Folks,
Sam and I are catching up on the orders. Another batch of 100LFs will be available Tuesday 5th, and a further batch of 55LFs on Thursday 7th. From those dates forward we should be able to fill more orders.
I apologise for the delays people are experiencing. I appreciate the forbearance people have; it's not easy waiting for something with such anticipation.
On another note, let me talk about speakers. The bass driver for the AKSonics, the MO-08-09, has been discontinued by Tymphany. This is a pity, as it's a terrific driver, one David Ellis remarked he really liked too, and he knows a thing or two about speakers. This has left a hole in my range, and I truly would like to offer a speaker kit to fully complement the Lifeforce amps.
As most know, I'm a speaker neanderthal, but I know what I like. I'm impressed by bass reflex speakers, much impressed by passive radiators, and hugely impressed by transmission lines (TLs). There have been some stunning TLs in the past; the original Arthur Bailey design of the sixties, the seventies Kef model, and the more recent eighties and beyond PMCs, Vandersteens and IHFs. All these speakers are standouts in the speaker world, as much for their tuneful, distinct bass and stunning imaging as for any other qualities. However, while there is lots of information around on how to design the first two types, not much exists on the TLs, so their design is a mirky art.
A couple of years ago I sold an AKSonics kit to a guy named Laurie Menogue, and since that time he's contacted me periodically to say that he's modded the AKSonics and now they are very different and would I like a listen. I was impressed by his lateral thinking and design skills, and so commissioned him to come up with a TL to my brief. It had to be compact, two way, use available, quality drivers (one of which had to be the same as the AKSonics, the XT25G tweeter), but not too expensive, and uncritical, easy to make.
Last week I heard his new design. We are calling them the Transonics, both because they are TLs, and also because they raise the bar far beyond the AKSonics. I decided to make an afternoon of it - Laurie lives sixty miles from my home - and invited Russ along. Russ is a fellow biker, also has a ZRX1200, and owns a GK1 and Lifeforce. He's also 30, with REAL good ears, and knows a lot about speakers. We took a ride down the Mornington Peninsula on a great day, almost spring weather.
On listening to the Transonics, we were both stunned. The crossover was not yet complete - more refinement required - but the qualities of the sound with an old Lux amp (Laurie will soon have a 100LF) were astonishing. Russ, who has heard the PMCs, felt they were every bit as good, and probably better in the imaging. They use a Peerless HDS Nomex 8" driver with high force factor of 9.1, 0.41 Qts and ft of 32Hz. My ears are not too bad, and I felt these speakers were just incredible, given the development to that point.
Laurie, who has been involved in design and manufacture of sails for yachts and fibreglass technologies for the aviation industry, informed me today he's made further progress. He submitted the speakers for audition to a professional industrial designer who owns $US5K PMCs, and he felt the Transonics bested the PMCs in every area, particularly imaging/soundstage. This is a revelation, and with the superior imaging and resolution of the LF amps, I feel this could be a marriage in heaven.
I'd like to thank Laurie sincerely for his work to date, and welcome the speakers to the Aspen product family. I will release these speakers ultimately as a kit along the lines of the AKSonics in due time (no time line at this stage in light of other pending products, but hopefully not too long), offering them as a low cost kit alternative to the best TLs in the retail market. I do not have any idea of cost at this stage, but you can be sure it will better anything else around for three or four times the cost.
The new speaker will be called the Transonic Model LM1, in recognition of Laurie's brilliant design skills. I'll keep the forum and website updated as we progress towards a formal product release.
Cheers,
Hugh
