I also had Alon V MkII's that had every possible upgrade, including the same Alnico bass drivers and tweeters as in the Circe, and finally outboard Circe crossovers with upgraded capacitors made by Alon/Nola. In the end, I just couldn't get them to sound the way I wanted for my listening preferences. On some music, they were outstanding, but on too much of the rest of my collection they sounded sort of dry and uninvolving, with somewhat of a disconnect between the bass and mid/treble. For whatever reason, these suffered a mid-bass suckout in the two rooms I used them in. However, based on some trial and error using tubed preamps, I found them to sound better when used with tubed electronics. I will say, the sound is very open and clear, and you do not get the impression you are listening to boxes. They are also very fast, but you already know that from using your Alon II's. If you are serious about purchasing a used pair, my recommendation would be to plan on tubed electronics, or at a minimum a good tube preamp, provide plenty of power (150wpc and up), and look at the newer Lotus Elite or Viper models. Current posted A'gon prices range from the Lotus Elite II at $1300 to the Viper Signatures at $3995, either would be an excellent deal if you like the sound, and the dual woofers in these models are said to integrate better especially since they are crossed over at slightly different frequencies. If you stay in the Alon line, I would recommend at least waiting for a good pair of Circes. As you move up the lines, you get Alnico magnets in the drivers, better bass drivers, and outboard crossovers, all of which improve performance.
