Watkins Generation 4 Speakers

In the years since its introduction, some, while acknowledging its matchless specs in terms of low noise and distortion combined with remarkable power output given its small and light form factor, have criticized the Benchmark AHB2's sonics by saying it is lacking in macro dynamic swings. I hear this, but I hear it differently and hear it as a plus for the Benchmark. The Benchmarks lack the overblown-sounding midbass of some other amps which can provide a sense of greater dynamic power. It also lacks the ultimate degree of "splash" on large transients which some interpret as a dynamic limitation. I think this "splash" is actually caused by a blast of slightly distorted sound in the higher frequencies. The Benchmark is ever precise, controlled, and clean, clean, clean, which amounts to "beautiful" sound in my book. Likewise, the Benchmark midbass is fully ample and certainly not lean in any way, just more controlled and defined/less distorted. This "uncovers" the Benchmark's lower bass, revealing more detail, definition, and power in the bottom two octaves.
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Click to expand...

One very useful tweak of the Benchmark AHB2 Amp sound, which I think can ameliorate any objections to its sonic presentation is the use of AV Room Service Electronic Vibration Protectors ('EVPs) in place of the amp's stock feet. Why this simple change has a more profound effect on the Benchmark's sonics in my system than on other electronics, I do not know, but there it is. I suggest trying this if you have any reservations about the sound of the Benchmark amp (in my case, a pair of them, run in bridged mono mode).

Remove the two stock rear feet using a #2 Phillips or Pozidriv screwdriver. Replace them with 2-inch square HD (High Density) EVPs. Place them in the rear corners just inboard of the black casing--at the rear corners of and on the silvery bottom plate, in other words. Then center a third 2-inch square HD EVP along the front edge of the silvery bottom plate, just inboard of the front panel. There is no need to remove the two front stock feet of the amp.

That's it. Now see what you think of the sound. Many aspects of the sonic presentation seem yet better in my system, including dynamic headroom and dynamic swings. This is despite the fact that I was already using separate Bright Star Audio Little Rock isolating platforms beneath each amp.

The amps actually seem to be yet more unlimited in their power reserves with this tweak. Using the amps without this tweak with the Watkins Generation 4 speakers (as opposed to the Graham LS8/1s) I was occasionally aware of a bit of high-frequency transient crunch at high SPLs. When I heard this, I would just turn down the volume a notch and this problem would vanish. At first I thought this was just due to dynamic limitations of these rather-small Watkins speakers. But with this tweak, this problem vanished and the speakers play as loud as I want on any material without any apparent "crunch." The apparent frequency response with the Watkins speakers further smooths out when supported by EVPs, the stage expands in all directions, images are yet more focused, the bass further extends and warms a bit.

Unfortunately, this tweak is not as inexpensive as it used to be. When I purchased my EVPs, they were only $40 each. Now they are $119 each. Still, for owners of one or two of these amps, I regard using the EVPs as capable of producing a significant sonic improvement.

Following up on my above finding, I experimented with the number and placement of EVPs under my other audio electronics. It turns out that in my current Watkins-based system (as opposed to my original findings in my prior thread dealing with EVPs) the tripod arrangement of these very helpful devices works sonically best under most of my other electronics as well. Before, I usually was placing four of them in a rectangle under the component, usually under the chassis corners, but so as to avoid any non-removable stock feet of the component, placing the EVPs directly against the chassis.

The placement directly against the bottom of the chassis still seems sonically best, but my sonically preferred arrangement is now two at the back edge of the component as near the back corners as I can get them and still avoid non-removable stock feet (I remove stock feet when easily possible). The back of components is usually the heavier end, or at least it exerts more torque on the EVPs since all the wires connect there. I center the third EVP along the front edge of the component chassis.

This change necessitated using different versions of the EVPs than before in some cases, given the weight of each component, the reduced number of EVPs, and the rated load range for each EVP. See the EVP Selection Chart on this page. Where the load rating of the EVPs would allow more than one version, I am now tending the use the higher-load-rated version. These are easier to move into place under the component chassis and have less vulnerable "bellows" so that such movement does not tend to damage the bellows. I prefer the EVPs with rubber tops and bottoms to the felt versions. While the felt version is very easy to more around underneath components on rack shelves, this ease makes it more difficult to position each EVP exactly where I want it and allows the position of the component on the shelf to unintentionally shift with even slight lateral force. Things stay where I want them with the rubber EVPs.

The only electronic component now not supported by a triad of EVPs is my small and very light TrendNet ethernet switch. It is so light that even with the low density (LD) EVPs, the supported weight is only within the rated load range if a single EVP is used. Thus, for that component, I use only a single Low Density EVP carefully placed beneath the small chassis of the switch so that the bellows are equally compressed left to right and front to back.

Sonically, there is subtle further "cleaning up" of the sound--even less "edge" and perceived distortion--plus firming up and clarifying of bass lines, more resolute imaging, and further three-dimensionality added to images and the soundstaging so that the sense of envelopment in the acoustics captured by the recording or added through processing is enhanced.

The Watkins Generation 4 speakers continue to amaze me by the combination of positive attributes they bring to the table at such a modest price. Their transparency allows subtle tweaks like this to be quickly evaluated as "better," "worse," or "just different." Yet that transparency does not manifest itself as egregious high frequency excess or edge. The sound is hugely engaging without any such tweaks, but just gets better yet when the system is further dialed in through such tweaks.

One page of the Watkins website is quite frustrating for some and I think it turns some people off since they think the product can't possibly be any good if the website is so terrible they can't read it. It has come to that in our world, I'm afraid.

While most of the pages of the Watkins website are perfectly readible, the one with customer comments about the Generation 4 speakers, which I think is very important to potential buyers to read, seems difficult for many to view. I have not been able to read it on my iPhone or iPad. It is viewable and readable on my Mac computer, however, IF I operate in full-page mode. Below I have captured these comments in full and pasted them in.

I started to highlight particular comments--ones I find to particularly match my own experience with the Generation 4 speakers and my own insights as to their performance. But then I realized that I was highlighting most everything. The more I continue to use the Watkins, the more each of these comments seems "right on!" to me. Take them seriously, please! There is no hyperbole here!

TESTIMONIALS FROM OUR CUSTOMERS:​

"Best thing to come out of Tennessee since Jack Daniels. Great sound, and look good too."
"D.M.

"I've had about twelve pairs of speakers in the last sixteen months...I'll be keeping these for years to come."
Thomas P.

"Thank you so much for these wonderful speakers, sound and finish far exceeded my auditory and visual expectations!"
Tom B.

"These sound so clear and three dimensional. An added bonus, my wife likes them. I am pleased with their sound."
Bill K.

"This is my second pair of Gen Fours. Loved the first pair so much that I bought a second pair for
my office. Best speakers I have ever owned!"
Ron W.

"Great sound quality."
Frank W.

"Great speakers, I love them."
David C.

"Clear, excellent separation, excellent detail, good bass."
Ken B.

"Easy to drive, very dynamic, sounds real from me!"
Harbert R.

"Quite noticeable improvement over the Wharfdale and that’s with only ten hours’ time in break-in period."
Carlton P.

"An enjoyable buying experience from start to finish, also the speakers are great and fit my application perfect."
Terry M.

"Beautiful speakers, I've had WSC10,1A,&1B, you guys are genius. Thanks!"
Dennis G.

"They balance out the room, Thank you! "
Desmond K.

"The best speakers that I have ever listened to. There are not enough words to describe how good the speakers are."
Scott B.

"I love my Watkins speakers. The range is incredible. The true test of a speaker is the sound experience it creates in your living room. They have provided the only listening experience I've ever heard where I forget they were there."
Tony H.

"A joy to listen to for all my musical tastes, I'm proud to own them!"
Wm. P.

"I am very pleased with these speakers. This includes the sound and the very high quality black finish.
They are absolutely fantastic. Paired w/ Rel9."
Ronan G.
David G.

"My Generation Four speakers are everything and more than I thought could be delivered from a speaker. The den where I play them is 320 sq. ft. and they are able to deliver with awesome power. These speakers deliver "classic" stereo sound whether it is vinyl, CD, or audio files, better that any speaker I have ever heard."
Don D.

"In the early 1950s my parents bought me a little square phono box to play 45s. In the late 50s they bought me a Westinghouse portable stereo, which I loved. I kept the Westinghouse through high school, college, and early marriage. Around 1969, I was introduced to hi-fi by Bill Watkins Sr. That changed everything. On a limited budget, I purchased a Fisher compact stereo unit, with two-way Fisher speakers. I was in heaven. At night, I would lay on the floor, only about three feet from the speakers, volume low. The only light being from the glow of the receiver. I would listen to my favorite LPS and FM. It was quiet, soothing, joyful, intimate. Around 1980, I decided it was time to upgrade. I bought components from Yamaha, Dual and Advent. I really liked the Advents, and kept them for many years, however, I never quite got the feeling that I got from the Fisher. There was a large improvement from my portable Westinghouse to the Fisher. I guess I was looking for that jump and Improvement. Over the years I have tried many speakers looking for the wow factor. I have tried vintage large Advents, JBLs, Pioneer, RS, KLH, EPI, Epicure. And others. I have listened to a number of today's speakers ranging in price from $300 to $2,000. They were good, some very good, but I could not hear that jump in improvement. Then came the Watkins Generation Four speaker. A speaker Bill Watkins as I was told has been designing and working on for 20 to 30 years. I saw Mr. Watkins one day at his store and I asked if he had another speaker in his future. He answered "this is the best I can do until somebody figures out how to push more air within a box". I gathered some LPS and CDs and went to listen to the Generation Four. I went into their spacious listing room to experience the music. They sounded great, they were extremely good, as good as or better than any I had heard. Yet, after I left, I just was not sure. I wanted to be sure. Weeks past, I would go by and listen. I read the specs, I read the reviews. I decided to take a pair of home to try out. That was a good decision. You never really know until you take them home. My listing area small. I was concerned about placement. In my experience these speakers sound good anywhere. They fill the room with music. You can sit on top of them or 15 feet back, you can sit front and center or 5 to 6 ft. to the left or right and still enjoy the dynamics, staging, and imagery. I placed the speaker's about 5 to 6 feet apart. I started listening about 10 feet away, and continue to move forward until I was about 5 feet away and there it was, The Sweet Spot. It was the jump I was looking for. It was like being at a small venue, close to the Musicians soaking up every note, hearing every detail. Warm, cozy, intimate, an immersing experience. Each instrument has its own lane to express its musical performance. Your eyes follow. The base is tight, clean, round and solid. You would not believe the speakers are ported. The highs are Crisp, decisive. You can hear the drum brush move across the skin. You can hear the air escape from Miles Davis's trumpet, the pedals from the Dukes piano, bass strings hitting the bridge. The vocals, you hear the different shading and nuances. The generation for timing and rhythm is spot-on. The speaker's dance and sing it. Bill Watkins loved specs and measurements. Most of all he loved music. He loved listening to music. His passion was to design and craft speakers that produced music pleasing to the ear, and as close to the original recording as possible. He did well. Bill Watkins always chose musicality over specs. "No one listens to specs". The Generation Four speakers can be described in one word WOW."
John H.

"Terrific!"
C.D.

"Fantastic!"
R.W.

"Sounds better than any speaker I have ever heard."
B.T.

"Excellent bass response, fantastic yet pleasant sound, great looks, excellent quality overall in a day and age when it is the exception rather than the expected thing."
W.D.

"I am well pleased. These are the most accurate speakers that I have ever heard."
B.H.

"Great natural sound - lends dimension to music that is terrific."
D.M.

"What you put in comes out! The next best thing to being there. Have no desire to hear any other speakers, because I have the best."
E.M.

"An amazing speaker. It really does a great job of reproducing the full band sound. We use them for teaching."
SHHS

"Lay back and let Watkins take control."
J.W.

"The speakers have great bass response. They are perfect all around speakers."
D.L.

"Clarity and realism unheard of in a speaker in this price range. Next best thing to a live performance."
K.C.

"Unbelievable! The most perfect sound I have ever heard."
A.E.

"Best speaker on the market for the price."
D.B.

"Wow."
P.M.

"Love 'em!"
E.H.

"We have really enjoyed the fine quality of sound these speakers have given us!"
J.L.

"Incredibly easy to listen to. Seem to improve with age. Wonderful reproduction of orchestral material."
A.M.

"Nice balance of dynamics, accuracy, detail, transparency."
M.W.

"Glorius! I think they are speakers musical enough to last a lifetime. A wonderfully pleasing and accurate speaker."
P.S.

"Combines the best qualities of considered speakers into one magnificent musical experience."
P.N.

"Most musical and non-fatiguing speakers I've ever heard - Do everything right."
G.C.

"Superb top to bottom sound, very accurate esp. w/voice, violin, & chorus. I am very satisfied - Good Job!"
B.D.

"Relaxed, smooth, big sound stage, clean and a PLEASURE to listen to. I am more than happy to release control of my living room to your wonderful speakers."
G.P.

"The more I listen, the more I like them. Very smooth. Old records that I haven't listened to in years sound good again."
"Great engineering accomplishment."
D.S.

"Best speakers that I have ever heard."
V.S.

"Just wonderful."
J.H.

"During my many years as a music professor I constantly searched for a pair of speakers that would satisfy me. I am now delighted."
M.T.

"Wow! Best speaker I have heard. Reveals differences in other equipment better than any other speaker."
J.M.

"Very smooth and coherent throughout. A joy to listen to."
G.B.

"Wow! They sound "real". Have depth and feel of actual performance. Listenable."
J.T.

"They perform extremely well in a difficult room. I like the large stage presentation. Clarity is outstanding."
W.T.

"Absolutely superb! Sound as fast as electrostats, except with all the harmonics intact. Excellent imaging and ambience reproduction. Highs are perfect."
S.M.

I freely admit that I change components rather frequently, especially speakers. But I usually only change components or tweak things further when I think I hear something wrong, however subtle or slight. Right now, I don't hear anything wrong, but instead get great excitement and hear wonderful sonic and musical beauty from my system. So, for the moment, I'm as content with the sound as any audiophile can be.

There were two major recent upgrades which, to my mind and ears, crossed over some threshold and allowed me to stop hearing things at least very subtly "wrong." One was the incorporation of the L2 with the Lumin-recommended fiber optical networking of it and the Lumin X1.

The other was finding two speaker systems, the Graham Audio LS8/1 and the Watkins Generation 4, both of which provide not only a clearer window on what's upstream, but also eliminate so many distortions and resonances present at least to some minor extent with all previous speakers I've owned. The Graham goes deeper and may be more satisfyingly weighty for large-scale classical music, so I may go back to it at some point, but the Watkins is, at least for now, the most bewitchingly beautiful and exciting.

A third important factor was discovering that with my current system configuration, the EVPs I'm uses for vibration isolation sonically seem to work best in a tripod arrangement, rather than in groups of four.

Getting better system sound from here will be more difficult since I will not be trying to eliminate audible problems but actually to improve further on what already sounds truly excellent to me. Distinguishing better from just different is more challenging than eliminating sonic annoyances.

I only wish that it had not taken so many years and such expense to get here. While my current system costs under $50,000 total (including both sets of speakers), over the course of my audiophile career (about 1966 to the present) I recently calculated that I have spent at least $700,000 on audio equipment, recouping only a small fraction of that amount in sales.

My current system configuration is here.

I do remember reading your comments about owning the WE-1As and auditioning the Gen 4s on the Audiogon discussion forum. Sorry for your frustration. I was not aware that there is apparently another production delay due to new supply chain issues.

For those who may be curious about the "4 checkmark" or "Series 2" business about the WE-1A's, see the November 1986 follow-up to J. Gordon Holt's Stereophile review of the older/larger Watkins speakers at this link.

Also, from your world map comments, it sounds like Watkins at least used to export the speakers to countries beyond the USA. Is that still the case with the Gen 4s? I could ask Bill Jr., I suppose, but since you are going to talk with him soon, please ask and report back. Thanks.

Another comment about the Watkins Generation 4's tonal accuracy:

The Watkins are matchless in my experience for distinguishing the tonal balance differences between various streaming versions of recordings. For example, it is so easy to hear how the equalization or other processing applied to recordings by various internet radio stations affects the tonal balance compared with the "standard" FLAC issues from Tidal and Qobuz. While some of these readily apparent differences could stem from the down resolution of the original Redbook or better versions done by most internet radio stations, this is easily heard even on stations which stream FLAC at full Redbook or better resolution. Usually, as you might guess, the tonal changes make the recordings sound brighter, more trebly, and with less bass heft.

Such differences among streaming sources are not confined to apparent tonal balance. Radio stations typically further compress dynamic range, even though dynamic range compression is already overdone in many original versions these days, especially outside the realm of classical and other acoustic music.

This sort of comparison is most easily done when listening via Roon. Roon often links directly from the radio station playback to the Tidal or Qobuz version so the comparison can often be made with only a few seconds gap.

The Watkins speakers are also champions for hearing the differences between Tidal and Qobuz versions, even those versions which are streaming at the same bit rate and bit depth. This is now an easier apples-to-apples comparison since Tidal has dropped most MQA versions and instead provide straight PCM versions at Redbook or higher resolutions as does Qobuz. While the differences are quite a bit more subtle that comparing the radio versions with the "standard" Tidal and Qobuz versions, the differences are there and are heard more easily via these Watkins speakers than any others in my experience.

As always, the Watkins speakers merely report these differences without adding annoying brightness, edge, cloudiness, or other aberrations of their own. The program differences shine through but the programs are most usually eminently listenable on their own merits. The Watkins Gen 4 are always a joy to listen to. But to paraphrase George Orwell's Animal Farm, all streaming versions are equal, but some are more equal than others.