"Oprah" dumps Magico for Estelon. Thank GOD! Thougts on the Estelon?

[caesar]

I heard this speaker at RMAF. Funnily enough, I was in the room when Valin auditioned it too.
It's a good speaker, very good actually. And looks nice too, the blue colour on the units at RMAF was simply gorgeous, and the finish is impeccable. But it's not better than Magico's Q3, let alone the bigger ones. It might be up there with a S5 maybe...
I think that a reviewer should keep his references reasonably stable, but he (JV) chose not to, simply because he also chose not to pay for his gear. So basically his references are what's available from his sponsors. Other reviewrs, like the much lambasted Fremer, pays for his stuff, and keeps them for a while longer, even if it's only due to limitations imposed by his accomodation pricing...


alexandre

I know looks are subjective, but I think the Estelon may be the looking speaker out there now. I also like the looks Focals and Giyas, but I know I'm in the minority on that one.

As for keeping references a while, I agree. Just 2 years ago, Valin's review of the Q5 was as much about Valin as it was the Magico speaker. And now that Valin is onto Raid-ho, I wonder if Estelon is even in his stable.

 

[caesar]

Faint praise. This is what good stereo is supposed to do. If the image doesn't expand and contract with much subtler demands of the recording than stereo vs mono, if the speakers don't disappear within that image, something is very wrong with the speakers or the set-up. MHO. YMMV.

Tim

Phelonious, I have not heard the Estelon yet, but if you listen to the MBL, it really does carve out that acoustic space where the recording was made and put you right there. It's undeniably different than "just any stereo". It's water-boarding proof.

 

[caesar]

You are celebrating way, way too early my friend. TAS is not dropping their championing of Magico. Valin is just passing the torch to Robert Harley,
who's review of the Q7 will appear soon. He crowns it the best speaker he has ever heard, bar none.

Secondly, I heard the S5's myself at Newport and was pretty impressed, and I believe Jeff was too. There are alternative ways to reviewing or recommending a speaker
than saying it was the "best". A speaker may be very impressive on many fronts, but it may not be the speaker for you, however, that does not warrant a negative review either,
since it clearly will appeal to listeners who appreciate the specific set of virtues it brings to the table.

I actually predicted it Harley's championing of Magico months ago- I said they will rename the magazine to the "Magico Standard". I have absolutely no issues with Harley's taste. We all have tastes. The problem with Harley is he is just an awful writer. His proclamation makes Magico fans ecstatic (confirmation bias) and serves as a marketing slogan. But it doesn't add much value to the audio community. And the real shame is that he has experienced so much gear but just won't share his knowledge in a meaningful and effective way. Alone in his skull, Harley has privileged access to what the gear really sounds like. The problem is that no one else does. We can't read his mind. People in the community don't care what he thinks. But people want to understand how what he is writing about compares with something they have experienced themselves, or are very familiar with. Without sharing his personal experience, taste, and assessment of competitors, his review is useless. I'm not sure why he fails to communicate well. It could be his ego - if he says it's the best, it has to be the best, or if he is just an inept writer. But we all lose. Not the best review in the last 23 years of TAS, by far. When he writes up the dCS Vivaldi, he just needs to take out the word magico q7 and put it Dcs Vivaldi and it will be 80% done.

As for the S5, a lot of people I respect seem to like it. It may not measure ruler straight, but I think a lot of people will find it more enjoyable that the Q5. Personally, though, Magico is not for me. I have spent a lot of time with the Q5 after it was claimed to be the best, and I found it as emotional as a Teutonic wet nurse. So I'm not interested in the S5, Q7, or another Magico until Wolf hires another designer. (Of course if we can convince Stereo to host next year's WBF holiday party, I would give it shot. ) But heck, an s7 or an s9 could be interesting even from the same designer...

 

[caesar]

So how is owning dCS gear a sin?

Sorry, I've auditioned or reviewed everything else and I really enjoy the dCS Paganini. Will probably upgrade to the Vivaldi after the review is done if my daughter doesn't end up costing me too much this year.

Not really knowing me, I think the "gear head" comment is a little silly. Yes I have my hands on a lot of gear because reviewing gear is my job. However my reference components have stayed pretty stable over the years. Had CJ electronics for five years, moved up to Burmester. Now that I have two reference systems, the Burmester is still in room two, while the ARC/Pass combination has been in room one for almost two years now. Been using AVID turntables for five, the Sooloos for five, etc etc.

Other than Mikey and Jacob Heilbrunn (the only other reviewers I know with big systems that actually own all or most of their stuff) I submit that my contemporaries swap gear much more often than I do, whatever.

Though I must admit to somewhat of a turntable obsession lately, so I guess guilty as charged. I suppose I really don't need 12 turntables.

But it sure makes comparison tests a LOT easier!

Tonepub, I should have used an emoticon, as this stuff is so personal. dCS is a bit boring for me - it's too much detail. The guys at Stereophile, who are more politically correct than me, called it "polite".

I do like the Burmester and CJ gear you mention- a lot!! However, I have not heard of the Avid or remember your Estelon review. But you and Valin are playing a different game. Above all, he cares about being the first kid on the block to show off with a cool game or a cool shoe or a fun toy. You were actually the first kid with the cool stuff, but you stopped talking about the estelon while will keeps talking about it for months on end. More importantly to him, though, is the power to take a guy "off the street" and make him a superstar. Even if you are first, he will get the credit for making estelon into the company that it is. I wonder how Alon Wolf really feels. Whether the constant TAS marketing or promotion is a blessing or a curse for his self esteem when he sits there all alone. My feeling is that for a healthy self esteem we all want to make it on our own.

 

[caesar]

So no Estellon owner has joined this thread?!! I would have thought someone would have chimed in by now to sing praises. I now wonder if there are any of these speakers outside of Estonia.

Don't trust Alfred? Afraid of his partners? Estonia too far? No longer trust valin? Valin not working hard enough to support his new "best"?

Would like to see Valin "wear out some shoe leather" and promote Estellon as hard as he promoted magico.

 

[KeithR]

I heard the big ones at Newport and was quite impressed despite the terrible room. Definitely would be a demo worth having at a proper dealer.

However, I do question long lasting value of Estonia-made loudspeakers---whether fair or unfair.

 

[nabcs]

I am a proud owner of Estelon XA since October....My amps are Ayon Vulcan II (tube single-ended 55W).

I can say the Estelon are extraordinary speakers...they sound full and like real music. Voices are so present and real, I can close my eyes and see the singer present in my room.

Nuno Sousa

 

[steve williams]

Hi Nuno. Thanks for the comment and welcome to WBF