The ultimate shoot-out.
- Thread starter DaveyF
- Start date
Dave,
Thanks for the report
Yes, once we got into the room, we were told the Acapellas were pretty much unmovable, so we had to use the other end of the room, where the Martens were. Since there were other rooms in the house with Martens, the comparison could still be made.
And because of the way the YGs were set up, having the Acapellas on at the same time would be too cumbersome. But I understand there has been an SDAG meeting at Jim's house before, with the two speakers, so members had previous experience with them.
In the end, we didn't have enough time to set up, and I wasn't entirely satisfied with the speaker positioning, but I guess folks got an idea what the system, and most importantly, what the SELECT DAC could do!
Overall, it was a great experience, meeting all the SDAG folks again. And the host, Jim, was extremely welcoming!
cheers,
alex
Thanks for the report
Yes, once we got into the room, we were told the Acapellas were pretty much unmovable, so we had to use the other end of the room, where the Martens were. Since there were other rooms in the house with Martens, the comparison could still be made.
And because of the way the YGs were set up, having the Acapellas on at the same time would be too cumbersome. But I understand there has been an SDAG meeting at Jim's house before, with the two speakers, so members had previous experience with them.
In the end, we didn't have enough time to set up, and I wasn't entirely satisfied with the speaker positioning, but I guess folks got an idea what the system, and most importantly, what the SELECT DAC could do!
Overall, it was a great experience, meeting all the SDAG folks again. And the host, Jim, was extremely welcoming!
cheers,
alex
Dave,
Thanks for the report
Yes, once we got into the room, we were told the Acapellas were pretty much unmovable, so we had to use the other end of the room, where the Martens were. Since there were other rooms in the house with Martens, the comparison could still be made.
And because of the way the YGs were set up, having the Acapellas on at the same time would be too cumbersome. But I understand there has been an SDAG meeting at Jim's house before, with the two speakers, so members had previous experience with them.
In the end, we didn't have enough time to set up, and I wasn't entirely satisfied with the speaker positioning, but I guess folks got an idea what the system, and most importantly, what the SELECT DAC could do!
Overall, it was a great experience, meeting all the SDAG folks again. And the host, Jim, was extremely welcoming!
cheers
alex
Alex,
I would like to take this occasion to say to you that I ( and I'm sure all of the SDMAG ..even Jan
) really appreciate all of the tremendous amount of work and effort that you and Fabio and the rest of the Alma audio folks have put into these sessions. I am sure that the effort and the cost is far more than you could get back. To all of the WBF members, please do make every effort to go by the Alma audio store in La Jolla, Calif- and support them as much as possible. If you are in the S.Calif area, you really do owe it to yourself to pay these great gentlemen a visit.
Thanks, Dave!
We did get great feedback, and folks seemed to appreciate what we were doing. That was great already!
Because we're the new guys in town, our goal is to get more people into the store. We trust we have good products, for just about every budget. And that failing, we have tons of vinyl
Our next event is tentatively scheduled for Jan. 11th, right after CES. We'll host at least one international manufacturer!
cheers,
alex
We did get great feedback, and folks seemed to appreciate what we were doing. That was great already!
Because we're the new guys in town, our goal is to get more people into the store. We trust we have good products, for just about every budget. And that failing, we have tons of vinyl
Our next event is tentatively scheduled for Jan. 11th, right after CES. We'll host at least one international manufacturer!
cheers,
alex
Shoot out turned out to be a shot out.....
The speakers that played today were the excellent YG Sonja 1.3's. However, turns out that the Martens, Wilson's and the Accapella's were out of action...
The system that the group listened to consisted of the YG's, the D'agostino mono's, the new MSB Diamond Select DAC, a MSB/Oppo transport and numerous CD's...
A little bit disappointing as the Acapella's and the Marten's were in the room....but I guess the effort to move the YG's into place and the time it took to set them up correctly, negated the option of moving into place the other speakers...??
The YG's sounded great, very much able to produce the nuances and detail that the top line MSB DAC brings to the fore.
Some pics to follow.
Darn! That would have been really a lot of fun to read about...i still remember when the German Audio magazine did a shoot out with big Wilsons, Strads, Thiel, TAD Ref Ones, and a few others...a lot of fun to read about.
Dave,
thanks for the pictures and write-up. I'm sure the possibilities were a big tease to everyone and too bad you could not get a true speaker shootout done. but like I mentioned in my earlier post, sometimes what you learn is what to do 'next time' as there is a learning curve to large scale shoot-outs. there are products which allow for reasonable moving of large tower speakers that might have helped.
I wish I could have been there to hear the Select Dac.
kudos to Alma for all the efforts and I hope to get down there to visit the store at some point.
thanks for the pictures and write-up. I'm sure the possibilities were a big tease to everyone and too bad you could not get a true speaker shootout done. but like I mentioned in my earlier post, sometimes what you learn is what to do 'next time' as there is a learning curve to large scale shoot-outs. there are products which allow for reasonable moving of large tower speakers that might have helped.
I wish I could have been there to hear the Select Dac.
kudos to Alma for all the efforts and I hope to get down there to visit the store at some point.
It was great fun to be with Davey, Jim (our magnanimous host), Jan, and the SDMAG. It was also an opportunity to chat with Alex and renew acquaintances with Fred Crowder, whom was kind enough to entertain and host me several years ago in Houston. In speaking with Fred, he indicated the system configuration, yesterday, was well-matched for the YG. My sonic impressions were the spectral balance was proportionate, massed strings were rendered nicely, and the system/room resolved spatial details evident in RBCD classical recordings.
Thanks Jim, SDMAG, and Alex for creating this experience for us to enjoy!
Thanks Jim, SDMAG, and Alex for creating this experience for us to enjoy!
Even though I was not there, I must agree. It must have been a huge back breaking task to bring set up and remove all this gear. I cringed at the thought of if it were me doing itAlex,
I would like to take this occasion to say to you that I ( and I'm sure all of the SDMAG ..even Jan
.
I moved my small setup 2 weeks ago as I had to centre the carpet, and I made sure to get help. I can't imagine doing the kind of setup these guys were faced with.Even though I was not there, I must agree. It must have been a huge back breaking task to bring set up and remove all this gear. I cringed at the thought of if it were me doing it
Well, some of us (fortunate) folks had the chance to hear all three setups, one at a time. With the same music even. We even did a bit of mix'n'matching, while we were at it... I know which set up I preferred, and you all can guess which one it was
Mike, the idea was for a "system" shoot-out. That turned out to be impossible during the actual SDMAG event on Saturday, due to the complexities of the room. We were only supposed to have 6 people at a time listening, and at some points, we had almost 20...
Moving electronics/source between different speakers would be possible, but would require at least an hour between auditions, and would kinda break the flow of a 4-hour event...
Sam, was great meeting you, that piece of music you brought was very, very good, you had everybody asking what it was I just want to make sure I'm buying the right recording, so was it this one?
http://www.amazon.com/Vaughan-Williams-Symphonies-Orchestral-Works/dp/B0014DAI9U
Thanks
cheers,
alex
Mike, the idea was for a "system" shoot-out. That turned out to be impossible during the actual SDMAG event on Saturday, due to the complexities of the room. We were only supposed to have 6 people at a time listening, and at some points, we had almost 20...
Moving electronics/source between different speakers would be possible, but would require at least an hour between auditions, and would kinda break the flow of a 4-hour event...
Sam, was great meeting you, that piece of music you brought was very, very good, you had everybody asking what it was
I just want to make sure I'm buying the right recording, so was it this one?http://www.amazon.com/Vaughan-Williams-Symphonies-Orchestral-Works/dp/B0014DAI9U
Thanks
cheers,
alex
OrderedSam, was great meeting you, that piece of music you brought was very, very good, you had everybody asking what it was
http://www.amazon.com/Vaughan-Williams-Symphonies-Orchestral-Works/dp/B0014DAI9U
. Bought the one from UK since it was cheaper. Which track(s) were played Sam/Alex?
Heard one even bigger (could have been the Sphaedron) and two other smaller speakers from Acapella. They're the real deal. The highs in particular are out of this world good.. The rest of the audio spectrum is up to that level ... They're brutally priced though. Would have loved to hear opinions about them compared to the other biggies in the aborted shoot-out..
They don't look that heavy.
Are you sure 400kg isn't a gross shipping weight in crates for the pair?
The Spharon Excalibur says 620kg PER SYSTEM and it doesn't say NET weight either.
Their company spec sheet is vague on the matter.
http://www.dagogo.com/acapella-triolon-excalibur-loudspeaker-system-review
"The Acapella Triolon Excalibur loudspeaker system arrived in three wooden crates, one of which weighed about 1,500lb, the two other over 400lb each. "
Ah, yes, and the reason for the UNapparent heavy weight is this, quoted from the article:
The enclosures are extremely rigid, heavy and well damped with felt, bitumen and lead.
The enclosures are extremely rigid, heavy and well damped with felt, bitumen and lead.
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