Ohm Walsh Micro Talls: who's actually heard 'em?

Mapman, the DNA-500 is finally working out well. It would appear on paper that the 500 paired with the Walsh 5000 speakers would be an easy slam dunk. But we know that what's on paper is meaningless. I have still had to do plenty of experimentation to get the system sounding special. It actually has taken a power cord shuffle on the amp, and the addition of a top flight parametric equalizer that I've reconfigured several times. Getting the 5000 speakers to sing with force and power has not been easy (partly its the room). Finally, last night I was listening to a Horace Silver disc I recently purchased, "Paris Blues," and the beauty and refinement of this live recording hit me hard on an emotional level, really sounding incredible! I never felt anything like this before listening to music on any earlier rigs. Other guys have mentioned experiences like this, but I never experienced it before. The funny thing is I had the World Series on my TV with the sound turned down, but the game was almost irrelevant since "Paris Blues" was tearing me apart.

Foster,

Nice. Cliff Lee and Chaase Utley tearing apart the Yankees had me feeling pretty good around that time also!

Any observations regarding the McCormack amp compared to the others you tried prior with the 5s?

Mapman, Mamboni, Foster: Thanks for the info. Just to be clear, I don't find the treble above 8kHz recessed, but rather the octave below 8kHz. If anything, the treble above 8kHz has a bit too much zing, with occasionally over-emphasized sibilants, especially on vocals. These may be a source material issue, however. I have toed-in the speakers slightly.

Power-wise, as I've mentioned, I think I am covered with my Odyssey Audio HT-3. I will eventually get to IC, speaker cable and power cord upgrades, but I've blown my budget for now.

It is encouraging to hear that the brightness range will develope as the speakers break in, so I will refrain from further comments on this aspect of the 2000s until more time has passed.

BTW, for those of you with uneven floors, like me, I spoke to the Sound Anchors folks yestersday. For about $280, they will custom make a pair of their cradle bases for my 2000s. These will have a 3-point adjustable spike arrangement, allowing me to get them perfectly level and hieght-even with each another. They even will make the sides of the cradle base low enough not to block the vent above the plinth on the 2000s. I know Ohm feels this kind of setup is not required for Ohm Walsh designs, but it's the only way to keep my 2000s from wobbling and keep them straight. I can't imagine they will do any harm.

It's difficult to compare the Walsh 5000's and Blue Circle solid state integrated with the 5000's and the McCormack DNA-500/ VTL preamp. The tube VTL preamp makes a difference in the presentation of the 5000 speakers. There is a new depth to the sound now, especially horns, and I listen to mostly classic jazz of the hard bop variety. My new setup has also taken away any high end grain I heard ocassionally with the BC integrated. In fact, I would say that the sound I hear now from the 5000's is the smoothest ever. So I will say that compared to the solid state Blue Circle integrated, the DNA-500, VTL 2.5 is more smooth in the upper mid range and highs but still very extended. The low end and mid bass too has more presence at higher and lower volumes, but the current and wattage of the DNA-500 should and does account for that. The affect of the Avalon parametric eq has to be taken into account also. I would say the DNA-500/VTL/ 5000 combination is not as crisp sounding as with the Blue Circle integrated I previoiusly used. The DNA-500/VTL combination provides more sonic weight and impact to the music however. That's as much of a comparsion as I can make.

Hey Guys,

I took the plunge! I'll be selling the Unico integrated amp on Audiogon and I bought a new-in-box Bel Canto S300 power amp here at a great price. :-)

By the way, John Strohbeen (I called today) said that his rule is "the more power the better, which is not the same as 'the louder the better.'" :-) He also said that in order to hear a real difference, he recommended tripling the wattage into 6 ohms from where you are now. So, in my case, with an amp that puts out 80 watts into 8 ohms, I'd want an amp that does around 240 watts into 6 ohms. The S300, at around 225 watts/channel at 6 ohms should do it.

Now I'll need a pre-amp in the $500 to $700 (used) range. Any suggestions regarding what I should be on the lookout for will be welcome. Tubes? SS? What do you think?

Bondmanp,

Ditto what others have said about the Walsh treble. I'm not sure exactly how many hours my 100's have on them, but after 6-8 months of ownership, they're really starting to bloom beautifully, and the highs sound anything but recessed... "just right" would be more like it. I'm very pleased!