Hi Charles, et al.
Well, nothing is ever easy in audio, is it? I have been spending quite a bit of time comparing the Daedalus and Tekton speakers, and my feelings have sort of evolved, I guess. When I first put back in the Daedalus speakers after two solid weeks of listening through the Double Impacts, my immediate impression was that the Ulysses sounded slightly "purer" and slightly more coherent. The bass wasn't as deep, but felt a little tighter and more focused. On the other hand, the DI speakers were, overall, more immersive and certainly easier to drive, though the Ulysses are also very efficient. If I had been forced to make a decision in the moment, I met have kept the Ulysses.
A couple of days later, I put back in the Double Impacts and found that I had really been missing their incredible sound stage and dynamics. Over the next several days, I perceived improvements in coherence and the bass, which seemed to gain depth and focus as they surpassed a hundred hours or so.
I put the Ulysses back in again, and this time the differences I perceived earlier were not as pronounced. Maybe the Ulysses were still just a touch more coherent with a tad more clarity in sorting out difficult passages, but we are talking a matter of degrees here. This time, I found that I was missing the DI's presentation and that the Ulysses might sound just a little boxy, by comparison.
One of my biggest fears is that despite all of DI's obvious strengths, they might not be quite as musical as the Ulysses over the long haul. That is one reason I have taken my sweet time doing this evaluation---I need to make sure I get this right before selling off the greatest pair of speakers I have ever owned. Indeed, the Ulysses are magical speakers, as beautiful to look at as to listen through.
The DI cannot match the Ulysses in the looks department, that is for sure, nor should they be expected to at their respective price points. But are they as musical? My conclusion is that they certainly are, and I don't think they are done breaking in completely yet. I still think there are certain areas where the Ulysses might hold a slight advantage, but there are also areas where the DI speakers have an advantage.
In summary, this has been quite a battle between two great speakers. As always, it is going to come down to the listener's sonic priorities and preferences, as well as whether appearance is a huge factor, which is not to say the DI speakers are unattractive--we are talking relative to the furniture quality Daedalus speakers here.
I am going to do one more intensive comparison in a few days, but these are my thoughts so far. It has been challenging trying to sort all of this out, but a lot of fun as well. Barring some eleventh hour epiphany, the Double Impacts are here to stay. They are just as terrific as everybody else here says they are, at least in my view and for my tastes.
