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Revel Salons - Do they really sound like this?

I've been entertaining the idea of a speaker change lately. Not that I'm unhappy with my system. I just thought I might try something new for a change. Lots of people rave about the Revels so I went to my local dealer to hear the Salons. Associated equipment were 2 Levinson 436 monos, the latest Hovland preamp, and the new Ayre cd player. Transparent reference cables throughout. This audition turned out to be a big letdown. Im not trying to bash the speakers, I'm just looking for a little insight. The room was about 35X20. The speakers were set up parallel with the long wall. They were about 10ft in from the back wall and 5ft from the sidewalls with no toe-in. I was sitting back about 8ft centered perfectly and there were large acoustic panels on every wall across the room spaced about 2 ft apart. There were no defined images, the sound seemed to come from all over the room. The mid and high frequencies were very laid back which was non-fatiguing but to such an extreme that it was almost lifeless. I couldn't make out details on music that I was familiar with, it was almost as if there was a veil over the sound, and the bass wasn't that great either. Im thinking for 17 large, there must be something wrong with the setup. I use Dunlavys with Pass gear and the imaging is pinpoint. I can hear a vocalist take a breath. I can even hear Daina Kralls lips come apart before she starts to sing. I figured I would try and explain what I wasn't hearing to the sales rep so he could mabye change something and he looks at me and says, "Have you had your ears checked recently." I was absolutely floored. I did bite my tongue however and left quietly with a poor opinion of the salesman and the speakers. I came home and thought I might ask the fellow goners their opinion of the Revel Salons.
cmpromo
piezo
304 posts
 
i auditioned salons with a levison reference set up using all transparent reference xl cables and while it sounded good there is no way i would trade my dunlavy/vtl set up (wired with harmonic tech) for it other than to make a quick profit and then go back to dunlavy and VTL. way more air with my set up and imaging to die for. Keep what ya got would be my suggestion
raquel
841 posts
 
Dear Cmpromo:

I neglected to mention that there seems to be some concensus in the threads that the Salons pair really well with Pass amplification (one thread in particular suggests that the Classe Omega and Pass mono amps are really, really good matches).

I also note that my friend who went from SC-V's to Salons uses Transparent cabling with great success (albeit with very different electronics than what you demo`d Salons with).

Good luck.
cincy_bob
270 posts
 
Cmpromo -

I am the friend to whom "Raquel" referred in his/her post (he's confused). I sold my Dunlavy SC-Vs about 15 months ago and bought a pair of Salons that I am currently running with CAT JL-1 Limited Edition monoblocks. I have been very pleased with the upgrade in sound quality I achieved as a result. The Salons bettered the performance of the Dunlavys in a number of areas:

1. Transparency - The Salons exhibit more detail and provide a more transparent view into the soundstage.

2. Treble response - The front and rear firing tweeters in the Salons provide substantially more treble energy than did the silk dome tweeters on my SC-Vs. To my ears, I found the resulting sound to be more "right" and true to the live experience with, for example, the shimmer on well recorded jazz cymbals.

3. Bass response - The Salons provide more and better bass extension. The Salons literally measure perfectly flat at 20Hz in my room (with the help of a small boost from a room node). The low bass response of the Salons is flat in its own right down to about 25Hz if my memory serves me.

The soundstaging of the Salons is very good. It certainly equaled the soundstaging capabilities of my SC-Vs. As mentioned in the threads above, the Salons are exceptionally revealing of the nuances and inner details of the music. As a result, when paired with the right electronics, you will have no problem hearing all the intimate details of the Diana Krall recording you mentioned. At the same time, any weaknesses in source electronics will be unflatteringly displayed. The Salons are exceptionally accurate and revealing of every element of their source signal.

There was definitely something wrong with the break-in, warm-up and/or set-up of the system you heard. I agree with an earlier post that the diffuse presentation and lack of soundstage sounds like the system was wired out of phase. The lack of treble energy you experienced is a mystery. If anything, some people find the Salons to be too bright (especially if paired with the wrong solid state amps). They are certainly not shelved down in their treble response. Also, the Salon's bass is very impressive, and it should have struck you that way.

If I remember correctly, Anthony Cordesman ran his Salons with big Pass amps. So I suspect the Salons would pair well with your Pass electronics.

One final note: I am currently using Transparent cables in my system. As a result, I can tell you that there is no inherent synergy issue between the Transparents and the Salons. What I do not know is how the Transparents pair with Levinson electronics and whether a synergy problem was introduced with that combination. (I doubt it.)

You should give these speakers another chance. Despite the large price tag, they are a very good value.

FYI, I am a hobbyist. I have no affiliation with Revel or any audio industry players.
sidssp
1,077 posts
 
It sounds to me one side has the phase reversed. I would check the speaker cable connections.
kr4's avatar
kr4
3,651 posts
 
In a room of those dimensions and with the described setup and listening position, toe-in is mandatory. You are sitting off axis and too much HF energy is being absorbed by the sidewall treatment. I have heard them toed-in severely, a la Blumlein, from a listening distance of 6ft and the imaging was excellent.

Borrow them and/or try another demo setup.

Kal
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