Please rate WATT/Puppy 7

I too think most of the issues with the previous versions have been resolved with the 7’s. I have never listened to the 5.1’s, but I auditioned the 6’s on several occasions. I was very impressed with the accuracy, bass reproduction, and dynamics of the 6’s but could never warm up to them. Then came the 7’s. They did everything the 6’s did but better. They are a bit mellower on the top end without the loss of detail. I agree that they require careful system matching and may complement tube gear better than SS. I do not agree with the comment that they will not disappear. If properly positioned, you will be immersed in the sound and the 7’s are gone. As a matter of fact, they disappear better than any speaker I listened to in their size and price range. As far as price goes, they are not cheap. However, I don’t know why so much more emphasis is placed on the WP’s price. Other speakers in their class are comparably priced, and some cost more. I don’t think anyone that does his or her homework and shops around pays full retail anyway.

The 7’s will enhance a great system and reproduce what’s going on upstream. If you are looking for coloration, look elsewhere.

We used Watt/Puppy 7 in one of our CES demo rooms for the past two years. Its one of the best modern day speakers out there. Its a speaker that needs proper setup and if your system isn't up to snuff its not going to mask it for you.

IMO you need an accurate bass foundation for classical music and I can't think of any speaker at this price point that has the bass reproduction and articulation of the Wilsons. Buy it if you have the right system to compliment this wonderful speaker.

I truly find it hilarious when people are discussing a decade old model and relating it to the current day version which is completely different other than the name and general arrangement. When/how were comparisons made here, guys? What was the equipment? Give us a little background/detail to help us understand how you came to your conclusions.

It's been said already, but don't think it can't be overstated enough. I've heard WP7 with many different amps, both solid state and tube, and have to say they can sound like the traditional exposure most people have with Wilson: solid state hi powered amps, which would leave one impression that they can be very good or even awesome in certain areas like dynamics, bass extension, imaging, transparency blah blah blah.

With a truly world class tube amp they will bring out the best that ANY equipment is capable of, and drop your jaw with stunningly musical, realistically portrayed MUSIC.

For God's sake, if you've heard these in an audio "salon" you've not heard them. They cannot sound even close to what they're capable of within a casual sales environment and setup. They take a lot of care and as mentioned, time to find how they work in an individual room. No sales jockey in his right mind would take the time to set these up optimally-it's not worth it to them. They can sell speaker z which sound great when just thrown in the room, oh and it's a lot less money. Great.

Also, any small change and I mean small can totally alter them. They are truly chameleons: perhaps more forgiving than other Watt/Puppies but incredibly more involving-and it's not even close to the other models. The only way possibly to know what these can do is to try and search out an enthusiast who knows what he/she's doing and cares enough to take the time and spend the money to show 'em what's real on the battlefield and go visit their setups!

I concur that the W/P 7 needs proper setup but what really good speaker doesn't? It takes experience to position them ideally and that is why I always work with the dealer who places them intitially, allows them to break in then comes back several times to fine tune them with me. The result is easily worth the effort. I imagine having someone with experience set up the Kharma's would produce a better result than some noviciate reading the owner's manual.

I also concur that the W/P 7s sound sublime with capable tube amps which is why I run mine with JA-100s. But I have recently found them to be quite compatible with the elegant SS Hovland Radia stereo amp, no brute there.

There is no "do-everything" speaker but the W/P 7 comes closer than anything yet conceived. There are speakers that can best it in any given category but none can keep up in all.

I concur that the W/P 7 needs proper setup but what really good speaker doesn't? It takes experience to position them ideally and that is why I always work with the dealer who places them intitially, allows them to break in then comes back several times to fine tune them with me. The result is easily worth the effort. I imagine having someone with experience set up the Kharma's would produce a better result than some noviciate reading the owner's manual.

I also concur that the W/P 7s sound sublime with capable tube amps which is why I run mine with JA-100s. But I have recently found them to be quite compatible with the elegant SS Hovland Radia stereo amp, no brute there.

There is no "do-everything" speaker but the W/P 7 comes closer than anything yet conceived. There are speakers that can best it in any given category but none can keep up in all.