High Performance Audio - The End?

cd218,

Recently, after years of prejudice, I’ve taken to have another think about metal drivers and particularly their capabilities in the midrange.

I can understand the trepidation and prejudice. I’ve experienced it in the past too. My overriding first criteria is that my system sound "organic" - wood like wood, flesh like flesh - rather than cold, sterile and having an electronic or metallic quality.

I’ve long had Spendor S3/5s and an even older pair of Thiel 02 speakers, which were a plain box speaker Thiel sold before going all time/phase coherent. It uses paper drivers/soft dome. Both those speakers just exemplify the "organic" sound quality I love.

For me it was the Hales Transcendence speakers back in the late 90’s that blew some of my expectations out of the water regarding metal drivers. I ended up with the Hales Transcendence 5 speakers and they were so rich, timbrally colorful, and relaxed. I still actually use Hales speakers for my home theater for that very quality.

What was interesting for me was upon listening to the Joseph speakers, instantly recognizing a similar quality to the Hales - a richness of timbral color with a particularly smooth, grain-free sound. Both use the similar looking Seas midrange/woofer drivers, so it’s hard for me not to intuit there is something about the quality of those drivers bringing something to the party.


Any lingering prejudiced against metal drivers was removed when I got the Thiel 3.7 and currently 2.7 speakers in my system, using Thiels final in-house designed aluminum drivers. When driven my by CJ amps the sound is lush and organic. There isn’t a hint of metal anywhere I can detect in the sound.

"When i stop by my doc’s house..."

In old days, doctors would make house calls. These days patients do house calls?

deep_333,

"@glupson, i can only imagine which genius designed your speaker! (Tee hee) "

By now, we know you have very vivid imagination.

@glupson, what do you mean "By now, we know"? Do you mean both Jekyll and Hyde? I, personally, have never heard the Pioneer BS22 LR. But, i have seen them sold on either amazon or walmart.com at 80 bucks for the pair. It could be someone’s bar bill on a Friday afternoon. I suppose you were using that speaker in your comment as an example to imply that stuff made by A. Jones is a let down perhaps? How about this....You should give the fabulous engineer who designed your fabulous speakers 80 bucks to work with. You may be able to bask in the glory of a crapbox he gives you for 80 bucks.

@fleschler , my comment never said the Moabs sound better than the Von Schweikerts. There's a reason i had the Schweikerts and they are designed by some very competent guys. But, you pay for it dearly. If you have a large treated space and did justice to it, they are in a class of their own. I gave them to my son as a housewarming gift and have not heard them for 3 years. In essence, my comment was trying to emphasize that the Moabs are an absolute steal at 4.5k and play ball against a lotta stuff that costs magnitudes more. There's a reason my buddy shed his Wilsons for it.

I am extremely thankful to guys like A.Jones, Eric A and maybe Danny Richie too for coming up with stuff at charity prices that could bring more music lovers into this (especially the newer generation). Either way, It's time for this tiny group of silly old pompous goats running a phallus measurement contest in forums like these to move on in life.