room is 20 feet wide by 30 feet long by 15 feet high.

The mid bass can be adjusted by making micro-lateral adjustments to the midrange-tweeter module inwards or outwards, and macro-lateral adjustments to the whole tower.

Also, placing the spiked feet on high quality footers is extremely beneficial. I used to have the same problem until I started using Harmonix footers under each spike and the mid-bass tightens up for a very balanced sound.
I use the RF-999MT mk2 "Real Focus".

http://www.combak.net/feet&bases/FEET_and_BASES.html

Hope this helps. :)

Hello Jon:

Thanks for your response. Just out of curiosity, how far do you have your speakers from the wall and how big is your room. The mid bass issue which is only minor has always been some thing I wanted to correct, however it is only an issue with certain types of music. I am using a Dspeaker X4 room correction device to correct the problem when it bothers me, however that is quite infrequent. I agree they are excellent speakers.

Glad you are enjoying The Music. For me, it has been 10 years since I purchased them and have had no regrets at all. I think they would bring 10 more years of sheer joy. The mid-bass can be contoured to suit your room by mere millimetres of positioning. These micro adjustments pay hefty dividends in delivering a very balanced sound top to bottom.
Agree about the long break-in but once done, you never need to look elsewhere ever again. Cheers!

I purchased a pair of VA-The Music speakers about 18 months ago and must say I am extremely happy with them. Their coaxial midrange is spectacular. They have excellent bass and sometimes slightly heavy in the mid-bass, but they sure can put out the music. Nothing wimpy about them and for jazz and female voices they really shine. The only caveat, I will mention is that they have a long break in time.

I invested in a pair of meridian dsp 8000 with the se upgrade I’m sure I spent as much as the VA’s with quality components and I have to say that itch has been scratched. No doubt ‘die Musik’ is an amazing product for the money and one of the few passive speakers id consider.

There's a demo pair on sale from a European distributor on Ebay. I think USD15-16k.  Sounds too high especially since he told me freight by sea is cheapest option right now due to Covid and is 2,500. Does everyone still love them? 

VA gets it. I did try to replace my Beethoven with the Strauss and they did rock better, but I lost more resolution than I expected and low volume listening was less engaging. I let a pair of The Music get away last year for $10k plus shipping and I’m kicking myself for it.

As to the Liszt I would probably be smarter trying them since they probably would do better with my hegel h360, but I know if I liked them I would think the next step up would have to be better.

I listened to the Liszt at RMAF.  They were in the boulder room and I thought that was one of the better rooms at the show.  I would imagine that the Music would be even better.  VA has been spotty regarding their distribution in the U.S.  I do own the Liszt and there are only a handful of speakers I would consider making a change for. 

Hello Falconquest:

I have had the Vienna Acoustics- The Music since last December and must say I am most happy with them at this point, however I must say they have a long break in period for the bass side. The coaxial mid range speaker in the music center is pristine for female vocals and horns. Very smooth and dynamic. I power my speakers with Jeff Rowland equipment (925 monos, Chorus and PSU). All cables are Cardas and Shunyata. To me a great match of all cables and equipment.


Getting back to the basic question as to where they can be heard, I believe David Lewis Audio in Philadelphia has a pair on display. That is the dealer I purchased mine from and had a great experience dealing with them.


Sam

@samgar2
Could you share your impression of "The Music" now that you have had them a while?

I just purchased a pair of The Music speakers which are currently going through the break in period. I will tell you this, they are a full bodied speaker with tremendous sound. The sound from the coaxial music center which sits on top of the bass cabinet is phenomenal.

itsjustme, Thanks for your post. I have the Beethovens mk2 and the Strauss, the strauss use the same drivers as the mahlers with a single 11" eaton woofer I think. Is your Mahler the 1.5? I was surprised when comparing the beethoven to the strauss the music actually decides the better speaker and I'm hoping VA's statement product doesn't compromise. I sent audio consultants an email and will check them out soon.

WOW, Thanks for the replies! I went thru a situation when auditioning amps I found a hegel h360 that the dealer wouldn't budge on. I went in and showed them an online price for a 6 month old unit for $2500 below list and I told them I couldn't justify their retail price and could I pay them for their time, I think I offered them $500! as I was saving $2500 it eased my guilt, anyhow they refused but the owner came to me personally and we struck a deal on his demo that worked well for both of us. If audio consultants has the speakers i'll figure something out. In the meantime I picked up a pair of ushers on a whim and I didn't expect to be so taken by their sound. 
Contuzzi, I agree with part of your post, there are some new speakers that are exceptional sounding, but when it comes to resale a $30kspeaker is going to fetch more than a new $10k speaker  in the used market.

Audio Consultants in Evanston, IL has a pair of Vienna Acoustic The Music in their high end listening room powered (at the time) by a pair of Ayre monoblocks. They sounded pretty incredible to me. The only thing negative I can say is that this dealer doesn’t stream and is limited on demo music, so take your own CD or vinyl. 

Steve,It would be best to call the US distributor -- Bluebird Music. They can guide you regarding the nearest dealer who has these speakers available for an audition.

I can’t guide you to a local dealer, but I can comment that there seem to be very few, and even fewer that stock many of the range.

That said, i own the predecessor to the Music - the Mahler. They are superb; open, dynamic, uncolored, deep bass, extended highs. Excellent image. Like any highly resolving speaker, they are fussy - garbage in, garbage comes through clearly; so you need a good amp, preamp, source(s). Fortunately, one thing i have in triplicate is good electronics.

One person commented that distribution is weak, and resale therefore weak - true. I own them in part because they were more or less given up on - fussy, broken, expensive to fix, and i bought them at a steep discount and (mostly) fixed them. I do have one damaged driver to go... and they STILL sound superb.

All that said, I think they are probably well worth seeking out. There are few speakers that are sufficiently revealing for me to use for critical evaluations of other components, and at the same time be musical and involving enough to simply forget what I’m doing and lose myself in the music.

Not to be on a high horse, but be cautious about taking a dealer’s time to hear a huge investment, if you are shopping a used pair... not really fair and one reason there are fewer and fewer places to hear them.
Back to my strange bedfellows of Rubinstein playing the Moonlight, followed by LZII.

G

No need to apologize. I am objective about my equipment -- as I mentioned I have other speakers that I happen to love.
By the way, Roy Gregory did not make that comparison flippantly. He does not say that about other expensive speakers that he reviews.
If you cannot offer a useful reply the original poster's question, why come to the thread and dump all over Vienna Acoustics?The reason I chose the figure of $20K is because you said " you can buy a NEW speaker for the same price as a used Music, and likely end up with a better speaker with much better resale value".The used value of VA The Music is actually less than $15K -- I was being generous. If you know of full-range speakers that sell BRAND NEW for less than $15K and have the same build quality, performance and aesthetics as the VA Music, I am all ears. 

Yeah yeah... And Revel F208’s compete with 20k speakers, ELAC debut competes with thousand dollar speakers, Tekton DI competes with seventeen million dollar speakers, etc.

If you actually paid any attention to what I was saying, you would understand that I was in a way answering his question. They are nowhere to be found because the brand and/or US distributor does an atrocious job promoting them. I’d be surprised if Audio Consultants in Evanston even had them.

Get over yourself. Also, I would hope they can’t be touched by speakers less than $20k as they were priced above that. Not sure what the point of that statement was. Either way, I apologize for offending your speakers.

Contuzzi,
The original poster asked a specific question about where he could hear "The Music" speakers, not to hear your rant about how overpriced they are or how you can get better speakers for less than the used price of The Music. I have owned The Music in addition to other speakers in that price range. The build quality, performance and the adjustability of The Music speakers cannot be touched by speakers less than $20K. Read the well respected reviewer Roy Gregory's opinion -- he thinks The Music can easily compete with speakers that cost $75K!

Owned them. Loved them, but I think there is a reason they were a complete flop. They were over priced. I have liked almost every Vienna acoustic speaker I’ve heard, and I’ve owned a few. The problem with them is that they seem like a company that is about to go out of business any moment. There seems to be absolutely no motivation behind them. They came out with the new Grand SE line, and the Liszt -- and there has been absolutely no hype behind them at all.  The KISS was such an awesome speaker too.  Yet I wouldn't be surprised if they sold three pairs total (exaggerating of course).

They do a terrible job marketing their speakers. I’m not sure if they are just incredibly stingy with their dealers, or their US distributor is garbage, but the brand is about as poorly run/promoted as it gets.  The real problem is that with the way things are today, you can buy a NEW speaker for the same price as a used Music, and likely end up with a better speaker with much better resale value.