[jonbee]

  Personally I couldn't see how a three way, (using great drivers mind you) thrown together in a PE cabinet could hold a candle to the engineering and voicing that went into the Cirrus and its bomb shelter of a cabinet. 
Plus to me a three way design kind of defeats the purpose of a monitor to me.  I want my monitor to have sweet uncomplicated sound with great resolution, imaging, and speed.

The PE is a very fine cabinet as Rick uses it, and these are definitely not "thrown together". Rick has far more experience "voicing" a speaker than the Cirrus designer. The comment about 2 way vs. 3 way is a non-starter- the Tempesta is one of the fastest, highest resolution and most coherent speakers anyone has made, and I've heard more speakers than just about anyone. I'm sure the Cirrus is very good, but in the end, it's the SOUND that counts, not theory and speculation. Without hearing both speakers, in comparable environments, there is no argument.

[roscoeiii]

Fortunately for those of us in the Midwest (or who are hankering to travel to a small audiofest from wherever they live), Selah, Vapor and Salk will all be at AKFest in April (4/28-29). Link: http://akfest.com/ So come one, come all to hear these different companies. Stop in Fritz Speakers room as well. An unexpected highlight of my last AKFest.

And I think more exhibitors have signed on than on the site. Bid Red Machine from AC is involved and has posted lists of exhibitors here.

Not having heard the Cirrus, I can state that I loved the Vapor Auroras I heard in Chicago. Wow. Pretty floored by them. Incredible cabinets. Dead, dead, dead and beautiful.

As for the Salks, I don't recall which models I heard, but some I liked more than others. I believe it was the SongTower that I liked most.

[shahed]

I think a Tempesta vs Cirrus audition in the same room would be awesome... I could only imagine Rick had good reasons to go with a 3 way and Ryan with a 2 way, both have been reviewed and compared with speakers that are much more expensive.  I suppose no one hear has heard both?

I'd be very interested to hear the impression from someone who has heard both Tempesta and Cirrus in a domestic setup. Unfortunately, it seems no one has so far. 

[roscoeiii]

Not many Cirrus speakers out there in the world just yet. Rave reviews but not a company that has been here long.

[shahed]

Also, check out the new Gallo Classico IV's at $3495 a pair. These have great bass slam, a tiny footprint(35"x7"x14"), and will totally disappear in any room placed. They are great for rock and classic rock if the recording is great. These are revealing, so bad recordings will sound bad.

With no crossovers, these are quick like ESL's, and vocals are as good as it gets. These are very easy to drive, efficiency is 92db/1 watt. I have played them very loud with the 25 watt Ampino, 32 watt TBI class D amp, and the 40 watt Jolida 202RC integrated. All of these amps are less than 1K and they all sound fantastic with these Classico speakers.

Classico IV certainly seems interesting. I've never heard a gallo speaker, but they do have solid reputation. I've heard they've thin lower midrange which make them not ideal for rock music. Although 6moons review on C3 has stated that they've more body and flesh in the new design. I'll check if C4s are in any nearby dealer for a listen.

[shahed]

Both speakers are very well regarded and considered bargains but I went with Selah because:

1. Selah has been around longer.  Many happy customers over the long term.
2. Only 4-5 weeks wait for a standard finish speaker, and most important of all, an incredible 45 day return policy.

The Selah isn't a custom cabinet, and it doesn't have options for premium parts in the crossover, but I've decided I'm okay with something well designed and a bit more oriented toward higher volume production.

Those are some strong points regarding Selah speaker I must say. To me, Cirrus looks more attention grabbing on paper. But 12-16 weeks wait time requires one to be really patient. I emailed Ryan few weeks ago with some questions regarding Cirrus and haven't heard back from him. I think Vapor Audio is an one man operation which understandably creates all these delay. Anyone knows the return policy on Vapor Audio speakers?

[roscoeiii]

Ryan is an AC member, though I can't recall his ID. If you haven't heard back from him, maybe shoot him a PM or give him a ring.

[shahed]

The only experience I've had with any of the speakers you mention is hearing them at shows, which I'd consider to be little or no experience.  I do however have experience with Wyred4Sound amps.  Prior to the LFD (and now Aaron), I had an STI-500 and ran it with Lenehan Audio ML1s and Harbeth Compact 7ES-3s.  While it is feature laden and decent sound for the money, to my ears, in my room, with my gear, it wasn't even close to the LFD in terms of transparency, texture, PRaT or overall musicality.  It's at a lower pricepoint, so that shouldn't come as too much of a surprise.  I'd recommend settling on the speaker based on your room and tastes, then focus on the right partner amp.  You can probably get something very good on the used market at $2K if you're patient.  I'm selling the LFD for the same reason you're not interested in it - no remote.  Being patient allowed me to score the Aaron No.1.a for a great price - it has all of the great elements of the LFD and builds on them, with a remote - a great amp.

Good luck in your search - it can be daunting.

Thanks for sharing your impression on W4S amp. Do you think this shortcoming of W4S is due to the technology at the given price point? I understand no SS amp will sound like tubes. But I've a good tube preamp - a modded Vincent SA-T8 with RCA nos tube which brought excellent musicality to my setup. I'm wondering using a tube preamp with SS amp would help in terms of PRaT and musicality with the aforementioned speakers.

[wilsynet]

[...] the Tempesta is one of the fastest, highest resolution and most coherent speakers anyone has made, and I've heard more speakers than just about anyone.

I have to confess that one of the best reasons that I had to buy the Tempesta was Jonbee's super strong endorsement.  He's had more than 200 pairs of speakers through his system, and, well, that's gotta count for something.

[doug s.]

3 speakers i have never heard.  3 speakers i would love to hear.  3 speakers that have gotten rave rewiews.

which would i buy, w/o having heard them?  hands down, i would buy the wapor cirrus' w/o even hesitating a minute.    why?  well besides the good rewiews, i love the cabinets.  i love the shape, and the construction.  intuitively, it seems these cabinets are the best shape & construction for quality sound.  the fact that they look nice, is icing on the cake.  and, i think they'd be fabulous to actively cross to subs.  and i will always be using subs, actively crossed over to mains, regardless of the what the main speakers are.

and, there's the fact that they were snuck in to an incredibly well set up room at rmaf, that featured $40k speakers, and everyone there was pretty-much floored by the wapor's.  my post referencing comments, especially those of steve nugent, of empirical audio, who was sharing the room:

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=78629.msg1011228#msg1011228
(and yes - TurboFC3S is the owner/designer of the wapors.)

from this post:
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=99651.msg1003977#msg1003977
(steve):
"...IMO, your speakers crush practically everything without really low bass.  Ill bet the TAD ref2 only has bass extension to beat it.  There is no way the tweeter can compete IMO.

We played LZ Stairway to Heaven for TAS reviewer and the vocalist was so clear and defined that I heard new nuances and detail inthe lyrics for the first time.  Ive only heard this track maybe 10,000 times or so....."

and later in the same thread:
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=99651.msg1004490#msg1004490
...Quote from: Tyson on 18 Oct 2011, 02:57 PM:
"BTW Steve, I only did a Top 3 at show this year, but your room was in the top 5, IMO.  Best I've ever heard a YG Acoustic speaker sound.  Wish I could have heard the Vapors, seems like they took it up another level."

(reply from steve):
"Duh, I should have had your cell phone.  We played them both Sat. and Sun. after show hours....
I felt myself grabbing for my wallet and wanting to open it." 

i am sure the cirrus' are something special...

ymmv,

doug s.

[OzarkTom]

Classico IV certainly seems interesting. I've never heard a gallo speaker, but they do have solid reputation. I've heard they've thin lower midrange which make them not ideal for rock music. Although 6moons review on C3 has stated that they've more body and flesh in the new design. I'll check if C4s are in any nearby dealer for a listen.

 C4 is even fuller than the C3. The C4's are very full bidied since they are using 4 of those drivers in each speaker. I listen to rock also. 15 watts will work.

Listen to how these speakers image. I have them about 6 feet apart on a 25 foot wall. On many recordings, like Steely Dan, they image out all 25 feet, Sometimes beyond, like Roger Walter's Amused to Death. These speakers are very holographic, depending on the recording.

[wilsynet]

I suspect Ryan has more orders than he knows what to do with, but if you're patient, the Cirrus may be the speaker for you.

For me, for this particular purchase, and for what's going on in my life right now:  I didn't want to be particularly patient, I wanted the purchase experience to be more transactional, I liked what I heard about Selah, and I liked some of things Selah could do as a more established business.

Having said all that, I suspect I may end up buying a Cirrus one day.  Would love to give Ryan my business in the future.

[sharpsuxx]

Fortunately for those of us in the Midwest (or who are hankering to travel to a small audiofest from wherever they live), Selah, Vapor and Salk will all be at AKFest in April (4/28-29). Link: http://akfest.com/ So come one, come all to hear these different companies. Stop in Fritz Speakers room as well. An unexpected highlight of my last AKFest.

And I think more exhibitors have signed on than on the site. Bid Red Machine from AC is involved and has posted lists of exhibitors here.

Not having heard the Cirrus, I can state that I loved the Vapor Auroras I heard in Chicago. Wow. Pretty floored by them. Incredible cabinets. Dead, dead, dead and beautiful.

As for the Salks, I don't recall which models I heard, but some I liked more than others. I believe it was the SongTower that I liked most.

Now there is a shootout I think everyone on this forum would love to hear.
Not to be combative but someone earlier stated the the PE cabinet is well braced, for a normal sub 3K speaker I may agree.  Compared to boxes used in the Cirrus and the ST it is a cardboard box.  To me speakers in the tempesta, Song tower, and Cirrus price range the cabinet needs to be something engineered however this price shaving move has allowed Rick to use 3 world class drivers and certainly have a faster turnaround for the customer, certainly for some people these are not things to overlook.

I am willing to wait the extra time to ensure everything is engineered to produce the best possible sound quality in that price range.  Vapor makes a speaker using the PE cabinet as well but it appropriately priced at under 2k.

[pslate]

I think it should be reinforced that of these speakers are well regarded, and at this level of implementation, I think matters of taste trump all else. Hearing a Selah three way design in comparison to a two way was enlightening for me. There can be a lot said for a well desinged three way, with a dedicated mid throwing a huge soundstage. On the other hand the Vapor Cirrus is stunning, I have not seen anyone at AC commit to such an advanced enclosure. I would absolutely love to hear the Cirrus. In the end the approaches are just different, and I have no idea what I would pickup if I was shopping right now. I can say as one of Rick's customers, is that he does everything possible to make sure his cutomers are satisfied. If you know what you want, and are clear about it, Rick will get you to where you want to be. It seems the vapor owner is like that too. I have just not had the pleasure of owning one of his creations. In the end I just wish I could own way more speakers than is sensible!

[stlrman]

Shahed,
As far as I know there is no return policy for the Cirrus. Ryan builds each pair custom for every client.
If you buy them and don't like them (hard to imagine) ,you would need to resell them.
I bought a pair of the Breeze in custom finish with matching stands. Yeah the wait is a bit of a slog, but the pay out will be well worth it.
You may try to PM Ryan here to answer your questions, or call him in the late afternoon. He may be a bit difficult to reach by phone, but he is most gracious with his time and knowledge when you do speak with him.
There is a good thread on Audiogon on the Cirrus speakers as well.
Todd

[groovybassist]

shahed:

I don't know if the W4S sound in endemic to the technology or not and have never tried it with a tube front-end, so can't help there.  For me, it had a very ordered, mechanical sound, that didn't freely communicate the emotion of a performance.  Imagine playing a piece of music strictly to the beat produced by a metronome - every note is in its place and on the beat.  However, music gets its drive and emotion not from playing on the beat, but with subtle timing and phrasing cues that create tension as they're slightly behind or ahead of the beat.  To me, the LFD (and Aaron) capture this subtlety the W4S couldn't - music just sounds more like it's being played by musicians than a machine with the LFD (and Aaron).  Having said all this, without having another amp side-by-side that captures this, the W4S will sound great, but as soon as you hear it side-by-side with a more nuanced amp, the difference becomes obvious.  Hope this helps.

[wilsynet]

Regarding amplifiers.  I don't know of many top shelf amplifiers for around $2000 that would adequately drive a 4-6 ohm load and have enough power to deal with 85/86 db efficient speakers.  Of course one person's "best amplifier ever" is someone else's "sounds like cardboard."

Having said that, I have no doubt that the W4S amplifiers sound good, they just might not be entirely competitive with a LFD or an Aaron.

Some other options to consider:

There is a Music Reference RM-200 on Audiogon right now for an asking price of $2150.  It should be able to comfortably drive any of these speakers and has a long history of being well regarded.

If you're a DIY guy, there is an awful lot of buzz around the Hypex Ncore amplifiers.  2 x NC400 amplifier modules, 2 x SMPS600 power supplies, enclosures and miscellaneous parts would still weigh in at less than $2000.

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=95588.0

Finally, I also see a Modwright KWA100 on Audiogon for an asking price of $1700.

I'd probably get the Modwright given how happy I've been with Modwright gear in the past.  I've owned the Modwright SWL 9.0SE and Modwright LS-100 preamps.  The KWA100 produces 100 watts into 8 ohms and 200 watts into 4 ohms.  There's a lot of headroom here, the KWA100 has been very well reviewed, and Modwright customer service is, from personal experience, second to none.

Wilson

[wilsynet]

The Gallo Classico CL-4 does look pretty interesting.  And at 92db efficient and a 4 ohm load, it seems like a high quality, high current amplifier of modest power output should easily drive them.

[dspringham]

Hey Wilson,

Just wondering about your Zu Soul Superfly speakers. Have you, or are you planning on moving on from this model?

I have sold my Superflys and committed to the Harbeth SHL 5's as my main music making "squeeze". In fact I've seriously been considering an LFD Zero Mk III due to it's know synergy with Harbeth, however I'm presently running an Allnic T1500 300b integrated which sounds fantastic with the HL's (within their power limit).

Since you've already purchased the Selah's, I won't go on about Harbeth but I was going to advise that you not discount the line due to the negative experience with that one dealer.

Regards,
Dave

[vortrex]

one good thing about the Vapor is the inexpensive veneer upgrades at only $200.  anyone know why the Selah are $1000 for an upgraded veneer?  I don't even think the Salk floorstanders are that much with double the surface area and I would imagine their work is probably considered the best of the three also.