Although Roger Sanders was not in the room when I finally got there on the third day, his "handcrafted in Colorado" electrostats were singing as if he were. In addition to the superb transparency that one expects from a good electrostat, the bass was not just convincing, but simply amazing. The sound was a bit sharp in the small room, and at one point, in an unfortunate performance of Puccini's "O mio babbino caro," distorted on top. Since I've not had either experience in previous auditions of Sanders electrostats, I have a hunch the distortion probably due to the mikes used to record this unsuited-for-the-role-of-Lauretta soprano. (I have a number of recordings from EMI that grow harsh and noisy on vocals due to the choice of microphones).

I believe I was listening to Model 10c ($13,000/pair), which arrives complete with digital electronic crossover, cables, and a Magtech amplifier. Also heard were some combination of the ESL Makr II stereo amplifier ($4000), ESL monoblocks ($8000/pair), Magtech stereo amp for the bass ($5000, or $10,000 in monoblock configuration), new Sanders preamplifier ($4000), and Sanders interconnects. A 30 day in-home "risk-free trial," and free world-wide shipping to direct sale customers, as well as a lifetime guarantee.