Daedalus Audio DA-1

I'm very intrigued. Looking over the website I see speakers with an absolutely lovely real wood finish and an interesting design philosophy. Barrelchief, how is the break in going? I'd really appreciate a review if you have the time to write one. Thanks!

I believe the digital source used at RMAF was a ModWright Denon "tubed" 3910.

By no means am I anywhere near the recommended 300 hours for 100% break-in. However, with the relatively little amount of play that my DA-1's have had, they sound very nice.

I don't know that I will have the time for a formal "review." However, I can check in with updates as they continue to break in.

These speakers definitley have a "lively" sound that I find brings a natural realism to much of what I have played through them.

The thing that I find I enjoy the most so far, is that I am not feeling the need to listen "analytically." I realy am just enjoying the music. After spinning in circles on this audio-go-round, to me, this is what it is all about.

One thing for sure...these speakers really shine with "live" recordings. The DA-1's really nail the "live" energy.

Yes, the cabinet work is a true carftsmanship that I have never seen before in home audio speakers. If you have an appreciation for that kind of thing/detail, that in itself really makes these speakers something impressive and special.

Regarding Lou having his Daedalus DA-1's at the RMAF at least two times, I cannot beleive that there is not more chat/exposure/buzz out there (good or bad) regarding these speakers.

Thanks Barrelchief for checking in with a progress report. I would be very interested in future updates as the speakers break in and certainly a full review if you can muster one. Can you give us some perspective by talking about the equipment you are using in front of the DA-1's and the room you are listening in? I am also particularly interested whether "lively" turns out to also mean "aggressive" sounding as in forward and/or tilted up in the mid/highs. According to what I have read the DA-1's apparently are able to be both listenable (i.e. non-fatiguing) and dynamic at the same time. Have you found this to be the case?

I will just add my 2 cents. I purchased the DA-1 about 3 months back directly from Daedalus Audio. These were the demo pair of Lou and he mentioned that they were moderately broken in. The fit and finish of these speakers is fantastic and really like the looks of.
I listen to them for a couple of days and I was not very impressed by them. The speaker sounded very closed in and was lacking in high frequency extention. My initial doubt was that the tweeters were damaged during transit but both the speakers were sounding alike. I had numerous conversations with Lou and was at a point of returning them back.
Over the next couple of weeks I left the spks to breakin on and off whenever it was possible and to my astonishment these spks really came alive, after about 300+ hrs of breaking. The HF extentions, midrange and bass become more defined and what is so special about these spks is that it allows you to listen to any type of music for hours without fatigue. They are as dynamic as my previous spks (AG Unos) and can be driven by a 8W SET amp or a 200W SS amp without any problems.
My system consist of AA Capitol II directly driving a either a 8 W SET amp or 200W/ch Digital amp or 50W/ch Tube amp. All of the above sounds fantastic on these spks and your moods.
Truly spectacular spks.