Gemme Tanto V2- any thoughts?


Thinking I may try these out. Does anyone have personal experience with these speakers in a medium sized room, powered by solid state amp. I will be using Naim 552/250.2. Thanks in advance!
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Not sure if the 3/30/11 question was directed at me, as I have the Katanas.

I have come to the conslusion that the stated required power for the Gemme Katanas is really not all that fair. In speaking with Robert, he conveyed that they spend a lot of time running at about 16 ohms (vs. 8) and as such that halves the power of a lot of amps.

In installing my ML 334 amp at 125 wpc @ 8 ohms I noticed some definate opening up of the sound stage (it should be noted that sound stage and imaging performance is well documented with this amp). I played around a lot more with placement of the speakers and thought I had the right spot which showed the improvement in soundstaging with the new amp. Then the other night, I decided to bring them out about 1" more and this really paid off in dividends. I tried them out even further than this in the past but lost some of the bass and moved them back (I should have taken them back about 1 inch at a time).

My toe-in is almost non-existant now. The sound stage laterally and depth is better. There is still little that goes on in front of the speakers unless such is really strongly addressed in the recording. But depth is better with the higher power and better placement.

I really have grown to love these speakers. My Watt Puppies have been sitting out of the room for about two months + now. To me that says a lot. The Katanas don't carry quite the same bass weight as the W/Ps. But they do offer a nice tight, fast and controlled bass that is compelling. I actually think I like the HF better with the Katanas than the W/P - a little smoother or less agressive (but not soft or rolled off).

I feel pretty comfortable recommending these speakers. Though I am interested in getting an even higher powered amp (something in the 200-300 wpc @ 8 ohm range) to see if the added power brings out more positive attributes. I am considering a Krell, ML 400 Series, Parasound JC-1, possibly a BAT 500 (less likely) or possibly something else. Suggestions would be welcome for another higher powered amp.
Hi ckoffend, I have a question about the Gemmes as compared to the Wilsons. I also had Watt Puppies (the 6), and I wished they sounded just like they did except for a kind of mechanical vocal, with a hard edge, almost buzz-like, sometimes also apparent on strings, with some stridency.
Otherwise, I loved the controlled detailed non-boomy bass and the non-piercing highs and the non-ringing upper midrange, in fact I enjoyed the whole frequency spectrum which I felt was very balanced.
How are the Gemmes on vocals/strings/mids in general in terms of being non-mechanical and just soft enough to be natural and not tiresome? Thank you for any comment, even a very short one.