I know I’m getting sucked in by a guy who writes like a 7 year old. For that reason alone I’m a fool. There comes a time though when nonsense requires confrontation. As a SF Olympica iii owner, I know first hand just how monumentally off base cj is re: the quality of the more modern SF products. The upper end products are produced by hand in Italy. The materials incorporated in the build and design of the Olympica are world class and uncompromisingly beautiful. Fit and finish is perfect. I’ve read the side walls of the speakers are a walnut laminate over mdf, no surprise there: wood laminates are structurally superior to solid wood. Laminated wood products are used extensively in furniture, building materials, and flooring (as examples) due to structural stability and as substrates to accept a variety of finish veneers. Compared to older SF models, do the more recent iterations sound different? Geez, I would hope so! Different design teams, different ownership, maybe even a different targeted customer base. If my Oly iii’s sounded any warmer or richer I’d probably sell them. They are a great blend of old and new imho. If I want a more ‘traditional’ sounding SF, I’ll buy a pair! It’s not as though they aren’t available.
I’ve spent too much time reading about speakers lately; to learn, fantasy shop, maybe even to change speakers. I enjoy reading pro and owner reviews, it’s entertaining! I can afford to purchase just about anything I read about, though six figure speakers need not apply - I just feel it would be an example of irresponsible and conspicuous consumption in my part to even consider speakers in that price range.
I’ve auditioned speakers in shops, I’ve talked with shop owners whose opinions I respect. I’ve talked with manufacturers and distributors. I’ve owned probably a dozen different manufacturers over the last 40 years. Why haven’t I dumped these new fangled, poorly constructed, non SF sounding speakers? Well: great blend of warmth and detail, gorgeous to look at, huge soundstage, perfect size, not too heavy but very substantial, fantastic fit and finish, extremely easy to just sit and and listen get lost in the music. And that’s just a beginning.
This thread is a perfect example of irresponsible reporting and a reason I don’t post often. There’s an incredible amount of immature, agenda driven, nonsense based posting that it just degrades the whole point of the forums.
