Whats your opinion of modern horn loudspeakers?

I heard nice sound in the Acapella room at CES. They are a very new design, something called spherical horns.

As a rule I don't like horns, but these were very high quality and did some amazing things.

Acapella

Albert have you heard Avantgarde, Oris or Azura horns? Also Doc Edgars? Any Back horns like Cain&Cain etc. You did the show pictures correct? If so very nice work.

Johnk,

Yes I have heard the Avantgarde, Oris and Azura horns and the Edgars. All are different from each other and from other speaker designs. Although they do some things very well, there is a particular, easily identifiable personality all these imprint onto the music.

All speakers have a personality and none are perfect, but for me the horn design is much more obvious and therefore more difficult to listen past.

If your playing Miles Davis and listening for accuracy of his horn playing, they excel, perhaps even the best possible reproduction. If your listening to female vocal or piano, the sound is not as pleasing as could be obtained by other speaker designs. (My opinion only).

The Acapella seems to be less effected by this phenomenon, perhaps a change in crossover design, driver design, or just excellence in execution.

That being said, I mention the Acapella only to show there are exceptions to the rule, even for those who prefer other designs. In spite of my admiration, I would not consider them for my personal reference system.

Thanks for the compliment on my show images, I hope Audiogon continues to see value in posting them on their site.

I've heard some pricey offerings from Zingali, Avantgarde & Odeon. While I like many aspects about each, I still prefer the sound of a vintage Klipsch. Not perfect (no speaker is IMO}, but to my ear, they have zippo personality.

I am a huge fan of horn speakers for P.A. work in live performance spaces, movie theaters, bars, dance clubs, etc. They have a dynamic vitality, and the ability to broadcast it into large spaces full of people that I've never heard equalled by any other type of loudspeaker. However, even the best betray the fact that they are horns in a home music reproduction environment. By this I mean that I can readily tell that I'm listening through a horn because it has a sort of shouty, echoey sound, particularly with voices. Some have more, some have less, but all seem to have it to some degree. Therefore, despite their obvious superiority in some respects, I prefer other types of speakers for enjoyment of music in my home.