[stevenkelby]

It's been a long hard wait but I finally have the speakers I've been wanting for a long time. 

I was first introduced to Omegas by Vinnie from RWA when I asked for his recommendation on a sensitive and revealing loudspeaker (thanks Vinnie!) Louis patiently helped me out with Supers in a one off laminate he had, upgraded to Alnico's , and the 2 Deep Hemp towers from the Montreal Show.

They arrived Friday night, the shipping company called me and said they were ready to be delivered Monday, I said "wait there I'll come pick them up!" So I did. For anyone thinking of importing to Australia, on top of any import duties/fees you may have to pay, AQIS wanted to look at them as they are wood, so there was a fee for that to be aware of.

I only had a vague idea what to expect, but I was not expecting what I got. The 4 boxes were huge, I thought they would easily fit in my wifes car (Starlet hatchback) but it took half an hour of tetris like jiggling and maneuvering to get the boxes held in place, hanging out the hatch with packing tape all over the back of the car to stop them falling out. 2 boxes would have fit fine. This is some nice quality packing, I can't imagine these getting damaged in transit. The packing material is very thick insulation/foam stuff. I was impressed.

The Supers themselves were bigger than expected too. Even though all the measurements are available on Louis site, and I had looked and measured up, I was impressed by the size and heft of them in the flesh.

Being incurably curious, I had a look inside and these are extremely well made loudspeakers. It's obvious that a lot of love goes into making them. The external finish is truly flawless as I'd been expecting from what I'd read, but the insides are too.

So I set them up, also using the Deep towers as stands temporarily (on Herbies Big Fat Dots), until I get/make some stands to better suit the Supers. Source is either a Linn LP12 (modded Rega RB300 arm, Cardas rewire, AT O9C cart, Herbies mat, Cambridge 640P) or an 80GB imod, into an RWA Signature 30.2. Hopefully an RWA Isabella is in my near future. 

So you know where I come from, I don't have a heap of experience with top end gear but do have good ears and I've heard a few speakers in my time, have only owned maybe 6 pairs but used to demo them as a hobby, and have many audiophool friends constantly swapping components. Some of my favorites are Quads, maggies, Duntechs and Kef. Heard dozens of headphones too (stay away from head-fi.org if you care about your wallet!). As I sold my last speakers to fund the Omegas I've just recently been using some very nice old Spendors borrowed from a friend. Not sure what model, they've been returned to him now.

I chose Omega Alnico Supers as I've come to appreciate truthfulness, honesty, detail and accuracy of tone above all else. I want to be able to shut my eyes and believe it, to feel something, get my heart going, smile and laugh, get goosebumps, get emotional and really understand the music. To become fascinated in the music and forget about the system altogether. I thought these would be the speakers to do that better than any others for my budget.

What I was expecting from the first listen was a bass shy, thin, squawky and harsh sound as the drivers were brand new, and I knew they would take some burning in. I was more than happy to wait for that, expecting them to fill out, bass to come in and the edges to smooth off. I still was excited to have that first listen though, thinking I would surely be able to hear the potential and some of the magic already.

So far I've only really listened to vinyl, and that's how it will probably stay, I only listen to this system when I really can do nothing else but listen, and I want to get my moneys worth! I use the imod when there are people over, or parties etc where it sounds better than my CDP and is massively convenient, coming with me every where I go everyday.

I set up the subs to cross at about 1/3rd of the dial (maybe 70Hz?) and gain at about 2/3rds as I was expecting light bass to start with, this was about right to start with. I do have a B7W ASW4000 from my last system, B&W DM604s, which I thought I would keep to add the last half octave to the Omegas, and for movies. I did try it, I'll get to that, but for now I left it disconnected.

[stevenkelby]

First track, Dave Brubeck Quartet - Time Out  - Take Five



I like this track as I know how it should sound so it's in my list of standard test tracks I use with new components, and I played sax for many years.

I've never heard it exactly like this before, these speakers do something unique to it. I didn't have huge expectations as I said, but this just sounded tonally correct straight away. Natural and with more detail than I remember hearing before, not all of it good. There was some rumble from my TT which I never heard before, a pretty loud hum from a ground loop in the TT/Phono that I never noticed before (since rectified) a few quiet clicks and pops I never heard before (I keep my vinyl and needle surgically, obsessively clean) and some ups and downs in the bass response which is definitely due to placement, the room, no burn in or all 3. I played with the position, going from the Cardas way to a different set up I found on the web, using fifths and thirds and stuff, which improved the bass smoothness a lot. The drivers were too high as well, Sitting myself right up straight snapped everything into place but slumping down as I do it went softer. Right in the sweet spot imaging and staging came as a fair old shock, the cymbal coming from outside the soundstage and even the few notes on piano coming from minutely different locations in space. I couldn’t hear any sounds coming out of the drivers themselves, almost spooky good. Need some shorter stands. So far, smiling and pleased.

Next track, Feist - The Reminder - The Park.



Nice female vocals and a simple composition. I remember loving this song the first time I heard it, hearing some emotion in her voice and wanting more of it, to hear it again, but it's never really hit me like that again, as is so often the case with music when it’s more about the memory than the music. I guess that's what keeps us going here, looking for that same thrill again in our old music, or searching for new ones. I closed the light and shut my eyes. It's not a great track by any measure but I like this album. On this track she was there in the room with me, I could point at her and see her in my head, I don't even know what she looks like but I knew where she was! Towards the end of the track she holds a few notes and there it was, a shiver up my spine goosebumps on my arms a heavy feeling in my heart. Success there then.

Track 3 - Keith Jarret - The Koln Concert.



Oh yes, I burst out in a big grin during this.  An enthusiastic, completely improvised, passionate performance. You get the idea I hope. I won't go on.

John Coltrane - Live at the village Vanguard (bought thanks to Jerome IIRC ) - Spiritual.




Beautiful, intimate room, full and convincing image and tones, just wonderful.

I listened to some deep bass heavy tracks and some high treble tracks, the bass didn't go all the way down, I didn't measure but I can accurately guess a roll off starting at 30ish. The quality though... I've heard some great subs like those Velodyne (sp) that are popular and a nice Kef but the quality of this bass is already seemingly flawless, as long as you're not listening to certain Massive Attack or things that go all the way down. A very, very small price that I'm happy to pay, and with work on placement and more burn in I'm sure there is a few more Hz to be found. The speed with which they move, and the Alnicos too, was as I expected, brilliant. The individual vibrations of a double bass string are easy to define and it all sounds so natural through the mids to the bass. They seem to add nothing of their own to the signal, which I’ve always wanted.

Treble was surprisingly good, better than expected. The very top end may be attenuated on certain tracks (again, if it doesn't improve at all, I can very happily live with it as is) but on the vast majority of albums I've heard so far, it's all there and sweet and true, there is a little harshness sometimes in the upper mids that I'm sure will smooth out, everyone says it will and I believe it. I'm not great at estimating treble Hz so I'll leave that till I measure it. I wish I'd had the patience to measure properly from the start, that's just my nature. I honestly aren't that fussed about measuring now though, they just sound so good it doesn't seem as important to me as it used to. I'll play around still with the deep X-Overs once they are burned in and fix the placement perfectly and treat the room, but I won't be putting an equalizer in front of these and risk hurting the sound. Changing a cable is a blatantly obvious difference in this system now.

Speaking of which I need some better cables now, mine are old stranded copper, good quality but if any system will show better cables it's this one.

Since then I've had about 30 hours at high volume with a disc I made (sweeps, tones, IASCA test tracks etc) to burn them in, tonight I had another "critical listen" and had to turn the subs back down to about half as the bass had really come on already.

I’m not sure whether that’s the Deeps or Supers burning in, I think the Deeps already had a number of hours on them. I see them as a system anyway.

I did try turning on my big B&W sub (real big), crossed over as low as possible, 40Hz or something, for those purpose built deep bass lover tracks I like sometimes, but it ruined the sound, blurring and slowing the bass. I may keep it for movies, but would like to sell it now.

After only this amount of burn in the bass has come out strong, it’s sufficient now, If it was lower in volume I may sometimes want more kick, but I don’t want any more bass power or volume as it is now, if it had more I would turn it down. And the quality is absolutely top shelf.

I do have 2 Deeps in a smallish room though, I guess about 15 ft long, 12 ft wide and 10 ft ceilings. One long wall opens to a dining room with a double
doorway, no doors on it.

One "downside" (depending on your POV) is that for burning in I've been using one of those cheap t-amps from Sonic Impact (gen 2). Hooked up to the Spendors or B&W, it's obviously a crappy amp V the 30.2, but it doesn't sound that bad. It does with the Omeags though, practically unlistenable. I have some vinyl which I bought used or was bad from new that I still liked, but not anymore I don't. Excessively noisy, badly pressed or damaged vinyl sounds horrid now. The last of the MP3s on the imod are getting deleted too.

But that is exactly what I wanted when I bought the Sig 30.2 and the Omegas. I want to hear all of the music I paid for, good and bad. If it's bad I won't listen to it carefully anymore, but when it's good it's nirvana for me. Small vinyl noises don’t really bother me, they add character, as long as it’s not distracting. I do have several practically silent LPs too which is a treat. Thom Yorke - Eraser is the quietest one I own, no hiss at all.

This is not a forgiving system, it hides nothing. I'm sure there are systems that can resolve far more detail, at a price though...

My speakers and amp are here to stay (headphones too, Markl modded - recabled D5000) but my TT may need upgrading in future. I read a nice review of the Grand Prix Audio Monaco TT last week... Seriously though, now I really want an Isabella, by the end of the year at the latest.

I'll be building a big dedicated room soon too which will be something I always wanted. Now I have exactly what I want to put in it.

 They’re not perfect but I knew that all along and happily accept the imperfections for the magical picture they throw. People said they were tone monsters but they exceeded my expectations already there, can’t wait for another couple hundred hours, I’m in love with them already!

Thanks Louis! (And Vinnie) 

I’ll put some pics up tomorrow when I can take them in daylight.

[jsaliga]

Hi Steve,

Welcome to the Omega club!  I naturally think you made the right choice with the ALNICO drivers.  I don't recall specifically recommending Coltran'e Live at the Village Vanguard, but it's an excellent selection.  I have the Complete Live at the Village Vanguard 4CD boxed set and listen to it fairly often.  Post some pics of your system when you can.  Gawking at what other people have is almost as much fun as talking about it! 

--Jerome

[stevenkelby]

Welcome to the Omega club!  I naturally think you made the right choice with the ALNICO drivers. 

Thanks Jerome, so do I! Your posts and messages helped me decide to get the Alnicos.

I don't recall specifically recommending Coltran'e Live at the Village Vanguard, but it's an excellent selection.  I have the Complete Live at the Village Vanguard 4CD boxed set and listen to it fairly often. 

Maybe not, but you probably started the thread or something . I also have the whole box set on CD and think it's great too.

Post some pics of your system when you can.  Gawking at what other people have is almost as much fun as talking about it! 

--Jerome

Will take pics tonight.

[Louis O]

Hi stevenkelby,

Many thanks for your great review and sounds like you put together a wonderful system. Also it was a pleasure to work with you assembling everything. Being that you're so far away I really appreciate that you taking a chance and buying without hearing the speakers first. That says a lot to me and I know that it's rough with all the paperwork when they hit Australia.

The speakers will need some time and they will really even out also the subs will fill in. Please keep us posted on the progress and thanks for sharing the music selections. Looks like I got more to buy.

Many thanks,
Louis

[stevenkelby]

Hi stevenkelby,

Many thanks for your great review and sounds like you put together a wonderful system. Also it was a pleasure to work with you assembling everything. Being that you're so far away I really appreciate that you taking a chance and buying without hearing the speakers first. That says a lot to me and I know that it's rough with all the paperwork when they hit Australia.

The speakers will need some time and they will really even out also the subs will fill in. Please keep us posted on the progress and thanks for sharing the music selections. Looks like I got more to buy.

Many thanks,
Louis

Hi Louis,

Thank you for working with me for nearly a year! Your work is really top shelf and I am more than satisfied with these, better than expected. I'm very happy. Compared to other offerings I've heard in the similar price range here in the last year (B&W, monitor, mission, focal, richter, linn, etc, etc) these have by far the most engaging and realistic sound, I can fool myself into forgetting there are speakers in the room quite easily.

They are sounding better too, they have had 12 hours a day of very loud full range burn in for the last week and will continue to get the treatment for a few more weeks yet. I wire them out of phase, almost touching, and cover them with a quilt.

Sorry for the delay with pics, I was waiting to get time with some daylight but still haven't been home with the sun up this week so just now quickly set up some lights instead.

Sorry for the messy room, it's not treated at all, and is hopefully temporary. I want to build a big dedicated room later in the year. I listen in the dark anyway!

When listening, I set the room up like this:

http://www.tempoelectric.com/speaker_placement.htm

I have some nail polish marks on the floor where to put the spikes and chair. 

I just have the Supers sitting on the Deeps for now until I sort out some stands at a better height for me. Please note that these Deeps were a one off, normal Deep Hemps have the same dimensions as a Super, only shorter, so they make perfect stands. Louis can do whatever you want.

The Supers and Deeps finish don't really match each other but that's ok, I chose that and they won't be near each other in the final set up, (subs near corners) I think they both look fantastic.

OK Pics:

Listening room - The front door to the house is on the right, there is no entry hall so I have to move the speakers back and forth for listening, this is the best spot I found for them:


This is my listening chair, big and comfy recliner, I can put my actual feet on the foot rest instead of my calves like with most recliners. That does put my head pretty low though, hence the need for new stands.I pull it forward about 6 foot into the room for listening:


Close up of the speakers:


Grills on:


Grills off (It's just a shadow making the grill look non-symmetrical):


This shows the finish on the Supers best, a very nice pearl:


Close ups of those magical drivers:




The badge to have  aa :


Finish on the Deeps, beautiful:


Spikes on the Deeps. They come with the little pucks to put the spikes in, I also stuck white felt dots on the bottoms to slide them around easy on the floor boards:


Herbies Big Fat Dots between them:


Back of the Supers. I normally listen with the port plugs in BTW, not out like in this pic:


I didn't have any spade terminals for wiring from the Supers to the Deeps, so I made my own, bent, soldered and pressed the wires:


In location with the bananas from the amp:


Wiring set up:


I made some little jumper cables from silver plated copper to bridge L and R for each sub as they are getting a channel each:


Back panel of Deep detail. Shows where I have the controls set for now. The X-Over is pointing at the LED and seems good but I haven't tested properly yet (any input from Louis or others?), and 50% gain suits me well.


Main source:


Amp, a match made in heaven. I'm not using any pre amp or switchbox now, just straight through the 30.2. Haven't felt I need more gain yet, maybe in future, I haven't listened to full scale orchestral music yet.


My dogs love them too! :



Thanks again Louis, Vinnie, and all who have helped!

[stevenkelby]

Update:

They are well and truly broken in now and have changed noticeably, opening up enough to increase their apparent value far beyond the purchase price. The detail these reveal is astounding and tonight I finally got them and myself set up in the perfect position, and things didn't just snap into place, they exploded into place. We talk about realistic imaging and soundstaging and these always had that, getting the depth and width right straight away, but for the first time tonight I could honestly believe that there was a real, solid, physical saxophone in the room, right there. It sounded 3D, I could hear it's shape. Spooky. That track was from a Chesky (sp?) test disc but I get similar things from other great recordings too.

As I haven't sorted out stands yet, I have turned the Supers pictured above upside down on top of the Deeps and it seems to be the perfect height now. I just have to not be lazy and leave it like that.

I'm sitting 38% of the way into the room as Ethan (real traps) recommends, I drag my chair out to listen, and the speakers are  positioned with the outside rear corner of the spikes 1/5th of the way into the room and their width I got from a link I found in a link on in the Acoustic Circle. I think it was 3/5ths the length of the room divided by the golden mean, that's where the outside rear spikes are at. Toe in I stand behind the speakers and line up the inside edge to point at the centre of the back of my chair.

It's very inconvenient but well worth the effort and hassle to try.

[Alwayswantmore]

Toe in I stand behind the speakers and line up the inside edge to point at the centre of the back of my chair.

Nice to hear reports like this. Congratulations. You may want to play with a little more toe-out -- where the drivers intersect BEHIND your listening chair. At least with my Compacts I have found they work well when slightly more toed-out compared to traditional 2-ways.

BTW: What are the dimensions of your room?

Best, Kent

[stevenkelby]

Toe in I stand behind the speakers and line up the inside edge to point at the centre of the back of my chair.

Nice to hear reports like this. Congratulations. You may want to play with a little more toe-out -- where the drivers intersect BEHIND your listening chair. At least with my Compacts I have found they work well when slightly more toed-out compared to traditional 2-ways.

BTW: What are the dimensions of your room?

Best, Kent

Thanks Kent,

I will play around some more with the toe angle, I have had good results like this but am always keen for a little more!

My room is 4880 mm long, 3960 wide and 3040 high (16ft long x 13ft wide and 10ft tall.)

There is an open double doorway 1/3rd of the way along the left side wall, the front door to the house is on the right side wall, at the corner of the front wall, and there is another door on the back wall, where it meets the right side wall, leading to the hallway.

Not an ideal room at all but finally getting good sound. Planning to build a dedicated room late in the year. May treat this one temporarily anyway but there is not much potential, doorways up against corners, Left 1st reflections into an open doorway, window behind speakers, big furniture and stuff in the way.

May just put some big triangle panels on the ceiling/wall corners, about the only place I can treat freely in this room and they will be movable to the new room, hung by one hook in the ceiling.

Need to make them myself, probably from this Masonite or something with 4" of the thickest insulation I can find, covered in calico or something. Maybe. Need to get some good advice and don't have time right now anyway.

[Alwayswantmore]

If you haven't already, visit the Acoustic Circle hear at Audiocircle. Do-it-yourself panels (DIY) are typically made with dense fiberglass from Owens Corning or Johnsmansville. 4" 803 for bass control (full range), and 2" 805 for reflections. Post your room size and needs and you will get lots of good advise. Several vendors are very active on this Circle, even giving advice for DIY applications. GIK prices are pretty modest compared to some of the alternatives, so you may also want to check out their web site.

In my current home, my listening room is too small. I finally got clearance from the wife to purchase a fairly extensive set of GIK panels and tri-corners to treat the room. So my listening room is my next big project  aa

[stevenkelby]

If you haven't already, visit the Acoustic Circle hear at Audiocircle. Do-it-yourself panels (DIY) are typically made with dense fiberglass from Owens Corning or Johnsmansville. 4" 803 for bass control (full range), and 2" 805 for reflections. Post your room size and needs and you will get lots of good advise. Several vendors are very active on this Circle, even giving advice for DIY applications. GIK prices are pretty modest compared to some of the alternatives, so you may also want to check out their web site.

I have had a look around there but haven't wanted to post until I can give some clear direction and define some goals and restrictions.

Main trouble is, I'm in Australia. I asked about a few panels fro GIK and Realtraps a while ago and the cheapest shipping was more than the panels! They both really tried to help too, just the way it is.

No problem though, I am happy to DIY. Again, in Aus there is no Owens Corning or Johnsmansville, 803 or 805 so I have to figure out equivalents somehow.

When I get some time I will start a thread there, I know I will get expert help. A great resource to be sure.

In my current home, my listening room is too small. I finally got clearance from the wife to purchase a fairly extensive set of GIK panels and tri-corners to treat the room. So my listening room is my next big project  aa

Nice one, you must let us know the difference the treatment makes!