19-Apr-2015, 08:57
(This post was last modified: 19-Apr-2015, 08:59 by Rufus McDufus.)
Stayed for about 5 hours yesterday! Very enjoyable I must say. Standout for me was the Constellation (both Inspire monoblocs or Centaur stereo) with Wilson Sasha 2s. That was my favourite of the show. The Sabrinas were good with the Constellation monoblocs but struggled a little bit I felt to fill the room like the Sasha 2s do. They seemed a little bit edgy in comparison, a tiny bit 'barky'. Big room though so still an excellent performance from a relatively small speaker. I love the Constellation amps and they work really well with Sashas.
I'd not heard d'Agostino amps before so that was a fine experience. Very delicate and detailed. Quite a thin sound - I kept wondering where all the bass is, particularly driving a pair of Alexias, but I could definitely live with them (if I could in any way afford them!).
A little later on we heard the Extremas with AR G series amplification. It was close to the end of the day so I was a bit tired, but I wasn't super impressed. I'd like to think they're great for the size, but they are actually quite big. I felt a slight disconnected between woofer and tweeter - not quite a seamless transition. We were listening to Nirvana's unplugged live album though which is very contrasty between acoustic bass and everything else so this might well explain it. For the price I think I'd go with Sasha 2s to be honest. The Extremas had a lovely delicacy to them though. Perhaps in a smaller room or closer together?
Briefly heard the SF Liliums with Constellation amps towards the end. A tiny bit disappointed considering the size of these things! The soundstage was noticeably narrow compared with the Sasha 2s. They sure fill the room though.
No Devialets being demonstrated but there were some on display.
I'd not heard d'Agostino amps before so that was a fine experience. Very delicate and detailed. Quite a thin sound - I kept wondering where all the bass is, particularly driving a pair of Alexias, but I could definitely live with them (if I could in any way afford them!).
A little later on we heard the Extremas with AR G series amplification. It was close to the end of the day so I was a bit tired, but I wasn't super impressed. I'd like to think they're great for the size, but they are actually quite big. I felt a slight disconnected between woofer and tweeter - not quite a seamless transition. We were listening to Nirvana's unplugged live album though which is very contrasty between acoustic bass and everything else so this might well explain it. For the price I think I'd go with Sasha 2s to be honest. The Extremas had a lovely delicacy to them though. Perhaps in a smaller room or closer together?
Briefly heard the SF Liliums with Constellation amps towards the end. A tiny bit disappointed considering the size of these things! The soundstage was noticeably narrow compared with the Sasha 2s. They sure fill the room though.
No Devialets being demonstrated but there were some on display.
