What's up with Talon?

Spoke with Mike recently and asked him that very question point blank....

Was told that the designer leaving (only one of several on staff) was VERY mutual and that it had more to do with differences in design and opinion then anything else. And that the decision for the designer to leave was made and implemented even before the Firehawk began; it just took a while to get to the public.

Mike's an amazingly good guy who has been going through some personal hell and is now, finally, ready to give his all to Talon with no distractions.

Plus, apparantly he has some financial backing for the company that is strong, suportive and very interested in seeing him succeed.

He made it very clear that Talon is here for the long haul and is already working towards long term plans, new (even better) speakers and loftier goals.

Watch out Logan and Wilson, here comes Talon!!!

How would the contributors to this thread compare Talon firehawks to comparably priced speakers of other well known companies? It sounds that they are technologically as advanced as any brand out there, but I have not heard a lot about them, nor are there many in the "virtual systems". There are 2 pairs of the firehawk diamonds currently for sale here, as well as a non diamond firehawk and the prices seem reasonable given the price for a new pair.

The hallmark of Talon speakers is dynamics. They are amazing performers with pretty much anything, but the floorstanders, especially, have lower frequency extension that rivals speakers twice their size and cost.

I do not have extensive experience with the different models, just the Hawks and the Firebirds. You might want to E-mail "Bigkids" directly as I think he has heard most of the line based on his writtings in these chat groups....

You will get slightly different sound from other speakers, but not better sound. Kharma's may be a bit better for jazz and small quartet, Wilsons may be better at large scale orchestral, and there are so many other great manufacturers it's crazy. Truthfully, they are all so good it's scary. Try to find the speaker that suits your needs best, then mate it with an amp and pre-amp that suite the speakers and your style well, and then make sure your wife won't throw you out of the house when she sees it all!!!

Happy listening.

Talon Audio, upon losing their former head of design, Tierry Budge, apparently has had to take a new look at their business model and product line. I was curious to see what their new speaker, the Firehawk, would sound like at the HE2005 show, especially in the areas of deep bass reproduction and dynamics. Much to my disappointment, when I auditioned (of all things) a "Kenny G" song (done with Toni Braxton, called "That Somebody Was You"), in which deep bass abounds, there was none to be had. To my understanding, this was supposed to be a new "statement" loudspeaker, but to my ears, it did not deliver. In the meantime, Tierry went on to a new company called Escalante Design, whose speakers are already garnering rave reviews. I have heard Escalante's speakers, and am extremely impressed; all the more significant when you consider that I CURRENTLY own: Genesis Vs, Talon Khoruses, Apogee Duettas, Snell B Minors, Ohm Walsh 4s, and various other speakers and subwoofers. What can I say? I like to play with speakers...but I will be getting rid of some of them in the near future, after my Escalantes arrive. As they used to say in Marvel comics: "'Nuff said."

I am a fellow Talon owner and a word of note/caution to prospective buyers. I don't know that the status of Talon is at the moment but if I was looking to purchase their product, I would be wary. I spoke with Mike Farnsworth 2 weeks ago because I had a bad tweeter in one of my Khorus X. At that time I also asked him about what center channel speaker and he said that he had a Peregrine X center channel that was just traded in. He offered it to me at a pretty good price and I agreed to purchase it. Well I sent them a check that they cashed back on Nov. 2 and still no speaker. However, what is more disturbing is that all my emails and phone calls have gone unanswered. I have been unable to contact anyone at Talon for over two weeks. When you call their main number you are presented with two options (1 Sales, 2 Support). Option 1 brings you to basically a distributer that is located in Ohio. They just take the orders and forward them along to Talon. At least that's what the person who answered the call told me. I've been leaving messages and send emails to mike@talonaudio.com all with no response.

This is pretty surprising because in past conversations Mike was very helpful and courteous on the phone. I'm not sure what to make of it all. I'm at the point now where I'm drafting a formal letter of complaint that I will send via certified mail. I will give Mike and Talon 10 days to respond and remedy this situation, after which I will file complaints with the Better Business Bureau, the Consumer Protection Agency, and the FTC under the 'Little Acts' guidelines. Finally, if it comes down to it, I will seek legal action.

I still have hope that this is all just some mixup and that perhaps Mike has been travelling the past few weeks. However, if they have time to cash a check they should be able to also have the time to ship the product.

Just one consumer's story.