[RandyH]

Thank you again BillC for your in-depth report and follow-up comments.  I appreciate your efforts to fairly describe your impressions of the speakers and relate the impressions of others who listened to it at your event.  I guess it's always been difficult for me to quantify accurately the effects of break-in...though I believe in it and have experienced it with virtually all of my components.  I hear what I hear but I have no idea ahead of time what part of what I am hearing will change, or how it will change as a result of break-in.  When I have heard things that just didn't sound right I was always hopeful that this was a function of break-in, but I never could be sure.  Sometimes it was...sometimes it wasn't.   I just had to wait for the final results.

It sounds as though there may be an element of listener break-in that has to occur as well because of the lower crossover on the Mini.

I am anxiously awaiting your "final" report on the Mini but I guess Bob said it best "In the end, there's really only one way to know for sure..."  I will place my order and give them a 30 day audition.   Thanks again to everyone for their input.

Randy

[spence]

I'm a firm believer that "some" speakers benefit from a break in period. I used to own a pair of JM Labs Mini Utopias. I had them for a year. Those speakers sounded bright and forward the whole time. No changes whatsoever. I sold them and bought a pair of Von Schweikert VR4SR MK2's and out of the box they were very unflattering. All of the frequencies were there, but just not very musical. Talk about discouraged! I pounded them all last summer and when I sold them in November (that's when I found out about SP Tech and ordered 3.0's in December) they had dramatically changed. They were a wonderful sounding speaker. Musical as all get out. It was a HUGE difference. So for some reason, break in makes a difference and is speaker dependent - at least to my ears. I hjave been "music-less" in my living room since mid December, so I will have a fresh set of ears when (if) I get my 3.0's

Spence

[Double Ugly]

I'll admit it does take a bit of time to get used to the presentation of a speaker with such a low crossover point after spending a lot of years with speakers whose  crossovers are in the 2-3khz region.  I guess having a tweeter produce sounds that normally come from a woofer takes some adjustment.

Precisely! 

Some fall in love with them immediately (Jim Merod & Steve McCormack come to mind) but others (I would submit most) require some time with the speakers before coming to terms with the differences.  Consequently, the speakers are sometimes quickly dismissed by those who spend only a few minutes with them; the presentation is too different, too far removed from their established baseline.

IME, those who spend a fair amount of time listening to live, unamplified music are more likely to take to them immediately.  Conversely, those who who are farther removed from live events, and who've spent most of their time listening to woofers cover a great deal more of the midrange, require a greater acclimation period.

Is there a money back guarantee on your speakers?

Yes, the Mini has a 30-day money-back guarantee.

I am anxiously awaiting your "final" report on the Mini but I guess Bob said it best "In the end, there's really only one way to know for sure..."  I will place my order and give them a 30 day audition.   Thanks again to everyone for their input.

Congratulations, Randy! 

[mcullinan]

I'll admit it does take a bit of time to get used to the presentation of a speaker with such a low crossover point after spending a lot of years with speakers whose  crossovers are in the 2-3khz region.  I guess having a tweeter produce sounds that normally come from a woofer takes some adjustment.

Precisely! 

Some fall in love with them immediately (Jim Merod & Steve McCormack come to mind) but others (I would submit most) require some time with the speakers before coming to terms with the differences.  Consequently, the speakers are sometimes quickly dismissed by those who spend only a few minutes with them; the presentation is too different, too far removed from their established baseline.

IME, those who spend a fair amount of time listening to live, unamplified music are more likely to take to them immediately.  Conversely, those who who are farther removed from live events, and who've spent most of their time listening to woofers cover a great deal more of the midrange, require a greater acclimation period.

Interesting, because live music is my thing. I think its all about the spatial cues. Also, being an avid Grateful Dead listener, there is a certain live energy, spontaneousness that is never captured in studio recordings. I am so looking forward to hearing them in my home.
I heard the TP 2.0s and mentioned previously that I fell in love with the continuous presentation of the high end whereas typical speakers break up into high and low more obviously.
Mike

[Double Ugly]

I'll admit it does take a bit of time to get used to the presentation of a speaker with such a low crossover point after spending a lot of years with speakers whose  crossovers are in the 2-3khz region.  I guess having a tweeter produce sounds that normally come from a woofer takes some adjustment.

Precisely! 

Some fall in love with them immediately (Jim Merod & Steve McCormack come to mind) but others (I would submit most) require some time with the speakers before coming to terms with the differences.  Consequently, the speakers are sometimes quickly dismissed by those who spend only a few minutes with them; the presentation is too different, too far removed from their established baseline.

IME, those who spend a fair amount of time listening to live, unamplified music are more likely to take to them immediately.  Conversely, those who who are farther removed from live events, and who've spent most of their time listening to woofers cover a great deal more of the midrange, require a greater acclimation period.

Interesting, because live music is my thing. I think its all about the spatial cues. Also, being an avid Grateful Dead listener, there is a certain live energy, spontaneousness that is never captured in studio recordings. I am so looking forward to hearing them in my home.
I heard the TP 2.0s and mentioned previously that I fell in love with the continuous presentation of the high end whereas typical speakers break up into high and low more obviously.
Mike

Nothing can replace the ambiance and other intangibles associated with a well-orchestrated live music event, but there is a way to get awfully, awfully close....

[werner52]

Bob just sent the word my Walnut Mini's will be shipping tomorrow.   

[IronLion]

   That is great news!  That should be a sign that mine aren't far behind...

[lonewolfny42]

Bob just sent the word my Walnut Mini's will be shipping tomorrow.   

Cool.....enjoy !!!

[Geardaddy]

Interesting, because live music is my thing. I think its all about the spatial cues. Also, being an avid Grateful Dead listener, there is a certain live energy, spontaneousness that is never captured in studio recordings. I am so looking forward to hearing them in my home.....
Mike

I am also a big fan of live music (including the Dead.... ) and feel that its a good test of a speaker...badly recorded or not.  It sounds as if the SPs tackle live music nicely....

[lonewolfny42]

Bob just sent the word my Walnut Mini's will be shipping tomorrow.   

So....whats the word ? Have they arrived ?

[Afterimage]

I hope I'm not off topic, but how do the mini's do with rock/pop?   Thanks

[bbchem]

   They are amazing with Rock and pop, which is what I listen to most of the time. I am listening to Pink Floyd, America, REM, The Who. Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and so on. They make the band seem live in your house, and most of these recordings of the older variety were not made for audiophiles. Anyway, they can go full blown versus most other speakers monitor or Floorstanding, does not matter!!
 

Regards, Bill

[werner52]

The mini's have arrived!!!     I'll try putting up some pics, however Mr. Murphy is treating me to his law.  I got them on the stands all set up and go to feed my bare 12 gauge Mogami wire through the binding post and alas there is no hole.   I'm not quite sure what the definition of 5 way binding posts is, but one things I can attest to there is no hole to feed bare wire. 

[groovybassist]

Afterimage:

This will sound like a bad pun, but with rock music, the Mini's definitely ROCK!  I listen to a lot of rock and pop, and the transient response of the Mini's allows them to communicate the intent of the musicians, not just the notes they're playing.  They're great speakers IMO.  Enjoy.

-Mike

[Goosepond]

Maybe someone could elaborate on what the mini's 5-way binding posts will take. I'm in the same boat as werner52. I don't have the mini's yet, but my existing speaker wire has soldered bare ends. I plan on getting some more speaker wire, probably spades or banana plugs.

Gene

The mini's have arrived!!!     I'll try putting up some pics, however Mr. Murphy is treating me to his law.  I got them on the stands all set up and go to feed my bare 12 gauge Mogami wire through the binding post and alas there is no hole.   I'm not quite sure what the definition of 5 way binding posts is, but one things I can attest to there is no hole to feed bare wire. 

[WOR Radio]

I use the WBT spades on all of my speaker connections. The terminal for SP tech speakers is a perfect fit for the WBT's.

Get the 'good stuff', then you no longer have to be concerned about it.


http://www.wbtusa.com/pages/0680cut.html

[Albireo]

My Minis shipped yesterday, due Monday!

[IronLion]

Great news Albireo; mine shouldn't be far behind I think...

[lonewolfny42]

My Minis shipped yesterday, due Monday!

Beantown should be rocking on Monday....enjoy !!!

[groovybassist]

Albireo:

You're in for a treat!  Just give them and yourself a chance to settle in and get acclimated (15-20 hours did it for me), then enjoy.

-Mike