Seeking thoughts on Apogee Caliber Ribbon speakers
Good advice above, I have owned Apogee speakers for years (Centaur, Centaur minor, MiniGrands, Duetta Signatures)....they all needed good amps, with lots of grunt power. I still own a pair of Duetta Signatures and a pair of Stage....although one of my Stage has the dreaded "Apogee bass panel Buzz". Good luck, Dave |
I drive my Calipers with two Adcom GFA 555 power amps (bridged mono). I figure they're providing about 800-1000 watts per side into the 2-3 ohm load with lots of current. They deliver beautifully. Of course a tube preamp helps (Audible Illusions 2b), proper speaker cables and interconnects, room size and placement and a good turntable or [sigh] a top quality CD player (if you must...) Anyone have a spare Caliper woofer ribbon? I need the right side if viewing from your listening position. My wife bumped one of the speakers with (you won't believe this) a broom handle. (Yup, she's still around...) I figured it's cheaper to keep her instead of training a new one [joking!] I gotta appreciate her. She's the one who picked the Apogees (for their sound). It still works, but when I pump up the volume I get a crackle. Any suggestions for a repair? |
Kai_s, try Rich Murry of True Sound Works in Nevada. He refurbishes Apogee using Graz's (Australian manuf of after market Apogee ribbons). http://www.truesoundworksaudio.com/ the whole process (of shipping to-fro & repair) will not be cheap - you have been warned!! ;-) |
R.I.P. They were more trouble than they were worth to me. I donated them to Habitat for Humanity. I have no idea who bought them or what they charged for them. I'm just glad they are gone. But I DO appreciate the in depth advice that I have received on them. Now, to get back to putting a new metal tread on my wagon wheels. |
They indeed can be frustrating. Physics is physics and there is absolutely no getting away from the cancellation/doubling effects in the bass....some frequencies doubling up, some cancelling out, which is why folks can't figure out just what to do with placement to get the bass right. It cannot be nearly right across the frequency range. They also never can reflect the instant dynamic attack of most real instruments. However, by taking the bite out of the initial attack (that should be there) they are "smooth", "natural", "easy" in a way that is stylized but is so seductive that there are many admirers and many many people who wish real music were that way. All in home systems are portraying an event that cannot be "real" in the home, so we could say all home systems put forth stylized sound. The Apogees are just doing it in their lush, smoothed over way, more stylized than the best, most neutral speakers. If this gives some listeners the memories of real music, that's great. In the end, I too felt they were more trouble than they were worth. |
