I thought I might chime in here, not because my perspective is any more valid, but because, in addition to my own personal views, I have talked to quite a few owners on this topic.
First, let me say that this is a fair question and one I have thought about quite a bit. My perspective basically boils down to this: If you want a speaker that can show a great recording in all its glory, it will be a very accurate, detailed and neutral. Great recordings played through such a speaker are heavenly. But poor recordings simply cannot hide from such a speaker and their faults will be exposed. (They don't necessarily need to be less enjoyable, but their faults will be more obvious.)
Every speaker driver made has an inherent level of both veiling and distortion. A speaker built with drivers that have high levels of veiling will tend to mask imperfections in recordings. This may make these recordings quite listenable, but those same speakers will veil great recordings equally. So with speakers such as this, you will never experience the magic of a great recording on a great speaker. For me, that price is simply too high to pay.
Over the years, I have read online comments from posters who indicate a preference a "warm" sounding speaker. And every once and a while, we will receive emails asking how I would describe the sound of our speakers. "Do they sound warm?"
The problem with this question is that a great speaker should not sound warm. Nor should it sound cold, bright, dull or anything else. It should simply pass the music along as faithfully as possible. If the recording is "warm," it should sound warm. But if it is not, it should not. If the speaker is adding warmth to the sound (usually added distortion), it is imparting its own personality to the music. And it will impart this artificial warmth to every recording, whether it benefits the recording or not. In this case, the speaker itself becomes a musical instrument and colors the sound. Personally, I find this unacceptable.
Why does a given speaker sound "warm?" It sounds warm if there is a high level of veiling (unable to resolve imperfections in the recording), or a high level of distortion (masking defects in the recording). Neither, in my opinion, is desirable.
In terms of living with highly accurate and detailed speakers over the long haul, I have learned a little from customers. Every once and a while, a customer who purchased speakers from our Veracity line will email with questions about break-in. They will ask if the speakers will mellow over time. I sense this line of question is related to this very issue.
In almost every case, about a week or two later, I will receive another email saying that the speakers were finally broken in and what a difference it made. But having experience listening to our speakers when new and after hundreds of hours, I sense there is something entirely different going on here. And in these cases, if the customer still has his/her old speakers, I usually ask them to hook the old ones up and get back to me with their reactions.
In every case they report that they cannot believe how veiled and unlistenable their old speakers were, and they wonder how this ever went unnoticed.
Here is what I think is happening... When you get a new pair of speakers, you immediately start listening for how these speakers differ from your sense of what the perfect speaker should sound like. Your mental frame of reference is most likely your old speakers which will likely have higher levels of veiling and distortion. When the new speakers sound different (more detailed, for example), you notice that difference right away and try and determine if it is a difference you like or dislike.
When you first listen to a very accurate speaker, you may feel the sound is a little on the thin side. But this is primarily due to the higher levels of distortion you are no longer hearing. That distortion-induced body and warmth is not contained in the recording itself. But you are so used to hearing it, you sense something is missing.
Since the new sound quality varies so much from your frame of reference, it takes you back a little. About two weeks later, once you have become accustomed to a more detailed speaker, it becomes your new frame of reference. At that point, you stop listening for the characteristics of the speaker and start listening to the music itself. That is when "full break-in" occurs. But it is not the speaker that is breaking in, it is your frame of reference.
Once most people have a chance to spend an extended period of time with a highly detailed and accurate speaker, there is no turning back. If you go back and listen to your old speakers, you will most likely find them to be veiled, bloated and flabby in comparison. Regardless of how pleasurable it may make some poor recordings sound, you know that these speakers will never provide the magic that is contained in your great recordings. And you will likely find that unacceptable.
Will this impact what you listen to? Undoubtedly so. You will most likely find yourself searching for every great recording you can get your hands on. And you will likely listen to poor recordings less often. But that does not necessarily mean that poor recordings will be unlistenable. You'll just find yourself wishing they had been recorded better. Great recordings, on the other hand, will put tears in your eyes. That is simply the nature of the journey into high end audio and one that is well worth the trip.
That's my perspective. Your milege may vary.
- Jim
