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Zu OMEN - hmm

I might still be under the influence of the open baffle Spatial Hologram I heard at CAS14 earlier this month... wow! Top sound in my (and my friend's) book. Or the Magico S5 room (omg is that resolution level for real? you can hear the grass grow through those things).

I went to the Zu room as well - hoping to hear some well setup Zu speakers and learn about the right way to do it - but the sound was awful (sorry Sean) so I did not bother asking.

Yesterday I ran into a video advice on "setup tips with Seam Casey from Zu Audio". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCoKDfdxzDg

Bingo! Now I will learn how to make my Omens sing - from the man himself.

What did Sean Casey say in the video? To stop tweaking the bottom gap, tilt and toe-in, stop adjusting them, stop doing all this nonsense that gets old fast. Why? because they already sound good right out of the box, that's why. Spend my money on music instead.

Hmm - what if they actually DON'T sound good? Is there some advice for that case? What if, after the 3 years I had them, many SS and tube amps, days of gap adjustment, tilt adjustment, swap of few speaker cables including Zu Libtec, what if they still sound like an amplified live event through a pro speaker on a stadium? (Incidentally - all adjustments do make a difference, but mostly between dull and blare. I know, I'm probably too harsh, but that video got me really upset).

I hope that my recent listening to real speakers at CAS will soon wear off so that I can return to living with my Omens that "sound good right out of the box".

Or I might have to buy the Holograms. The tough part would be to convince my medium-size dogs to stay away from those beryllium transducers located so close to the ground. Maybe if I throw in the Omens to sweeten the deal? That should keep them busy for about 3 years?

Choices, choices.
cbozdog
cbozdog OP
63 posts
 
@Philtangerine - I love the m-Lores (they are the 8" version of the Lores' 10" driver). Do I see myself going up the Tekton path? Well, regardless of the musicality and aesthetic pleasure, in the back of my mind I still have the idea that Tekton like Zu have found this great niche: plywood cabinetry, modern coloring, off-the-shelf pro drivers that almost feels like I would be able to do it all by myself (I wouldn't, but can't shake the feeling). If I wanted to go up, I would feel a bit uneasy going this way right now.

Which is not to say that this path is wrong. It just would not make me 100% happy even if the music reproduction turned out sublime - and I need at least the possibility of 100% in order to go to my next step.

Right now, personally I'm drawn to exploring laterally a bit more before committing to the final solution. The Holograms is what i would get (if it weren't for the dogs). Maybe they'll come out with an aesthetically-pleasing solution that makes them less vulnerable to dogplay. At this time I believe that they might go 100% (but as with anything, I might find it not true).

Thanks
C.
cbozdog OP
63 posts
 
Just a short note on this old thread... I still have the Omens in a side system, now driven by the Wadia Powerdac 151 through Slinkylinks speaker cables - but that's not the reason for writing. The reason is dust mites.

If your room is in the real world (and not a class A cleanroom) then dust tends to accumulate on exposed surfaces (having pets does not help either). I found that periodical removal of said dust from under the speakers can yield a step improvement in clarity and definition. YMMV based on your cleaning practices :).

The bottom finger design does not seem well thought out after all - clearly sealed enclosures or side vents do not suffer from this issue. However, knowledge of the flaw and periodic maintenance might make the speaker more bearable for some.

As another side note - I do recommend the Slinkylinks if you can find them. Designed with very low capacitance and inductance (at the expense of some DC impedance). Without going into accolades for this product (which I think it actually deserves) - this implementation of pure silver does remove congestion from the delivered program.
chakster's avatar
chakster
6,144 posts
 
I liked my Zu Druid MK4 and now i like them even more after upgraded them with pair or new nano drivers. I use WLM Minueta (triod) tube amp with Stereovox cables. The best cables i ever heard: Stereovox Colibri (interconnert) and Stereovox Firebird (speaker cables) with Xhadow plugs (banaba, spades, rca). Maybe i will upgrade tweeters soon.

P.S. As far as i know Druid is much better than Omen
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