[bunky]

I got a chance to listen today.  There was a bit less of a crowd.  First of all the Philharmonic 3 probably was among the best values at the show if not the best.  The Soundscape sucked up lots more power as they are not as efficient but you can clearly hear the bass superiority of the Soundscape.  I also though the overall presentation was smoother throughout the range.  I was actually afraid to listen to the cheaper Philharmonic model.  At their price point ($1.6k) I might have been tempted to buy them for the secondary basement system I don't use all that much vs. the old B&W P6s I have there now (which sound good and are probably overkill for my needs) I have there now.

i was tempted to buy the Philharmonic Audio model 1's and Dennis almost had me convinced that i could drive them with a 40-50 WPC push pull amp but i just kept thinking about my Beautiful Rosewood Silverline Sonata III's sitting at home with a 18 WPC 6C33-B SET amp just waiting for me to get back to them 

[Letitroll98]

I got a chance to listen today.  There was a bit less of a crowd.  First of all the Philharmonic 3 probably was among the best values at the show if not the best.  The Soundscape sucked up lots more power as they are not as efficient but you can clearly hear the bass superiority of the Soundscape.  I also though the overall presentation was smoother throughout the range.  I was actually afraid to listen to the cheaper Philharmonic model.  At their price point ($1.6k) I might have been tempted to buy them for the secondary basement system I don't use all that much vs. the old B&W P6s I have there now (which sound good and are probably overkill for my needs) I have there now.

Hey Phil.  I think it was the Philharmonic 1's that were $1600, did you have too much of that Dogfish Head Ale or what?  Seriously tho, you're quite right in your assessment, a serious steal at the price.  I can make a good case for adding the $400 for the Phil 2's with the upgraded tweeter, which I think fixed the 1's only real problem, a slightly ragged tweeter, and mean slightly, as only in comparison to the Soundscapes and more expensive Phil's.  Another possible drawback for some is that the cabinets for the 1 and 2 are limited to satin black only, a compromise to keep the tooling costs low from the Chinese subcontractor.  The much more pricey Philharmonic 3's have a selection of real wood veneers.

Another screaming bargain were the Soundfields made by our own AJinFLA.  Incredibly dynamic, sweet sounding, great imaging, bass to 20hz, in a medium sized bookshelf.  Not a completely finished product as he's testing the waters in the speaker world.  When I asked the price I expected to hear $5-8k a pair based on the relative sound quality in comparison to other models at the show.  When he said $995 a pair, I was floored, I asked again as I was sure I misheard him.  He said he might lower the price if sales picked up, I then explained Audio Marketing 101 to him and how shortly after I buy my discounted pair the price should go to $2495.  He is way too nice a guy.

It was a great time meeting you and several others in the Audio Circle clan.  A great group of guys that, as we noted, was only missing some of our female members to complete the picture.  I'll post some pics when my camera battery recharges (grrr) amd throw is some more impressions.

[Phil A]

Hey Phil.  I think it was the Philharmonic 1's that were $1600, did you have too much of that Dogfish Head Ale or what?  Seriously tho, you're quite right in your assessment, a serious steal at the price.  I can make a good case for adding the $400 for the Phil 2's with the upgraded tweeter, which I think fixed the 1's only real problem, a slightly ragged tweeter, and mean slightly, as only in comparison to the Soundscapes and more expensive Phil's.  Another possible drawback for some is that the cabinets for the 1 and 2 are limited to satin black only, a compromise to keep the tooling costs low from the Chinese subcontractor.  The much more pricey Philharmonic 3's have a selection of real wood veneers.

Another screaming bargain were the Soundfields made by our own AJinFLA.  Incredibly dynamic, sweet sounding, great imaging, bass to 20hz, in a medium sized bookshelf.  Not a completely finished product as he's testing the waters in the speaker world.  When I asked the price I expected to hear $5-8k a pair based on the relative sound quality in comparison to other models at the show.  When he said $995 a pair, I was floored, I asked again as I was sure I misheard him.  He said he might lower the price if sales picked up, I then explained Audio Marketing 101 to him and how shortly after I buy my discounted pair the price should go to $2495.  He is way too nice a guy.

It was a great time meeting you and several others in the Audio Circle clan.  A great group of guys that, as we noted, was only missing some of our female members to complete the picture.  I'll post some pics when my camera battery recharges (grrr) amd throw is some more impressions.

Yes - I know they were the 1s   I did not listen to them (was afraid too).  Just heard the 3s.  I was responding to a post about the comparison of the 3s to the Soundscapes.  If I had too much ale, I probably would have bought the 1s.  The 3s were so good for $2,800.  When I heard them I Saturday, I figured they would be less than the Soundscapes.  Before I knew the price, I thought they were quite good and expected them to be $6k.  I was shocked when I heard $2.8k.

[Letitroll98]

I see said the blind man as he fell in the ditch.  I was lucky enough to be there on Sunday when they played the Philharmonic 1's and then switched out to the Soundscapes, and had heard the 3's on Saturday, so I got the grand tour.  As you noted, the 3's are within shouting distance of the Soundscapes in SQ, the 1's are much more limited in the higher ranges, thus the sweet spot might be the 2's that use the RAAL tweeter.  I didn't think there was all that much difference in the bass range between the 1.s and 3's, a difference for sure, but not one you'd notice much in everyday music. 

[DTB300]

Stereophile has a nice writeup with pictures on their site...

http://www.stereophile.com/frontpage

[Saturn94]

.......Another screaming bargain were the Soundfields made by our own AJinFLA.  Incredibly dynamic, sweet sounding, great imaging, bass to 20hz, in a medium sized bookshelf.  Not a completely finished product as he's testing the waters in the speaker world.  When I asked the price I expected to hear $5-8k a pair based on the relative sound quality in comparison to other models at the show.  When he said $995 a pair, I was floored, I asked again as I was sure I misheard him.  He said he might lower the price if sales picked up, I then explained Audio Marketing 101 to him and how shortly after I buy my discounted pair the price should go to $2495.  He is way too nice a guy...........

+1

As you said they sounded great (I visited the room several times!) and were a stunning value.

What was equally impressive is the sound he was getting with his very modest equipment.  I would hazard to guess that he had the least expensive setup, but it was one of the best I heard yesterday.

[JLM]

Any links/info on the Soundfields?

[richidoo]

Any links/info on the Soundfields?

JLM, He said he didn't have a website yet, but he will be making one. They are not for sale, he just wanted feedback on them.
http://www.stereophile.com/content/soundfield-audio

The big blue Carnegies powered by tiny Manley Mahis and the huge Manley 300B preamp was one of my favorites.  I heard them at AXPONA Atlanta with powerful SS amps, they pack a very big punch. But they are also extremely musical with the tubes.

[jhm731]

JA thought Dan's amps sounded very good at last weekend's Capital Audio Fest:

"I have heard Wilson Sashas in a number of systems, and yes, they are "fast," in that the bass doesn't boom or blur. Yes, the Nordost Odin is extraordinarily transparent cable (at a price) and that Meridian player's D/A is top-rank. And that HRS rack is back hole for vibrations. But driven by the Dan D'Agostino amps—wow, did the Sashas kick some awesome booty! Without ever sounding crass or lacking in subtlety."

Anyone else hear this system?

[Phil A]

JA thought Dan's amps sounded very good at last weekend's Capital Audio Fest:

Anyone else hear this system?

Yes, went back a few times.  Sounded great.  Of course the amps are $42k for the pair and the speakers were about $28k give or take a drop so about $70k without a preamp or source.

[DTB300]

JA thought Dan's amps sounded very good at last weekend's Capital Audio Fest:

"I have heard Wilson Sashas in a number of systems, and yes, they are "fast," in that the bass doesn't boom or blur. Yes, the Nordost Odin is extraordinarily transparent cable (at a price) and that Meridian player's D/A is top-rank. And that HRS rack is back hole for vibrations. But driven by the Dan D'Agostino amps—wow, did the Sashas kick some awesome booty! Without ever sounding crass or lacking in subtlety."

Anyone else hear this system?

The setup sounded really good (for a hotel) until the host became too volume happy. 

[Socrates7]

JA thought Dan's amps sounded very good at last weekend's Capital Audio Fest:

"I have heard Wilson Sashas in a number of systems, and yes, they are "fast," in that the bass doesn't boom or blur. Yes, the Nordost Odin is extraordinarily transparent cable (at a price) and that Meridian player's D/A is top-rank. And that HRS rack is back hole for vibrations. But driven by the Dan D'Agostino amps—wow, did the Sashas kick some awesome booty! Without ever sounding crass or lacking in subtlety."

Anyone else hear this system?

I thought the Wilson/D'Agostino combo was very compelling. Maybe one of the best auditions I've ever had for Wilson speakers.

http://wp.me/p1ae3a-fs

For my tastes, I was all about the Joseph Audio Perspectives, but then, I guess I'm a front-row kind of guy and the Joseph "house sound" gets me all tingly.

http://wp.me/p1ae3a-fp

[MLS]

I am still talking about Soundfields speakers with my audio buddies today.  My one buddy heard the open baffle design on Friday and was very impressed and told me to make sure I stopped in to hear them.  When I went in on Sunday the Bookies were hooked up and I was more impressed with these speakers than any other speakers at the show. 

Like mentioned above Soundfields system sounded better to me than the mega dollar systems on the first floor.  What was unbelievable was a JA was using a netbook feeding a (IIRC) Nuforce DAC pre-amp and some inexpensive interconnects taped to the carpet to a mystery amp and then some inexpensive speaker wire powering the Concentric KEF drivers. A subwoofer plate amp sitting on the floor also fed by inexpensive interconnects with inexpensive speaker wire going to the JBL car subwoofer.

But the sound, balance, dynamics and ability to energize the room were most impressive.

Great job JA.

[pansixt]

We all experienced some awesome sounds at CAF.
It was great to meet those from AC and others.

I ran across the topic of the Midwest Audio Fest and it looks like those folks had a great time
as well.

Here is the link for pictures of their speaker competition.
https://skydrive.live.com/?cid=74f1dae7503ea8af&sc=photos&client=wnf&id=74F1DAE7503EA8AF%21146
 Looks like some very cool stuff.

I particularly like the V-Twin engine design. But then I am a motorcycle guy,


James

[jhm731]

I thought the Wilson/D'Agostino combo was very compelling. Maybe one of the best auditions I've ever had for Wilson speakers.

http://wp.me/p1ae3a-fs

For my tastes, I was all about the Joseph Audio Perspectives, but then, I guess I'm a front-row kind of guy and the Joseph "house sound" gets me all tingly.

http://wp.me/p1ae3a-fp

Thanks for the feedback. Very nice pictures.

Hope to hear the Wilson/D'Agostino combo later this year.

Last time I heard the Sashas, they sounded really good with the Technical Brain monos.

[Scottdazzle]

I thought the Soundfields sounded very promising, too. Further auditions are in order. Unfortunately they have zero WAF as they currently appear.  Maybe a front baffle wide enough to hide the one behind it??

Unlike just about everyone else, I was not overly impressed with the Salk speakers. The sound was too "hi-fi" for me. By that I mean I think they added a little gloss or shine.  I felt that they smoothed out sibilants a bit as well. I had listened to an earlier prototype that was very bright.  I think Dennis can do a tiny bit more tweaking of the crossover to get them just right.

Again, unlike most others, I thought the Polks sounded quite honest and threw off a monster soundfield, but with $25k of Audio Research on the front end, they should have. A bit of overkill. It would be interesting to hear them with a comparably priced front end. In any case, they're the best Polks I've ever heard and I bet they become big sellers.

The fancy horns had poor off-center sound field.  The sweet spot was very narrow for such giant beasts.

The best sound award for me would go the VPI/Manley, et al room.  Second best is a tie between the Mapleshade and Deja Vu rooms. I didn't stay long enough in the D'Ago$tino room to allow my wallet to be properly drained.

It's a shame that Gifted Listener Audio did not participate. They could have brought a very fine Ayre, VPI/Linn, and Thiel system.

[richidoo]

yeah, What Scott said...   

[Scottdazzle]

Thanks Rich. I looked for you but never saw you. Other AC guys said you were there.  I hope you have a great NC gathering. Our Mid-Atlantic group seems to be on hiatus.

[Socrates7]

It's a shame that Gifted Listener Audio did not participate. They could have brought a very fine Ayre, VPI/Linn, and Thiel system.

I think they'd have been well served by bringing in the two new Magnepan models (1.7 and 3.7) they have on the floor. That alone would have jammed the room all weekend.

[HAL]

JLM, He said he didn't have a website yet, but he will be making one. They are not for sale, he just wanted feedback on them.
http://www.stereophile.com/content/soundfield-audio

The big blue Carnegies powered by tiny Manley Mahis and the huge Manley 300B preamp was one of my favorites.  I heard them at AXPONA Atlanta with powerful SS amps, they pack a very big punch. But they are also extremely musical with the tubes.

IIRC at Axpona the Carnegie Acoustics CST-2's were powered by VAC tube monoblock amps.  The Servo Subs had Solid State amps.