It's a pleasure to read and hear the different voices and perceptions on Dr. Sanders' ESL engineering. We currently use the Eros in our main system, driven by Henry Wolcott's CA-250 tube monoblocks. They do 225Watts per side and drive the Eros quite beautifully overall. I listened to various traditional cone drivers and electrostats over the years, including SoundLabs. Although the Eros are comparatively impeccable in woofer/esl integration and synchronicity of performance to the music, they do have an unbelievably acute sweet spot. But the engineer himself confesses to this trade-off.
As has been expressed already: Dr. Sanders -- the dedicated engineer and frank human being that he is -- reveals that life has its compromises. When I sit and listen to a beautiful piece by Miles Davis or the stunning vocal range of Renee Fleming, I listen in awe at the sonic precision. However, one can not get something for nothing.
My neck and head take quite the strain sometimes; but, imagine a fighter jet pilot or a formula one driver: cutting-edge high performance can tax the human body, whether it be a pilot pulling nauseating g's, a formula one driver forced into a cockpit smaller than an oil barrel, or a listener whose system requires that his head remain in a vise grip. Beautiful engineering, bleeding-edge performance: Costly demands.
Cheers and happy listening to all. Long live audio engineering in advancement of the Sciences & Arts!