Just to clarify for our readers - Beetle's 2.4SEs were late production with FST crossovers which proved to be inferior in some ways to the earlier Lexington units. The coils were not well wound and the wire is CDA102, one step down from Thiel's traditional CDA101 best of form. Otherwise, the FST passive components were CYC clones of the usual best of form units that Thiel had used. I have heard conflicting reports of when and how these Chinese units came about, but my direct comparison between FST and Thiel came out with Thiel sounding smoother, more open and relaxed and delicate, with the FST sounding more etched, crisp and clear. Although both presentations were valid, they did not produce a similar voice.; I would not judge them as from the same designer. My preference is for the original Thiel presentation as more musically enjoyable than the FST presentation. YMMV.
