This is my first post in AC and I am glad to start with a review of the Daedalus Ulysses/ Bow's loudspeaker system.
Just some background information about my longlife interest in music and HIFI.
My name is Ugo and I live in Italy; I have been loving music since I was a child and this led me to learn playing guitar (both classical and acoustic), drums and percussions.
I grew up listening all genres of music with a special interest in Blues, Jazz and rock; later in my life i started loving classical music and opera too.
My passion for music was the main reason why I developed also a strong interest in the HiFi world more than 25 years ago.
As part of my system evolution I have been changing a lot (I mean a lot!!!) of gear during these almost 30 years in this hobby
.
To make the story shorter , this is my current system:
Source: Playback Design MPS-5
Preamplifiers: Dartzeel NHB-18NS and Coincident Technology Statement Line Stage
Power Amplifiers: Dartzeel NHB-108 and Coincident Tech. Frankenstein II monoblocks (SET 300B)
( that I use in turn to drive the Ulysses)
Absoluta Janus monoblocksto drive the Bow's
Speakers: Daedalus Ulysses V2 + 2 Bow's + Daedalus active crossover
AC Cables: Audience AU24 power chord, Coinc. Technology power chord
Speaker Cables: WyWires Platinum and Skogrand Tchaikovsky speakers
I/C cables: WyWires Platinum (from Dartzeel preamplifier to Frankenstein monoblocks) and Dartzeel BNC zeel cable (from source to Dartzeel preamplifier, and from Dartzeel pre to Dartzeel power amplifier)
AC power regenerator: PurePower 2000 (all equipment plugged in there)
Acoustic treatment: ASC tube traps, DAAD and Polifemo from Acustica Applicata
My dedicated listening room is 6.4 x 3.8 mt, with a shape of a trapezium scalene that required an heavy treatment to achieve good acoustic results.
First time I heard about Daedalus speakers was reading AudioCircle 2 years ago'; i got an increasing interest and curiosity by reading many posts from AC users; I want to thank all of you Daedalus owners bcz your posts in AudioCircle were very helpful.
One day I decided to give Lou a call to share with him what I was looking for and why I thought that the Ulysses could fit well to my needs. We went through several phone calls in the following days and I felt, from the very beginning, that I was dealing not only with a very skilled professional (like Lou is) but also with a candid ,supportive, honest and nice person.
After a couple of weeks and tons of quesions I shared with Lou (specially regarding the size and shape of my room that is not very easy to deal with) we came to the point that (with a little patience and attention for speaker positioning) the Ulysses and Bow's would be the speakers system I was looking for!!!
Few months later I got the Ulysses at home.
Installing the Ulysses was a pleasure and a joy at the same time since I find them just gorgeous to look at (people outside Italy say that italians have a special taste for beauty and design; who knows if this is really true.....).
Connecting the Ulysses, right out of the box, ..... wow ... it was a love at first sight!!!!
Speaking to Lou and reading around, I knew they needed a long burning time: I knew it well, but in my experience I also know that a very good product start singing right from the very first moment....the Ulysses indeed showed their huge potential from the very first minute I listened to them.
After 400-500 hours of heavy listening through the Ulysses this is my summary:
the Ulysses/Bow speaker system is the most musically engaging speaker I have heard in my life!!!!!
I don't want to bore anybody with HIFI terminology.
All I can say is that if u really like music and you are used to go frequently to live concerts, what the Ulysses can do for u
is to help creating at your own home the magic atmosphere that you breath and feel in live concerts.
The sounstage is just realistic; the instruments play just right and after listening for hours to your favourite music, you find yourself completely absorbed inside the same music you are listening too.
I can listen to the delicacy of a violin in Alvarez singing Gardel, or the tearjerker Sabina Sciubba's voice singing Caruso and get chills on my skin; or I can hear the walls of my room credibly shaking when I listen to 3 double basses playing together in Superbass2 (Ray Brown and co.).....or a full orchestral fortissimo in Carmina Burana making me feel in the center of an auditorium....
It is really touching to get this level of musical reproduction so emotionally true at home!!
Of course I am aware that the entire system is a very high quality system; the Dartzeel electronics sound wonderful and look awesome! The Frankenstein SET (300B running the AVVT 32B) are unique and magic in the middle range; the Playback Design from Andreas is a top class, truely outstanding player ; cables from Alex (WyWires) are so damn good and engaging..... cables from Knut (Skogrand) are a masterpiece in managing the music flowing in an ethereal yet visceral way.... the Absoluta Janus (Elia) are schokingly crisp and clear with unlimited power reserve driving the Bow's..... every single piece sounds a little special creature to me.... Last but not least the acoustic device Polifemo from Acustica Applicata (Fabio) were so unbelievable effective in my room acoustic that i thought i was in a different room......
Yet since the Ulysses came at home I feel that every single product of my system has started a new life!!
A life that speaks only music (not HIFI) and goes directly into your heart.
I apologize if I was long describing my experience with the Ulysses, but i feel it is worth to recognize the passion and esquisite taste that Lou puts in crafting his (my) speakers; sorry I meant his wonderful instruments!.
Thank you Lou and you know you have a friend in Italy,
Ugo