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

"The Ohms image with both specificity (as do the VSM and the P/E) but with a sense of weight and body that the other speakers can't quite match"

That's a good way to describe what I often refer to as "meat on the bones", or a more lifelike weight to the presentation. To do it well requries moving a lot of air effectively. It's something that typically only large speakers can do well, particularly in larger rooms. Large speakers that also do the all the other things well also tend to be very expensive.

I attribute achieving this particularly well in a fairly compact package like the Walshes as due somewhat to the relatively large radiating surface area in effect with the Walsh driver compared to a conventional driver of similar size. IT moves a lot of air but the absolute level of pressurization of the air at any particular location with an omni is perhaps less than that achieved with a similar sized conventional driver driven similary, which accounts for the more relaxed dynamics and low fatigue factor as well perhaps.

The omni drivers used in mbls also have this going for them although their mode of operation is totally different, and the large mbl base drivers in particular seem well suited for absolute top notch dynamics.

Just recently, I noticed a buzz comming from one of my micro talls at low listening levels, which seemed to disapear when I turned the volume up. I contacted John and he recomended checking to make sure the speaker wire in the cannister wasn't touching the cone. I told him that I didn't think that I was over driving the speakers, but he did tell me that I was driving them pretty hard, and that the 1000's might be a better fit since they will play twice as loud, and move four times the amount of air. He offered to send me another set of matched drivers for the micro talls, and I could send back the other ones. What customer service!! It was at that point that I decided to upgrade to the 1000's, since I was getting a nice fat tax return. I then asked about returning the micro talls. He told me to insure them for the full amount, but not to do so until I recieved my 1000's. He said "No need for you to go without your music" Needless to say, I was impressed. He is also sending me veneer samples to help me decide on what finish I want. In an age of incompetence and nobody gives a danm, it's a breath of fresh air to deal with someone who is willing to go the extra mile and do whatever it takes to make his customers happy. I will miss my micro talls, but look forward to breaking in my 1000's, and continue to enjoy the unique sound of Ohm speakers. I will post my impressions of the 1000's, and hope I can convince other people to take a chance and take advantage of the 120 day trial. Chances are, they will have a hard time settling for conventional box speakers once they hear the Ohms. Can't wait to get my 1000's.........

Joe,

Good for you! Yes, John does really go the distance for his customers! He once sent me a set of special drivers for my MWT's when I wasn't
so happy with their sound. A great guy to deal with.

Rebbe,

How are those LSIs working out?

I was listening to my OHM Ls for the first time in a while the other day and it occurred to me that these might be just what the doctor ordered in your case. If available, I think John sells fully upgraded and refurbished Ls for $600 a pair. Also, I think OHMs usual home trial policy applies, but I am not certain.

Ls sold for $500 a pair back in 1978. They are OHMs all time most popular model in terms of units sold, I believe. I sold dozens of them back in the day, usually over classics like JBL, Advent, EPI, etc. I've held my Ls ever since + did some custom upgrading recently putting in OHMs sub bass activator circuit (also used in the Walshes I believe) and Morel woofers that I selected and acquired to replace old deteriorating woofers. I still run the original drivers and crossover otherwise. They share a lot of sonic attributes of the Walshes except in a small (but heavy) conventional front ported, 3 way bookshelf design, not unlike Harbeth. Mine have a nice enticing warmth in the midrange compared to the more neutral Walshes. I bet John's upgraded Ls probably would lay mine to waste, though mine are still a pair of speakers that I could live with if I had to. I used to use them in a small dorm room in college. Now, they are in my basement's unfinished area (see my system pics), which is actually the biggest room in the house, with bare concrete floors even.

Wish I would have thought about these sooner.

The Ls sat in the room where my 5s are now prior to acquiring them, and I was very satisfied with their performance in there as well at the time.

The Ls sound absolutely sublime with the Bel Canto amp as well I am finding.

Marty - I have heard the VSMs a few times at shows, and was always impressed. A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to hear the latest version with customized crossovers, fed by modded BAT tube amplification, a modded Atmosphere preamp, modded VPI 'table, and a very highly modded, battery powered Sony CD player (one of the high end big Sony SACD players, but the mods killed the SACD abaility of the player). Speaker cables were home made large flat silver ribbons. A modded Velodyne subwoofer was rolled in below 30Hz. I felt the sound was quite good, but not at all forgiving of overly bright source material. Plenty of dynamics, details and sustained trails of notes, excellent PRAT and leading edge definition.

The current VSMs are a speaker I would absolutely consider if I were shopping in the $10K/pr price range. I would love to A/B the Merlins with the Silverline Audio Bolero, which also uses a Dynaudio tweeter. I would say the biggest improvement I heard with these VSMs over my Walsh 2000s was the highly refined treble. On high quality source material, the highs had a smooth, liquid quality that the Ohms don't have. Not that the highs on the Ohms are abrasive or edgey in any way, just a bit less refined and delicate. The Ohms give up nothing to the Merlins regarding imaging and soundstaging. The timbre of the Ohms is also as good as the Merlins, except perhaps the VSMs beat the Ohms in timbre of the very highest frequencies. That Dynaudio Esotar tweeter, combined with that custom crossover, is very special indeed.

That said, I feel I got pretty darn close for less than one third the price with my 2000s. Additionally, I feel the Ohms are kinder to poor source material, which means about 90% of the music I own and listen to!