I have decided I should post some listening impressions. This is partially because I think I can add something to the conversation and partially because I need to address some things I said in a different thread regarding my initial impressions of these speakers.
First of all, I sort of offhand mentioned that I didn't care for these speakers on a different post related to building a custom version of the X-Statik with a planar magnetic tweeter. After I built the speakers I hooked them up and played some music just to make sure that I had wired them up correctly. I didn't actually sit and listen to them at all until they had about 8 hours of play time on them. I knew that these speakers would break in over around 200 hours, but I assumed that I would have at least some idea what they would sound like after 8 hours of play time. I was wrong.
After 8 hours I hated them. I tried them with my Lyngdorf TDAI-2170 solid state amp as well as my PrimaLuna Evo 300 tube amp trying to find a good pairing. I said on the other thread that I didn't want to go so far as to say I hated them - but really I was being polite. I hated them. In fact, I was pretty distressed that I had taken the time to build them and that I had convinced a friend to part ways with his hard earned money to purchase them. I disliked them so much that I was seriously considering calling Danny and canceling my order for the 2 sets of NX-Treme's that I've been waiting for since May. I spoke with my relative in Vietnam (for whom the 2nd pair is for) about the experience and to be honest, we were both pretty rattled by what I was hearing - especially since each NX-Treme utilizes 8 of the same drivers that the X-Statik uses for it's midrange and bass drivers.
What I heard after 8 hours was a very thin, weak midrange and an extremely bright and shouty top end. I actually described them to my relative as "unlistenable". To me - they absolutely were. I had so much listening fatigue after only a few songs that my ears physically hurt. I had a headache and there was pressure in my ears similar to severe elevation changes. In addition to the weak midrange and bright top end - they also didn't have the open and airy sound I was looking for. It wasn't ALL bad - I could tell some positive things right away as well - the bass was fantastic. Not that it had major grunt - but they played significantly lower than I was expecting and the bass was fast and tight - really, really nice. Also the dynamics were great, as was the detail.
On that other thread a few people mentioned that their experiences were very different from mine. Mike Lundy mentioned that the drivers needed at least 30-50 hours break in - and that the midrange would open up and even out the treble (spoiler - he was right). I had also come to the conclusion that I needed to let them burn in more, but I really didn't think they could improve to the point where I would like them.
Well now the speakers are at 50 hours of break in (roughly). The difference is dramatic. Absolutely, night and day dramatic. My comparisons will be with my Magnepan 1.7i's - which are my current speaker and my favorite speakers that I've personally owned. I'll get it out of the way right away - I still prefer the Maggie's. The maggie's produce a richness in the midrange - particularly with string instruments and vocals that is unlike anything else I've ever heard. It's intoxicating. The X-Statik's still sound a bit thin and a bit distant by comparison, but they sure do sound GOOD now. Also, the bright top end has been tamed very significantly. They no longer hurt my ears and I've had 3 hour listening sessions with them the past 2 nights. Last night I still ended up with a headache - but it took several hours. The bass has only gotten better. It's absolutely amazing how fantastic the bass is from these (relatively) small speakers. Furthermore, that open and airy quality that I was looking for is now present. It's not on the level of the maggie's - but it's much, much more holographic than a normal box speaker. I'd also say that the soundstage from the Maggie's is roughly the same width - but it's much taller. You feel like you're getting hit with a wall of sound - with the x-statik it's a little more subdued but still excellent. I did also find that the positioning of the X-Statik is more critical than it was with the Magnepan speakers. Even a few inches of movement made a big difference, and the amount of toe had a profound effect.
All in all the X-Statik is a very good speaker. It is especially great as a first "audiophile" speaker. I'm now happy that my friend put the money into these speakers. One of his favorite commercial brands used to be B&W. Given their lineup tends to be a bit bright (for my taste) this may be a great fit for him.
I guess I wanted to post this to give encouragement to anyone who builds the X-Statik and doesn't like them right away. I've experienced speaker break-in many times, but I've never experienced changes this dramatic. All I could find online were countless reviews which raved about them - nobody seemed to dislike them, and I couldn't find any description similar to what I'm describing here. I will say that I am very susceptible to listening fatigue and that I prefer a warm sounding rig for that reason. If someone is reading this in the future and hates their new X-Statik's - fear not. Just push play and don't come back to listen for about 50 hours - you'll get the good stuff.
