Reference 3A line updated
Rebbi, I think I'm disappointed in 3A. I just looked on their website. Their speakers are ugly now. Do not want prison grey! I was seriously considering buying a pair of the Dulcets in high gloss red maple. But besides the ugly concrete grey I am also very skeptical of the new tweeter. There was no reason to upgrade as they were getting rave reviews the way they were. I have a feeling 3A is going for more definition and clarity like everyone else in the industry seems to be doing these days. Chasing that elusive goal of trying to give us more. Usually in this process it just means a brighter and more fatiguing sound for us. I think I'll try to grab a pair of the old Dulcets before they're gone. |
Mezzanine, I think they are convinced that the Nextel really does something for the sound and they decided to go with that conviction for the whole line. Yeah, if you can get a pair of the Dulcets in one of the wood finishes, go for it. Maybe Reference 3A still has some of those cabinets in stock. I when I had mine they were gloss black and looked gorgeous. As for the BE tweeter, I'm curious to see how they sound. Wish I could get to Vegas for THE Show, but I just can't. |
I was lucky enough to grab a used pair of De Capo i in high gloss red cherry from a member here on Audiogon. According to the seller, who owned them for less than 6 months told me they were of a late production, 2010/2011? When I unpacked them, I was quite taken by the lustrous finish, the black drivers and brass screws gives out a nice contrast against the high gloss finish. I'm also curious to hear any feedbacks from anyone attending THe Show! |
After months of research for efficient bookshelf speakers, I was ready to pull the trigger on the DeCapos. That is until I saw the new line. The tweeter and extra bracing are nice upgrades. Far more important than the exterior coating. Curious why they decided not to incorporate the tweeter lens like the Nefes speaker. For me, the Nextel gray aesthetic is a deal breaker. There is no way I would put those ugly gray speakers in my living room. Maybe in a studio, but IMO the gray is truly ugly. If they offered them in other colors - maybe. I prefer veneers or better cabinet material not just a one color exterior coating. I'll guess I'll have to pay more attention to used. |
Catama, I was in touch with Tash at Reference 3A earlier in the week and it turns out that upgrade parts (like the new, beryllium tweeter) are available to end-users to upgrade their speakers. So all is not lost if you decide to go the upgrade route, eventually. Don't get me wrong  your new speakers are wonderful as they are. |
Just heard from Ref 3A that it'll be a few weeks before the tweeters can be shipped because their tweeter supplier is behind schedule and they Ref 3A needs to get new speaker stock to their distributors first. So, good things come to those who wait. Good folks, though; I've no doubt they'll come through ASAP. |
I scored a mint condition set of the Beethoven piano concertos on Columbia Odyssey records with Glenn Gould at the piano and Leonard Bernstein/Leopold Stowkowski conducting various orchestras. Through the de capos these records sound magnificent. The de capos do piano extremely well. They are also very good with acoustic music and jazz. Just can't say enough good things about them. |
Glad you feel the same way Rebbi. Yesterday I was listening to Yehudi Menuin and Ravi Shankar on an album calles East Meets West. Shankar's sitar reverberated through the room and Menuin's violin sounded like it was right next to my right ear. Absolutely marvelous. Can't wait to hear how your upgrade goes. May follow your lead if it goes well and easily done. |
Here's a report by Scott Hull of parttimeaudiophile.com on the Ref 3A room at THE Show in Las Vegas. Apparently, the BE tweeter was added to the line because the Murata super tweeter from the Grand Veena and Episode is no longer made. Interesting read. |
Wow, this looks exiting. I have a pair of GV's powered with either the AQ1006's or Hurricanes'. They are awesome in every respect. With an asking price of around 5 - 4.5K used, they are the deal of some proportion! The new lineup looks fantastic. If they out perform the GV's... it will be beyond words, maybe I could paint a picture to relay my thoughts;) I just bought a pair of PMC FB1i's for a smaller second system for some reason, I have always wanted a pair of PMC's; it may have been a mistake. In a word they are quite good for what they are, though expensive. Compared to the GV's they lack badly. Should have picked up the Episode! |
Aprica88: They may not yet have an MSRP for the Sema... I don't know if it's in production yet. But generally speaking they offer free shipping, a small discount, and a 3 week in home evaluation period to customers who don't have a local dealer. Also, if you decide to move up the line within 3 months, they'll give you full price paid toward a your new model. |
Okay, new, beryllium tweeters have been installed in my De Capo's! The slightest bit tricky in a couple of ways so that I called to get advice. But really not very difficult at all as long as you can handle a soldering iron enough to attach the new tweeters. Only had the briefest few minutes to listen to them after installing them. They sounded great, but I will put off posting about the change until after they've had some time to settle in. I think that Reference 3A puts something like 75 hours on all their drivers so that they can more accurately match them in pairs. Presumably, then, these tweeters have had that much time on them, and given that the rest of the speaker, including the main driver, is already very well broken in, it shouldn't take all that long I would think for things to settle down. Impressions coming soon. |
I purchased a pair of the latest back in August after a 3 week audition and have commented on other threads of my early impressions. Actually the finish is very neutral and doesn't bring attention to itself. What is more interesting is that there isn't more emphasis on what really sticks out like a sore thumb, the white acoustic lens, why not grey or black so it is less noticable? In any case these speakers have set a benchmark for me in what one can expect from a monitor speaker at their price and way above. I listen to all genres of music. The gestalt of an orchestra, the intimacy of a solo singer, the joy of a solo piano performance, try Murray Perahia's "The Aldenburgh Recital" List Hungarian Rhaposodie #12. These speakers are just so convincingly musical, dynamic, resolving and just "right" sounding. Don't be put off by the "ugly" unless beautiful wood veeners are your Raison d'ĂȘtre for ownership, they're much deeper than their looks. I haven't heard any of the previous models. Maybe Tash might consider some color other than white for the acoustic lens? |
