Verity Parsifal or Magico V3 or Wilson Benesch ACT

Dhaan,

The reason I asked if you've heard them is because your reaction to the speaker is unique IME. Incidentally I've never heard the Ovations, so please understand that no disrespect was intended.

Over the last 10 years, I've played them for - literally - dozens of people who own high end speakers and not one has commented on problems with the tonal balance - other than to note a slight warmth (my own opinion). BTW, I also own Merlin VSMs, which lean the other way, and played back to back, most people like both. The Merlins absolutely polarize opinion more than the P/Es which are IME universally admired.

If these speakers really sound dull through the presence range to you , then it's either peculiar to the "next generation" of Verity or peculiar to your taste. Notwithstanding "speaker building 101", you are the only person I've ever heard dismiss this speaker on this basis. BTW, the review attached to the FR graph you linked was a flat out rave.

If there is a body of opinion out there more critical of Verity, I've never seen it. This doesn't make you wrong, merely (as far as I know) an outlier.

Marty

Marty,

I appreciate your civil reply, but please understand that the points I made are not opinions, sound reproduction is not a subjective matter. Unfortunately, you do not need a license to build speakers. I always felt that, in audio, what people like have very little to do with ‘objective qualities’. I never fully understood it. Other then egos, I could not come up with any explanation. Discussing people listening impression and taste is a lost cause. God only knows how our brains are interpreting what we actually hear. Not to mention the ‘power of suggestion’. Have you ever read a negative comment from anyone here about a recent purchase of his? Everyone is totally in love with what they just bought. Yet, you can count the days before that product will be changed or upgraded etc. I do not know why people like the Veritys or the Wilsons or the Sonus Fabers, if these were cars, they will not go very far. Even if they cost a lot or have a nice finish. Audio, funny business…

"sound reproduction is not a subjective matter"...
hmm pls tell us more it really get interesting now!
presume there actually IS an perfectly objective speaker made by the schoolbooks and it sounds horrible?

pls mister Horowitz, could you play your violin in an more objective way? my brain detects a subjective loss at 450 hertz.
Oh and could that timpany guy just hold back for 4 dB pls?
i need more objective timpany all the time.
yeah its a funny world :-)

Dhaan,

This is one of those agree to disagree things.

I have never seen any set of specs that acurately correlates to my experience of in room performance - including on-axis frequency response and power response measured at the listing position (I have done both). Certainly no manufacturer's spec comes close. I'm not suggesting magic - just that the speaker and room together are the relevant system, and no manufacturer can predict that (though some try!) unless they do room correction. Further, FOR ME no single in-room spec captures all the relevant data.

My comment about the uniformity of opinion re: Verity was not restricted to owners. (BTW, I'm an owner and, ironically, prior to you, I thought I was the most "Verity critical" voice on the forum, though mine was more "nits"). Scan the threads and you will find TONS of Wilson bashing and Sonus Faber bashing to use your 2 examples. OTOH, you are the first I've found to dismiss Verity.

I will not take issue with your comments regarding design flaws in the Parsifals, I am not qualified. OTOH, design and performance, though related, are not the same thing. You say the car will not go far, I say the bumblebee indeed does fly, even if you don't want it to! In this regard, you should acknowledge that your theory of "objectivity" puts you in an odd position:

If the performance of the Verity is obviously flawed, there should be a community of opinion pointing that out - just as there are for Wilson and Sonus Faber (not that I agree or disagree with their position). For Verity, you seem to comprise that community. Hence, my characterization "outlier". Gallileo was an outlier. You may be Gallileo or you may be wrong.

Marty

I think we should all thank our lucky stars we have Dhaan around to point out these huge design flaws that the folks at Verity obviously missed! I’m sure that Dhaan could teach all of us a thing or two about speaker design. I’ll bet he’s read enough Time Life how to books, not to mention measurements at Stereophile, to qualify for a speaker building degree at one of the prestigious online universities.

I’d just like to thank Dhaan for letting us little people in on his expertise. I’m astonished that the CEO’s at the big companies like Revel or Wilson or Paradigm haven’t already hired Dhaan away as Chief Speaker Designer. Gosh, what are those guys waiting for?