Zu Druid questions

Jack,

To answer one of your questions, the Druids sound nothing like Klipsch. They are very, very different. I have owned the Druids, extensively auditioned the 6381's, and currently own a pair of vintage Cornwalls in a 2nd system. Nutella is absolutely correct in his post. Druids are very nice, and Zu is a great company. The Ushers are also very nice. It's tough to say which you'll prefer. Audition before you buy, or take advantage of Zu's in-home trial. Do not, however, sell your Ushers assuming you'll like the Druids better.

Jeff

Listening before you buy is unnecessary advice with the Druids except when you buy used. New Druids are only available from the Zu factory and they automatically provide you with a 60 day return option. If you don't like them, you will only have spent round trip shipping. Call Zu for a precise shipping quote and you will know how much money you are risking.
In the case of used Druids, they appear to sell immediately for their asking price so I should think the financial risk there is even less than for new ones.
If you choose not to keep them, think of the expenditure as a 60 day rental fee or as the cost of research. In either case, U.S. buyers will find the gamble insignificant. Shipping is surprisingly cheap via FedEx ground.

The problem with the Soundstage measurements was that they hung the speakers in free-air, per standard protocol. They were informed of the speakers' need for floor loading but they were unwilling to break procedure to measure the speakers. The effect was akin to removing the port from another speaker and enlarging the hole.

So the measurements were valid, assuming you hang the speakers from the ceiling. Any Druid owner will tell you that floor-gap is critical in tuning the bass. 1/4" makes a huge difference and having a hard surface under the speaker is crucial. If placing on carpet, an "artificial" hard tile or such will seriously improve bass response.

I'm a Zu guy, having owned the Druids, Def. 1.5's and Pro's. But, not everyone is. The strengths of the Druids will not easily be surpassed anywhere near their price, but lots of folks have different sets of priorities which don't align with them. Those folks will leave saying "I don't get it". That's OK, but somewhat of a pain if the speakers were purchased for the audition.

The advice of hearing them first is good. Try to make it as lengthy of an audition as possible, as many who have been through my room say it took a little time to lock on but that they really dug it once they figured it out.

Some folks can't imagine "going back" from Zu, others can't imagine "going to". There's no way to know without taking 'em for a spin.

Oh yeah, they *really* like tubes!

The problem with the Soundstage measurements was that they hung the speakers in free-air, per standard protocol. They were informed of the speakers' need for floor loading but they were unwilling to break procedure to measure the speakers. The effect was akin to removing the port from another speaker and enlarging the hole

I looked at the soundstage measurements and they don't look at all surprising. Looks like the 10" cone is seriously breaking up above 2KHz (as one would expect); the whizzer ameliorates some of the on axis response in this range but not the off axis response.

The sharp drop in response at 150 Hz might be related to a cabinet waffle or box resonance (cancelling the speaker primary response). It is indeed possible that firmly placed on a solid floor (spikes through a carpet) that this resonance might be better damped (improvingthe bass).

Anechoic measurements are always performed in a way that minimizes effects from the room. It is the only way to make a standard measurement.

Placement/sweetspot of this kind of speaker may be absolutely critical. Just my two cents...based on the measurements (superficial comments and much speculation of course - so don't take this very seriously).

I bought a pair of Zu Definitions sight unseen. I auditioned a number of other speakers and enjoyed a few that would have made me very happy. Two things impressed me abut Zu speakers: (1) the passions that they elicited - both positive and negative and (2) the fact that Sean or Adam answered the phone at ZuAudio and were very open about answering questions. Plus they fit my "needs list" for size, ease of positioning, off-axis listening, ability to fill a room with sound, full-range, ability to handle almost any type of music, visual appeal, etc.

I must admit to being also seduced by the full refund policy. However, once the speakers arrived, I realized that this was merely good marketing. Returning them would have been much more than a mere annoyance, it would have been a royal pain, something that I immediately factored into the decicion to keep them.

The current state of audio is confusing; there are a lot of good speakers available at all different price points rather than only correct one solution for each situation. Once I realized this, I stopped looking for the one perfect speaker, the only one that could possibly fit my needs. I gambled a bit, and an quite pleased that I did; but not everyone will agree.