Can one find realism in box speakers that cost less than $150K after experiencing dynamics of horns and horn-type speakers?

Audiophile Bill

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You can feel when multiple drivers on a box speaker "load" a room when a cartridge starts on the lead in grooves. A horn system will never be able to do this. Their diaphragms are much smaller. Yes, horns can get louder and more dynamic... but they can't move the air and get your pant legs to flapping!! Just ask MikeL

Think it is time you went to a nightclub with a Funktion one and stand 5M from a bass bin - your entire chest cavity will resonate!!!
 
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Audiophile Bill

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Would you kindly name some current production horns that yield the tone you enjoy?

Pnoe horn with BD4 or BD5 is a good example for tone. I have heard the Cessaros sounding decent tonally. The Voxativ Ampeggio is okay tonally too particularly on brass.
 
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Audiophile Bill

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I work a few times a year as FOmonitor mix engineer for a live event, so I'm well aware of 15, 18 or even larger horns at a live event. They do not move the air that a dynamic driver will.

I have no idea on earth why you would think this but anyway ymmv. The only times bass have ever been truly crushing ime is via various bass bins vibrating my entire body and loading the nightclub beyond belief.

I have dual JL Audio subs as well..... that's the air you are feeling.
 

bonzo75

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Tonality may be my strongest characteristic for any speaker, with coherence and dynamic facility coming along. And whatever is the form factor, full range orchestral/symphonic is the gauge for me.

We don't have the array of native horn offerings in the US - at least to my knowledge - that is available elsewhere. And with that seems to come less information than is available for the likes of Wilson, YG, etc. Thus, less exposure. So I ask those more knowledgeable.

I can get a nice pair of box speakers here for under $100k. But a pair of horns that tick the boxes, sound natural and have the level of support I get from Wilson - I don't know what that would be. Maybe Oswald Mills? I'd like to know. Caeser's post poses a challenging question.

Pnoe (bd4 or 5) mainly with Mayer 46.
OMA monarch is excellent and can improve with amps
There are DIY bespoke ones but tough in the US unless you find somebody local and knowledgeable
To get Cessaro to sound proper costs much more than 100k for the speaker alone.
Horns universum is next level cheaper than those
the Odeon 130k horn sounded very good in Munich
As did tune audio. Very natural timbre but less transparent to recordings as compared to the others above
If you want serious bass additionally you really need those big front loaded designs with two 18 inch woofers in each speaker, open baffle and high sensitivity
 

manisandher

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Would you kindly name some current production horns that yield the tone you enjoy?

I find the tone from the Anima's solid/thick, round, pure wood mid-range horn truly wonderful - far superior to any of the plastic horns I've owned or heard before. For me, this is the Anima's main USP (its passive bass horn second), for what I think is a pretty reasonable price, considering the price of other horns on the market. A 'bargain' would be over-stating it, but certainly good value for money... to my eyes (ears!).

Mani.
 

the sound of Tao

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No urges to add Krions to your Animas Mani?
 

bonzo75

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I find the tone from the Anima's solid/thick, round, pure wood mid-range horn truly wonderful - far superior to any of the plastic horns I've owned or heard before. For me, this is the Anima's main USP (its passive bass horn second), for what I think is a pretty reasonable price, considering the price of other horns on the market. A 'bargain' would be over-stating it, but certainly good value for money... to my eyes (ears!).

Mani.

I agree with this, same point I mentioned above about the natural timbre. think this happens due to the wood. That day Ron asked me what I thought of the tune audio avaton vs Cessaro, and I replied that tune audio more natural timbral magic, and Cessaro more linear and transparent
 

manisandher

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No urges to add Krions to your Animas Mani?

I've measured the in-room response and get good output down to about 40Hz, below which it falls off rapidly. I'd prefer to have the nicely integrated sound I currently have than to mess around with any subs (including TA's own) in search of that bottom octave.

Mani.
 

manisandher

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I agree with this, same point I mentioned above about the natural timbre. think this happens due to the wood. That day Ron asked me what I thought of the tune audio avaton vs Cessaro, and I replied that tune audio more natural timbral magic, and Cessaro more linear and transparent

I think the Avatons are 7-8 times the price of the Animas. They were my favourite sound at Munich a couple of years ago, and yet I still prefer the sound of my Animas. I had a quick chat with Manolis when I was there. I won't disclose what he said, but I suspect that the Animas remain his real pride and joy.

Mani.
 

bonzo75

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I think the Avatons are 7-8 times the price of the Animas. They were my favourite sound at Munich a couple of years ago, and yet I still prefer the sound of my Animas. I had a quick chat with Manolis when I was there. I won't disclose what he said, but I suspect that the Animas remain his real pride and joy.

Mani.

I did like the Anima more myself. The Avaton were 120k I think so four times?

The big 130k Odeon had similar natural timbre

That is why yamamura rock, but there is just that Pietro's pair. They do the same thing much better, are single driver super coherent, and the lowest noise horn system driven by the yamamura SS electronics. Best tone of all.
 

spiritofmusic

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Mani, please tell me what I missed in the Animas. Constant recommendation from Ked got me to take the day out and 300 mile round journey, to hear them at UK dealer.

He had Bob Marley and AC/DC lined up rather than D Krall and any other smooth jazz horn staples.

Hopes were high. Soon dashed as I picked up mainly on the treble output (not suprising to me when I saw the mids horn crossed to tweeter at 1.5kHz), grey-sounding mids, and bass that had no real weight. All this on SS amps.

I will admit their impact on brass exemplary, but the only box ticked for me.

Two years later heard them in Munich on the big Traformatic SETs. Mids tone much impvd, but again going from female vocal to AC/DC was a rude shock, again what I'd describe as an opaque sound w poor timing.

Two occasions now, mainline dealer who is minded to get them right, and a show w spectacular amps and careful setup. They're not speaking to me in any meaningful way.
 

bonzo75

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Mani, please tell me what I missed in the Animas. Constant recommendation from Ked got me to take the day out and 300 mile round journey, to hear them at UK dealer.

He had Bob Marley and AC/DC lined up rather than D Krall and any other smooth jazz horn staples.

Hopes were high. Soon dashed as I picked up mainly on the treble output (not suprising to me when I saw the mids horn crossed to tweeter at 1.5kHz), grey-sounding mids, and bass that had no real weight. All this on SS amps.

I will admit their impact on brass exemplary, but the only box ticked for me.

Two years later heard them in Munich on the big Traformatic SETs. Mids tone much impvd, but again going from female vocal to AC/DC was a rude shock, again what I'd describe as an opaque sound w poor timing.

Two occasions now, mainline dealer who is minded to get them right, and a show w spectacular amps and careful setup. They're not speaking to me in any meaningful way.

That's fine. Each horn is different. So find the one that speaks to you.
 

manisandher

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The Avaton were 120k I think so four times?

On my first visit to the TuneAudio room, their 82" high, Avaton hornspeaker (220,000 Euros/pair) made a solo piano appear full-sized (or larger) and full-density between its towering, 82" deep rectangular horns. I was listening with David Chesky, to a recording made by David Chesky, of a piano played by David Chesky; and we were both looking at each other, shaking our heads. When it was over, we both agreed, this was closest any loudspeaker ever got to reproducing the density and presence of a real piano. I left the room in tears from the experience.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/more-munich-herb-reichert
 

manisandher

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Mani, please tell me what I missed in the Animas. Constant recommendation from Ked got me to take the day out and 300 mile round journey, to hear them at UK dealer.

He had Bob Marley and AC/DC lined up rather than D Krall and any other smooth jazz horn staples.

Hopes were high. Soon dashed as I picked up mainly on the treble output (not suprising to me when I saw the mids horn crossed to tweeter at 1.5kHz), grey-sounding mids, and bass that had no real weight. All this on SS amps.

I will admit their impact on brass exemplary, but the only box ticked for me.

Two years later heard them in Munich on the big Traformatic SETs. Mids tone much impvd, but again going from female vocal to AC/DC was a rude shock, again what I'd describe as an opaque sound w poor timing.

Two occasions now, mainline dealer who is minded to get them right, and a show w spectacular amps and careful setup. They're not speaking to me in any meaningful way.

I wasn't enamored either when I heard them at the dealer's. But I suspected that I wasn't hearing them at anywhere near their full potential. As I said, I'm getting a sound from them that I find very satisfying.

You're welcome to come over and take a listen, to either put that nail finally in the coffin... or be pleasantly surprised. But it'll have to be with my PC-based digital front-end, I'm afraid.

Mani.
 

spiritofmusic

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Mani, I've heard Apogees sound very fine on a PC streaming-based front end, so no barrier for me. I find it frustrating that the UK dealer wouldn't have them singing, but maybe others who heard it there loved them on Modwright SS.
 

bonzo75

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the sound of Tao

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Marc I had them at home with 300B monos and pre and a Aqua Formula with Diva transport... and I would no more choose a Modwright to put on them over DHT than fly in the air. Also had the Wilson Benesch Torus sub which did add an appropriate weight to a concert grand. Torn between purely simple and coherent and sub as always. Those however were lovely glory days for sure. Animas are speakers to live with for sure.
 
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manisandher

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I'll admit that it was a leap of faith for me Marc, as all my previous speakers have been. But I just looked at their design and felt that they should be able to perform at a very high level (apart from the lack of the bottom octave).

My only real concern/criticism is that I think the 109dB/W spec is very optimistic if you're after a balanced sound. I have no doubt that the mid and high horns are capable of this, but am pretty certain that the passive bass horn is quite a bit down. I'd say in the region of 100-103dB/W, based on my in-room measurements.

Mani.
 

bonzo75

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Marc I had them here at home with 300B monos and pre and a Aqua Formula with Diva transport... and I would no more choose a Modwright to put on them over DHT than fly in the air. .

If you want to fly in the air you just need to buy 400k TTs and 150k cones. That gives you temporary license to fly in the air till some new flavor comes up and you crash. Truth is like kryptonite
 
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spiritofmusic

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Graham, what can I tell you. One can only go by a dealer recc.

SS can work on horns. Bakoon 15W/ch produced magic on Liszts, way better than Tron 211s. Mola Mola SS v poor on them.
 

spiritofmusic

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Mani, 100-103dB would be fine here. My Nats truly energise the room on my 101dB Zus.

For me, the issues were spotlighting of treble horn on the dealer's SS, and lack of timing/congestion on Munich Traformatics.
 

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