Sadly, I'm not the owner. Sean was kind enough to let me borrow them for a weekend (they went out to a friend who was fine with that arrangement) along with his amp. The yamamoto is an interesting piece of gear. The midrange really is golden, but I could never deal with the limited dynamics and lack of bass control. I have a feeling that I'd prefer the Soul with some real tube muscle. I know a lot of people swear by SETs with Zu speakers, but I'd love to hear it with a giant balanced tube amp.
Anyway, this weekend audition was my first experience with Zu speakers, so I can't compare it to the Druid or any others. I can say what I heard, though. I initially set up the speakers about 5 feet apart with me sitting on a fairly tall recliner about 5 feet away. The soundstaging was amazing in that setup, but the speakers had a very nasal qualify to them. Some rearranging of furniture ended up with the speakers where you see them in the pictures and me sitting about 7 feet back and on a shorter couch. I had the speakers pointed just slightly behind me. In this position they really opened up. I think the nasal quality was a refraction (is that the right word?) issue from sitting above axis.
Now for sound. I listen to a very wide variety of music, ranging from hip-hop to jazz to full orchestras to video game soundtracks. I found that I generally liked the Souls most with smaller groups and close-miked instruments. Buddy Guy's Blues Singer, for example, came across as very raw and in-your-face, which is precisely how it should sound. The Souls drew out every low-level detail you could imagine, from his fingers scratching across the strings to his hands smacking against the body of his guitar is presented to you in a very neutral and revealing manner. It feels like the speakers really get out of the way and let the recording come through.
I also enjoyed listening to Blue Man Group's Audio on the Souls, although the bass wasn't quite as full as I would have liked. It was accurate and extended, but it felt recessed. This was true with both the Yamamoto and my NAD integrated, which at 50wpc has more than enough power to control the Soul's bass. It may have been a room issue, but I think ultimately this one is a matter of personal taste. I like full room-shaking bass and I was unable to produce that with the Souls. I would really love to hear them matched with a Method sub. 2 of them would be even better.
The Souls feel very neutral. Nothing seems too exaggerated. My sister (a non-audiophile but definite music lover) came up to listen to them with me and said that overall they sounded "sweet," and I would agree. The lack of exaggerated high frequencies makes the sound sweet relative to a lot of more mainstream audiophile brands. She brought up the soundtracks to all of the Harry Potter movies, and I thoroughly enjoyed them, which surprised me slightly given how well the speakers took to just a man and his guitar. The Souls didn't provide the same sense of monumental scale that you would get out of a large multi-driver speaker, but the musical score itself did come across clearly and without distraction.
Of everything I listened to, the only time I was disappointed was during Gil Shaham's rendition of The Four Seasons. There were times that things would begin to sound really congested and some of the individual instruments would get lost. I don't have that issue with my Vandersteens, although my 1Cs definitely don't produce the sort of detail that the Soul can.
Anyway, I know this isn't your typical audiophile review, but this is how I listen. I like a speaker that lets me hear the artwork being produced without distraction. Minus my desire for fuller bass, the Soul did this admirably. I would recommend them just about anyone.
No wait, actually, I do have one other complaint. I like the monolithic look of the Druid better. I mentioned this to Sean and he said that other people have said the same thing, and that they hope to eventually develop a "new" Druid provided that they can get the same imposing stature and have it sound better than the Soul Superfly. If they manage that, I'll be first on the reservation list. I may have to sell a kidney to make it happen, but I will.
