Incredible shrinking CAS got smaller down to five systems. However, I kinna like it, like an intense parlor experience with a couple of systems instead of manic shooting about trying to hear too much. If they had this five system roundup every weekend with rotating systems for 20 bucks, I would be happy to go often.
There were three excellent systems, a good mini speaker system, and Audio Note. I’m not saying Audio Note isn’t everything that the fans say it is, but for some reason, I will have to be re-wired in reincarnation I guess.
Caveats: I am a planar guy, not a ‘horn guy’ or an ‘edifice box point source guy’. I just like dipole and planar types for their room filling sound and the back wave bedding and am probably too old to change. Being an original Apogee Stage owner from the olden days, I of course am interested in Clarysis and know Florian from the Apogee board days when he was painstakingly refurbishing various high end Apogees.
I guess from Ron’s report the pair on demo were just a few multi tens of hours into their service life, and I think they improved even from morning to afternoon.
Two comments: Florian needs to engineer some stands, maybe with wheels and maybe gimbals that would allow them to be tilted up and down and in and out. The stands should allow seating level with the ears at the upper third of the midrange ribbons in order to get the best upper midrange ‘sparkle’. Of course with my officious audio nonsense interference kvetching, I would also have placed them a bit closer together from position, which I think might have intensified the upper midrange experience.
I guess the main bloc of the room was about 20 by 30 feet-ish, probably a space that would seem to swallow up the modest ribbons with insufficiency. No such luck. I think that in any standard audio room of 15 by 20 feet or smaller, these would be an audio happy meal without reservations short of keeping the neighbors awake with Inna Godda Vida. Even in the loudest passages as I would be able to stand, the midrange ribbons only moved a bit, testifying to robust construction and output (certainly much more so than my Stages or even the midrange ribbons in the Analysis Epsilon).
Imaging varied from room position. However at about the back middle, these Picolos were uncanny in imaging IMAX almost to the extent of the huge Soundlabs in the first floor suite downstairs. At times, I was also wondering where Ron hid the subwoofers, really surprising bass performance.
The cherry on the cake to me was that gorgeous 80 to 300 or so range where the older Apogees were a visceral delight. There it was again. I guess I would call that alpha wave heartbeat sound. It may seem a little down tilted at first, but when the alpha waves cog in, to me it is delightful.
Audiophiles can rip and tear about value vs. cost propositions, and it also depends on the stretchiness of your wallet. However, these are manufactured in Vietnam to Swiss/German specifications by an experienced ribbon guy to high refinement, appear incredibly solid in build, and for their sound quality the value proposition is there in spades. I also like the design and appearance, but I suppose a WAF panel might be indicated to correct me.
I suppose as Ron seemed to indicate, these were designed for simplicity and quality. I think they are even better than that. Good work. Ron seemed to be busy with his emcee work, and it was nice meeting in person.
