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Are Ohm-Walsh micros and 1000 series disrespected because of omni-directional design??

I never was a big fan of Omni-directional speakers because they are often disappointing.  I don't need the sound in back of me or 2 foot to my right or left.  However, I have seen many testimonials for Ohm -Walsh speaker on Audiogon, yet they are infrequently reviewed. 

Therefore, are Ohm-Walsh speakers disrespected because of  their Omni directional design??. I  noticed two issues on their website: 1) how do your determine which micro or tall column will be compatible for the dimensions of your listening area, especially if your listening area is only part of a larger room. 2)  A  buyer can easily mistake  the way they are priced. For example, the OW Talls (w-1000)  are $ 1000 each, NOT $1000 FOR THE PAIR.  So, that model is $2000 a pair, and there is lot of competition from conventional designed speaker, in that price category For example. the Golden Ear Technology. model 7, and the Magneplanar .07 both in the $1400-1500 price range and, some of the PSB towers, like the T-2 or T-3. or Monitor Audio recent series.. 

Would like some feedback about whether this Ohm-Wash design is disrespected  by the major audio press. Are  hardcore audiophile not convinced by the Omni-directional design and results, and so it never gets a f"air shake or serious audition,

sunnyjim
jbmays
7 posts
 
As a newcomer to mid-hi-fi sound in 1983, I stumbled onto a pair of Ohm Walsh-4's that were just a year old, and picked them up.  Fed them a diet of NAD 2400 power amp 100 w or dual-bridged 240 w juice, and no matter what, they filled a fairly large listening room magnificently.

For those who have not seen them, the early Walsh series have dense felt baffles over the outer/rear dispersion fields, so that they are somewhat directional, even though the mid/woofer drivers want to disperse omidirectionally through their upward-facing perforated metal cages. And their tweeters are angled at approximately 45 degrees toward midline.

They were the finest all-around speakers I have had until at age 10 the spider membranes crapped out and they lost most of their awesome bass.

The concept of the Walsh design is great.  Waiting for a bit of cash to return the driver units to Brooklyn for a rebuild.

bondmanp
1,820 posts
 

jbmays - IMHO, a rebuild will be well worth it.  Ohm has improved the quality of the materials used, and the life of the Ohm Walsh drivers, at least the current models, is estimated by Ohm to be 40-50 years before repairs will be needed due to normal useage.


jwatsonnj - I do in fact run my Ohm Walsh 2000s with a pair of Vandersteen 2Wq subs.  Pure heaven!  And I am also in NJ.  What exit are you?

finsup
289 posts
 
Not sure if sunnyjim has left the building but one additional thing I appreciate about these speakers is that, after owning a few other speakers, the Walsh Ohms have educated me in the importance of actually enjoying music.  I have owned very detailed speakers.  Uber-detail will be fine for some, but I do wonder, at the risk of sounding cliche, if they really enjoy their music or simply enjoy listening to their system. 
sunnyjim OP
927 posts
 

finsup....Yes,, I am still in the building or should I say audio asylum (LOL)   You make a very important about the issue of  listening to the system or just enjoying the music. However, if what a listener  hears is edgy in the highs, jumbled in the midrange on crescendo's, and raucous rock finales, or an a noticeable. incoherentcy  of musical presentation across the board, then the listener may feel intuitively that it does not  satisfy his general expectation. Without having to employ cornball  cliques: you may not get that "peaceful easy feeling" from the music you worked to achieve.

This is NOT necessarily abdicating the music for some ideal of musical perfection by technological whizzerty . The "two" are tied and intertwined  too closely together. This does not mean every listening  session is a flop by not delivering that so called "peaceful easy feeling" because there are too many parameters that go into the a natural, or musical  presentation of the medium; that is, from electrical hash in the AC outlet, or a disgruntled partner who just does not like the look,  color,and shape of the speaker in the living room.

I think audiophiles or aspiring audiophiles who put in the hours of research, and trial and error auditioning realize listening to music requires a high degree of concentration so as to enter the flow of the music played, and the potential genius inherent in its structure. This focus is not some elitist pretension that many non audiophiles contend and accuse us;  but, for the record, casual listeners, or listening while you work, or listeners passing through the room on the way to the  kitchen or bathroom are at a deficit. I don't hear a thing when I listen casually or distracted, so I listen alone. No playing slap and tickle with the girlfriend,  or watching the last segment of Dr. Phil while Beethoven,or the Allman brothers are wailing away  at the peak of their musical creation. 

I think you point deserves a separate thread, and I am sure the divergence of opinion will be great and  at times caustic. Thanks for the comment!! 

finsup
289 posts
 
To construe what I wrote as a suggestion that these speakers don't allow you to hear into the music, I think you may have misunderstood, but then it seems as if you prefer the traditional presentation of monopole speakers and are partial to very analytical speakers.  I'll offer that these are not the type of speakers that will allow you to hear the second violinist pass gas.  Sorry for the crudity. So, yes, they do lack the resolution you'll find in other speakers. What they do well is render a smooth, coherent presentation.

As to your specific misgiving that these speakers might play some kind of "parlor trick" and that the sound was "around the listener, was not distinct or detailed, and kind of amorphous or nonspecific in imaging or sound staging", then I think your misgivings are misplaced.  

Still, what you want to do -  concentrate so as to enter the flow of the music played - is not what I look for in a speaker which is to enjoy music and appreciate the perspective the Ohm Walsh lays out. Neither approach is wrong, but I read of incessant audiophile- nervosa on these forums and am grateful I am not so afflicted. 

As to your subject title, it may be that Ohm Walsh speakers are not so much disrespected as to being misunderstood.

Best wishes on your journey!
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