Anyone have thoughts on the Peak Consult Zoltans?

I would also note that Stereovox is the Peak importer! DUH.

I am not saying that just the Zoltan is overpriced but many similar speakers are! I have also posted a similar post to the WP 8. The WP 7 were $22,000.00 now they are $28,000.00
if you figure that the new tweeters cost a bit more it still doesn't add up to that major a price increase to cover the raw parts!

Companies like USHER and many others are building statement products that are priced resonably and not based on the "well it sounds as good as something else in that price point" so we will price it the accordingly!

The WP the Zoltan the Verity, JM Labs, Avalon, Kharmas, are all very fine products but whose prices are getting way out of hand, if you add up the driver costs, factor in cabinet construction and add a fair mark up it is is still way out of hand, how many poor Mormon speaker builders are running companies with such a low mark up the can drive a Ferrari?

What I am rallying for is for people to wake up and not subscribe to the audio snobisim which is making this hobby unaffordable except for the uber wealthy which is why I sell Usher and Cayin, Nuforce, and Plinius, etc and many of the other brands that I sell and endorse because the level of sounnd quality and engineering suport it!

and at the crack of Ferrari at Toyota prices. Any good car builder can take a $25,000 mass produced Japanese car and put $25,000 or so into it and bury a Ferrari! NO it won't get you laid like a Ferrari, or be as sexy but speed it what it is about. My buddy took a 1989 Ford 2.3 litter car and put about $25,000 into it and that same car does generates 660 hp on a dyno and it will on a track out run a $130,000 Ferrari in a quarter mile run!

Yes go ahead and snicker but that is exactly the point I am rallying for great sound that won't put you in the poor house because the product has a name or has garnished good reviews. Look at the technology and the build quality and then give it a good listen there are scores of smaller and not as well companies in this industry that make unbelievable products that are affordable.

If we were all to sucumb to the name recoginition and pure review thing there never would have been a Mark Levinson, Krell, Ayre, Audio Reserach, CJ etc. Every gold label company at one time was new and unknown and through the sprit of competition and market persistantce grew to become the companies they are today, but as Preston Tucker erronously thought, if you build a better product and price it fairly the world will beat a path to your door.

I guess if you want to be taken seriously in this industry you must price everything in the tens of thousands price range then stand back and watch the people get impressed.

Have you guys read the Martin Collums review? I have (I live in UK) and it's not glowing. I put that down to the general standard of UK 'Hi-Fi' mag reviews - I try and look towards US press for more reliable reporting.
I'm at the point of putting the money down for a pair of InCognito X's, MC said the Zoltan was dynamically slow and has a distant sound... although he did also say his listening room could have been bigger which might have helped

The difference, Audiooracle, is that Speedy knew ahead of time that I was the importer because I introduced myself to him that way on a previous thread. The fact remains that Usher and other Chinese-made speakers are fabulous - for what they are: great for the money, but not competitive at the highest levels. And while it is nice that you and many others are so enthusiastic about Usher, it remains that Usher has not performed at the level of achievement of those whose heels Usher imagines it is sniping at. There may come a day when Usher will design and build a truly world-class loudspeaker able to compete at the highest levels. For now, they are simply a budget alternative. The Ford on a Dyno is a perfect example: it may have the horsepower, but it will never have the build quality, the handling, the aesthetic, the heritage, and the entire scope of high performance (not simply horsepower) of the Ferrari. Usher has carved out its niche, and they make a wonderful budget speaker - But Usher simply doesn't have the chops to compete at the highest levels of the discipline. There is a vast difference between a Great Loudspeaker and a Great Loudspeaker for the Money - and Usher can very proudly claim the latter, but is excluded from the former.

I believe another issue is the cost of manufacture,where each "local area" will determine pricing.Does the manufacturer offer med insurance/work conditions/vacation/general wages etc!We have all heard sad stories regarding the salaries of some far eastern laborers.I hope this is not the case with companies like Usher,where I'm sure it's corporate owners CAN drive pricey autos,but how about the folks actually making the products?This ALL makes a difference,to me, when making a buying decision.Also,I DO like to think about my satisfaction level,about five to ten years out!My Ascents are fifteen years old(I have maintained them to a "flawless" museum quality standard,as they look absolutely new)yet a consideration important to me,when buying,and pointed out by my dealer,was the "HEIRLOOM" factor.This has held true,fortunately, for me.

Audiooracle means well,and has an understandable agenda.The speakers are probably just fine.
Stereovox was invited,by me,to respond to some questions a month ago,and has been nothing but professional.That too lends an aura to the products he represents.Even if Martin Colloms did not care for the Zoltans,it means nothing!!I simply must hearit for myself!!HMM
Best!

Boy Stereovox, I'm glad you believe in your products, but your condescending line that Chinesse made products can no way compete with the European or American products is the stuff of the uninformed and xenophobic.

The world has changed, remember that some thirty years ago "made in Japan" was a euphomisim for the shotty and cheap? Now made in Japan is synonomous with superior quality!

I judge a product by its' technical merits and by its' build and enginnering quality, not by where it is made and its snob appeal.

Usher has not been well known outside of Asia due to poor represenation, not becuause the products they build aren't world class. The reason Usher can build the products they do is that Usher is a $70,000,000.00! company!

Usher is the Asian version of B&W! Usher builds the only beryillium midrange driver currently available and they make their own beryillium tweeter as well.

The humility of Usher is evidenced by the fact that if they can find a better driver than what they themselves can build they will buy it, even when the driver is quite expensive. The BE series uses the same Eaton of Germany woofers that Kharma and Marten design use!
Usher also hired one of the most talented crossover designers around, Dr. Joseph D'Appolito.

You may be misunderstanding my position, I am leading audio's next generation. I am finding companies whose products are as good as anything currently available for less money because of what they produce and how they produce it.

For both American and European manufacters the time to laze about in the sun is over! For audio as well as for most industries. The quality of Chinese made goods will force many European and American companies into smaller and smaller production runs for more and more money!

You can't fight the future but to join with the inevitable, Chinese goods will continue to either directly or indirectly take over many industries.

I carry products from all over the globe: Denmark, France, Japan, England, Scottland, Israel, New Zealand, and of course the United States, and China both main land and Taiwan which has for many years produced extremely high quality goods. Usher is Taiwanese, not Chinese by the way!

My view is to bring the cost of great audio down to more and more people, so I will champion great products where ever they are made.

So how about this I will bring my cheapie, 300lb hand made beryillium and Eaton drivered $16,800.00 a pair BE 20 to compete with your $35,000.00 Peak audio Zoltan's any day of the week. Lets do the shoot out and see how many people will buy which product.

I will and have to side in some way with sirspeedy, about working conditions in China but how does one know what the working conditions are in any other countries factories. and etc.

Yes sir speedy Sterovox is passionate and he believes in his products, and I believe in mine. You as an educated consumer need to listen and hear the merits of a particular product and make the best decision you can/ Don't be swayed just by the press or by price, let the music be your guide.