[Vinnie R.]

All,

WLM Loudspeakers is launching a new entry-level range of loudspeakers called the Stella, and they are debuting this weekend at the 2009 Munich Highend Show! 

This range consists of a small monitor, and a slim tower model.  The Stella uses the same sweet and airy sounding paper tweeter from the La Scala range, but the bass/midrange driver is a 5.25" paper cone (instead of the 8" found in the La Scala range).  Like the La Scalas, they also feature the WLM Tweeter Control on the back and the floorstanding model is also bottom-ported.  They will be finished with Maple real wood veneer (natural), which can also be finished with a cherry or black lacquer.  Like all WLM speakers, they are made in Austria and promise both beautiful craftsmanship and sound.

I already pre-ordered both the Stella Monitor and Stella (floorstanding) models in cherry and am looking forward to receiving them and putting them through their paces 

Here are some pictures:






As soon as they are available, I will be posting more details, specifications, and pricing (which is estimated to be approx. half that of the La Scala models).  Based on the feedback I received from WLM regarding their performance, these are going to be an awesome value!  aa

I will keep you all posted,

Vinnie

[whyyyyyy]

I really like the look of the floor standing version.  I can't wait to see a review of this beautiful speaker.

[Vinnie R.]

All,

Looks like WLM had a great showing at the Munich High End show and the new Stella series speakers were a big hit!

I was informed by WLM that they will be available in about 10 weeks, so I guess a little patience will be needed 

I'll keep you all posted,

Vinnie

[Vinnie R.]

All,

Here are some Stella specifications that I received from WLM:


Stella Monitor

Drivers: (1) 5.25" paper mid/bass driver
           (1) 2.5" paper cone tweeter (same as used in La Scala range)

Impedance: 8-ohm nominal

Frequency Response: 40Hz - 25kHz

Sensitivity: 88dB

Cabinet: bass reflex, rear-ported

Connection: Bi-wirable (accepts bananas, spades, or bare wire)

Tweeter Control: discrete, 6 steps (+/- 3 dB)

Dimensions: 12" tall  x  6.75" wide  x  10.75" deep

Price: $2250 / pair


Stella Floorstander (slim line tower)

Drivers: (1) 5.25" paper mid/bass driver
           (1) 2.5" paper cone tweeter (same as used in La Scala range)

Impedance: 8-ohm nominal

Frequency Response: 34Hz - 25kHz

Sensitivity: 90dB

Cabinet: bass reflex, bottom-firing port (bass output can be adjusted by height of floor spikes)

Connection: Bi-wirable (accepts bananas, spades, or bare wire)

Tweeter Control: discrete, 6 steps (+/- 3 dB)

Dimensions: 36" tall  x  6.75" wide  x  10.75" deep

Price: $2700 / pair


We're hoping these will be available this August!

Vinnie

[nonoise]

Haven't been here in awhile but I just may be looking at my next speaker.
 

[bradmorris1]

Nonoise, this post caught my eye because you have the sig 30.2 and Hornshoppe Horns as do I.  I think this combo is fantastic with two big caveats.  They are not dynamic speakers and they can not handle dense material at loud volumes.  They get easily congested.  But these single driver speakers are pure magic for small combos or music that is mostly just guitar and vocal.  I'm especially impressed with how the horns recreate acoustic guitar music.  Do you see the horns the same way and do you think the WLMs will address their shortcomings while still retaining that single driver magic?  What do you think, Vinnie?  I think I'm in the market too.

Brad

[Vinnie R.]

Hi Brad and nonoise,

I have very high expectations for the Stellas.  Like all WLM speakers, I am confident that they will be able to handle a wide range of music, play loud with excellent dynamic range, and sound bigger than their size suggests.  I met WLM speaker design, Martin Schutzenauer, at CES and he demands these qualities and I know he wouldn't design a speaker that did not excel at this!

As you can gather from other posts, I really love the WLM La Scalas, and the Stellas use the same paper-cone tweeter, so we can expect the same sweet, airy, and spacious upper-frequency response (free of any hints of harshness and listener fatigue).  The two drivers on the La Scalas blend extremely well, and since the Stellas use an even smaller (5.25") mid/bass driver, I'm confident they'll be equally well. 

It'll be a few weeks, but I'm really looking forward to getting my own pair of each Stella model and posting my findings! 

Best regards,

Vinnie

[Afterimage]

Vinnie, the real question is, do you like the WLM La Scala better than you Devores?   

[srb]

Hi Vinnie, I have a few questions.
 
1. What is the crossover frequency of these speakers?  I would think that with a larger 2-1/2" tweeter they could be crossed over much lower than a standard 2-way with a typical 1" or so dome.
 
2. Why do you suppose that so few speakers these days have a tweeter adjustment?  Since all rooms are different and have different amounts of absorption and reflection, it seems like it would be a welcome addition to most any speaker, particularly if it is a discrete switched type and not the noisy potentiometer of yesterday.
 
Steve

[Vinnie R.]

Vinnie, the real question is, do you like the WLM La Scala better than you Devores?

Hi Afterimage,

I sold the Devore Nines last year.  I did end up preferring the WLM La Scala floorstanders, but the Nines are also a great speaker that I enjoyed very much with our gear!


Hi Steve,

1) Yes, I believe it is somewhere below 2khz with the La Scalas (not sure exactly where it is set to in the upcoming Stellas, but I bet it is in the same ballpark).

2) I agree - it is such a useful feature and all my WLM customers love having it because they can fine-tune the sound to their room, equipment, and tastes - with ease.  It adds some cost to the product, but really not that much I would think.  WLM uses a high quality attenuator (I cannot hear any noise from the tweeter when adjusting it) and I'm glad to see that they are going to offer this feature with the upcoming Stella series, as well as continue to use the same paper cone tweeter as used in the La Scalas.  The top-end just sounds so natural and non-metallic.

Best regards,

Vinnie

[Vinnie R.]

All,

My WLM Stella and Stella Monitors should be shipping out to me from Austria by the end of this month!    I've been patiently waiting, and will keep you all posted!

Best regards,

Vinnie

[Vinnie R.]

Also coming with my Stella shipment (very soon) will be the WLM Minueta:



WLM Minueta

- Push-pull biased into Class-A
- Switchable between Triode (5wpc) or Ultra-linear modes (14wpc)
- EL84/12AT7 tubes
- 3 analog inputs

I'm really looking forward to this one!

I am also exploring into the possibility of an all-battery power custom version of it (stay tuned!). 

Vinnie

[Vinnie R.]

Finally - The Stellas are scheduled to ship out from Austria this coming week! 

Once I receive them, I'll be carefully listening to them (as well as that Minueta amp!) and will post more details.

Also - the Stella Floor-standing model (only) features a "Bass Tuning Ring" for its large rear port.  Installing this ring reduces the diameter of the port and results in less (and tighter) bass output (great for smaller rooms!). 

So between the Tweeter Control and the Bass Tuning Ring, the Stella is a design that allows for a great deal of tuning of the bass and treble to best fit your room acoustics, equipment, and listening tastes!

For larger rooms - you'll probably want all the bass that these 5.25" drivers can give you and opt not to use the tuning ring. 



Best regards,

Vinnie

[Vinnie R.]

ARRIVED today (Stellas and the Minueta)! 

However - I'm going to need a week or two in order to test everything out and post listening impressions, as I'm backlogged on orders, working on new stuff, and have a lot on my plate 

Will be posting soon!  Also feel free to email me if you have any questions...

Vinnie

[Hebrew Hammer]

Great looking stuff Vinnie...

[knut_the_viking]

ARRIVED today (Stellas and the Minueta)! 

However - I'm going to need a week or two in order to test everything out and post listening impressions, as I'm backlogged on orders, working on new stuff, and have a lot on my plate 

Will be posting soon!  Also feel free to email me if you have any questions...

Vinnie

Anxiously awaiting a post (or new thread, even) with listening impressions...
 aa

[Miles]

Stella is here, sounds very nice
Together with WLM Sonata  aa      match made in heaven

best regards from the dist. for WLM / Red Wine in Norway

[Zero]

I'm sure those WLM floorstanders are delicious!  I absolutely love slim line towers!   

[knut_the_viking]

Stella is here, sounds very nice
Together with WLM Sonata  aa      match made in heaven

best regards from the dist. for WLM / Red Wine in Norway

Where were you guys when I was spending money at Hi-Fi Klubben and Neby hifi?

[Vinnie R.]

All,

I apologize for the delay - I have been insanely busy and I still need to update the website with
details of the Stella models.

I've been playing them for over a month and they are SWEET! 

They really disappear and just leave you with a big and open sound that really makes you scratch
your head  and wonder how do they do it! 

Because both the Stella Monitor and Floorstanding models are quite a bit smaller than the La Scalas, I was expecting them to sound smaller - well they really don't!  While they do not go quite as deep, they are fast and punchy, spacious and "airy" sounding - and very musical!  They have kept me up listening late many evenings, and play very well at both softer and louder listening levels (and they can take the power - more than you would expect from a 5.25" bass/mid driver!  Very clean!).  They also are very dynamic - again, you expect this sort of performance with speakers the size (and price range) of the La Scalas, but with the Stellas, they really surprise you.   

They also offer the same fine Austrian build quality that you expect from WLM - but they do it at half the price.  For smaller rooms, you might actually prefer them to the La Scalas!

At the recent High End Show in Milan, Italy, the Stellas received nice feedback from 6moons coverage:

As is show tradition here and in Munich and Warsaw, this system put to shame a lot of the high-priced spread and played ungawdly loud without any break-up or distress signals. Showgoers kept walking up to the mini speakers, looked at the WLM Acoustics EL34 Sonata valve integrated amplifier and mumbled incoherently. Plenty of head-shaking would accompany this ceremony.

Source was a MacBook Mini with a ?400 outboard DAC feeding a Red Wine Isabella preamp, volume controlled from the DAC.

The success of systems like these is not to be underestimated. So often audiophiles aspire to greatness with speakers that can't be accommodated properly by their rooms.

I'll post more soon, and again, the WLM section of the Red Wine Audio website will be updated soon enough with detailed information and pictures of these stellar sounding STELLAs!     I do apologize for the delay, but it has been very busy these past couple of months and getting busier with new goodies coming soon! 

One more item to to mention quickly - the WLM Minueta EL84 Integrated Amp is a GEM!  I have also been putting it through its paces and in both Triode and Ultra-linear mode, this Class-A integrated + Isabellina dac combo will have you hooked like a fish!    More on that later as well....

Happy listening,

Vinnie