[Duckey]

Wondering the differences in sound , particularly the mid-range & highs of the ZU Soul or the new Weekend Six speakers . I get a listening fatigue if they don't agree with me. - Duckey

[JLM]

Only heard them once, at a show.  At the end of our day I was throughly underwhelmed.  Sounded artificial, perhaps best suited for rock/hip-hop/rap genres, not for "real" unamplified music (classical/folk/jazz).

[FullRangeMan]

Wondering the differences in sound , particularly the mid-range & highs of the ZU Soul or the new Weekend Six speakers . I get a listening fatigue if they don't agree with me. - Duckey

Chances are you are not using a tube amp.

[S Clark]

Only heard them once, at a show.  At the end of our day I was throughly underwhelmed.  Sounded artificial, perhaps best suited for rock/hip-hop/rap genres, not for "real" unamplified music (classical/folk/jazz).

JLM got this one right.  I found them muddy. 

[FireGuy]

Only heard them once, at a show.  At the end of our day I was throughly underwhelmed.  Sounded artificial, perhaps best suited for rock/hip-hop/rap genres, not for "real" unamplified music (classical/folk/jazz).

A very close "friend" a while ago also was able to audition at a show.  He articulated to me your same conclusion.  The only speaker that stood out for any further investigation were the stand mounts.  Maybe this could change with an in-room environment but first impressions are so critical to move forward.

[RonN5]

You definitely want to hear them before deciding...you pay shipping one way if you return them....

I heard dirty weekend 6 played through black ice audio tube gear and I was really surprised because they were harsh...then again, they were being played at about 95db.

[newzooreview]

I heard a pair in the Zu Audio room at a show ten years ago. Zu had them playing vinyl, but I don't recall if they were using a tube amp. I believe they were the Soul model.

For what it's worth, they had an upper mid-range glare coupled with a lightness in the mid-bass that had me wanting to leave the room in one or two minutes. I don't know anything about the current models, but the measurements that Stereophile made of the Soul Supreme show a lot of resonances and a very ragged response in the upper mids to high frequencies. That correlates to things that I did not like about them: https://www.stereophile.com/content/zu-audio-soul-supreme-loudspeaker-measurements

[mick wolfe]

Like many here, I was rather underwhelmed when I'd heard them (Zu) a couple times at RMAF. Then a few years back a friend whose ear I trust bought a pair on their occasional Omen Dirty Weekend sale.( $999 as I remember) He raved about them for months. Well, when the next Dirty Weekend sale popped up, I took the plunge as well. It's been more than a few years now and I'm still quite pleased. I've added Clarity caps along the way and that was a nice uptick in performance. I use them almost exclusively with tube amplification. They play all genres with ease/authority and are simply a great all arounder. Probably less analytical than the Soul from what I've gathered.... no direct experience though. Even though they've taken a substantial price hike with the introduction of the DW6, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this speaker to someone looking in the $2K range. FWIW, Steve Guttenberg has given the DW6 a solid positive review, but then again I believe he really liked the original DW as well. YMMV, so let your ear be the judge.

[Letitroll98]

Zu speakers are Sean Casey's vision of how to get live music into your listening room.  Delicacy and perfect frequency response take a back seat to dynamics and impact.  This is obviously not everyone's cup of tea, me included.  I own several Zu products, none of them are speakers.  However, if that's your vision of hifi, recreation of live music events, Zu speakers may be just what you're looking for.

[sebrof]

Zu speakers are Sean Casey's vision of how to get live music into your listening room.  Delicacy and perfect frequency response take a back seat to dynamics and impact.  This is obviously not everyone's cup of tea, me included.  I own several Zu products, none of them are speakers.  However, if that's your vision of hifi, recreation of live music events, Zu speakers may be just what you're looking for.

Yup.
They sell a lot of speakers because a lot of people prefer their sound over other designs. I owned Omens years ago and enjoyed them but in the end not my favorite. I agree with RonN5, you should hear before buying or at least be prepared to return.

[genjamon]

My first experience with Zu was in 2008, a pair of Druid mk IV's that I bought second-hand.  I found them to be warm, but a bit muddy and unresolving - tried with Red Wine Audio 30 watt chip amp and with a tube amp in both PP (30W?) and SE (18W?) modes.  I sold them within a couple weeks.  Might not have given them enough of a chance, as they notoriously require a lot of break-in.  But I assumed they were already broken in, as they were a couple years old at that point and I bought them second-hand. 

My second experience was hearing the Soul at RMAF in 2010 powered by some Luxman gear.  I found them to be similarly muffled, like the Druids I had heard before.

My third experience was at RMAF in 2014, with the new Druid mk V's powered by some Peachtree gear.  I think this was around the time they introduced their new driver technology with some kind of nano-coating that supposedly increased the resolution of the drivers.  I got to play some of my own music on the system.  Much more resolving than the prior listens, but a little glare in the upper midrange frequencies.  I chalked it up to either the room or the electronics, or both.  But it was the first listen where I thought Zu had some potential for long-term satisfaction for me.

My fourth experience was hearing Mick's Zu Dirty Weekends at his place around spring of 2018, and they sounded great, and a steal for the money.  I bought a pair of my own in summer of 2018, given the ample return policy.  Then I upgraded the capacitors to Miflex copper foil with Duelund bypass caps and made all connections soldered directly with wire, instead of the stock crap metal push tabs.  This brought a substantial uptick in both clarity and smoothness.  Compared with my prior Daedalus DA-RMa V2 speakers, they Zu were more detailed and open, just as dynamic, but not quite as warm.  I sold the Daedalus and pocketed the difference.  I still have the Zu DW's as my main speakers ever since.  I find them very transparent to the electronics and music driving them, and I can get to them to sound how I like with the right choice of electronics.  To my ear, they do require high quality power management, cabling, electronics, etc, to be satisfying long-term.  I find the Clarity caps more detailed and less glaring than the stock caps, but still have a somewhat grainy presentation compared with the bypassed copper foil caps.  Ymmv. 

My fifth(?) experience was hearing the DW6's at Capitol Audio Fest this past November, powered by Black Ice Audio electronics.  I was glad to hear that combo, since I use a Black Ice F360 preamp at home, and it's done wonders in helping me bring out the best in the Zu's.  The features of the F360 are amazing at allowing one to fully customize the sound. The DW6's sounded quite a bit like my Zu DW's, but I'd still want to upgrade the internal caps as I've done with my own. 

All in all, I consider the Zu sound to have evolved quite a bit over the years, and I wouldn't put a ton of stock in impressions from over a decade ago.  Sometime around 2014-2015, the Zu sound took a turn toward more transparency, while retaining that "live" sound. 

[morganc]

I’ve owned Zu Essence. Zu Definition MK4, Druid Mk5 and loved the last one the most when combined with a 15k amp and a $5k pre.  I have not heard the DW as I haven’t owned a pair of Zu  since 2018 as I prefer Open Baffle in large spaces like I have now.  I’d avoid the Essence and look to the newer offerings.  Zu speakers are notoriously finicky around placement, cable , electronics etc but if you take the time and invest to get them sounding great, you will likely be happy with them…but they are transparent and any upstream glare will not be pleasant on your ears…..ie source, cables, dac and amp all matter. 

[jtcf]

I bought a pair of Omen Definitions a little over two years ago and I was smitten right away by the sound. They do sound a lot like live music and acoustic music is especially lifelike.I also find them finicky about placement plus they are so sensitive any issues upstream have nowhere to hide.If I'd heard them at a show and had the experience some of you had probably wouldn't have taken the chance. I'm glad I did though and have no regrets.

[DavidS]

I have had Zu's off and on for about 20 years.  Had original Druid IV's that I loved and not sure why I sold - great dynamics and live sound, although agree not the most clean sound. 

About 2 years ago I bought a pair of Soul Supremes at the end of their production run.  Like the Druid IV's but with more transparency and detail.  They rotate with some open baffles and Ellis Audios (the opposite at about 84db).  Have been experimenting with low powered SETS - have an Oliver Sayes amp with Sachs preamp now.  I would say the Zus are efficient but want a bit of power with more complex music - although a big Hegel amp I had for a while was too much.

Have never played or even looked at the crossover - maybe need to check that out more.

Been looking at the Black Ice amps or Galion as a potential tubed but higher powered match.  Not wanting to hijack original question but since amps seem key to getting good sound from Zu speakers what amps are Zu owners using?

[cementhead]

Anybody have the DWX? Being a monitor guy, these have my attention and would like to try them.

[genjamon]

Whoops, I’m just realizing I heard the DWX’s at CAF, and not the DW6’s. Sorry. But yeah, in a long-wall configuration with seats on the opposite wall, the DWX’s had a lot of the same DNA and low end impact of my full size DW’s. Not sure how much of that is room gain, but the front porting probably helps to some degree.

[genjamon]

what amps are Zu owners using?

I currently alternate between Odyssey Kismet stereo and Class D Audio miniGAN 5 amps, fed by the Black Ice F360 preamp and a highly upgraded dB Audio Tranquility SE DAC.  I also have a Line Magnetic 518ia that sounds really good with them, but is too costly to operate for regular use anymore. I also have heard and enjoyed the Van Alstine SET solid state amps on them, which are a bit warmer but a bit less resolving than the Odyssey amp. I also have a Don Sachs preamp currently in storage that I used on them for several years. The Black Ice pre just offers too many valuable customization features to keep the Don Sachs in the system. Given how sensitive the Zu are to system changes, I find the F360’s flexibility nearly essential to dialing in the sound when I swap out amps, cables, etc. but if I could just  afford to replace 845 tubes every 12-18 months, the Line Magnetic would be excellent synergy.

[genjamon]

I’d just add that I bought the Black Ice pre after hearing the Black Ice room at CAF 2022. They had their new Aries DAC feeding the F360 pre into their KT88 amp, powering the latest Klipsch Forte’s. As a former Klipsch owner familiar with their house sound, I was mightily impressed with the tone and soundstage depth that system achieved. I didn’t think the Klipsches were capable of that. And talking to Jamie of Black Ice, he said they have Zu DW’s in their stable and are fans and that their stuff has great synergy. Now having had the F360 pre for a year, I certainly agree, and would love to try out their KT88 amp with my Zu’s one day.

[jtcf]

I'm using an AricAudio Transcend PP with my ZUs. KT88s right now. In the past a Modwright 100SE was overkill,an LTA MicroZotl2 at 1 watt sounded sweet!As expected it could only go so loud before running out of steam but the sound was excellent. I'm on the Decware list for a two watt amp that is going to be a great pairing as reported by other owners of both brands.

[Duckey]

Thanks for all your feed back on the Zu speakers. You can't just go to your local stereo store to hear them so your opinions are very helpful in saying "no" to this brand.