[kingdeezie]

Here's a comparison of a standard crossover board to the MR caps I got for my SS8's. I had heard they were big...Jim said they made it just fit by like a 1/4" inside the speaker.

Looking at that I am soooo glad I had Jim do it from jump street.

How do you like the sound of the SS8s Tomy?

[Tomy2Tone]

They're fantastic! I pretty much didn't want any "what if" thoughts and decided to get the most neutral cap I could find. From everything I read and discussed it seemed like the Clarity MR was the best way to go. Jim said he did a side by side comparison with the SS8's he takes to shows and said he really liked what the MR's were doing saying they were much smoother and balanced top to bottom.

They seemed to have opened up quite a bit over the last month as I have roughly 200 hrs or so on them. I read also that Accuton says it takes about 300 hrs for their drivers to settle in so there could be more improvements to come even though I think they sound great right now.

I wanted to upgrade my preamp caps to Jupiter Copper Foil but the chassis on the pre was to short to accommodate them. I may eventually get a dac with the Jupiters or just see how things go.

[sfox7076]

My DAC and Amps have Jupiter caps.  I liked them better than Duelands in the DAC. 

[kingdeezie]

They're fantastic! I pretty much didn't want any "what if" thoughts and decided to get the most neutral cap I could find. From everything I read and discussed it seemed like the Clarity MR was the best way to go. Jim said he did a side by side comparison with the SS8's he takes to shows and said he really liked what the MR's were doing saying they were much smoother and balanced top to bottom.

They seemed to have opened up quite a bit over the last month as I have roughly 200 hrs or so on them. I read also that Accuton says it takes about 300 hrs for their drivers to settle in so there could be more improvements to come even though I think they sound great right now.

I wanted to upgrade my preamp caps to Jupiter Copper Foil but the chassis on the pre was to short to accommodate them. I may eventually get a dac with the Jupiters or just see how things go.

I read the exact same things that you did in regards to the CC MRs. I decided, like yourself, that I wanted something as neutral as possible without breaking the bank. Of course, most people agree that Duelands are the closest you can get to having "no caps there at all," but they would have doubled the cost of the speaker, for who knows how much difference in ultimate performance.

It worked out great that the MRs were also reasonably priced in comparison to things like the Mundorf caps, it made it easier to make the decision. Once I made the choice to upgrade the veneer, I decided to just go all out.

They ship TODAY (!!!!!!!!!!!), so hopefully they will be here soon enough, and I can run them through their paces.

[kingdeezie]

The Exotica 3's arrived yesterday!!! 

They came around 1100ish, but I was unfortunately stuck at work until 4 pm. I felt every minute of that five hours, as well as the drive home, but, I'll be honest, I enjoyed the anticipation. I tend to get more excited about things that are for, or happening to, my kids or family, then myself anymore. It was a cool experience to be excited so greatly for myself, like I was a kid again waiting for Christmas morning.

As soon as a I got home, I started the two hour plus process of removing the old speakers from the room, and unpacking and setting up the E3s. Setting up the first one, I felt like a kid unwrapping his favorite new action figure. I just couldn't stop marveling at the craftsmanship. From the spikes to the plinth to the cabinets, and even the little cage around the servo controls, these things scream masterwork. I told my wife after we finished setting them up, that they make the rest of our house look like crap. We need major renovations to adequately surround the speakers. 

Imagine the deflating gut punch then, when after completely unwrapping the first speaker, I noticed the dome tweeter was smashed in.

In as ridiculous of a fashion that you would imagine someone mourning the loss of a speaker, I stared incredulously, muttering, "I knew something like this would happen to me, how could this happen to me?" True tragedy right?  In hindsight, I probably sounded ridiculous, but I was generally upset. I waited four months for these and they were broken......or so I thought.

After I stopped whining, I called Jim and told him the situation. He calmly explained to me that, the domes on these speakers are so thin to maintain sensitivity that stuff like this could happen. He instructed me to use painter's tape to gently coax the dome back to shape. I let my wife do the dirty work, because she is much more patient and gentle than myself. The surgery was a success, and the dome is back to perfect shape!!

After setting up the second speaker, I went about putting them in the room for initial listening. I used derivatives of the Floyd Toole method, and placed the speakers at different multiples of 25 and 75 percent. I was tired at this point, so I just got them approximately into place, and sat down for a listen.

HOLY HELL!!!!!!!!

I was blown away.

I never realized how important, in all forms of music, that vocals are to me. I had such problems with my old speakers and dialogue intelligibility. There was always this sense that the vocals were recessed.

These E3's put the performers IN THE ROOM. I always thought that line was hyperbolic BS, but I have HEARD IT. It is amazing. The voices are so present, natural, and three dimensional. Every inflection, tonal shift, and unique vocal idiosyncrasy is rendered with perfect clarity.

I watched an Episode of Archer, and it just sounded excellent. It is a mostly dialogue driven comedy, and the sound was just stellar.

So far they are performing in my room head and shoulders over my old speakers, except in one area, dynamics.

My old speakers, GR Research LS6s, were just amazingly dynamic. I don't know if with some break in time, the E3s will close the gap, but right now the LS6s were just more dynamic.

Also, there is a little hint of stridency and tightness, I am assuming that the drivers ( a little bit) and the Clarity Cap MRs (a lotta bit) need to  break in.

The bass is also amazing. Another thing I never realized is how sensitive I am to ported designs. There was always this common characteristic to speakers and subwoofers I had heard with ports, that I never liked. I just figured that is how bass sounds. I never put two and two together, until I heard these. The sealed servo bass is excellent! Tight, and detailed. Amazing.

I am extremely happy right now. If they stay this clear, open, fast, and natural while just relaxing the slightest bit, I wouldn't be able to ask for anymore.

Thanks Jim and company!

[jtwrace]

What about a picture of them setup?

[JonnyFive]

With the tweeter being pushed in, was that just the dust cap?

Regarding the stridency, could this just be a difference in the Salks vs the GR Research? I have GR Research N3s and they are great speakers, especially for the price.  The SS8s I had were great speakers as well.  The SS8s were bright compared to the N3s (said another way, the N3s sound dark compared to the SS8s).

[kingdeezie]

With the tweeter being pushed in, was that just the dust cap?

Regarding the stridency, could this just be a difference in the Salks vs the GR Research? I have GR Research N3s and they are great speakers, especially for the price.  The SS8s I had were great speakers as well.  The SS8s were bright compared to the N3s (said another way, the N3s sound dark compared to the SS8s).

The tweeter, and I could be wrong, doesn't have a dust cap. I thought that the center part was the actual tweeter.

As for the stridency, I don't think its caused by that difference between the LS6 and the Exotica. The SS8 uses hard cone drivers, so I could see it sounding harder compared to the paper coned N3.

The Exotica uses paper drivers as well, I would assume it wouldn't sound similar to the SS8. The LS6 was also not dark IMO.

I think its just new caps and drivers.

[Big Red Machine]

Give them some time. Mine keep getting better!

[sfox7076]

It is a dust cap.  And they are dynamic.  Give it time.  I am considering bypass caps at this point.  I don't think that the caps i want to put in will fit.  They are 4.55" x 1.86"  x 1.86" each.http://www.soniccraft.com/product_info.php/jupiter-vintage-flat-stack-150uf-100vdc-p-268

[kingdeezie]

It is a dust cap.  And they are dynamic.  Give it time.  I am considering bypass caps at this point.  I don't think that the caps i want to put in will fit.  They are 4.55" x 1.86"  x 1.86" each.http://www.soniccraft.com/product_info.php/jupiter-vintage-flat-stack-150uf-100vdc-p-268

I was not insinuating that they aren't dynamic, just not as much as my old speakers. The LS speakers were just flat out dynamic as all hell. That was their one attribute that I loved the most. Fourteen drivers per side in my tiny room, and it was like the drivers barely had to move at all to get really loud.

I know these will take time, and its killing me.

This is the first time in years that I WISHED I had a SOLID STATE AMPLIFIER. 

At least this way I could leave music on 24/7 for a couple of weeks to get these caps and drivers broken in.

Since setting them up last night, I think I might have 3 hours total on them. Today was busy, and tomorrow doesn't look any better. It sucks not being able to leave your amplifiers unattended.

I think I am going to start shopping new preamplifiers or amplifiers. These speakers are quite efficient, and my previous gain problem has gotten worse. My preamp is only on the first click, and its already really loud. Late night listening, or low level listening is a pipe dream. Its actually frustrating.

My amplifiers just have too much intrinsic gain for my preamplifier. 

Can't stop staring at the speakers though. Jim could probably sell these things in a store for 25K, and people would still buy them. The pictures don't do these things justice. The fit and finish is just stellar. I was expecting a lot from all of the reviews on line about Salk, but they murdered my expectations.

My room seriously needs a complete renovation. Everything looks like cheap garbage in comparison. 

[sfox7076]

What pre do you have? 

[kingdeezie]

What pre do you have? 

I actually have Big Red Machine's old preamp. Its a Response Audio BellaMax, sort of a forerunner to the Purity One.

Did you, or BRM, notice any wild swings in performance with these? Out of the box they were amazing, the vocals were amazing. Today they sounded a little hazy for lack of a better term. I know a I need to do some room adjustment, because my soundstage is completely pulled to the left.

Of course, both my ears feel clogged, so that could be it.

I think the caps are going to be an arduous journey. I remember my Clarity Caps ESAs took forever to settle.

The bass on these speakers is amazing though. Bar none the best bass I've heard in my room. For whatever reason the sealed servos like my room better than the ported LSes. The bass is super tight, and I can easily follow every single bass line in a song. It is very cool.

The highs are starting to bloom a lot more. Day one they were a little reticent. They still are just the slightest touch brittle, but again I am sure that will even out as things break in.

There are moments of pure awesomeness though.

I have to greatly disagree with those people who said these aren't good for Rock and Blues to this point.

I can understand why people would feel that way, but like I was stating before, it depends on a particular person's flavor choices.

Right now listening to Joe Bonamassa's  Blues Deluxe, and the guitar has so much beautiful tonality and presence. I could see some wanting for more bite, but the liquidity sounds so damn good to my ears. 

I'll keep pumping music through these beauties, and take the journey with them as they mature. 

[Big Red Machine]

It's a badass speaker.  They will break in for you and you will be smiling all the time.  I am so thrilled with their performance. 

[fsimms]

Congratulations on your new speakers.  I love your comments on the sound. 

You have an excellent way of describing the speakers abilities and limitations. It gives us, who can’t hear the E3’s, an idea what is going on.

Bob

[Tomy2Tone]

Thanks for posting some honest feedback on the E3's.  It seems like the E3 is the most misunderstood Salk speaker to come out or people just have so many different subjective opinions it's hard to get a grasp of they can do without hearing it for yourself.

I just read on one of the earlier E3 threads where someone asked if these speakers can rock and Jim ended up responding by saying when he thinks of the E3 that rock music doesn't come to mind but more jazz and classical which may have led to some preconceived ideas about the sound the speaker produces.  While I've read that some say the E3 is a very dynamic and aggressive forward sounding speaker, others have described it as having more of a vintage laid back relaxed sound. Maybe it's all of the above.

Would love to hear more of your impressions as it settles in. Thanks!

[JonnyFive]

While I've read that some say the E3 is a very dynamic and aggressive forward sounding speaker, others have described it as having more of a vintage laid back relaxed sound.

Can you point to who thought the E3 was aggressive and forward sounding?  My understanding was that it was pretty universal that the E3 was more "laid back" than the SS8, for example?

Also, I did some reading about the T35 tweeter.  I don't think it uses a dust cap, and that was the fabric dome tweeter that was pushed in.  If that's the case, I wonder if there are any long term effects from this happening?  If there were, you think SEAS would put a permanent metal grill over it, like with the RAAL or Accuton drivers.

[Tomy2Tone]

Can you point to who thought the E3 was aggressive and forward sounding?  My understanding was that it was pretty universal that the E3 was more "laid back" than the SS8, for example?

The SS8,Exotica,Silk thread from a few months back had a couple posters that thought the Exotica was more dynamic and aggressive and more forward sounding than the SS8.

Usually there is a general consensus about a particular sound a speaker produces but it seems the E3 is drawing different reactions from people but I guess such is the life of this audio hobby. Would love to be able to hear the E3 someday.

[JonnyFive]

The SS8,Exotica,Silk thread from a few months back had a couple posters that thought the Exotica was more dynamic and aggressive and more forward sounding than the SS8.

Usually there is a general consensus about a particular sound a speaker produces but it seems the E3 is drawing different reactions from people but I guess such is the life of this audio hobby. Would love to be able to hear the E3 someday.

The SS8s were a bit forward sounding in my setup, so I hope that's not the case!

[sfox7076]

I guess it is the dome, not a cap.  The silk material is really flexible, so absent any actual wrinkle or defect, I imagine it will be fine.  Could always write SEAS.  http://orion.quicksytes.com/viewtopic.php?f=28&t=2783&hilit=dome is another similar discussion.

I would never describe the speakers as aggressive.



Shawn