Line Arrays - Competitive with best dynanics, ESL?

I love the Dali and the Kharma. Without a doubt the best two best sounding rigs of all my friends and contacts.

The guy that has the Kharma Exquisite owned the Dynaudio Evidence a couple of years ago and I could live with that speaker too. It was amazing when it was powered with Audio Research Ref 600 Mk. lll mono blocks. (Same speakers sounded horrible at the New York show last year.)

The Wilson are in a (literally) million dollar system and the worst sound for the money I have ever heard. Of course I don't like his source, choice of components, interconnect or speaker wire, or his set up, so no big surprise. It's not the Wilson fault but it certainly keeps me from having any interest in them.

Another friend in my group has Wilson Watt puppies and his creams the million dollar rig, so set up and associated gear is a big deal with the Wilsons.

The Kharma Exquisites are in a A+ room and the system is identical to mine. Walker TT, Koetsu, Aesthetix Io, Aesthetix Callisto (both Signature versions with dual power supplies) and all Purist Dominus.

When this system is right, I will enjoy it every bit as much as my own. I know what the Kharma Exquisite can do.

Truth is though, until (and unless) his system gets amazingly better I am happy right where I am. I currently prefer my Megalines and they are $68K less money. Good thing, because I cannot afford $110K speakers anyway.

As for GR Research, it's Danny' Ritchie's company:

http://www.gr-research.com/discontinued/alpha.htm

The link is to his archived images of the line source. He has none in stock and waiting for the new BG and Peerless drivers. Appearance will be similar with one model shorter and one the size and equal number of drivers as the Dali Megaline (but without electronic crossover). See link below for his other design, the Epiphany 20-21.

Audiogon show coverage, Epiphany here:

http://events.audiogon.com/i/dn2004/f/1098460988.jpg

Danny's speakers will be the one to beat for the dollar. They are dynamic, efficient and VERY cost effective. If they are priced anywhere near what Danny is projecting, his new line source will be less than half the cost of anything remotely close.

Good news for Audiophiles :^).

A multichannel format that I am very interested in is 2+2+2 (instead of 5.1). This uses High and Low (position) speakers for the Left and Right front, and is advocated by the MDG label. (Center and Subwoofer channels are used for the high speakers). Supposedly it contributes strong height information to the sound field. A line array could be wired up so that the drivers were fed High signal at the top, and Low signal at the bottom, with a variable range in between. I will have to try that when I build mine.

Hi Albert,

Not sure if you'll see this thread (as it's over 2 years old...) but...

Having totally forgotten about this thread, completely coincidentally I ordered GR Research LS6 line arrays a couple months ago. I'm on the AV123 preorder list for a pair in piano black, and I'm hoping they will be shipping within the next couple of months.

The funny thing, is that 2 years ago you happened to recommend looking into what Danny was doing... and now, completely unrelated to your advice, I happened to stumble on this thread again, and saw your advice to look into Danny's designs.

After 2 years of research and auditioning since this thread, these are what I've landed on. I'm excited to hear them.

I have not seen or heard that new speaker design, but I'll bet you made a good decision. Please post results when they get some hours on them, I would love to know how they compare with what you had.

If travel ever brings you my way, give me a call. You can listen to the Dali's.

I have the prototypes of the LS-6 and have been living with them for about 6 months now....you've made an excellent choice!