Devore O vs Audionote

FWIW...I included my impression of my audio note speaker audition in my big "contemplating Devore speakers" thread.

In a nutshell I find both have a similar "organic" tone and texture. The way the bow and a string is texturally present and you get the tone of the wooden body.

So I think they are in the same family of sound in that sense. The O-series Devore are a bit more richly voiced, a bit more overt body and warmth.

Ultimately I preferred what I heard from the Devores. One reason is that, to get comparable bass to the Devores you have to use the AudioNote method of placing them near the corners, as they were for my audition. This works in terms of increasing the sense of scale and bass reach of the Audionote speakers, but frankly I couldn’t help "hearing the trick." That is hearing the room lift in the bass to help things. With the Devores, so long as they could be pulled well out from the back wall, the bass felt a bit more integrated and naturally produced.

Also, placing the Audionote speakers near the corners will tend to induce more interaction with the room, including sidewall reflections. While this can help with a lively, spacious tonal character, I prefer to keep room interaction to a minimum as I find it can obscure some of the subtle timbre in the actual recordings. The Devore speakers have a semi-wave guide for the tweeter which narrows dispersion somewhat. So, pulled out away from the back wall, and with the slight wave-guide, speakers angled toward me, I got less room interaction more recorded timbre on the Devores.

Those were my takeaways. I’m not an expert on Audio Note speakers or anything...

(Caveat: I find the Devore O/96 and 93 need 8 feet listening distance at least to cohere.  In my room that would mean a bit more room interaction/reflection than my current Joseph speakers, which I can pull closer without losing coherence).

@prof thanks very much for the info! I was especially curious about the tone of the mid driver.. but im also sensitive to coherency and thats a good point about the corners with AN.

Does anybody around here think Devore speakers are somewhat overpriced? Cabinets made next door to his shop (plywood?), couple of bespoke drivers...the Baby costs $7,000 or so...093 $8400...a handmade guitar in that price range has more craft than any speaker I can think of so I have to wonder. Maybe hype and cost relative to market perception, still...

You might also consider the Wolf von Langa SON. Similar footprint and sensitivity but has a dipole presentation and is equipped with cutting edge field coil drivers. Just won Product of the Year 2022 from The Absolute Sound.

Heads up I import the line in the United States.

Regarding prices, you picked a rather low bar to complain about. We have DACs costing $30K plus, amps double that and more, and no shortage of speakers easily breaking the $100K mark. All are good examples of a free market economy. The maker is free to charge what they wish, and we are free to buy -- or not.

There is also the issue of overhead and fixed costs for small, niche manufacturers. They don't have the volume of larger or mass market manufacturers over which to spread these expenses.

I've heard the Devore O96s and they are an excellent, musical speaker. I wouldn't hesitate to buy a pair if I were in the market for new speakers and had the spot for them. As with anything audio, YMMV, but as noted, you have lots of options if you're shopping for speakers, or anything else.