Lore vs Vandersteen ICi vs Ohm Walsh Talls

Hi SunnyJim

You still have those Red Dragon M500 monoblocks right? If so my vote is for the Ohm Walsh MicroTalls. I have Ohm Walsh 2 speakers and a lower wattage Class D Audio 120 watt/channel into 4 Ohms amp and it is a great match for the Ohm Walsh 2s. I find the Class D amp pairing with Ohm Walsh speakers is a good match. I tried a class A type solid state amp and a Jolida tube amp with the Ohm Walshs and the Class D amp was the best pairing.

Also this is just my feeling but I would got with a brand that is more established and has more longevity. I just think Tekton is the speaker company of the moment. Ohm Acoustics and Vandersteen have been around for ages. I'm shocked John Strohbeen from Ohm hasn't gotten back to your inquiries. Everytime I've called him he has been great to deal with. Even over e-mail he has been responsive.

Best of luck with the search.

Sunnyjim,

I think I gave you the wrong idea in my first post. When I said that Vandersteen yells at everyone, I didn't mean that he was a bad guy, or anything like that. Most of the time, I think he's just kidding around. At some point, he usually starts laughing. I'm not trying to make any excuses. I just don't want you to not consider a really good pair of speakers just because of anything I said.

As far as the setup instructions goes, he's right. Its very important you follow them for best results. If you didn't go through it, theres a formula you use to set properly set the back tilt. You take some measurements on where the speakers are in relation to your listening chair and put the results into the formula. Thats how you find out how much back tilt you need.

ZD542, No need to clarify or explain. I may not have followed the instructions to the "T", and the improvements were minimal when I studied the pamphlet.
Personally, I think the guy is a jerk who should be more careful what he says to potential customers over the phone. I once talked to Roy Johnson at Green Mountain speakers for two hours when I owned a pair of his Europa speakers. He was a gentleman and did not act I was wasting his time. It speaks volumes about a company when you get that level of customer service. In addition, I really don't think Vandersteens are that good sounding speakers and I have heard most of them.

I am sure the improvements to the ICi's speakers are legitimate and raise its performance level. BTW, I submitted my questions to just the customer service division of Vandersteen assuming my questions were too mundane for the exalted owner and designer. I have yet to hear back and don't expect to.

SunnyJim,

I have never owned the exact models you ask about, but have owned 2CE's and many other speakers. Tekton Design speakers are definitely not the flavor of the month...I had Eric Alexander build me a custom set of his OB4.5's in Bubinga wood for me a few years ago as a speaker for our bedroom to go 180 degrees from our Maggie 3.6 based primary system. I can vouch for the quality of his product and tell you they are crazy good for the $550 I paid for them. His workmanship alone on the cabinets will amaze you. He is also a very nice person and fair businessman. I have no dog in that fight, just relaying my own experience.

I have also heard the M-Lores and some other of Eric's product and can tell you the M-Lores are way above their $649 price. I would like to hear his Pendragons when I get a chance.

Understand I'm not saying Ohm & Vandersteen's products are bad, just that Eric's speakers from my own personal experience are quality audio products worth a look. I'm not bragging, but I've invested much time and $$$ in this addiction we have over my 57 years on audio and personally enjoy music more than equipment.

Good luck with your chase and happy listening. I just thought I should speak up after Jedi's comments.

To Rootman: Thank you for the comment. I appreciate the advice. As I mentioned I could live with the Lore-M, but somewhat concerned about their bass quality which according to Lore's published specification rolls down to about 37 HZ. Lore M would save me some money, and their size seems ideal for my room. The Lore-M would only be my alternative to my main speakers which are Acoustic Zen Adagios.... I know sounds crazy; but that is my M.O. I am not familair with the Lore model OB4.5. I will check their website.

BTW, you have beat me in years in Hi-Fi/audio hobby obsession. I celebrated my 42 year ploughing away at audio Nirvana, and never enjoyed myself more. The audio scene has dramatically changed since 1971. Hindsight can mislead you and break your heart, however, I still believe the Rectinlinear 3A was one of most natural sounding speaker I have ever heard, only followed by the original ESS company's first line of speakers, especially the models Translinear, and the larger Transtatic.

Regards to all, Jim