I've finally hit the 200 hour mark on my Europas and the changes have been dramatic to say the least. Do not judge these speakers until you have at least 100 hours on them preferably with loud music, all types of music. At first the mids were a bit congested and the microdynamics a bit constrained, but after 100 hours the speakers really opened up with extremely clear and transparent mids. The ability of the speaker to play at low volumes after breakin is unsurpassed in my experience. The treble as stated is very smooth and airy with no hint of hardness or glare whatsoever. Subtle variations in cymbals and brushes are rendered very well. The bass is tight and fast and extends to the upper 40's in my room; I have a rel sub handling the low bass which integrates very well. What's also remarkable is they play very loudly without distortion or boxiness. The speakers are neither lean nor warm, they just sound right. I've listened to many fine speakers in the past 20 years and in my opinion the green mountains including the continuum 0.5 and C2 rank first in transparency, vocals, soundstaging especially depth, low level playing, microdynamic shadings, and most importantly in my opinion they are the most live sounding speakers I've heard. Other fine speakers such as the Merlins and Sonus Fabers sound warm and musical but in my opinion did not transport me to the studio. With the green mountains I actually feel that I'm in the studio or at the live event. When you consider the $900 price tag they are easily one of the best bargains out there. I have a $12,000 system with the green mountains being one of the least expensive components. Obviously they perform much better than their low price would suggest. I have no problem spending much more money on speakers but as I've said, they are the best monitors I've auditioned. I know many people have given these speakers excellent praise and I must concur. Of course these are just my opinions.
