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Kingsound King Speakers Huge ESLs

I have learned from Roger DuNaier at Performance Devices that the Kingsound King will be showing at RMAF. The demo will also include Acoustic Arts and Concert Fidelity components, which I have not heard with the King yet.

I stumbled upon this speaker at CES, had to spend very little time with it to know it was worthy of further investigation. You can see my pics of it in my virtual system, as I have purchased it. As an owner I am interested in discussion with others around the world who have purchased it. I am especially interested in amps which have been used with it, and thought about their integration with the King.

Anyone who knows the Planar landscape is aware that a few manufacturers dominate this sector of speaker sales, and for good reason, as they have good products. My perspective is that I do not care who is the Giant and who the "David" in speaker manufacturing. I simply want to point out what I consider to be exceptional products that I have discovered, so that the audiophile at large can be aware of them. This is a speaker which those who can accommodate a large planar should know about, as I find its performance exceptional.

My first post about these speakers seems to have been removed, so I am re-posting.
(Disclaimer: I reviewed this speaker for Dagogo.com)
douglas_schroeder
johngp's avatar
johngp
226 posts
 
Hi Douglas,
Boy I've been eyeballing those speakers for quite a while now. Huge planar/electrostat fan here and though my room wouldn't work with that big of a planar I'd still love to see/hear those babies! To me they seem to be an exceptional value considering todays prices. I've read your review several times since you published it and I enjoyed it immensely, thank you.

Well I just wanted to pop in and say hi as I saw your thread title and that got my attention quickly, I really dig those speakers! Take care and please keep us posted on any changes you make, should make for interesting reading.

Sincerely,
John
douglas_schroeder OP
3,281 posts
 
John, thanks, it seems that we're in great times for development of the ESL technology. No more burnt holes in Mylar, etc. :)

I was chatting with Albert Porter about ESLs and he offered a litany of technological issues associated with some earlier models (not Kingsound). It sounded like they were down for repairs way too often for my patience level.

You might consider the Queen, third down from the top end, and quite reasonable footprint, etc. I like the modular approach, where one can divide the modules if so desired. I think that's great creativity on Kingsound's part. I don't even recall if the Queen was set up at the show; I was fixated on demoing the King and Prince II. If I'm not mistaken the Queen has been upgraded at some point as well.
blindjim
3,092 posts
 

yep... the pic said something else to me... 4ft? That's a deal breaker for me.

I agree too that big amps make a world of difference if for no other reason than the control they exude on the drivers. Until I got into tubes recently, I felt the deal was 86-88db speakers with five or six hundred watt amp (s). Definitely nothing under 250.

Then there was tubes... and uh, the 'room', 4-6 more channels, and yada yada... then back to 5.1 again.

I'd be more than curious to see how the Butler TDB 2250 fared with those Kings. the influence of tubes, but speed of SS, and there's that control factor. My TDB 5150 in 2ch mode (only the Sonatas being connected) comes close to 250wpc and sounds like it, yet outputs only a buck and a half into 8, all ch driven. So I use it as a 3 ch amp in HT for the fronts & center.

Zu has my attention now but again, the room issue surfaces as the "Presence" is interesting. Adversely, so is the Quattro wood.
abruce's avatar
abruce
246 posts
 
Did anybody hear these at RMAF?
douglas_schroeder OP
3,281 posts
 
Having just written the review and as an owner I made it a point to hear them. Not speaking to the attendant components, the set up left much to be desired. The speaker is capable of astounding sound, but at least four or five important advantages to establishing the King for ultimate performance were not implemented. They appeared to have been quickly plopped into the room, and as such were heard at their worst, not their best. Consequently, they sounded good, but a far cry from their best.

Frankly, they were set up poorly at CES as well. I'm just glad I was able to distinguish the poor conditions from the speaker and get them into my room! I will comment more in my show report.
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