tomthiel
Thank you very much for your synopsis of the 2.x models: their differences among themselves, benefits compared to the 3.x, your preferences and history with them, and why so many people like them.
Most of the followers of this thread don’t realize that I have known Tom from the days of the O3a, more than 30 years, from CES in both Las Vegas and Chicago. The Thiel room was one of my favorite every time, and Tom one of my favorite people to chat with. I have kept occasional contact with him ever since then, just to talk about the speakers. When he told me about his preference for the 2.x models, I could not resist collecting a CS2.0 and CS2.2 for myself, even though I still have never set them up to hear them. I have just been too enthralled with my O3a, CS3.5 and CS3.7, thinking I would miss them TOO MUCH if I moved them out to try the smaller ones.
Well, about 7 years ago, I became the exclusive dealer for Audio Note (UK) in the Los Angeles area. One of the Thiels had to go into storage to make room for a demo pair of AN/E speakers ($12,000/pair), and now I love them too. But then finally, when I moved back the CS3.5 into my primary listening room, my friends and I were amazed. What we all remembered as about the best sound we had ever heard (my Thiel CS3.5 system) was STILL among the VERY best we’ve ever heard. It is truly amazing that after all these years of my ownership, 20+ year old speakers demonstrate that the unique goals and successes of Jim Thiel still provide state-of-the-art sound, in these very specific aspects: imaging specificity, sound stage size, depth, resolution of subtle details, and presentation of very fine timbre and texture that approach the sound of truly live instruments and voices. The 30+ year old O3a, provide these magical characteristics as well. Since the CS3.5 proved themselves again, I have not moved AN speakers back into that room since. I bought a pair of CS3.7 speakers to put there, the CS3.5 are back in storage, and AN speakers populate the other rooms in my homes and retail audio salon. The Thiel O3a have never moved, by the way, and still sound awesome in my parents’ living room, where I have listened to them from the time they were current models. Yeah, that was when I was a college student, still living there.
Now, because of this thread, and all the love I have read about for the 2.x speakers, I have my CS2.0 pair (piano black) in the hallway, just about ready to insert them into one of my listening rooms, for the first time. My CS2.2 pair are DEFINITELY going to get the full Tom Thiel update treatment, and I will not be surprised if they take a permanent place in my life, along with the CS 3.7 in my living room that are not going anywhere either.
