Ohm Speakers, thoughts?


I have long dismissed Ohm speakers as anything that could be competitive in todays state of the art. But of course I want to believe that this "old" American company still has some horsepower left to compete with asian built speakers built by people that take in less money in a week than my dog sitter takes in the couple hours it takes to let my dogs out to crap when I am away for a day :)? The reviews I have read here and there report incredible imaging but what about other aspects of the Ohm 5 II. Any thoughts?
nanderson
Mwr0707,

I would agree with your comments regarding room acoustics and the benefits of the 'realistic" sound produced by the Ohm Walsh Series 3 drivers.

It sounds like your drivers may not be fully broken in yet from your description, in which case expect that the best is yet to come in that the larger Ohm Walsh drivers take a good while to break in.

Audiogoners, seriously, if you are an audiophile constantly looking to better the sound coming out of your speakers, and you have a grand or two to toss around just in order to try something with a radically different approach to sound reproduction, for a reasonable cost, I'd recommend trying a pair of full range Ohm Walsh Series 3 speakers. You can buy an old pair of cabinets and purchase an upgrade from Ohm, buy refurbished units from Ohm, or buy new cabinets and drivers from Ohm, depending on budget and taste.

Ohm has the common man looking for a way to achieve lifelike audio performances in a cost effective manner covered. You really have nothing to lose.

My reference speakers prior to purchasing two pair of Ohm Walsh Series 3 speakers this past year were my Dynaudio Contour 1.3 mkII monitors. Compared to the Ohm Walsh Series 3 speakers (Walsh 2s and f-5s that I own), the Dynaudios are crisper, seem to sound more detailed with more resolution, noticeable in particular with well recorded acoustic string instruments, and have pinpoint sound-staging. They work very well in my small 12'X12' listening room. Yet, despite this and the fact that the Dynaudios have by far the best speaker cables of any of 6 pairs of speakers in my house, the Walsh Series 3 sound more lifelike so I end up preferring these in almost all cases when I do a/b comparisons.

However, the Dynaudios are still great monitors and still wow me more often than not on their own, just not quite as often as the Ohm's.

I also lived happily for 20 years with a pair of full size Maggies until recently when I replaced these with the Ohm f-5s. The f-5s through a similar though different and, in smaller rooms, a more focused and holographic-like soundstage, are not as hard to place correctly, have better overall response, particularly in the bottom end, and the dynamics are better (they move a lot of air!).

By the way, I sold Ohm speakers in a hifi shop years ago which is how I got acquainted with them but I am not affiliated with Ohm in any way.

One of these days, I would like to try a good pair of horn-loaded speakers also, like the vintage Klipschs for comparison. I recall the sound of these speakers and would be interested in trying them out and comparing again.
Mapman,

Can you describe the changes you perceived after break-in? How long did it take? I'm thinking that I should avoid tinkering such as upgrading the CD player until the sound has stabilized.

I've been thinking about a Cambridge Audio 840C.

Thanks!
I wouldn't change anything until fully broken in. My W5's took a good 3 months, including several sessions running them full out with a 300W/ch amp! My Walsh 2s (100 drivers) were acquired used, and were fully broken in. I use them for reference. The most noticeable difference was in the bass. The Walsh 2s, though in a smaller room, were actually more satisfying in the bass department at first. The rest of the sound tended to smooth out over time I would say as well. Their overall timbre remind me of my Maggie 1.3c's now, which is a very good thing, but have a hell of a lot more satisfying bass. The Ohms were not this smooth at first, as I recall.

Why do you think you might need to upgrade the CD? What kind of amp do you use? The Ohms like amps with a high damping factor to control the drivers better. Look up "damping factor" on Wikipedia for more info on damping factor and how it relates to speakers.

John at Ohm recommended NAD electronics. I use a Carver m400t with very good results. I've tried my Tandberg receiver's amp with these and liked the Carver much better. I also think the Walsh drivers are better suited to solid state electronics in general due to their dynamic nature than to tubes, though I've never heard the Ohms driven with a really top notch tube amp.
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Ohm is not a big shop. Wouldn't surprise me if they get backlogged from time to time.

With my Walsh 5's, I was told I would have them before they close for the summer (they close for the month of July) if I got my order in two weeks in advance + they were delivered on time, exceptionally well packed + in good shape.

On one other occasion, I placed a parts order on one day + received them UPS the next day. Ohm is located in Brooklyn, NY only about 230 miles from me.

My experience has been they generally do what they say and will try to make things right if they make a mistake.