[shauk786]

Last Monday (June 8th), I decided to start listening to a few of my favorite songs. My system in the meantime was left on for a few days with low volume music playing for about 4 days.

My system is comprised of a Yamaha pre-pro CX-A5100 (ESS 9018 dacs all channels), 2 pairs of Nuforce Ref9 SEs, one pair of which has the TDSS Mods and a Nuprime Dac10H. My source is a ROON based Network server with a Sonore Microrendu with ROON endpoint. My songs library are mainly FLAC, WAVE and DSF files stored on WD Mycloud Network Drives.

So Monday I cranked up the volume, The song "la vie en rose" by Andrea Bocelli was playing. Wow, I could not believe my ears. The vocal clarity was unbelievable as if Andrea was right in the room. The sound stage was huge both in width and depth. With excitement, I cranked songs after songs. I played all of my favorite songs and ended up listening to my music for 4 continuous hours. I must have done something right.

That afternoon, I called John Casler and asked him if he could come and listen to the V60s. He agreed, so I invited him for lunch Wednesday.

Wednesday 10th, John and his lovely and beautiful girlfriend came over. While lunch was being prepared, John and I went to my home theater room and start the listening session. John has a set of cuts he likes to listen by which he can evaluate. He directed me to put on the following songs below:

All listening was done with the passive crossovers and powered full range by a pair of nuforce ref9s.

1.) Roger Waters: The Ballad of Bill Hubbard (Per John, this cut will verify the right phase)
2.) Tears for fears: Sowing the Seeds of Love
3.) Tears for fears: Woman in Chain
4.) Celine Dion: My Heart will go on.
5.) Josh Groban: To Where you are
6.) Black Light Syndrome: Duende
7.) Bela Fleck: Amazing Grace
8.) Infected Mushrooms: I shine
9.) Arthur Fiedler: Fugue in G Minor
10.) Diana Krall: Stop this World
11.) Tchaikovsky: 1812 - Overture

I will let John provide his own opinions on the listening experience. Overall we had a great time and I learnt a few tips from him on what to listen for. The V60s are now here to stay in my system and probably my last pair of speakers for my remaining years.

Cheers
Shaukat

[G E]

Excellent report!

And I'm not surprised you experienced such a wonderful performance.  I remember when the V60's were unveiled.  Cheney considered it to be his pinnacle achievement. 

Yes, they will be long term keepers.  That's the way I feel about my RM 30 Series 2.  I would like to add the VMPS Larger subwoofer.  Although if I had a chance to get a good pair of V60's I'd consider letting go of my RM 30's... or maybe not!

Are you using a subwoofer with them? 

[ZAKski288]

Hello Shaukat, I warned you were going to love them. Great build!  You will enjoy them for a long time to come.
                                                                                                                                                   Ken

   

[John Casler]

That afternoon, I called John Casler and asked him if he could come and listen to the V60s. He agreed, so I invited him for lunch Wednesday.

Wednesday 10th, John and his lovely and beautiful girlfriend came over. While lunch was being prepared, John and I went to my home theater room and start the listening session. John has a set of cuts he likes to listen by which he can evaluate. He directed me to put on the following songs below:

All listening was done with the passive crossovers and powered full range by a pair of nuforce ref9s.

1.) Roger Waters: The Ballad of Bill Hubbard (Per John, this cut will verify the right phase)
2.) Tears for fears: Sowing the Seeds of Love
3.) Tears for fears: Woman in Chain
4.) Celine Dion: My Heart will go on.
5.) Josh Groban: To Where you are
6.) Black Light Syndrome: Duende
7.) Bela Fleck: Amazing Grace
8.) Infected Mushrooms: I shine
9.) Arthur Fiedler: Fugue in G Minor
10.) Diana Krall: Stop this World
11.) Tchaikovsky: 1812 - Overture

I will let John provide his own opinions on the listening experience. Overall we had a great time and I learnt a few tips from him on what to listen for. The V60s are now here to stay in my system and probably my last pair of speakers for my remaining years.

Cheers
Shaukat

Hi Shaukat,

Yes you have the best RM v60 I have personally heard.

I am sure it is because of your exhaustive attention to detail in their construction, and your research and understanding over the years of Brian's crossovers, and designs.

Not too many people could have accomplished this without your experience and knowledge.

Yes, while I haven't listened recently to some of those reference cuts, they DO display certain qualities and performance of a speaker and yours set new standards.

I know you like them so well, that you will be shipping them to your new home on the Mediterranean.

They are a tribute to one of Brian's GENIUS designs.  He never let the moss grow under his feet, always looking for new SONIC DRAGONS to Slay.

I have missed that Sonic Signature and am happy that I recently acquired a pair of RM-40's with the Dorne Dibble Cabinets so I can hear it again.

While some speakers have come close, there just really isn't ANYTHING that does it all.

We also listened to Nils Lofgren "Keith don't go" which sound great on all speakers, but BEYOND great on VMPS Planar Ribbons.

[Housteau]

It has only just begun.  So many times I have been where you are now only to find that over time it kept getting better and better.  Just wait until you start playing with and dialing in the active crossover.

[Housteau]

Hi Shaukat,

Yes you have the best RM v60 I have personally heard.

John you will need to get out more .  Just kidding of course.  I have no doubt that they sound absoloutely wonderful.  They certainly look stunning.

[shauk786]

Excellent report!

And I'm not surprised you experienced such a wonderful performance.  I remember when the V60's were unveiled.  Cheney considered it to be his pinnacle achievement. 

Yes, they will be long term keepers.  That's the way I feel about my RM 30 Series 2.  I would like to add the VMPS Larger subwoofer.  Although if I had a chance to get a good pair of V60's I'd consider letting go of my RM 30's... or maybe not!

Are you using a subwoofer with them?

Even though, I have 3 larger subs, I did not have them connected. However, the base output from the v60s were very clean and textured and we could feel it sitting at the sweet spot. Once connected and dialed in, I am sure the improvement will be substantial.

Hello Shaukat, I warned you were going to love them. Great build!  You will enjoy them for a long time to come.
                                                                                                                                                   Ken

Ken,
       Thanks, I definitely will.

It has only just begun.  So many times I have been where you are now only to find that over time it kept getting better and better.  Just wait until you start playing with and dialing in the active crossover.

Absolutely, Next step is to go active.

In my room, since 2003, I had thoroughly enjoyed my RM-40s. I went through several iterations. My RM40s were from the first batch of MLS cabinets finished on all sides. In 2008, I removed the inside crossovers and added a third pair of binding post for use with OXO. I re-did the crossovers in the external crossover box using better components such as mundorf supreme and copper foil inductors. And added SR-71 soundproofing to the cabinets. Finally in 2012, I move to active using a stock Behringer DCX2496. With each iteration, there were major improvements. My RM40s in my room were at such a level that I was skeptical that the RM-V60s would even match the performance.
         
Following this week's intense listening sessions to the RMV60s, in my opinion, the resolution and music I am listening to, using passive components easily outperform my RM40s/active Behringer unit combination. There are too many variables. It could be the choice of the passive components, the extra Neopanels of the V60s or the open baffle characteristics. I am not sure.

Now I am sad about two things:
1.) I should have built the RM-V60s a long time ago. I have missed out on years of enjoyment.
2.) I need to think what to do with my RM40s, my companions of 17 years. Up till now, I never thought, they could be replaced. There is always a bigger fish.

[Stimpy]

shauk786,

A beautiful, beautiful build, and a fantastic accomplishment...!  Well done.  Plus, once you get some playing time on those new crossovers, the sound should continue to improve even further.

Also, any chance of posting the crossover schematic and values?  That would be great, if possible?  Help future VMPS owners too.  Maybe me, as I'd love to build a DIY pair of VMPS Frankenspeakers.

Take care and stay safe,

Stimpy

[John Casler]

I don't think Shaukat mentioned it, but he did have an additional pair or two of RM v60 cabinets.

Not sure how anyone would build such a speaker, without having all the drivers, but competent DIY's might be able to improvise.

[John Casler]

John you will need to get out more .  Just kidding of course.  I have no doubt that they sound absoloutely wonderful.  They certainly look stunning.

 

True that, especially now during this craziness.

Interesting thing, we did not sell a boatload of RM-v60.  I think the final list price on the BASIC Model was around $9800, and when you went premium caps, silver wiring, SR-71 damping etc, they went even higher.

You and Paul got some of the first builds, and I placed a Macassar Ebony pair out here in CA to a great aficionado.  I am not sure how many Brian sold direct, but it was NOT in RM40 territory (which was too bad since I don't think you could find anything with the sonic virtues, and majesty of these incredible speaker, and their presentation.

[shauk786]

shauk786,

A beautiful, beautiful build, and a fantastic accomplishment...!  Well done.  Plus, once you get some playing time on those new crossovers, the sound should continue to improve even further.

Also, any chance of posting the crossover schematic and values?  That would be great, if possible?  Help future VMPS owners too.  Maybe me, as I'd love to build a DIY pair of VMPS Frankenspeakers.

Take care and stay safe,

Stimpy

Thank you.

Here you go.

[Jstower]

Interesting thing, we did not sell a boatload of RM-v60.  I think the final list price on the BASIC Model was around $9800, and when you went premium caps, silver wiring, SR-71 damping etc, they went even higher.

You and Paul got some of the first builds, and I placed a Macassar Ebony pair out here in CA to a great aficionado.  I am not sure how many Brian sold direct, but it was NOT in RM40 territory (which was too bad since I don't think you could find anything with the sonic virtues, and majesty of these incredible speaker, and their presentation.

John, How many of the VLA Subwoofer Towers were sold?   Just curious    Thanks Jim

[John Casler]

John, How many of the VLA Subwoofer Towers were sold?   Just curious    Thanks Jim

Not many.  I know I placed about 3-4 pair.  Don't know how many Brian sold direct.

Awesome Sub, but just the weight and dimensions alone took them off a lot of lists.

[OldScott]

Yes John. list price of RM V-60s was $9,800 and as I recall $10,00 for the bass towers. So, in my book, at that time you got the best speaker system on planet Earth for under $20K . I think  Brian was one of those rare people who really wasn't interested in making  money. He certainly passed up making a fortune by passing up charging "the going price" for his products.  He just seemed to want to great build speakers and charge what he felt was a fair price for is work.  He once said to Dave and I that "sure you can probably find a better speaker than yours -- for a $100K and up". Later when he elected to issue an additional midbass unit to make up his signature edition, they added $3K a pair. When I found he had just one pair  in rosewood which matched mine, I didn't feel I could afford them at the time, but didn't dare pass them up either. Good move 'eh?   

[shauk786]

I know you like them so well, that you will be shipping them to your new home on the Mediterranean.

Definitely John.
My new pair of V60s, LRC, the VMPS dipole surrounds and 2 of my 3 Largers are going to be part of my shipment to Alanya, Turkey.

Unfortunately like many of us, I got an early layoff from work during the Pandemic. But luckily, I had been planning for this eventuality for quite some time now. We bought a beachfront retirement home three years ago in Alanya, turkey right on the mediterranean sea. And NO, I am not turkish.  . My wife and I decided to take an earlier than usual retirement at 58. We plan to relocate in August.

Yes John. list price of RM V-60s was $9,800 and as I recall $10,00 for the bass towers. So, in my book, at that time you got the best speaker system on planet Earth for under $20K . I think  Brian was one of those rare people who really wasn't interested in making  money. He certainly passed up making a fortune by passing up charging "the going price" for his products.  He just seemed to want to great build speakers and charge what he felt was a fair price for is work.  He once said to Dave and I that "sure you can probably find a better speaker than yours -- for a $100K and up". Later when he elected to issue an additional midbass unit to make up his signature edition, they added $3K a pair. When I found he had just one pair in rosewood which matched mine, I didn't feel I could afford them at the time, but didn't dare pass them up either. Good move 'eh?   

Oldscott, I believe you are Paul, Right?
As John mentioned above, I have 2 pairs of V60s in their crates remaining. So I will probably bite the bullet and do the "double decker" mid base like yours. I believe what I would need are 6 more woofers wired same as the single base cabinet. And that both cabinets are wired in parallel. if that is the case, then at the binding posts of each base cabinet, negative to negative and positive to positive. Can you confirm? If this is the case, then the only change required to the crossover is to add a 2ohm resistor in series to the woofers and we are in business.

The crossover layout will look like this:

[OldScott]

Yes Shauk, I am Paul. I moved a couple of years ago and somehow my old username of pmonroe got lost and I had reset things. Naturally the system would nor let me reset the old username. Go figure. As you know my good friend Dave and I have the first two sets. I ordered mine first but Dave got his first. I think mine got delayed because Brian was doing something different to my OXO. Dave's oxo has three wires coming out whereas mine has six. three of which are not hooked to anything. So I must have asked Brian to do something different. I don't remember as it has been too long ago. I am afraid I can't be too much help on the oxo for the second midbass unit but since you are going to be using an Xilica like Dave it won't be too much of a problem. The midbass units start rolling off at about 65Hz. Brian preferred first order crossovers so the roll off is gentle. He said it was OK to run the unit full range up to 255Hz. So you can just take the fourth output of the Xilica, set it to put out 16 to 255Hz, and hook that to an amp running direct to the second midbass. This is what I do with my dsp 4in and 8out crossover. I am sure you can avoid the extra amplifier and hook both units to one amplifier, but I am not sure how. Dave is far, far more knowledgeable than I so he may be able to help. It should not be difficult. I just used the second amplifier as it was a quick hookup and I am knee deep in amps (should start my own HiFi store). Sorry not to be of more help. I envy your residence in Turkey. I found it to be a fascinating country.     

[ZAKski288]

So I will probably bite the bullet and do the "double decker" mid base like yours.

Hello Shaukat, don’t wait to bite the bullet. I just added my second bases to verify the size. In my room the sound is another step up, and that was with no woofers installed yet. Ken

[Housteau]

Since the bass module measures approx. 4.1 ohms each, I would connect two in series for just over an 8 ohm load

[shauk786]

Paul,

Thank you for your input. You have answered my question on the OXO.  . The probable reason why you have six outputs instead of three is that Brian built the flexibility for you to use either one base unit or both base units from a passive perspective.

I have no issues for programming the Xilica to use with either one base unit or 2 base units. Using one amp to run both base units should not be an issue as well. However, that will have to wait until I am in Turkey.

My contractor confirmed today, he will start work at my California home this Friday (Painting, Renovating and Preparing the house for renting out) so I need to tear down my home theater room and re-crate my rmv60s for shipment.

Paul, keep enjoying your system. I am sure it is one of the best in the world: RMV60s with VLAs, double-decked mid base and all active. Few of us can only dream of owning such speaker systems.

Hello Shaukat, don’t wait bite the bullet sooner than later, I just tried my second bases on to verify the size. In my room the sound is a other step up, and that was not with the woofers installed. Ken

Wonderful Ken. Looking like my shipping cost is going to increase with the additional bases.  . My mind is made up. I will do it.

Since the bass module measures approx. 4.1 ohms each, I would connect two in series for just over an 8 ohm load

Dave, that will work as well.
Ken, how are you planning to do yours (Series or Parallel)? I do not believe it matters if you are using the active crossover and separate amps for each base unit.
Regards,
Shaukat

[ZAKski288]

Ken, how are you planning to do yours (Series or Parallel)? I do not believe it matters if you are using the active crossover and separate amps for each base unit.
Regards,
Shaukat

Not sure, once the woofers are in I will wire them ( Series and/or Parallel ) ?  Ken