Avalon Eidolon Diamond-Worth it?

Please don't misinterpret my comments(just opinion).If you feel the "Diamond" is what you "want/like" then I am sure you will be very happy!

Good luck

My system consistes of "modded" Avalon Ascent Mk II's,Rel Stentor sub....HIGHLY MODDED Audio Research SP-15(Great Northern Sound now has it again for a second time,for V-Teflon cap additions)....Three very low noise Siemens CCa 6922's in phonostage of pre....A "custom" Jeff Rowland two chassis 8t amp(Jeff was nice enough to give me a his latest thoughts on how the latest technology aids this amp,in the new seperate power supply chassis).

A Sota Cosmos series IV table/Graham Phantom arm/Transfiguration Orpheus cartridge....Cd player is a Levinson 390s....Most importantly(surprisingly)an Exact Power EP-15a line regenerator,with an additional Exact Power Ultrapure connected for "balanced" regenerated power....All in a dedicated purpose built room,and a nice LP/cd collection....Thirty five years worth of collecting music seriously....but too much angst lately,as the system has gotten quite complex,and I am getting tired of "voicing" it,to the latest gizmo....It's nice to just play music!



Cables from Transparent,Cardas tri wired speaker cables,Electraglide.

Power cords from PS Audio(for power conditioners)and Harmonic Technology. VPI record cleaner/DIY LP flattener/Furitech CD demag unit.

All in all I am very pleased with how it sounds to "me",and it is NOT the best system around,but I like it alot....Oh yeah,I've been having gremlins for a few months,but the fix is on the way.

Sorry to seem a bit ego here,but someone did ask about the set up,something I don't mention alot....I have friends with better stuff...particularly the amazing set up of Sid Marks,who defies science/physics with his sound,it is SO good!!AND half of his system is NOT the latest stuff,but absolutely DOES MUSIC!!

Best

NickT,

I have owned Avalon Eidolon, Eidolon Vision & currently the Avalon Diamonds. There are signifcant differences. Is it worth the extra scratch?? To me it was!! It is more relaxed has more resolution and a bit better bass. Most people will not be able to tell the difference in bass response, but the Diamond does have a bit better bass. I will continue to listen to mine until I can afford the ISIS!!

Nickt.... you can flog me for jumping on this thread...and I am truly sorry. But I have owned a pair of Avalon Eclipse's ( sealed enclosure ) for over 7 years and I still enjoy them. As Sirspeedy stated, something can be said about the sealed enclosure designed by Charles Hanson. Please don't shoot me here....but would a good sub be a nice match for the Avalon Eclipses's ????? As they say ; ''mo bass, mo problems ''

Hi Nick,

I'm using BAT 150se mono-blocks and the BAT REX preamp. I prefer the virtues of good tubes over good solid-state. My front end is digital only at this time which consist of the EMM DAC-6se and the EMM CDSDse. Cabling both interconnects and speaker is Nordost Valhalla. Power cords for the most part are also Valhalla. Equipment rack is the Finite Elemente MR. and Zoethecus (for now) amp stands.

Hello Kurt,

The funny thing about going from the Eidolon to the Eidolon Diamond for me was what I heard at the very first was not the diamond tweeter but the bass. The tweeter is very unassuming and is in no way attention grabbing.

I can remember when I first hooked the Diamonds up in my room and started the long break in process, within the first few bars of the tune I had put on and at a background listening level the quality of the bass was instantly noticeably to me. It was just so much more informative. I was playing a recording with an acoustic upright and I could hear so much more clearly the player's touch, the attack of the fingers hitting the strings, the texture and tone of the bass, the size of the instrument. This extra resolution of detail in the lower registers also contributed greatly to revealing the sense of hearing the size and space of the recording venue.

Yes, the two extra Hz that the Diamond has over the standard Eidolon can be heard on certain recordings, mostly just in the way of weight. But it is the quality of bass with the Diamond that really counts. Going to the Diamond revealed that the standard Eidolon had a little extra energy and warmth in the mid bass that added a little punch. This coloration actually was obscuring information in the upper bass and lower mid-range.

It is my opinion that bass is the most inaccurate colored aspect of music reproducing playback systems. From my experiences the bass is always a crap-shoot. That is, you can take the same entire identical system, set it up in 10 different rooms, and you'll get 10 different takes on what that system's bass sounds like, and it is the bass that will sound the most different from room to room.

Sirspeedy and Shardone make valid points regarding sealed vs. ported designs. They have their pluses and minuses, and you have to decide which trade-offs you're willing to live with, because they exist even at these lofty prices.

For me the Eidolon Diamond in my room does a great job of giving a balanced picture of the musical event, more so then any other speaker I've heard. I feel extremely fortunate to own them and that I'm able to enjoy listening to my favorite music and musicians being reproduced by them.

Enjoy,
Tom