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

Jwc,

Can I assume your OHMs are original Walsh 2s from the 80s with the first generation CLS drivers (ie not newer or updated drivers on Walsh 2 cabinets)?

I had original Walsh 2s for over 25 years prior to my current OHMs with the 3rd generation CLS drivers (the X00 series 3 drivers). The current line is the 4th generation X000 series drivers. The "cans" on all these look similar.

My gen 1 OHM Walsh 2 CLS driver cans had the word OHM Stamped into the mesh. Newer models do not.

Also gen 1 drivers had crossover board mounted in the base of the cabinets with level adjustments on the bottom. Gen 2 and newer have all driver components including crossover mounted in the "can".

All OHM Walsh speakers I have heard tend to have a laid back presentation in most rooms with most of the soundstage at or behind the speakers. My gen 1 Walsh 2s perhaps most so. Also with original gen 1 Walsh 2s, soundstage size, imaging accuracy and overall detail was a notch behind what one expects with most modern speakers including newer OHM Walshes.

Walsh 2s can easily work well (within their limits mentioned above) in a larger room. I once had them cranked to teh max outdoors and they delivered the goods to those listening in a field about 30 yards or so away. Going loud is not a problem if drivers are still in good shape and low end extension is pretty good.

I use my smaller gen 3 "Super" Walsh 2s (100series 3 drivers mounted in Walsh 2 cabinets in a similar large family room/kitchen area. I happen to have a sub in that room also but for most things it really does not add much.

Thanks Mapman.

Yep, 1st generation with stamped cans and controls on the bottom. Volume certainly not a problem. I'm driving these with a vintage Sansui amp (the Japanese version of the AU-819) with 90 wpc, so power and current are not a problem either.

I gather that the upshot is that these OW2s are what they are and that their performance is unlikely to improve by much. True, they are not as precise and dynamic as my more contemporary speakers (Monitor Audio S2s and Linn Tukans), but they are still extraordinary speakers (amazing for ones going on 30 years old).

What would you (and others) consider the most cost effective way to improve the performance or the upgrade path with the most bang for the buck? I'd like to get the options straight before looking for later versions or calling Ohm.

Did you keep the old cabinets for aesthetic or functional reasons (or both)? I find the bass from mine to be shockingly good, despite limitations of vintage.

I'm pretty hooked on the Ohm omni sound. Can't imagine not having some version of them now. It might have been foreordained. My very first pair of speakers were Ohm Es, bought with my paper route money from Tech HiFi in '77-'78, and I've always wanted a pair of the Walshes since then. Talk about delayed gratification!

JWC,

I can't speak to your Ohm W2s, but I can state that my 100s throw a very wide lateral stage that extends convincingly beyond the speaker position. I do agree, however, that the sense of depth starts at the plane of the speakers and goes back from there. This is the most obvious imaging difference (to my ear) between the Ohm versus the MBL, which extends dramatically forward and back from the plane of the speakers. OTOH, the Ohm sounds much more neutral octave to octave (again MHO) than any of the MBLs that I've auditioned (and that would be most all of 'em).

Not all omnis are created equal.

Marty

Jwc,

Talk to John Strohbeen at Ohm for upgrade or trade in options.
Which Tech Hifi did you get your Es at?

I worked at the New Brunswick nj store around that time. The Ohms were the house brand of sorts and always sounded best to me.

I bought my 100s3s in Walsh 2 cabinets used here on agon and owned them concurrently for comparison with my older Walsh 2s for a while. Then i traded in the old Walsh 2s and added a pair of larger F5s with series 3 drivers. I have both pair of series 3 speakers currently plus my old ohm Ls from my tech hifi days that I did a custom upgrade job on myself using a combo of both OHM and non Ohm provided parts.

Marty,

By that you mean that the soundstage and image extend to the right and left of the speakers, rather than remain between them, right? That's what I do not get with mine. I know that Ohms are not forward and the soundstage knocks out the back wall, which mine do a bit (but not dramatically). That's fine with me, though accounts of Ohms' imagining encompassing much of the room do have me envious.

My problem on occasion is with image height--not so much the knocking out the back wall as a bunch of musical midgets tunneling through it. That may be a matter of recordings. Better recorded material rarely if ever suffers from this problem.

Mapman: I bought them at the shop on Route 59 in Nanuet, NY (just over the Jersey line). I'm still kind of proud of my 13/14 year old self for picking out those speakers. A few years later I went to Rutgers in New Brunswick (class of '86). I think I bought an Onkyo receiver and tape deck from your shop around 1985. My roommate blew up the Es while throwing a party at our place on Louis Street; I had the Onkyo gear for the next 15 years. Ah, college. Seems like yesterday. I can barely remember it.

I'll call John S and see what can be done within my modest current budget. I'll also look to see if there are any good used deals around on newer models. If anybody knows of any for sale, let me know. In the meantime, I can't say I'm hurting for sound--those old 2s make excellent living room speakers and they sure beat the mass market junk out there today (and yesterday).