[jsaliga]

my 8" alnico hemps just arrived today. i will be swapping out the B200s in my A8s tonight!! i cant wait..

And????  Let us know how its going with them!

--Jerome

[jsaliga]

I think this will be my final post to this thread.  There are others who are just getting their ALNICO hemp drivers and I think most people, myself included, would like to hear some commentary from other owners.

For those of you who have expressed interest in and appreciation for the discussion of music, I am thinking about starting a thread over in the music forum.  At the moment I am very much into jazz.  My listening preferences are subject to change from time to time.  Once I got into an electric blues mode that lasted nearly 2 years.  I still listened to other music, but during that time blues dominated my rotation.  I've been on a heavy jazz tear for the past three or four months.  I'd say that 3 out 4 records I buy these days is jazz, and I already have a pretty large collection of jazz music!

So with that said, there are three albums I want to leave you with.

Bille Holiday - Lady Sings the Blues



This is a Speakers Corner 180 gram audiophile pressing, and it is simply breathtaking.
Recorded in 1956, this album was made at a time when the honied voice that Holiday
routinely demonstrated on her Columbia sides in the 1940s had left her.  I think it
gives her voice added character and does something for her torch song interpretations
that was missing in the earlier part of her career.  In any case, Lady Sings the
Blues finds Billie Holiday at what arguably is her very best form during her tenure
at Verve.  Highly recommended.


Anita O'Day - Pick Yourself Up



This album belongs in every serious jazz fan's music library.  O'Day
got her start with Gene Krupa's band after his stint with Benny
Goodman.  It has been argued that she lacks the range of Sarah
Vaughan (who doesn't?) and can't scat like Ella Fitzgerald (who
can?).  Be that as it may, Anita O'Day was a brilliant song
interpreter and a supremely gifted vocal improviser.  This
album features a great line-up of tunes, including Don't Be That
Way, Let's Face the Music and Dance, and Stompin' at the
Savoy.  The real knock-out punch here is the most incredible
version of Sweet Georgia Brown that you are ever likely to hear.
Witness this fantastic clip on YouTube of Anita O'Day singing this song
at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuzWegDm2HY


Dave's True Story - Sex Without Bodies



Unfairly labeled as a lounge act.  Dave's True Story
featured the witty songwriting of Dave Cantor and
the wonderful, expressive singing of Kelly Flint.  While
the lyrical content of the songs is frequently campy
and silly, make no mistake about it -- this is exceptionally
well done jazz, with the music and arrangements done in
the Irving Berlin, Rogers and Hart, and Cole Porter traditions.
They also manage to slip in a nice jazz interpretation of
Lou Reed's Take a Walk on the Wild Side.  This album
and the group's eponymous debut album offer a great
deal to jazz vocal fans.  Unfortunately, Kelly Flint
has since moved in other musical directions and for the
past few years has been doing a lot of folk music.  Don't
get me wrong, since it is well done folk, but it pales
in comparison to her jazz singing with Dave Cantor.

--Jerome

[Louis O]

Hi Jerome,

Many thanks for all the Max alnico posts. It's an education for me as well. Great music and I learned a lot from the thread. I'm grateful that you took all the time to share your experience with the Max's.

Thanks again,
Louis

[tmarshl]

Just received my 8" Hemp /Alnico drivers and popped them into my Omega Revolutions to replace the Visaton B200s.  My first impression is very positive, although I can tell that these speakers will need a break-in period like any other speaker.  The mid-range is extremely clear and present.  The only other speakers that I have owned that came close was a pair of Quad ESLs.  I will look forward to improvement as these speakers get broken in.  By the way, I was able to sell my Visaton B200s quickly on Agon.

[Canyoneagle]

Jerome,
I for one would love to hear your ongoing commentary of your experiences and of the music that fuels them.  I've truly enjoyed following your journey with the maxhemps/deephemp and now with the alnico's.

Hell, you've got me looking at turntables on A'gon!!!!!!!

I have been going through (what may be) some of the break-in 'swings' on my Max's (I bought them from Jman66, and am not sure how many hours they had on them), but I feel that some of what I perceive to be 'swings' may in fact be poorly engineered/recorded source material.  That said, I  have really enjoyed these speakers, and am contemplating adding a deephemp to fill in the bottom octave  aa (even though I am very impressed with the max's on their own).
Back on topic, I will most likely end up getting the alnico's at some point in the future, so I am particularly interested in the relative differences between the drivers, and feel that many other hemp owners are in the same boat.

Thanks again,
Michael

[tmarshl]

Update:

Have been listening to the alnico hemps quite a bit.  They are dramatically better than the Visaton B200s in clarity and presence, especially for jazz vocals: Diana Krall, Sinatra, Tierney Sutton, Ella, Tony Bennett, June Christy, Sarah Vaughn.   They all sound incredible. 

Not sure of the cause, but on some of the Sinatra cuts (Sinatra at the Sands) there was a rough edge to his voice with a bit of sibilance.  I hadn't noticed this in my Visatons. Maybe it will go away with break-in.

I would be interested if others have found similar issues.

Just received my 8" Hemp /Alnico drivers and popped them into my Omega Revolutions to replace the Visaton B200s.  My first impression is very positive, although I can tell that these speakers will need a break-in period like any other speaker.  The mid-range is extremely clear and present.  The only other speakers that I have owned that came close was a pair of Quad ESLs.  I will look forward to improvement as these speakers get broken in.  By the way, I was able to sell my Visaton B200s quickly on Agon.

[zybar]

Update:

Have been listening to the alnico hemps quite a bit.  They are dramatically better than the Visaton B200s in clarity and presence, especially for jazz vocals: Diana Krall, Sinatra, Tierney Sutton, Ella, Tony Bennett, June Christy, Sarah Vaughn.   They all sound incredible. 

Not sure of the cause, but on some of the Sinatra cuts (Sinatra at the Sands) there was a rough edge to his voice with a bit of sibilance.  I hadn't noticed this in my Visatons. Maybe it will go away with break-in.

I would be interested if others have found similar issues.

Just received my 8" Hemp /Alnico drivers and popped them into my Omega Revolutions to replace the Visaton B200s.  My first impression is very positive, although I can tell that these speakers will need a break-in period like any other speaker.  The mid-range is extremely clear and present.  The only other speakers that I have owned that came close was a pair of Quad ESLs.  I will look forward to improvement as these speakers get broken in.  By the way, I was able to sell my Visaton B200s quickly on Agon.

No issues with my Revolutions.   

I have been listening to Sinatra and heard no sibilance, grit, or grain.  I will try that album later and report back.

Throw on some Peggy Lee, Sam Cooke, Bill Evans, Roland Kirk, or Ella Fitzgerald and just sit back and smile.

Can you shoot me a PM with what you were able to get for your Visaton drivers?  Mine aren't stock, they have the Planet 10 mods.

What amplification are you using?  I have been using Atma-Sphere M-60's and it is a stunning combination!

George

[gbeard]

Alnico Superhemps in da house!

Hi all,

I arrived home this evening to find that Louis had sent me my Alnico upgraded Superhemps. As you may or may not know, my SHs had the first production hemptone driver (the second iteration of the first Omega hemp driver  ) and not the current Hempcone that Omega provides today. That is why I had to send them back to Louis, he needed to cut a larger hole for the new driver. This is important to note, because while I really enjoyed my SHs as they were, by all accounts, the new hempcone drivers are much better than the early versions.

Obviously, since I have no experience with the latest stock 96db hemps, I cannot make any comparisions. However, I will say that in only a few minutes of listening I could tell that Louis' Alnico Hemps are a leaping-tall-buildings improvement to the drivers I owned. My initial reaction was to the much improved bass performance, but the increased resolution of the new drivers is perhaps the bigger story.

As I only have a few minutes of time on them, I am sure my impressions will flesh out in the next few days. I will keep you posted. So far...

Cheers,
Gary

[tmarshl]

Update:

Have been listening to the alnico hemps quite a bit.  They are dramatically better than the Visaton B200s in clarity and presence, especially for jazz vocals: Diana Krall, Sinatra, Tierney Sutton, Ella, Tony Bennett, June Christy, Sarah Vaughn.   They all sound incredible. 

Not sure of the cause, but on some of the Sinatra cuts (Sinatra at the Sands) there was a rough edge to his voice with a bit of sibilance.  I hadn't noticed this in my Visatons. Maybe it will go away with break-in.

I would be interested if others have found similar issues.

Just received my 8" Hemp /Alnico drivers and popped them into my Omega Revolutions to replace the Visaton B200s.  My first impression is very positive, although I can tell that these speakers will need a break-in period like any other speaker.  The mid-range is extremely clear and present.  The only other speakers that I have owned that came close was a pair of Quad ESLs.  I will look forward to improvement as these speakers get broken in.  By the way, I was able to sell my Visaton B200s quickly on Agon.

No issues with my Revolutions.   

I have been listening to Sinatra and heard no sibilance, grit, or grain.  I will try that album later and report back.

Throw on some Peggy Lee, Sam Cooke, Bill Evans, Roland Kirk, or Ella Fitzgerald and just sit back and smile.

Can you shoot me a PM with what you were able to get for your Visaton drivers?  Mine aren't stock, they have the Planet 10 mods.

What amplification are you using?  I have been using Atma-Sphere M-60's and it is a stunning combination!

George

The sibilance has disappeared on Sinatra at the Sands, now that I have over 100 hours on these speakers - so it was just a matter of break-in. 

I am using the Red Wine Audio Signature 30.2 which is a great match for the Hemp/Alnico/Revolutions from Omega.  After 100 hours of break-in it just keeps getting better - so much so that I am now going back and listening to old favorites from my music collection just to hear how much better they sound with this combination.  The black background of the RWA battery powered amplifier coupled with the clarity and resolution of the Hemp/Alnico drivers makes for an "virtually live" presentation. 

Tom

[Louis O]

Hi All,

many thanks and the great news about the break in with alnico is it's not the roller coaster and pretty linear. they do need the break in, but won't drive you nuts like the ferrite.

The thing that does it for me is the texture and the balance of the bass. It also has a much better balance and transition from bass to mids to top.

Many thanks,
Louis