I recently have listened to the Audes at a friend's home. It was my first experience with Audes, and I am not a dealer or anything of the sort.
First, the negatives. The speaker is a bit forward. With the wrong equipment, could it turn bright? This is not a speaker in the "Boston bland" mold. That's about it. Yes, I know, a lot people will think I should say these are the positives. Fine.
As the speaker speaker is forward, it will appeal to some, and not to others. If you like a dark, laid back type of sound, this isn't for you. Also, the speakers are pretty large, which some people like, some don't. I do.
Midrange seemed quite clean and clear. Lower frequencies were full, but the smallish room I was in makes me not want to comment too much on the Audes bass in the absolute. The speakers are quite tube friendly and sensitive, but I won't say that they will mate with SET amplification. I didn't find them romantic, I found them to offer an open sort of sound.
I rate the cosmetics and build quality in league of $5000+ speakers. Fit and finish is very good. In fact, I rate just about everything about the speaker to be in the league of $5000+ speakers. The binding posts made me ask if the owner performed his own upgrade. He did not. Suffice it to say even the most jaded will say, "WHOA!"
I was asked to guess how much they cost. My guess was between $7500 and $11000 (in these days of audio lunacy, I have learned to round up).
Would I buy a pair? If I was looking for a new pair of speakers, I would definitely put them on my very short list. At $2000, I am not really sure if they can be beat, but I would still try(not sure I wouldn't go for a romantic type of speaker, but would depend where I was in my audio journey).
First, the negatives. The speaker is a bit forward. With the wrong equipment, could it turn bright? This is not a speaker in the "Boston bland" mold. That's about it. Yes, I know, a lot people will think I should say these are the positives. Fine.
As the speaker speaker is forward, it will appeal to some, and not to others. If you like a dark, laid back type of sound, this isn't for you. Also, the speakers are pretty large, which some people like, some don't. I do.
Midrange seemed quite clean and clear. Lower frequencies were full, but the smallish room I was in makes me not want to comment too much on the Audes bass in the absolute. The speakers are quite tube friendly and sensitive, but I won't say that they will mate with SET amplification. I didn't find them romantic, I found them to offer an open sort of sound.
I rate the cosmetics and build quality in league of $5000+ speakers. Fit and finish is very good. In fact, I rate just about everything about the speaker to be in the league of $5000+ speakers. The binding posts made me ask if the owner performed his own upgrade. He did not. Suffice it to say even the most jaded will say, "WHOA!"
I was asked to guess how much they cost. My guess was between $7500 and $11000 (in these days of audio lunacy, I have learned to round up).
Would I buy a pair? If I was looking for a new pair of speakers, I would definitely put them on my very short list. At $2000, I am not really sure if they can be beat, but I would still try(not sure I wouldn't go for a romantic type of speaker, but would depend where I was in my audio journey).