[DeanSheen]

Contemplating a drive from OH to Western NY to listen to these.  I find them extremely intriguing but cannot find hardly any reviews or first hand reports.  I'm just fishing as I'm extremely curious as to how others find them.  I'm assuming the fact that they don't have dealers and are rather expensive is why I cant find anything.

http://www.zuaudio.com/Definition_MK2.asp

[miklorsmith]

I have 'em.  They kick major ass.  Go hear them.

[Sonny]

I have 'em.  They kick major ass.  Go hear them.

Great Review,
To the point and expresses you opinion on them!

[miklorsmith]

heh heh, touche.

Go read a review of any of the current flavors here, that's how I feel about the 2s.  I loved my Pros but these take it further in treble extension, tighten the bass considerably, and sound more liberated from the box.  These aren't complaints I had before but the advances are undeniable.  The Mundorf supertweeter caps are all that.

I'm using them with separate EQ and Crown bass amp.  The new bass arrays are separated, so internally it's one box for the mains, one for the upper two sub drivers, and another bigger box for the lower two sub drivers.  Essentially, it's four sealed and differently tuned subs per pair.  The new, stiffer box allows the subs to be run much higher, 125 hz+ easily.  The Pros wouldn't allow much higher than 65 hz.  I thought there was bipole weirdness creating the mismatch higher than that, now I attribute it to box-talk.  This means I can EQ 125 hz down to 25 hz or so however I want, including different curves for movies, classic rock, jazz, whatever.  The only complaint I had about the Pros was with some music the midbass was thin, always tuneful but sometimes I wished for more pop.  I'm still getting them dialed but this is destination stuff already.

Expressiveness in microdynamics where I feel the Definitions really pull away is somehow furthered.  The paper drivers deliver monster tone.  Power is incredible, they'll blow the roof off the house with the Signature 70.2 amps.  Yet, they're fully SET compatible and will play with grace and drive on 2 watts of 45 tubes.

To recap:  I have 'em, they kick major ass, go hear them.   

[Sonny]

I have 'em.  They kick major ass.  Go hear them.

hey, perhaps next time i am in Seattle, I'd love to listen to them...
Tuan

(a Tacoma native)

[Danny Kaey]

yeah! what he said!

heh heh, touche.

Go read a review of any of the current flavors here, that's how I feel about the 2s.  I loved my Pros but these take it further in treble extension, tighten the bass considerably, and sound more liberated from the box.  These aren't complaints I had before but the advances are undeniable.  The Mundorf supertweeter caps are all that.

I'm using them with separate EQ and Crown bass amp.  The new bass arrays are separated, so internally it's one box for the mains, one for the upper two sub drivers, and another bigger box for the lower two sub drivers.  Essentially, it's four sealed and differently tuned subs per pair.  The new, stiffer box allows the subs to be run much higher, 125 hz+ easily.  The Pros wouldn't allow much higher than 65 hz.  I thought there was bipole weirdness creating the mismatch higher than that, now I attribute it to box-talk.  This means I can EQ 125 hz down to 25 hz or so however I want, including different curves for movies, classic rock, jazz, whatever.  The only complaint I had about the Pros was with some music the midbass was thin, always tuneful but sometimes I wished for more pop.  I'm still getting them dialed but this is destination stuff already.

Expressiveness in microdynamics where I feel the Definitions really pull away is somehow furthered.  The paper drivers deliver monster tone.  Power is incredible, they'll blow the roof off the house with the Signature 70.2 amps.  Yet, they're fully SET compatible and will play with grace and drive on 2 watts of 45 tubes.

To recap:  I have 'em, they kick major ass, go hear them.   

[miklorsmith]

Thanks Danny - your review was a big motivation for me to git 'er done:

http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue33/zu_definitons.htm

In my mind, a big part of Zu's polarization has been HOW different they sound from "other" speakers.  These bridge that gap, giving some meaningful "hi-fi" additions without sacrificing what made them great in the first place.

Any wayward souls with a few Seattle hours to spare are welcome.

[*Scotty*]

miklorsmith, What are "meaningful "hi-fi" additions" and why are they desirable?
Scotty

[miklorsmith]

Any time we start chatting terms in this hobby things get dicey.  I know what I mean when I mine the collective lexicon to explain what I hear, as do all of us.  This would be peachy keen if my teleporter were operational so we could discuss these things related to common experience instead of individual as it is now. 

Stereophile has done an admirable job of defining terms in their Glossary, which could be very useful if it were used consistently but it's not, for better or worse.

Some will say "hi-fi" is a blanket term describing our hobby and the purpose of this site.  However, I doubt many among us would deny that within this group lie numerous subcategories.  "The pie" could be cut in many different ways, with varying degrees of inaccuracy.  Keeping it short, one such group follows "musicality".

We know that no aspect of "hi-fi" is reality and we all make compromises.  What we are willing to give up and what values we hold dear define our path through this maze.  Generalizing, the musicality guys will give up ultimate volume, 20 hz bass extension, perfectly flat frequency response, and detail to achieve coherency, dynamic expression, and midrange beauty.  They might own horns, single drivers, or some other high-efficiency design allowing simple and small amplifiers.  They probably like tubes.  Some use "hi-fi" in a negative light, as in un-musical.

The Definition 1.5s and Pros are strong speakers in the musicality department.  They don't have the tinkliest tweeters or big-rockin' bass punch but their midrange is beautiful, they are incredibly expressive, and dynamically true.  Their supertweeters add to the mix but are not on par with the best.  The bass range is great down low but on a well-mixed rock album didn't give the kick-drum thump of other speakers which especially ported speakers do very well.

Compromises?  Yes, of course.  Acceptable?  To me, absolutely.  Their strengths play to my values and fit me brilliantly.

The Def. 2s are far better with sparkle on top and sound like a very good conventional speaker in the stratosphere.  Low bass has improved, where the Pros were already stellar but midbass where the Pros were weak has leapt to be on-par with the low bass, assuming proper tuning. 

These elements overcome limitations with the earlier models and reduce the number of potential complaints folks from "other" groups would have with them.  At the same time, they are better from a musicality perspective, requiring fewer compromises on behalf of the owner.

Forgive the gross simplifications, simply made to demonstrate a point.  All observations are based on ONE pair of 1.5s, ONE pair of Pros, and ONE pair of 2s in ONE room.  Add salt to taste.  I hope the longwinded dribble clarifies the earlier statement.

[Danny Kaey]

whatever your perception of the Zu sound may be, I have to conclude that you won't find other truly full range 20-20khz speakers that occupy the same footprint and price as the Def2's... perhaps some one-off's or other obscure, esoteric speakers exist, alas, nothing that you can purchase on larger scale and call a true "production line product".

anyone in the LA area is always welcome to stop by and give them a shake-down.

cheers,

D.

[miklorsmith]

Don't forget complete SET capability!   aa  And, that 20 hz extension is FULLY tunable to the room.  Top that.

[Danny Kaey]

true story: Mr. Record came by my house this afternoon, we listened to a Dionne Warwick tune he had heard a million times... several times throughout the song, we would hear these intermittent thunderous thumps... he was like, what the heck is that?  Turns out, Dionne would bump the mic stand every now and then... reason he never heard it before?  Zu Def2's go down a full octave and more lower then his reference speakers and all the other stuff he has heard this track on.

[DeanSheen]

Ok, you guys convinced me.  I'll make the trip when the weather breaks.

This has to be one of the most exciting speakers I'm aware of and seems to be the ones with the most promise in terms of overall flexibility.

It all reads like so much audio porn I just have to find out for myself.

[miklorsmith]

Yep, that's the problem.  All the superlatives have been filed to dust.

[gsm18439]

I have had the Def 2's since mid-August. They are all that has been said and more. For example, nearfield listening is improved compared to the Def 1.5s; there is a good soundstage regardless of where I stand or sit in my living room - even to the far right or left of both speakers; there is absolutely no listening fatigue; there is more high-frequency sparkle; etc. My Def 2s are 11' apart and toed in pretty severely, but placed close to the long wall of a 14.5' x 22' x 18' high living room that opens up to the rest of the house and are driven by EAR electronics (859 SET amplifier and Acute CDP). HIFI+ recently reviewed them.