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Tweakers' Asylum Tweaks for systems, rooms and Do It Yourself (DIY) help. FAQ. |
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Tweakers' Asylum Tweaks for systems, rooms and Do It Yourself (DIY) help. FAQ. |
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In Reply to: Strongly agree. How do you like the Abby's? posted by Russ57 on March 16, 2006 at 06:53:45:
Thanks for responding to my inquiry concerning the benefits of running just a single dedicated power line to my listening room. Thanks to all, actually: I feel like I'm getting some really useful advice, here. At least the responses in this forum have been inspiring some interesting ideas in my little brain....Now, if you're Russ, please read on:
While I understand that you're interested in the Abbys, it's going to be VERY difficult for me to isolate my opinion of them from my opinion of my system as a whole--for better or worse. I can certainly give you my best-intentioned impressions of the Abbys, but please understand that those impressions are going to be based solely on hearing them (in "Nearfield" configuration) only in my system, with my electronics, in my own room(s), etc. I don't mean to be evasive, here; I just don't want to mislead you based on my own lack of "Abbys-in-isolation" knowledge, because I don't really have any.
I hope that's clear; let me try it by way of an example, though: while I could *believe* that what I'm describing to you are clearly the fantastic qualities of these speakers, the reality may be that I'm simply in love with my preamp, for example, and not know that *that's* what's contributing so much to my overall listening satisfaction. (I've often wondered, reading so many of these kinds of posts, whether this possibility/situation is something that deserves more consideration than it's usually given....)
That leads me to an aside: perhaps you've taken a glance at my system; if not, you should know (i) that I'm powering the Abbys with a 45-based SET amplifier and (ii) that my listening rooms--there have been a few over the last couple of years--have all been *extremely* small (as in 100 sq. ft. or so). Hence, the choice of the nearfield drivers and the suitability of an extremely low-powered amplifier. This can't help but color my thoughts.
So, with that rather extensive caveat in place, the bottom line is that I'm not the *least* bit disappointed or dissatisfied with the Abbys in any way. Quite the contrary: I LOVE them and have absolutely NO inclination to continue on any sort of manic quest to find better--even after listening to them for a good few years now. Not even considering adding a sub, either. Just never get sick of them and what they do. As a plus, I feel lucky (and it was just pure luck) that these speakers seem to match up very, very well with the rest of my system--really making the whole thing sing.
And, I can state unequivocally that I've not heard a more musical speaker in my life. The Abbys simply give the impression of being a musical instrument themselves--this coming from a semi-professional musician of some 2 1/2 decades. The Abbys may not be the final word in high or low frequency extension--my electronics may not be either--and they may get a bit "confused" when trying to make out big, complex orchestral passages. (This is probably virtually unavoidable in a single-driver speaker design.) But, given the "right" kind of music: solo/small-ensemble classical, small group jazz, girl-with-guitar (that's a legitimate genre, right?), acoustic rock, etc., nothing I've heard comes close. And if Terry Cain were to admit that he designed, built, and voiced these speakers to show off Sinatra at his *absolute best* I would not be the least bit surprised. In addition, they even stand up pretty darn well when it comes to heavier rock and more modern (i.e., electronic) music. And that about covers it for me. These speakers are SEAMLESS--which translates, for me, as REAL-SOUNDING. Attribute that to their lack of cross-overs???
Which leads me to say, though, that I think I approach this audio pursuit from an atypical perspective. As I said, I've been a musician (classical percussionist, rock/jazz drummer, classical pianist) for a long time; and that causes me to look for certain things (and overlook certain others) in a way that might not match up with the standards and typical criteria of more sophisticated audiophiles. In the same vein, it causes me often to end up at odds with people who know LOTS more about the technical aspects of musical reproduction than I do.
I couldn't possibly hold my own in a debate with an expert over the merits of various circuit topologies, the benefits of various cable designs, the reasons for preferring certain brands/values of parts in different circuit locations, etc. So, that makes me a bit *quantitatively* undiscriminating--i.e., the marginal differences that these folks believe to exist in connection with this type of expertise most likely would be lost on me and not inspire me to pay up for them. What I think I bring to the table--even if it's only my own table--is that I'm super *qualitatively* discriminating. Having spent years sitting in the middle of orchestras and bands, on a piano bench, etc., I know what sounds right (i.e., genuine/authentic/real) when I hear it. And I may even be able to tell you how I reach those kinds of conclusions when listening to audio systems. What I can't (or shouldn't try) to do is to tell you why: as in, "of course your amp sounds like the pits--look at those big, ugly electrolytic capacitors sitting smack dab in the middle of your PS."
So, I HATE recommending audio equipment to people. I always feel so presumptuous in doing so. You *so* may well be after something different--and better--than I am, that my comments become a hinderance. That said--and sorry to be so long-winded, here--I do think that the Abbys deserve a listen, if for no other reason than that I believe that they really do something unique in the audio world: they function more like organic musical instruments than static electronic gear. That fact makes them deserving of at least an audition.
Ultimately, maybe I could be more of more help if I knew what sort of electronics you had running? If you think so, I'd be happy to chime in again with a more carefully considered--and less rambling--post. Certainly, I'd venture to guess that there are a number of folks around here with more experience mating the Abbys to a wider range of gear than I have--including Terry Cain, himself.
Good luck!
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Follow Ups
- Re: Strongly agree. How do you like the Abby's? - Jim Hodgson 03/16/0612:08:59 03/16/06 (1)
- You have been a big help - Russ57 16:19:03 03/16/06 (0)
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