A visit to Arthur’s to hear the LS-9’s. Let me start by saying that Art is a very gracious host and I thoroughly appreciate his taking the time to share his system with me.
I have often thought it would be wonderful, if there was a speaker system that had the detail of an electrostatic/ribbon, the effortless transient speed of a horn, the midrange correctness of a dynamic, the sheer scope, scale and effortless range of a line source, the low distortion of a multi-driver design, the cohesion of a single driver unit and the pinpoint imaging of a point source all in one package. Well, today I heard the closest I have come in one system to doing all of these things very well.
The LS-9’s in their upscale version are gorgeous looking in their Anigre veneer and Steinway piano jet black attire. These monoliths really take center stage as you walk into a room standing seven feet high (think Dunlavy Big), they are imposing but they are gorgeous pieces of audio art. In the event you are not familiar with these, here is a link
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=47367.0When I evaluate a speaker I look at Transient Speed, Imaging in all planes, midrange, detail, timbre and the frequency extremes. A list of discs I used to assist in this is at the end of this review. The following are my impressions from a listening session that lasted around three hours. During this time the speakers remained in the position as found; so I was not able to explore how movement in relation to room boundaries and Angulation to the listener effected the presentation and tonality due to time limitations.
My notes from session representing my general impressions are:
Transient Speed – Good Lord, are these things ever fast. Drums, wooden blocks and cymbal transients are just amazing as heard on the Burmeister Percussion Recording and the kettle drums and horns on Fanfare for the Common Man (RR). Drums had the tight stretched membrane sound you typically associate with electrostatics and the very best dynamic transducers. Brass instruments are visceral and lightning fast as heard on Cherry Poppin Daddies Zoot Suit Riot. The speed of these speakers makes for a very engaging aspect to the musical reproduction.
Imaging is correct in all planes – Let me just state, that I am an imaging nut. I care what else a speaker does well but if the soundstage is not involving, I can never get past that.
Roger Waters amused to death projected a full 180 degree seamless wrap extending from parallel to my listening position to deep into the room as heard on The Ballad of Bill Hubbard; this is the most seamless and cohesive I have heard this track sound, period.
I used the Telarc Omni disc for instrumental image placement evaluation; This disc plays each instrumental section one at a time; everything was exactly where it was supposed to be with exceptional delineation of position both laterally and in depth. Images extend well beyond the sides of the speakers when that information was part of the recording. The reverberations that define the acoustical shell in which the orchestra played were very clearly heard providing an exciting aural picture of the shape and boundaries of the recording venue.
Also, amusing were the plethora of unintentional noises by the musicians heard on several of my discs that previously had not been evident.
Imaging was also different in some ways from what I am used to. The LS-9’s are capable of a greater range of soundstage presentations than any other speakers I have heard to date. Depending upon the recording the soundstage can place images forward of the plane, to the rear of the plane, to the sides of the speakers and in any combination thereof simultaneously. I suspect by varying the axis to the listening position, depth from boundaries and spacing placement that center fill or expansiveness emphasis can be balanced or emphasized depending upon the listener’s preferences.
Ultimately, from the brief session I had, I suspect that the Ls-9’s are just more correct than I am used to where the imagine typically tends to be bound between the speakers at a point starting three to six feet behind the plane and extending back from there. These simply seem to make musical presentations less of a slave to transducer limitations than I have previously encountered.
Images are also rock solid, there is no instrumental wander throughout the frequency range of a given instrument.
Midrange – female and male vocals were just natural and correct as noted on the RCA Messiah. Rebecca Pidgeon and Norah Jones were as seductive as I have ever heard them. Tom Waits sounded like he had gargled with Draino, on “Into The Heart of Saturday Night”, which is exactly what Tom Waits sounds like (I love Tom’s music).
I brought a co-worker with me to listen. This young guy lives for music and has sung in several choirs that have gotten some national exposure so he has a pretty good idea of midrange voicing. His comments were, “it’s just like being there”.
Detail – The detail of the best electrostatic and Ribbon designs I have heard to date. I was hearing details through the LS-9’s in familiar recordings that I had simply never heard before.
Timbre – Woods sounded woody and resonant, brass sounded brassy, violins sounded…..well you get the idea. Instruments simply sounded like they are supposed to.
Frequency extremes – The bass goes very low and highs are extended while not being etched and fatiguing. No exaggerated sizzle, simply in balance with the whole.
The bass was satisfying without the exaggerations that sometimes occur with subwoofers (the Quantity over quality effect), with sharply defined leading edge transient attack and proper decay which provided an attendant underpinning of the acoustic whole that made every recording I listened to more believable in terms of the “you are there” perception.
As regards how deep the bass went, it seemed it could have gone a bit lower (were talking a few hertz here). I think this was a function of the LS-9’s being quite far out into this particular room, as I said before playing with placement would have taken way too long for the little time I had there.
To assess treble I listen for cymbals, brass and drums to be tonally correct. Cymbals were crystalline, temple gongs had the right amount of steely resonant ring and percussion instruments had that sharp snap indicative of the upper harmonics being intact. Also, I have a recording of “African Water drums” I got off a P to P server; likely made on location in some remote part of the world. On a system with good highs, the image projects right out into the room projecting the image forward of the plane of the speakers, until the waters drums are just a foot or two away from you’re listening position (were talking around 12 feet between the speaker plane and the listening position that’s some kind of unique projection of an image).
Arthur’s system was all tube VAC, Burmeister Disc Player and cabling that looked like an overfed Burmese python.
I am sure this contributed to the great sound I was experiencing. Overall the sound was detailed and fast yet warm which appears to be exactly what Art is shooting for. I would imagine these speakers are very reflective of what is feeding them downstream.
Two networks will apparently be available. The stock network was in for most of the listening, so my comments are pretty much based upon those being in place. Toward the end of the session we switched to the upgraded crossover (cost no object component substitutions). The immediate thing I noticed were vocals taking on a new level of focus and refinement almost as if you can hear around and behind the images.
Fit and finish of cabinets is as good as I have seen what more can you say.
Here is the bottom line, these speakers are just plain enjoyable to listen to, they do just about everything as right as I could want or imagine. I find myself thinking of them as exciting, dynamic, detailed, lush, natural and musical. In short they just sound right. At the price these are selling at, if you’re in the market, not auditioning them could lead to some major regrets later on. I’m putting my money where my mouth is and placing an order for myself.
Discography
1. Copland 100; Fanfare for the Common Man - Reference Recordings (RR) – RR93
2. Roger Waters – Amused to Death – The Ballad of Bill Hubbard; Perfect Sense; Too much Rope; Amused to Death – Columbia
3. Tchaikovsky 1812 Overture – Telarc
4. Pictures at an Exhibition – Mussorgsky – The Great Gate of Kiev – RR79
5. Stereophile test CD2 – Mapping the Soundstage; Corey Greenburg Eden
6. Norah Jones – Come Away with Me – Blue Note Records
7. Tom Waits – Used Songs 1973-1980 – Heart of Saturday Night – Rhino
8. Chesky 10th Anniversary special Edition - Grandmas Hands; Livingston Taylor and The Word Around Town – Rebecca Pidgeon.
9. Yoyo Ma – Appalachian Journey – Hard Times Come Again No More – James Taylor - Sony
10. Handel Messiah – Royal Philharmonic, Thomas Beecham – Comfort Ye My People; He was despised; Hallelujah – RCA Victor 1959
11. Cherry Popping Daddies – Zoot Suit Riot –
12. Water Drums – African Tribal on location recording – author unknown
13. OmniDisc – Imaging and Music – Britten Fugue from the Younger Persons Guide to the Orchestra – Good Vibrations - Telarc
