Compare: Salk Sound, Silverline, Tyler, Zu

On Zu finishes: My Druids are gloss red. They were bought used and had been updated by the factory to near MkIV status. Sean says they're "Mk 3.5" by virtue of having the current supertweeter with the prior gen FRD, and a slightly different expression of the Griewe model. Point is, they were painted early in Zu's life. They have a little orange peel and Zu's panel sanding precision wasn't quite what it is today. Nevertheless, they meet with enthusiastic approval from even finicky people who are accustomed to veneered speakers.

My Definitions were ordered new, in custom automotive finish. The blue speakers in one of the Six Moons photographs are mine. They are a Maserati color, Blue Nettuno, duplicated in DuPont Chroma. Even these speakers do not quite match what Zu is capable of today with their new paint booth, and they are all-but-glass in their surface finish. They are uniformly regarded as more gorgeous still than my Druids.

The factory offers their satin finishes as standard prices. They upcharge for standard gloss with has some orange peel similar to mass-market cars. A little further upcharge gets standard gloss with a little hand-cutting to reduce the orange peel. Then the top upcharge is for a fully cut finish like glass.

Honestly, the Zu design aesthetic is almost unimaginable in woodgrain. It would seem visually dissonant to me. A friend of mine just ordered black gloss, going into a home with mainstream wood finishes on furniture and fixtures. And they will look fully compatible. Given the phenolic jacket in the cabinet construction, paint is the logical finish and I believe most people will find it interesting and compatible to a wide range of decors, if they give it a chance.

Phil

and I bought the Druids. The Salks sounded very good, but lacked the jump factor of the Druids - really explosive dynamics on music like electric blues, and electronica. On classical I think there was less difference. Overall, for $1200 less, the Druids were a great bargain. The Salks had beautiful woodworking, but the sound of the Druids cliched the deal for me.

Dave: You are right, and I myself don't expect to commonly find people who have A/B'd thinly distributed brands like Tyler, Salk, and Zu. The scenario I had in mind was that someone owns one and tries out another, or maybe local audiophiles meet and arrange a comparison. Something like that. Your input is always appreciated.

And just as I was writing these words, Ait's post tells me of his Zu/Salk experience...

Phil: Thanks for the detailed feedback. You are one of the very few people in this forum who continue to inform people about Zu, but without the fanatical edge of some "Road to Damascus" converts---I have received chiding emails like "now that I have told you about Zu, why even bother with other names?", and telling me I am being "confrontational" if I remain curious about Tyler/Salk, or want Zu to offered wider cabinet options. So, your patient input is greatly appreciated.

Ait: Thank you for your post. From the prices mentioned I assume you compared Zu Druids with Salk HT-3. How and where did you make this comparison: in different places or was it side by side? If latter, did you own HT-3's before ordering Druids? Was there not much to choose between them on classical music (except price)? Did you try any music in which HT-3's greater bass extention would have mattered? In your past speaker hunts, have you ever heard Tylers as well? [You can see that having met someone who knows about more than one speaker, I am feeling greedy. :-)]

Advice to Zu: Please consider a model with one subwoofer. Most people cannot afford Definitions (4 subwoofers) but would like some bass extention rather than none. Can you sell Druids at 2400 and this new model at 2800? :)

The first line of my above post was cut off somehow, but yes, I heard both the Salk HT3 and the Zu Druid. Unfortunately, this was not side by side in the same room, but was on the same afternoon with the same music selections. The Salk was kindly demo'd by a current owner, while the Druids were heard at a local dealer's house. Since I'm not a classical afficionado, I feel less qualified to judge that aspect of the performance, and maybe they sounded similar because that's not really my cup of tea, music-wise. One thing's for sure, though, the Druids beat the Salks when it came to electric blues and rock - the sound was much more immediate and tight with the Druids. One other interesting fact, my Druids are now 5 months old and they continue to get better as they break in - better means more details, and even more lifelike sound. The main drivers on the Druid are very tightly suspended, and do sound a little congested at first, but the only way I noticed it was when they continued to get better with age.
The Druid's bass is surprisingly strong, and may be adequate for many people, but I run mine with a sealed 15" DIY subwoofer based on the Dayton 15" DVC driver - I do not cross over to the Druids, but instead run the Druids flat out and roll in the sub below 45 Hz so as not to ruin the crossoverless magic. Using a sub lets me position the Druids optimally for imaging and soundstage (both stunning) while not having to worry about reinforcing the last octave via room tuning.
My Druids are capable of deafening sound levels using 2 100 Watt monoblock amps, but never lose their grip even when the SPL reaches painful levels, quite inpressive, really. They could easily be driven by 10 Watt amps if you so choose.

Fast pace music with lots of midrange energy like Rock definatly fall a bit flat with Zu's on the first run thrus, they do sound a bit congested untill they open up, this could take months, maybe thats why Zu will give you an extended 90 return if asked... But then its a very raw open sound. So I kinda think good crossover speakers sound more correct or coherant from initial impression many times and this is where people do not get to experiance the open sound immediatly of the Zu, Kinda like hearing horn speakers that shout a little and don't sound conventionally smooth at first to people. So I think the best thing maybe to do is order Zu's first a month or so after getting the Zu's order the salk or Tyler's and at least you will have 30 days to run head to head before having to make a decision and return something. This will always be a problem with audio brands not carried in any stores conventionally.