Some Members Discuss Their Nola Speakers

dcathro

Well-Known Member
Sep 16, 2016
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Melbourne, Australia
I thought as it has been 2 years since anyone has posted anything in this forum, I would add a comment.

I have never owned Nolas myself, but had Alons for many years (V MK2, Circe, and Phalanx). I sold the Phalanxs in 2007, but recently reacquired them and have been restoring them this past year. I have to say that they still sound pretty incredible for a 20+ year old speaker.

I think that when you get used to Carl's speakers, it is difficult to go back to monkey coffins. It is a shame that Carl's creations do not get the respect they deserve from the reviewing community
 

Priaptor

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Jan 28, 2012
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I thought as it has been 2 years since anyone has posted anything in this forum, I would add a comment.

I have never owned Nolas myself, but had Alons for many years (V MK2, Circe, and Phalanx). I sold the Phalanxs in 2007, but recently reacquired them and have been restoring them this past year. I have to say that they still sound pretty incredible for a 20+ year old speaker.

I think that when you get used to Carl's speakers, it is difficult to go back to monkey coffins. It is a shame that Carl's creations do not get the respect they deserve from the reviewing community

I couldn't agree more. As an owner of the CGR Gold, I can tell you they are superb and IMHO haven't heard a competitor in it's price range that is as pleasing. On thing, I was driving them with Carl's recommended "tubes" and recently went with a CH Precision M1 to drive the Concert Grands and can say I have never heard them sound better. I think Carl should try some of these newer solid state amps as the combination is like none I have ever heard.

I also love the fact that he doesn't change out models every few months like others that get so "highly rated" and you are 100% correct that he doesn't get the respect, however, I firmly believe that if he demoed a CGR with some of these newer solid state amps (I know its anathema for Carl) he would blow away people. They are as coherent as ever, better high end detail and much more accurate bass leading to even more holographic presentation.
 

caesar

Well-Known Member
May 30, 2010
4,290
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1,698
I thought as it has been 2 years since anyone has posted anything in this forum, I would add a comment.

I have never owned Nolas myself, but had Alons for many years (V MK2, Circe, and Phalanx). I sold the Phalanxs in 2007, but recently reacquired them and have been restoring them this past year. I have to say that they still sound pretty incredible for a 20+ year old speaker.

I think that when you get used to Carl's speakers, it is difficult to go back to monkey coffins. It is a shame that Carl's creations do not get the respect they deserve from the reviewing community

I'm with you . I think NOLAs are incredible. Furthermore, NOLA speakers were always associated with Harry Pearson and were his reference. The sonic signature of the NOLAs is what has been ingrained in the minds of many as what the Absolute Sound really is. Obviously, high end is a hobby of tastes, preferences, and perceptions.

And perceptions differ: guys like Valin imagine that Magicos deliver the sound of acoustic instruments in real space better than anything out there. Yet the Nola and Magico speakers coudn't me more different...subjectivity is an amazing thing.
 

Priaptor

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Jan 28, 2012
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I'm with you . I think NOLAs are incredible. Furthermore, NOLA speakers were always associated with Harry Pearson and were his reference. The sonic signature of the NOLAs is what has been ingrained in the minds of many as what the Absolute Sound really is. Obviously, high end is a hobby of tastes, preferences, and perceptions.

And perceptions differ: guys like Valin imagine that Magicos deliver the sound of acoustic instruments in real space better than anything out there. Yet the Nola and Magico speakers coudn't me more different...subjectivity is an amazing thing.

Caesar,

You are 100% correct. I happen to currently own what HP called the "best most accurate speakers he ever heard", the NOLA Concert Grand Golds just before his unfortunate passing. They are truly a remarkable speaker. I also believe HP didn't hear them at their best as I have been listening to them. As you know I am Elliot's guinea pig for Gobels speakers and products and in an effort to find the best match for the Gobels we listened to many solid state amps on my NOLAs, an anathema to Carl. Lo and behold and I never expected it, but the CH Precision M1 on the CGRs are just spectacular.

As to the NOLA vs. the Magico, I had the Q1 for awhile with the Constellation while at the time I owned the Nola Baby Grands. To me,the Babys were just so much more listenable and enjoyable. I tired the Constellation on the Baby Grands and my REF250s with the Q1 and never warmed to either the Constellation or the Q1, both I sold.

Yes the NOLA do give a totally different presentation and I feel a more engaging and enjoyable one. But that is me.
 

infinitely baffled

VIP/Donor
Jul 2, 2015
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I was really close to buying a used pair of CGRG's a couple of months ago.
But as negotiations progressed i came to realise that i did not want to have an ongoing business relationship with that particular vendor. I know we're not supposed to be influenced by the personalities involved, but we're only human, these are large sums of money and as i get older i have learned to trust my instincts about people.
However I may yet buy a new pair direct from Carl
 

LL21

Well-Known Member
Dec 26, 2010
14,411
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Where can i read more about the Nola Grand Ref VI Gold, their 4-tower speaker? Has anyone heard it? I am curious as to how it compares with other 4-towers (Genesis 1, Tidal 4-tower, Gryphon Pendragon/Kodo, YG Anat XV)
 

infinitely baffled

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Most of the reviews i have read majored on the apparent difficulties in getting cohesive bass from the system.
This is why i had focused on the Concert Grand Reference Gold, and would supplement them with the subwoofer towers from the Grand Reference.
Carl had suggested this configuration to go with the Baby Grands, giving me reason to hope he would be willing to do the same with the next model up the range.
The CGRG appealed more as the basis for a four tower system as the two main speakers have greater bass capability than the two main towers in the Grands, which should make room and subwoofer integration more straightforward
 

Priaptor

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Jan 28, 2012
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I was really close to buying a used pair of CGRG's a couple of months ago.
But as negotiations progressed i came to realise that i did not want to have an ongoing business relationship with that particular vendor. I know we're not supposed to be influenced by the personalities involved, but we're only human, these are large sums of money and as i get older i have learned to trust my instincts about people.
However I may yet buy a new pair direct from Carl

I'm not sure who you were negotiating with but I am assuming those were mine?? Mine are up for sale on Audiogon although I am not the one selling them direct although they are still in my house in perfect condition.

Reason for my sale? I am going to be retiring very soon, moving to a condo with limited space and nowhere for these speakers to go. I am in need of "downscaling" in terms of space. My current room is large and whether I use the CGR in near-field or elsewhere, they are terrific. I love to call them the best full range monitor speakers there are as they do what monitors do better are as cohesive and yet scale to any type of music genre, large or small.

I can tell you they are the most engaging speakers I have ever owned or listened to. I am very familiar with Nola line as I owned the MicroGrands, then the Baby Grands, Baby Grand Golds and now the Concert Grand Golds. As good as the BG were, the Concert Grands actually blew them away as well as all other speakers I have ever heard or owned. I have had people to my house, speaker designers included, who despite their personal biases felt my system was one of the best they every heard.

Feel free to PM me and I can give you more info if you are interested. I am not trying to give you a sales pitch as if I wind up keeping them until my full retirement "I will just have to SUFFER".

Also, while they are very easy to drive and Carl recommends tubes and at the time recommended the REF75(SE), I can tell you the better the source/amp, the better they are. I upgraded from the REF75 to the GS150 and it was awesome. I never expected Solid State to sound so good, but I gave many of the new ones a try on the CGR and I am now using the CH Precison M1 and it is an amazing combination and I am enjoying it even more than my tubes.

Howie
 

Priaptor

Member Sponsor
Jan 28, 2012
929
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Where can i read more about the Nola Grand Ref VI Gold, their 4-tower speaker? Has anyone heard it? I am curious as to how it compares with other 4-towers (Genesis 1, Tidal 4-tower, Gryphon Pendragon/Kodo, YG Anat XV)

I believe there is someone who posted here on the 4 tower system. I think he heard the CGR and liked them better or heard they were better. Not sure. But he was in Europe somewhere and I think he posted somewhere on WBF.

I never heard the 4 tower NOLA. I am assuming that Carl is using all his new technology, drivers and crossovers that he is now using in his other Gold lines.

I had a fellow NOLA Baby Grand Gold owner over to my house to listen to my system and he was blown away at just how much better the presentation of the CGR were than the Baby Grand Gold, especially in the lower octaves. The CGR is really a fantastic speaker that people in the market for a full range speaker at the price need to experience. I wish Carl would show it more with different front end than he does as what I am getting is as unique, accurate and engaging as anything I have ever heard.

So if I were to extrapolate, I would have to assume the 4 tower would be amazing as well. Question is where one could audition. Unfortunately, where I am in my "life cycle" now requires a smaller not larger speaker going forward.
 

infinitely baffled

VIP/Donor
Jul 2, 2015
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387
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Scotland
I'm not sure who you were negotiating with but I am assuming those were mine?? Mine are up for sale on Audiogon although I am not the one selling them direct although they are still in my house in perfect condition.

Reason for my sale? I am going to be retiring very soon, moving to a condo with limited space and nowhere for these speakers to go. I am in need of "downscaling" in terms of space. My current room is large and whether I use the CGR in near-field or elsewhere, they are terrific. I love to call them the best full range monitor speakers there are as they do what monitors do better are as cohesive and yet scale to any type of music genre, large or small.

I can tell you they are the most engaging speakers I have ever owned or listened to. I am very familiar with Nola line as I owned the MicroGrands, then the Baby Grands, Baby Grand Golds and now the Concert Grand Golds. As good as the BG were, the Concert Grands actually blew them away as well as all other speakers I have ever heard or owned. I have had people to my house, speaker designers included, who despite their personal biases felt my system was one of the best they every heard.

Feel free to PM me and I can give you more info if you are interested. I am not trying to give you a sales pitch as if I wind up keeping them until my full retirement "I will just have to SUFFER".

Also, while they are very easy to drive and Carl recommends tubes and at the time recommended the REF75(SE), I can tell you the better the source/amp, the better they are. I upgraded from the REF75 to the GS150 and it was awesome. I never expected Solid State to sound so good, but I gave many of the new ones a try on the CGR and I am now using the CH Precison M1 and it is an amazing combination and I am enjoying it even more than my tubes.

Howie

Hello Howie

Yes i guess they must have been yours, as the details match those in your post.
I'm guessing it was your agent that i found too abrasive, it certainly wasn't you ?
I'm now focused on some Wavac 833's, if yours remain available after i have completed perhaps we can talk directly
Very best wishes
Gavin
 

Priaptor

Member Sponsor
Jan 28, 2012
929
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FL
Hello Howie

Yes i guess they must have been yours, as the details match those in your post.
I'm guessing it was your agent that i found too abrasive, it certainly wasn't you ?
I'm now focused on some Wavac 833's, if yours remain available after i have completed perhaps we can talk directly
Very best wishes
Gavin

No problem. Feel free to PM me and I would be very willing to discuss them and their capabilities.

Best
Howie
 

infinitely baffled

VIP/Donor
Jul 2, 2015
1,259
387
340
Scotland
You have pm ?
 

LL21

Well-Known Member
Dec 26, 2010
14,411
2,509
1,448
Most of the reviews i have read majored on the apparent difficulties in getting cohesive bass from the system.
This is why i had focused on the Concert Grand Reference Gold, and would supplement them with the subwoofer towers from the Grand Reference.
Carl had suggested this configuration to go with the Baby Grands, giving me reason to hope he would be willing to do the same with the next model up the range.
The CGRG appealed more as the basis for a four tower system as the two main speakers have greater bass capability than the two main towers in the Grands, which should make room and subwoofer integration more straightforward

Very interesting...thank you.
 

dcathro

Well-Known Member
Sep 16, 2016
571
718
228
Melbourne, Australia
I'm not sure who you were negotiating with but I am assuming those were mine?? Mine are up for sale on Audiogon although I am not the one selling them direct although they are still in my house in perfect condition.

Reason for my sale? I am going to be retiring very soon, moving to a condo with limited space and nowhere for these speakers to go. I am in need of "downscaling" in terms of space. My current room is large and whether I use the CGR in near-field or elsewhere, they are terrific. I love to call them the best full range monitor speakers there are as they do what monitors do better are as cohesive and yet scale to any type of music genre, large or small.

I can tell you they are the most engaging speakers I have ever owned or listened to. I am very familiar with Nola line as I owned the MicroGrands, then the Baby Grands, Baby Grand Golds and now the Concert Grand Golds. As good as the BG were, the Concert Grands actually blew them away as well as all other speakers I have ever heard or owned. I have had people to my house, speaker designers included, who despite their personal biases felt my system was one of the best they every heard.

Feel free to PM me and I can give you more info if you are interested. I am not trying to give you a sales pitch as if I wind up keeping them until my full retirement "I will just have to SUFFER".

Also, while they are very easy to drive and Carl recommends tubes and at the time recommended the REF75(SE), I can tell you the better the source/amp, the better they are. I upgraded from the REF75 to the GS150 and it was awesome. I never expected Solid State to sound so good, but I gave many of the new ones a try on the CGR and I am now using the CH Precison M1 and it is an amazing combination and I am enjoying it even more than my tubes.

Howie

Hey Howie,

Your CGRGs on Audiogon look glorious!

I would really encourage you to keep them. How small is the place you are moving to?

Best Regards

David
 

Priaptor

Member Sponsor
Jan 28, 2012
929
19
0
FL
Hey Howie,

Your CGRGs on Audiogon look glorious!

I would really encourage you to keep them. How small is the place you are moving to?

Best Regards

David

Hi David,

I wish. My retirement plans have become somewhat moved up and are in the range of the next 6-9 months as a result of our first grandchildren and my wife is busting my chops about being closer to them. They are in NY and there is NO way I am ever going back there; left in 87 and never going back except to visit.

In any case, I am not entirely sure of the size of what my listening room will be BUT we are looking in the Tampa and Amelia Island areas for a small 2 bedroom condo with a "view". Everything on our radar is relatively small and definitely no place for the marvelous CGR Golds. I have learned my lesson with my home in Montana where I have a system in the family room that I am NEVER allowed to listen to so that will be going up for sale as well this summer. Wherever we wind up, my wife understands there has to be a room/office that allows for a system. That is a must. It will be on a smaller scale, at least speaker wise. My current listening room is large and works absolutely wonderfully with the CGR.

Best
Howie
 

dcathro

Well-Known Member
Sep 16, 2016
571
718
228
Melbourne, Australia
Hi David,

I wish. My retirement plans have become somewhat moved up and are in the range of the next 6-9 months as a result of our first grandchildren and my wife is busting my chops about being closer to them. They are in NY and there is NO way I am ever going back there; left in 87 and never going back except to visit.

In any case, I am not entirely sure of the size of what my listening room will be BUT we are looking in the Tampa and Amelia Island areas for a small 2 bedroom condo with a "view". Everything on our radar is relatively small and definitely no place for the marvelous CGR Golds. I have learned my lesson with my home in Montana where I have a system in the family room that I am NEVER allowed to listen to so that will be going up for sale as well this summer. Wherever we wind up, my wife understands there has to be a room/office that allows for a system. That is a must. It will be on a smaller scale, at least speaker wise. My current listening room is large and works absolutely wonderfully with the CGR.

Best
Howie

Hi Howie,

I understand. There are other priorities in life other than audio. I hope you can find a nice place with a good room, and the right speaker to replace them.

Cheers

David
 

cat6man

Well-Known Member
Feb 6, 2013
891
995
1,155
west of NYC, east of SF
I hope some Nola folks are still around this thread.
I have Metro Grand speakers and absolutely love them driven by Ayon monoblocks in triode mode.
They have to sit relatively close to the wall, on either side of a fireplace and inside a pair of windows, shooting the short way
across a rectangular room which is completely open at the left (into the rest of the house) and open just behind and to the right of listener's right elbow (into the main hallway and dining room across the hall).
They image wonderfully and present music, delicate, detailed, real. At the dealer's before purchase, I actually had them demoed back towards the rear wall (the owner came into the room and asked why we didn't have the speakers further out into the room!).

So, on to my question:
I'd like to try the Bybee iQSE on my speakers. They would be placed on the back of the woofer and midrange speaker magnets.
The midranges are obviously easy to access, but the woofers would entail unscrewing the speakers, placing an iQSE on the back of each speaker magnet, then re-attaching the speaker screws.

Has anyone had experience unscrewing a Nola woofer? Any gotchas to look out for?
 

infinitely baffled

VIP/Donor
Jul 2, 2015
1,259
387
340
Scotland
I hope some Nola folks are still around this thread.
I have Metro Grand speakers and absolutely love them driven by Ayon monoblocks in triode mode.
They have to sit relatively close to the wall, on either side of a fireplace and inside a pair of windows, shooting the short way
across a rectangular room which is completely open at the left (into the rest of the house) and open just behind and to the right of listener's right elbow (into the main hallway and dining room across the hall).
They image wonderfully and present music, delicate, detailed, real. At the dealer's before purchase, I actually had them demoed back towards the rear wall (the owner came into the room and asked why we didn't have the speakers further out into the room!).

So, on to my question:
I'd like to try the Bybee iQSE on my speakers. They would be placed on the back of the woofer and midrange speaker magnets.
The midranges are obviously easy to access, but the woofers would entail unscrewing the speakers, placing an iQSE on the back of each speaker magnet, then re-attaching the speaker screws.

Has anyone had experience unscrewing a Nola woofer? Any gotchas to look out for?
If memory serves, there is foam gasket that may come apart as you disassemble the woofer from the cabinet
 

cat6man

Well-Known Member
Feb 6, 2013
891
995
1,155
west of NYC, east of SF
i had a talk with Carl a few days ago and learned that he recommends and offers a "triple isolation platform" option, where an additional shelf with similar ball bearings is added to the original speakers' platforms (no mods needed).

per Carl,
The 3rd platform adds a significant increase in transparency, dynamics, bass tunefullness, and treble purity with a more "open sound stage" and a sound closer to that of "live music" These work in conjunction with your platforms so no other modifications are required.

as a big fan of Nola speakers, a check is in the mail.
 

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