Floor Loudspeaker Reviews

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Snell Illusion loudspeaker

Larry Greenhill Dec 19, 2008 First Published: Dec 19, 2008

"How do you make an object common as a box iconic?" asked Bob Graffy, Snell's vice president/brand manager. He and Joseph D'Appolito, Snell's chief design engineer, were sitting in my listening room, discussing cabinet designs. Graffy noted that KEF had sought the same in their distinctive, silvery, cylindrical Muon loudspeaker ($150,000/pair). For the flagship model in their Illusion series, Snell commissioned Gerd Schmieta, former designer for Ideo, to integrate D'Appolito's wish list for an ideal enclosure: a narrow, rounded upper baffle for the midrange and tweeter, wider at the base for the woofers, holding a constant cross-sectional area while maximizing cabinet volume, and compliance with a 15° tip test.

Floor Loudspeaker Reviews

Chario Academy Sovran loudspeaker

Michael Fremer Dec 19, 2008 First Published: Dec 19, 2008

Italian manufacturer Chario Loudspeakers has never had a strong presence in the US. No wonder, then, when confronted by these exquisitely finished beauties of solid hardwood, many American audiophiles think, "Sonus Faber rip-off." Without knowing the musical history of the 1960s, had you heard Badfinger first, you might have thought the same thing when you then heard the Beatles. Similarly, Chario, by far Italy's largest maker of high-performance speakers, was founded in 1975, eight years before Sonus Faber. While SF has its drive-units built to its own specifications by other firms, Chario designs and builds its own.

Floor Loudspeaker Reviews

Thiel CS3.7 loudspeaker

Wes Phillips Dec 15, 2008 First Published: Dec 15, 2008

One might argue that Thiel Audio's 3-series loudspeakers are the audio equivalents of BMW's 3-series sports cars: relatively affordable, but 100% about performance. Thiel has made bigger, more expensive loudspeakers than the 3s, as well as smaller, less expensive models—but the iconic Thiels are the 3s.

Floor Loudspeaker Reviews J. Gordon Holt Historical

VMPS SuperTower IIa/R loudspeaker

Anthony H. Cordesman, J. Gordon Holt Dec 05, 2008 First Published: Apr 05, 1986

One of the nicest features of the High End is its diversity. Regardless of whatever trend is fashionable, there will always be manufacturers to buck it, and sell alternative concepts and sounds. VMPS is just such a case. With few exceptions, the recent trend in speaker systems has been toward small-to-medium-sized "monitors" with good imaging and high resolution, but limited bass and dynamics (footnote 1). The VMPS SuperTowers provide the former, but buck the trend by adding reproduction of the deepest bass and outstanding full-range dynamics.

Floor Loudspeaker Reviews

Avalon Acoustics Indra loudspeaker

Wes Phillips Oct 09, 2008 First Published: Oct 09, 2008

I first encountered Avalon Acoustics' loudspeakers about 20 years ago. The hi-fi shop I worked for sold Jeff Rowland Design Group electronics, and Jeff Rowland insisted that no loudspeaker better showcased his electronics than the Avalons. Rowland sent us a pair of Ascents, and we were startled by their gem-like, faceted cabinets and remarkable soundstaging. As we packed them up to return them to Colorado, I remember thinking, I could live with these speakers.

Floor Loudspeaker Reviews

Merlin Excalibur II loudspeaker

Jack English Sep 05, 2008 First Published: Dec 05, 1993

Despite displaying its products at nearly every CES since 1985, Merlin remains essentially unknown in the US. Problems have plagued the company in this country: key suppliers have gone under, marketing efforts have lacked focus, and the principals of the company seemed to have gotten caught up in audio politics.

Floor Loudspeaker Reviews

ProAc Response D28 loudspeaker

Michael Fremer Aug 22, 2008 First Published: Aug 22, 2008

Has any modern designer of high-performance speakers extracted more music from a two-way box than ProAc's Stewart Tyler? His early-1990s stand-mounted Response">http://www.stereophile.com/standloudspeakers/792proac">Response 2 (later upgraded to the Response 2S) was an instant classic, and while his tiny Tablettehttp://www.stereophile.com/standloudspeakers/0484proac">Tablette; proved controversial for being bass-shy and relatively pricey, his track record of two-way speakers remains unassailable.

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Esoteric MG-20 loudspeaker

John Atkinson Aug 15, 2008 First Published: Aug 15, 2008

Audio shows are where reviewers search out products for possible review. We are always on the lookout—or listenout—for components that transcend the boundaries of the ordinary, that set the pulse racing a little faster. The 2007 Rocky Mountain Audio Fest, held in Denver last October, was the first RMAF I had attended, and among the rooms that impressed me was one featuring components from the Japanese brand Esoteric, which was celebrating its 20th anniversary.

Floor Loudspeaker Reviews

Definitive Technology Mythos STS SuperTower loudspeaker

Wes Phillips Aug 14, 2008 First Published: Aug 14, 2008

John Atkinson and I were in a Manhattan loft apartment that could have stood in for every sophisticated NYC loft you've ever seen in films. We were surrounded by fabulous contemporary art. Asian and South American antiquities were discreetly displayed. The furniture was sparse but choice. And, over in one corner, facing a conversation grouping of paintings, two sleek metal tower loudspeakers were making extremely convincing music. We managed to delay examination of this urban paradise long enough to drink adult beverages and inhale some music.

Floor Loudspeaker Reviews

MartinLogan Sequel II loudspeaker

John Atkinson, Various Aug 10, 2008 First Published: Aug 10, 1989

Loudspeaker designers are dreamers. Something takes hold of a man—the fact that loudspeaker designers are all men must be significant—and he wrestles with recalcitrant wood, arcane drive-units, and sundry coils, capacitors, and cables, to produce something which will be individual in its sound quality yet inherently more true to the original sound. An impossible task. Yet if there were to be an aristocratic subset of those dreamers, it would be those who have taken upon themselves the burden of producing electrostatic loudspeakers. For these farsighted engineers, there is no standing on the shoulders of others, there is no recourse to tried and tested combinations of other manufacturers' drive-units. Every aspect of the design, no matter how apparently insignificant, has to be created afresh from first principles. For a new electrostatic design to produce a sound at all represents a great triumph for its progenitor, let alone having it sound musical. And to produce an electrostatic loudspeaker that is also possessed of great visual beauty is indeed a bonus.