Beyond the Ariel

[Salas]

If you ever visit Belgrade, check out the women and the brass music festivals. Then you will know why Alexander has a heightened sense of taste.

[Salas]

Originally posted by Lynn Olson

Most of the rooms at the show were demo-ing little bitty speakers - or great big ugly ones - with terrible tonal balance, all tipped-up and sizzly-sounding. Ugh - don't these people ever listen to live music? Or do they think "live" is something that comes out of a JBL PA system?

Thats the stuff for audio 'customers' Lynn. None of your concern. There is French L-Acoustics too, for better ear training in reinforcement. Best sense in reproducing live acoustic sound comes from Island and Med people these days. Japan, Britain, France, Spain, Italy.

[jacq.]

Originally posted by Lynn Olson


The man has taste, something very very rare in the high-end.

Most of the rooms at the show were demo-ing little bitty speakers - or great big ugly ones - with terrible tonal balance, all tipped-up and sizzly-sounding. Ugh - don't these people ever listen to live music? Or do they think "live" is something that comes out of a JBL PA system?

You are absolultly correct, I truly beleive they do. Even worst they pick-up faults (anomalies) and praise them as qualities.

As a philosophy teacher once said; '' it aint the steak, it's the sizzle that sells.''

[Lynn Olson]

Oh yeah, a question was asked a page ago about the impact of the RMAF on "the project".

Good question. Pardon me while I look a little stupid for a moment and collect my wits.

Hmm, what did I learn?

I don't like whizzers, no matter how good the rest of the driver is.

Horns & waveguides, at least with 1" compression drivers, need pretty sophisticated crossovers to get that silky-smooth relaxed sound - or maybe just top-quality compression drivers. Probably both.

Magnets really matter - the sonic differences are very akin to the differences between good and bad transformers - anyone that's participated in a Dave Slagle tasting session will know exactly what I'm talking about.

Drivers matter. Drivers matter. Drivers matter. I can't say this enough. They are the most important aspect of the design, and all the talent in the world won't change the essential character of the driver. This is exactly the same lesson as cooking - the best gourmet chef in the world cannot overcome stale, flat, or low-quality ingredients.

A mediocre cook will make the claim they can magically transform stale, flat or low-quality ingredients, but unless they have mastered the most arcane secrets of alchemy, this claim is unlikely to be met. (The last man to successfully transform water into wine kept it quiet at the time, and did not brag about it.)

Similarly, an outright inept cook can ruin the best ingedients. I've done this myself at times, so I'm kind of sympathetic to this error.

[Salas]

Isn't it amazing that the Feastrex people made such a driver without knowing even how to measure its Fs? The boxes are just guessed! They just bought a woofer tester and try to understand the manual! Traditional top quality craftsmanship and taste can sense parameters! Wow! Very slow and costly trial process though.....

[OzMikeH]

Lynn, your comments on the RAAL tweeters prompted me to investigate them a little bit. Did you listen to the smaller or the larger ones? the mid-high looks appealing with it's higher efficiency but has much greater mass (comparatively).

I'm very happy to say the RAAL are less than half the price I expected they would be. on par with some of the fancier offerings from Fostex. Sadly the exact opposite of my experience with the pricing of Feastrex drivers. To push the food analogy until the wheels fall off the Feastrex really is a caviar and truffles sort of driver.

[FlorianO]

Originally posted by Lynn Olson

Hmm, what did I learn?

...
Drivers matter. Drivers matter. Drivers matter. I can't say this enough.

Thanks for that Lynn. Despite the rave at AC about the CS2 I usually take those with one tiny kg (or pound ) of salt. Moreover, a CD + waveguide XOed @ 1 kHz to not one, but _two_ 15'' driven in parallel didn't look right -- even for the ignorant me.

Back to the question of RMAF, "the project" and "drivers, drivers, drivers". Any esoterica worth mentioning -- e.g. Fertin, Supravox field coils, etc ? Beyond Feastrex, that is ....

Best regards, and here's for hoping we'll see sawdust soon,

Florian

[Lynn Olson]

I take Alexander at his word that all of his tweeters have a similar character, but with strengths in different directions (if you need a supertweeter, he'll build you one). I can tell you right now they do not sound anything like the Raven or Chinese ribbon tweeters, the pseudo-ribbon stretched films, or a Heil AMT. Not the same at all.

Not many people have heard an ionic tweeter, but that's what they sound like, with much more impact and dynamic range. In terms of vividness and impact, I'm not sure they give up anything compared to a compression driver. Heresy, I know, but people should listen for themselves.

As for the folks tuning in from the other forums, sorry my comments about the EnABL comparison were kind of vague, in comparison to the vibrant enthusiasm for some of the exotics.

My best instinct is to apply EnABL to a really good non-whizzer driver with an excellent Alnico or Neodymium magnet system. The best pro drivers come to mind here, along with the exotics mentioned above.

I do think people who have "tipped-up" their systems to compensate for the somewhat low HF resolution of whizzer drivers are in for an unpleasant surprise when they try an EnABL treatment. Don't jump on me for making that "low-resolution" comment about whizzers. Listen to a RAAL or a good compression driver and then tell me that whizzers have more resolution.

Oddly enough, I do like paper-cone tweeters - I really miss the old Peerless HFC 225, although the best tweeters today have way more resolution and just as much sweetness. But I'd take a cone over a dome tweeter any day of the week.

[Lynn Olson]

Originally posted by OzMikeH
To push the food analogy until the wheels fall off the Feastrex really is a caviar and truffles sort of driver.

Not really. Imagine the best curry dinner you've ever tasted. For me, that would be at the Palace Hotel in Udiapur, India, eating a meal that was literally fit for a king - the same kitchen cooked for the local Maharajah, who resided in the same palace on the lake. That was in 1991, and I can still remember it. Such experiences are rare but do exist.

Imagine visiting the Parthenon. Imagine visiting the Taj Mahal, or the great temples in Kyoto. You are lifted to a transcendent state of being just walking into these places - the photos do not convey the true depth of the experience in any way. You have to go there and avoid the crowds. I have done this and can still remember them as I write this.

That's the comparison for the Feastrex. Also the RAAL. And a fully restored Quad ESL57. That's what I think of them. A hifi system that can create an intense, emotionally powerful impression of beauty is a rare thing, and not an easy thing to do.

[Zen Mod]

Originally posted by Lynn Olson


...... Also the RAAL. .................

hehe
I told you they're good ........