Avalon Indra vs Eggelston Andra III


I am curious about these 2 speakers.Did anyone had a chance to compare them?
128x128mikedimitrov
Kurt Tanks,you are very kind for taking so much time to explain the diffrences.I am now owning Tannoy Canterbury,I lkove their retro looks and how they sound.But you know there is always something better so I am thinking to experiment some more.I have an oportunity to swap these speakers + some money in few thousands$ for Andra III or swap for Tannoy Kingdom 15 straight.Never heard any of them.I listen acoustic music,Jazz,Prog rock(mostly) and classical music sometimes.I heard Andras are great for rock but not for acoustic music(in one review).Can you comment on that?Thanks so much
The Avalons are among the most coherent and cohesive speakers on the market. If you have an ear for driver integration and imaging, then you would be hard pressed to do better. They are finicky about placement and high quality components (especially amplifiers). If you listen to acoustic and unamplified performances that have stage depth, you will appreciate them. If I had a smaller room, or a better appreciation of money, I would probably own the Indras.
No problem, glad to help.

Again, this is comparing the Avalon Eidolon to the EgglestonWorks Andra II, (not the Indra or the Andra III).

With that said, I disagree that the Andra II speakers don't do acoustic music very well. I actually love the way that my Andra II does acoustic music, especially with jazz. I listen to a decent amount of jazz, (say 15-20% of my listening), and it does a great job with it. (I love how the bass and double bass sound on some of the Bill Evans and Ray Brown LPs; in fact, it sounds better on the Andra II than on the Eidolons, IMHO.) However, I can see why someone might say that they sound better with rock, as the Andra II can rock out with the very best of the speakers I have heard. The twin isobaric 12" woofers are very fast and go very deep.

(However, I might agree that the Eidolons do some acoustic music better than the Andra II, but only very slightly, and then only with classical music, IMHO. The Eidolons seem to work great for classical music, but are only very good with rock. I think they might do complex music, such as classical, a bit better as I think they might be a touch more revealing.)

If I was to grade the Eidolon and the Andra II speakers for each of the types of music that I listen to, I would grade them thus:

Rock (I listen to rock about 60-70% of the time.)
Andra II - "A-"
Eidolon - "B+"

Jazz (I listen to jazz about 15-20% of the time.)
Andra II - "A-"
Eidolon - "A-"

Classical (I listen to classical about 5% of the time.)
Andra II - "B+"
Eidolon - "A-"

Vocals (I listen to vocals about 10-15% of the time.)
Andra II - "A-"
Eidolon - "A-"

FYI, I don't give out "A+" grades, and only the very best speakers get an "A" grade. So the fact that you see "A-" grades means that these speakers are very close to the very best I have heard. And, I should point out that my reference speaker is the Rockport Antares, which a friend of mine has, and to which I have heard on many occasions. (And, it is this same friend who used to own the Eidolons for several years prior to owning the Antares, so I am very familiar with that speaker.) These are tremendous speakers that get just about everything right. (Of course they should given what they cost!) Another speaker that I have heard that "seems" to get just about everything right is the Avalon Isis. (I say "seems" because I have only heard them once, and the room was not quite set up perfectly, yet, but once they are, I think they would be the Antares equal.)

I should also point out that both the Andra IIs, and especially the Eidolons, need to use really good electronics. They are very revealing, and if you have less than high quality equipment, they will reveal it quickly. (I do feel the Andra II speakers are just slightly more forgiving than the Eidolons, as I think the Eidolons are a touch more revealing.)

My two cents worth anyway.
there are two pairs of Aerial 20T on Agon now at a great price. better low, better high, actually way better high, and not hard like Avalon (hate those ceramic tweeters no matter on which brands), and better built.
As an Eggleston Andra 3 owner I can tell you that the Andra's can easily perform the most intimate of acoutic, classical, jazz, etc with ease and an overall musicality that is mesmorising - the andra 2's were good but the 3's have the edge in being able to perform anything and everything thrown at them without batting an eyelid. Simply sublime.
Utilising possibly the best tweeter ever designed - the Dynaudio Esotar, the high end is the smoothest I have ever heard and totally unfatiguing.
I think you would be more than happy hearing any of your precious music collection through the Andra 3's and never look back - I certainly didn't.
Eggleston really nailed it with this model - can they rock - yes indeed - but they are also capable of the most intimate music styles out there.