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Ownership and Review of a pair of Ohm Super Sound Cylinder

Greetings all - I recently ordered a pair of Ohm Super Sound Cylinder speakers, or SSC-4900's. They are in the middle of the Ohm Walsh lineup, and are about 38 inches tall and the cylinder cabinets about 12.5 inches in diameter.

Specs are listed at 88 dB for a 2.8 V input, and a response curve of +/- 3 dB from 25 to 20,000 Hz. 

This whole process is part of a "high end, high value, USA made two channel system" thread I started a couple of months ago on another forum. The electronics are the PS Audio Stellar Gain Pre-amp/DAC and a pair of PS Audio M700 mono amps.

The PS Audio equipment has already elevated the Axiom M100's and Martin Logan Electro Motion ESL speakers in terms of performance. The Axioms have a "twin" available in Brick and Mortar outlets from Bryston called the A1's. 

For reference, other speakers which we have or still have in house include: Klipsch LaScala II's, Legacy Signature SE's, Infinity IRS Sigmas, Ascend Sierras, PSB Strata Goldi, VMPS Super Towers and a host of other speakers. 

The Ohm Walsh speakers have been something about which I have read since 1977 (the year I got the audio bug), but have never had the chance to experience. The SSC-4900's sell for $4900 per pair, though the name and pricing are coincidental. The "4900" is due to the idea that the speakers are "almost a 5000", but with less controls - one switch vs. 4 for the 5000, but also a lower price.

John Strohbeen, who is he president at Ohm and who has been with them for almost 40 years, was gracious enough to spend an hour talking on the phone about our room, the associated gear, and also that there would be a review thread. It was after this discussion that we decided on the SSC-4900's. 

I am purchasing the speakers, not getting a review pair. They are under the 120 day return policy. John is well aware that my daughter sings opera, my son is adept at classical guitar, and that live music is the reference. He was actually quite pleased about this. 

This will be fun (at least for me), and hopefully informative. Comments are welcome. 

I honestly have no idea what to expect from the Walsh sound. They are so different from other speaker designs that the only thing to do is set them up properly and hear what happens! 
craigsub
snapsc
674 posts
 
I suspect that all the discussion of off axis image and off the shelf components misses the point which most people want to hear about.  The ohms have been around for a long time yet very little has been written on “ how the compare”.

You don’t remain in business selling a product that doesn’t sound pretty good and at a fair price... but side by side... how do they stack up with similarly priced planars, electrostats, open baffles and traditional box speakers in producing accurate lifelike exciting music??

At the end of the day, its the sound that matters... and if ohm bests various loudspeakers and loudspeaker types using cardboard tubes or off the shelf transducers or $10 capacitors, good for them.
bondmanp
1,807 posts
 

@roysq - I think John Strohbeen of Ohm is more focused on voicing his speakers to his liking than specifications. 


@snapsc - Agreed.  Speaker design is a bit like making sausage.  Especially in the case of Ohm.  I have not been able to do side-by-side comparisons, but I hear many speakers in the course of each year through attenting shows and my local audio club meetings.  To be clear, there are better speakers, IMHO, than Ohms.  But so far, none of them that I have heard that I would rather own than my 2000s come in at less than about twice the price or more, often much more.  I pride myself on having been able to assemble a modestly priced system that punches way above its price.  I did this with careful listening, a lot of reading, and communicating with other audiophiles, like I do here.  I ended up with a system that has wonderful synergy, and produces sound the way I like it, if not totally neutral.  Now I am having some equipment issues, but I am trying to get everything back up to par.  But the 2000s may well be my last speakers. 

craigsub OP
63 posts
 
Snapsc - Well stated. I have been an audio nut since getting a pair of Electro-voice 16B's in 1977. That was also the first time I experienced push selling from an audio salesman. He had the EV's for $169 per pair and JBL L100's for $499 per pair. 

He pretty much told me I was stupid for liking the EV's more than the JBL's. I was 17 at the time, and went elsewhere and bought the speakers I liked.

Spin forward 41 years later, and it's still the same. Everyone told me I HAD to love the Legacy Signatures. I didn't. And this wasn't bias - I loved the Legacies I purchased in 1988. These were just, well, sterile sounding. 

Good science and hard work make for good speakers. I like Axiom because they sound like music. The fact that they build all of Bryston's speakers adds credibility on the street, but doesn't change the sound. The Axiom LFR-1100's are about $5000 MSRP including the DSP. Having heard Magico's, Revels, etc ... along with Golden Ear, the Axioms are the speakers that sound like live music.

The Ohms are doing the same thing. Neither company waxes on about ribbon drivers. Neither does a lot of advertising. Both seem to have a loyal following. I am not a part of that loyal following: If I tried a pair that sounded terrible, I would say so.

The Ohms make me want to listen to more music. They don't add nor subtract from the performance, but they sure do present the performance in the manner which the disc presents it to the speakers.

Bob Seger's Live Bullet is fantastic on the Ohms. Typically, this is outside summer music on a Peachtree Bluetooth speaker. Now it's a fun listen again. 

If you want to be able to tell your friends about how there are ribbon tweeters, sub bass radiators ... etc .. Ohm is not for you. If you want to experience live music, you just might like Ohm speakers.
audionoobie's avatar
audionoobie
357 posts
 
@bondmanp What amp and cables are you using with your 2000's? Also, do you know if Ohm does in-house demos since Brooklyn is not that far for me?
bondmanp
1,807 posts
 

@audionoobie - I will tell you, but I will also tell you that things aren't good right now, and I don't know why.  I have an Odyssey Audio Stratos HT3 (3 channels), which failed last September.  I sent it in for a repair and upgrade to full Kismet internals.  The amp seems fine, but it no loger plays well with my Vandersteen subwoofers.  I am working with a local dealer on resolving this issue, but it has baffled everyone who I have explained it to.  But prior to the amp failure, I was in hog heaven and listened to music every chance I got. 


My cables are simple Kimber 4PR, which I have always liked, but would eventually like to upgrade.


I am sure Ohm will offer you a demo at their factory.  I know they have a listening room there, although I have never been.  Just call to arrange it (Ohm is better at replying to phone calls than emails).

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