[lonewolfny42]

I see .....rectangles.... 
 
 ..... 



Just kidding George....setup looks good.

Enjoy....I hope they perform as well as you expect.

.....And have a Great 2008 !!

[2bigears]

    look closer,look way up .... triangles ???? Happy New Year everybody

[nature boy]

Hey George,

Any listening observations on the CS'2 you can share given these have been in your
main system for a couple weeks??

NB

[zybar]

Hey George,

Any listening observations on the CS'2 you can share given these have been in your
main system for a couple weeks??

NB

How about the following?

I have no urge whatsoever to put the 5A's back into the main system. 

The speed, detail, dynamics, and clarity that the CS2's produce is addictive and I just want more!!

While the 5A's + tubes produced some of the most organic sound I have heard, the CS2's are simply wowing me with their ability to more closely portray live music.  The initial transient attack is so fast, other very good dynamic speakers now sound slow to me. When you add the increased resolution and clarity, this really is something special.

I am listening right now to Hotel California by the Eagles off of "Hell Freezes Over" and there is a huge smile on face.   

Here are a couple of observations from the song:

-  The crowd clapping isn't one big blob, the clapping is crisp and clear and sounds like it is coming from a large audience.

-  The opening guitar is quick, clean, and spot on.  I can picture and hear the hands on frets and "feel" the body of the instrument...it isn't two dimensional in nature, but rather 3-D like with excellent presence.

-  When the percussion kicks it, it hits you fast and hard.  While it doesn't feel like you were hit with a heavyweight's uppercut, it does feel like your head was snapped back by an elite middleweight's jab.  The gourds that follow to each side are well placed and clearly defined. 

- Don Henley's voice is excellent tonally and has body to it, it doesn't simply appear as a voice detached from a body floating around in the soundstage.

- The backing vocals are well defined and it is easy to hear the different voices that are in play.

- There is very good front to back depth and the different voices and instruments aren't all coming from a single plane.  Instead, the music is layered front to back, as well as left to right.  Nothing overlaps each other, and the way everything is represented in its own space really helps with the illusion of being there.

- The speakers disappear very well and produce a wall of sound.  At no point do I feel like I am listening to one speaker or the other.

- Lastly, the overall sound was effortless in its presentation (including the ending when the crowd cheers loudly and is a good 10-14db's louder than the music).


Hopefully these comments help put some things in context and help others understand what I am hearing.

George

[GregC]

George,

You did a good job of explaining the sound from the CS2 speakers.  I would have to concur with your observations based on my listening experience.  It is a rare experience to have speakers come along that get it right on so many levels for a cost that makes it possible for most audiophiles to afford. 

Greg

[Russell Dawkins]

Thanks for that, George.
Did you say what you are currently driving them with? Sorry if I missed it.
Russell

[zybar]

Thanks for that, George.
Did you say what you are currently driving them with? Sorry if I missed it.
Russell

All tubes!   

Bella Extreme 100's on the woofers
McAlister PP-150 on the tweeters

George

[zybar]

BTW, all of my listening and comments are with a modified DCX in place, not the stock unit.

George

[GregC]

George,

I found that connecting the speaker wire directly to the upper driver makes for a very nice improvement and I will be trying a modified DCX 2496 some time in the next couple weeks.

Greg

[zybar]

George,

I found that connecting the speaker wire directly to the upper driver makes for a very nice improvement and I will be trying a modified DCX 2496 some time in the next couple weeks.

Greg

Greg,

How did you connect your speaker wire to the driver?

George

[GregC]

I sent my cables back to Signal Cable (along with some gold plated 0.25 inch female fast-on connectors) and had one end of the speaker cables re-terminated with the fast-on connectors.  Then I slide the fast-on connectors on the blades in place of the wires that run down to the binding post.  That way my amp is directly connected to the upper drivers via the speaker cables.  This made a big difference in terms of resolution and transparency.

[TomS]

I initially just clamped mine with some small plastic compression clamps.  Then, I rigged up a slide on connector terminal to 1" wire to some spare binding posts since my Reality Cables are spade ends.  The spades then just slide onto the binding post.  Effectively it just shortens the HF leads about 3' and is thicker gauge vs. the internal wiring.

[nature boy]

Many thanks George.  You da' man!   

NB

[TomS]

Just got the Didden modified output DCX up and running a few minutes ago.  All I can say from the first few cuts is "ooh la la!".

Unfortunately everyone else in the house is in bed right now, so I'll have to wait 'til tomorrow night to spin the big tunes

To be continued... 

Tom

[Bill Baker]

Unfortunately everyone else in the house is in bed right now, so I'll have to wait 'til tomorrow night to spin the big tunes

 That's too bad Tom. My kids have grown up around music playing around the clock and can actually sleep through music playing at 85dB (it's obviously not that loud in their rooms).

 Do keep us posted on your thoughts when you have the chanceto 'crank it up'

[zybar]

Just got the Didden modified output DCX up and running a few minutes ago.  All I can say from the first few cuts is "ooh la la!".

Unfortunately everyone else in the house is in bed right now, so I'll have to wait 'til tomorrow night to spin the big tunes

To be continued... 

Tom

You are in for quite a treat Tom.

That mods takes a very good speaker and pushes it into the realm of an excellent speaker!

George

[TomS]

It's probably time to start a new thread as these aren't at Zybar's of course and I'm just a user, not a dealer.  I'm not quite ready for a full speaker review, so not sure where this should go?

I do know one thing.  I'm going to have to stop prefacing my comments with "for the money" and "considering the price".  With the mods and the right gear and setup, these are an all out assault that will make the most discerning listener VERY happy.  The first bass line to come out after I inserted the modded DCX last night (from the RSAD demo disc, Yellowjackets Live) about floored me and I've heard it many, many times.  Downright spooky in my room.

I'm also sure this is the beginning of more great offerings from Clayton Shaw and Emerald Physics 

[zybar]

It's probably time to start a new thread as these aren't at Zybar's of course and I'm just a user, not a dealer.  I'm not quite ready for a full speaker review, so not sure where this should go?

I do know one thing.  I'm going to have to stop prefacing my comments with "for the money" and "considering the price".  With the mods and the right gear and setup, these are an all out assault that will make the most discerning listener VERY happy.  The first bass line to come out after I inserted the modded DCX last night (from the RSAD demo disc, Yellowjackets Live) about floored me and I've heard it many, many times.  Downright spooky in my room.

I'm also sure this is the beginning of more great offerings from Clayton Shaw and Emerald Physics 

Tom,

I would think that you could simply start a thread in Audio Central to talk about your experience with the CS2's until you are inclined or ready to write a formal review.  This would also allow other members of AC to comment on their experience and consolidate people's thoughts in one thread.

Just a thought...

George

[TomS]

I realized I already have a thread started in Audio Central, so will begin posting over there.  Thanks,  Tom

[mca]

Just got the Didden modified output DCX up and running a few minutes ago.

Who is Didden?