Norh Speakers from Thailand: High-end or Hype??

I auditioned a pair of nOrh Prism 6.9s, but ultimately opted for Meadowlark Kestrels. The Prisms weren't bad; fit and finish of the cabinets was poor, but they sounded nice enough - smooth mids and highs, bass a little over-extended, considering the size of the drivers.

nOrh products use Vifa and Scanspeak drivers, and to my ears, they don't sound radically different from all the thousand other speakers that use these same drivers. The odd cabinets detract from rather than enhance the performance, in my opinion.

Pretty generic, inoffensive stuff. There are so many speakers in this price range... unless you get a stunning deal on used ones, keep shopping. And don't expect performance that's out of the ordinary in any way.

I want to thank everyone who so far has contributed to this post. Though, my instincts of 35 years of reading audio mags, classified ads and working in the business, make me lean more toward the observations of members "Kasperhauser" and "Esmeralda". There is a great deal to be learned from a website, not saying this tells everything about a product or its real world performance. Nevertheless, as Esmeralda indicates, using great drivers does not automatically produce a great speaker.especially, if the design parameters for those drivers are wrong and the product is less well engineered than even some mid-fi products. In addition, KP has identified for me that this product just sounds like others, and is not extraordinary in any area of performance. So, why should I buy it?? I have not read the testamonials about the Norh speakers on the websites recommended by those members who responded; and, I am sure there are aspects of the performance of the "drum" model that are very satisfying; but, that does not in my opinion qualify as high-end. This comment is not intended to be smug or elitist, but a conclusion based on what I have read and heard. If this company had an outlet to audition their product, I would surely take advantage of it before reaching any final conclusion. But, I think asking a customer to purchase a product from a relatively unknow company on the recommendations of a few owners is not a strong or positive business practice. This type of "marketing" seems to be more evident everyday, especially accomodated by the internet. It would be wonderful to "find" a speaker that far exceeds the performance of similar products from well-know manufacturers, that is, an extraordinary bargain in sound and appearance. Unfortunately, such products seem fewer than were available 20 years ago.

Dismissing a product that could only be marketed at its price point via the internet on the basis of two opinions of people that you have never vetted or even met certainly will keep your life less troublesome (and, perhaps, less interesting).

Good luck.

TO Zorpman, While I was writing my response,I calculated that I might draw some criticism from the membership. Regretably, I wish I had the resourses of being more adventuresome, and you are probably right that basing my conclusion on the opinions of two members may be unfair to the Norh pedigree. Nevertheless,I have been burned once or twice on mail-order follies, and the price of the Prism 6.9 is too much money to gamble and possibly be disappointed. The aftermath of such an investment would also leave me with the task of having to resell the speakers that I received.

Sunnyjim
I totally respect your decision for not buying in the
internet there is always a risk.But dealing with Norh
people is cool.I know someone who needed to have his
amp service to them, it came back quick and they answer
his email quicker than, if you will deal with our local
snub dealer, Honestl, Iam very greatful with internet
Audiochain, like the Oddyssey, Norh, Audionut,I benefited
from them.And i got a good result too.My 6.9,with the le
amp monoblock $450 and ah cd sold by upscale audio, will
beat a system between 10k to 15k. How do I know, Ive been
to my friends home and dealers with that amt of money
that was spend.Maybe I got lucky synergizing my system,
or maybe Iam bias because i own it. One thing i always
try to avoid is to be bias, for i dont have the guts to
cheat myself. Lastly I am glad i took the risk, if I did
not,I would probably miss this treasure.ALSO NOT TRYING
TO PROMOTE ANY PRODUCTS, IF THE PRODUCTS IS BAD THE STORY
STOPS FROM THERE ITS HISTORY.