A tribute to Roger Sanders and Innersound

Could not agree more with the above two posts. The world
of the high-end is filled with some great people. A big
thanks to them all...past and present.

For what it's worth, Mr. Sander's interconnects are an
absolute steal.

InnerSound is one of the very rare high-end companies that if you use all their gear you are almost guaranteed to end up with a great sounding system. This includes their excellent interconnects and speaker cables. There are virtually no weak links – I know because I’ve tried the complete line both separately and together. To me this is no coincidence and no small accomplishment. It is the result of a very talented designer putting the same 110% effort into each and every product his company produces. This effectively takes the guesswork out of system matching. Just insert any competent digital or analog source into an InnerSound system, and with a little careful attention to proper set-up, short of having really horrible room acoustics, you can’t miss. The fact that Roger Sanders is so knowledgeable and so willing to share his knowledge and go that extra 9 yards to satisfy his customers' individual concerns is the icing on the cake.

I had the pleasure of meeting Sfrounds (who originated this thread) about a month ago when I sold his friend my Eros to upgrade to the Eros Mk-II. Before packing up the speakers for transit I recall Sfrounds saying to me that he thought all electrostatic speakers sounded pretty much the same, explaining that he owned electrostatic hybrids from another manufacturer. I figured that everyone’s entitled to his or her own views, so I didn’t argue the point. About a week later I received an e-mail from the purchaser to tell me how happy he was with the Eros. He also intimated that Sfrounds had since bought a pair of Eros, which surprised the heck out of me considering his previous comments. I guess that hearing the speakers in a familiar environment with familiar equipment was all it took to convince him of InnerSound’s considerable virtues.

I personally have owned a few different brands and models of planar dipolar speakers from such companies as Acoustat, Carver, Eminent Technology, and Magnepan. Additionally, I have friends that own or have owned speakers from Infinity, Sound Labs, Quad, Martin Logan, and Audiostatic. Of all the systems and speakers that I have had the pleasure to hear and/or own, the InnerSound Eros is definitely my favorite in terms of performance for the dollar. I also hold in high regard some of the more expensive models from Sound Labs, but they are over my budget and just too large for my listening room, which rules them out for me. And living with the Eros, I honestly don’t feel deprived in the least.

Like Sfrounds, it is my hope that others will discover this great company and Roger Sander’s fantastic customer support. As many of you doubtless know, the main drawback of the Eros system is its narrow sweet spot. But when you’re in that zone groovin’ to your favorite tunes, believe me, you won’t really care. The Eros is such a capable, musical, and articulate system from top to bottom.

Happy Listening to All!

Here I am with my 0.025 Euros...I own a complete system based on innersound gear (except for the sources): preamp, phonostage, amp, speakers (Isis) and speaker cables and interconnects. I can not be happier than this. After I put the system together I stopped visiting all the high-end shops! Is no point in doing it. I found what I have been looking for: audio bliss. All of this was done with the help of Roger Sanders. A great audio designer, a great friend, and a great man!

Thanx Roger!!!!

I couldn't agree more with this thread which is well-deserved, and long overdue. Roger stands out as a leader in innovative audio, and I'd have to say that my Innersound ESL Monoblocks have improved my system (and changed my audio life) more than any other change I have made in recent years. But what I appreciate more than Roger's Monoblocs is his patience in talking about audio issues. He'll spend hours on the phone discussing all sorts of audio questions regardless of whether it is about his products or not or making a sale or not. This is very refreshing. In fact, at points he has steered me away from useless upgrades to buy more software and enjoy my system. He's also an expert on a-b double blind testing methodology, which is why his equipment is so outstanding. Roger....you are a gem!!!

Let me add my kudos to Mr. Sanders. I purchased my EROS immediately after the first review came out in the Absolute Sound years back. I have been in audio nirvana ever since. While attempting to choose an appropriate preamp and amp (this was before Roger had other products to sell), I took them to my favorite audio shop, which did not carry Innersound but carried Martin Logan, and compared them side by side to the Requests, which were the comperable speaker at the time - same preamp, amp, interconnects etc - a pure a/b comparison. While the requests compared okay in the mid and treble, they were increadibly slow and dull in the bass. The innersound transmission line woofer just blew the martin logan sealed box woofer out of the water. I will admit that the logans did not beam the sound as the eros did, but they did not have quite the transparency of the eros either and I'm sure anyone familiar with the innersound product has read Roger's remarks about his conscious design choice regarding a flat panel to minimize sound reflection and room interaction. The eros to my ears were also able to rock, which is not something I felt I could say about the requests (especially when tested with something like "Filter" which made the requests sound awfully slow and plodding).

In addition I'd like to say that Roger has been phenomenally helpful on the phone and via email. He has educated me about audio, advised me about home theatre (lest just say he is a two channel person) been very generous to a fault with fixing problems with the speakers and the amp. In all regards a true gentleman and businessperson. Any time I had a conversation with him, I felt like a very valued customer. It is, in my opinion, a rare audio businessman who will tell you the flat out truth regarding interconnects, speaker cable, and digital sources. Roger is one of those people.

I am at the point with my speakers where, having moved to the Caribbean, I may have to upgrade my panels (and get the new wood edging) to the newer ones with a more humidity friendly coating. I will also upgrade my bass amp to the new Mk2 bass amp which has a gain control. I am considering selling my Levinson 331 in order to buy the ESL amp. I guess you would have to say that I'm a true fan of Roger's products and the Innersound company.

I think anyone auditioning electrostatics owes it to themselves to hear the innersound products. As always with audio, listen to the many available products out there though - the quads, the martins, the soundlabs etc., as its how it sound to your ears that matter.

- Scott Blair