Ohm Walsh Micro Talls: who's actually heard 'em?


Hi,

I'd love to hear the impressions of people who've actually spent some time with these speakers to share their sense of their plusses and minuses. Mapman here on Audiogon is a big fan, and has shared lots on them, but I'm wondering who else might be familiar with them.
rebbi
Schubert glad you're back.   Hope things are well.

Obviously some orchestral music could also be considered "audiophile" music in certain contexts such as when talking about recordings that are off particularly high quality in regards to both technical and artistic merit.

Yes they are not the same and not all "orchestral" music is necessarily even considered classical in its truest sense.  It just means music played by an orchestra.   Could be Beethoven or Frank Zappa.

I doubt any slight to orchestral or classical music was intended by referencing it as "audiophile" though I know that term often gets mixed reviews.
BTW, after thinking about orchestral music and  Zappa, I had to give this one a listen.  Its a very 'audiophile" recording I would say if one has ever heard a good version on a good hifi.  Always makes me smile and get my feet tapping  :^)

Zappa was very much and uniquely into percussion in his orchestral arrangements.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHx5C4O0Cvg

Schubert, that point that I was making with that statement is that the Ohm's make all recordings sound good. As I have sound now that I have the Ohm's I am realizing how much my listening sessions were pulled in the direction of tracks that sounded good for the Magnepans. Not the freedom to enjoy my diverse collection. Don't read too much into the whol classical music thing. I certainly have a few Bach and other albums in my Audirvana library. However what impresses me with the Ohms is that if I want to listen to AC/DC they sound amazingly good with that as well. I don't feel like I am going from hi-fi Patricia Barber's heart beat being heard on one album and then jumping to a good rock album that might as well sound like an MP3. That is the beauty of the Ohms is that they can play a variety of music in a sonically pleasing way.
While I've never heard the Micros I did pick up a pair of Walsh 2's a few years ago on this site for $500, and only afterwards discovered they were still in business here in NY, in Brooklyn, a mere 50 miles from my house. 

After a brief email exchange followed by a couple of phone calls with John himself I drove there to have them upgraded/updated for $1200 - a very reasonable investment.  

Imagine speaking with the owner directly in this day and age, walking into a very funky and obviously well used shop and seeing that independent business people CAN survive with providing excellent product and customer service. Hats off to John!
Here is an update on my Walsh 1/2.200 upgrade.
I have allowed some months to pass for break-in.

Recently, I bought some old Yamaha NS-6 speakers at a yard sale for $10.
I proceeded to recover the grills and replace the drivers as a gift for my son.
The result was decent and I was able to compare them to the Ohms.

The Ohms had much nicer bass with more rounded tones and lower frequency respose. Also, the Ohms sounded more open with clearer treble.
None of this surprised me, but it was nice to get some confirmation.

When my son (a lawyer and musician) came over to pick up the speakers, I had him audition some CDs he was familiar with on the Ohms. To cut the story short, he was blown away by my Ohms.

One sample he played was a tecno track that had very fast bass notes from a synthesizer. He couldn't believe that the Ohms could keep up. He said most speakers he has heard play that track created a muddy sound.

I have to say that I really am enjoying my upgraded Walsh 1 speakers. They intergate well into the rest of my modest system (Parasound 1500A amp, B&K  Reference 5 S2 preamp/tuner and Sony NS-315 CD player).

Thanks to John S.