Any Avalon Transcendent, Indra II, or Compas users out there?

Audiophile Bill

Well-Known Member
Mar 23, 2015
4,293
4,093
675
Hi all,

I might be changing my speakers out soon and one brand on my radar is Avalon as I have always been a fan particularly on their staging and musicality whilst on a small footprint.

I am reaching out in case we have any users of the above speakers. I am looking for real world insights with these speakers - how you set them up, what gear you are driving them with etc. Any experience of comparisons between these models too.

Cheers,

Bill
 

jep123

VIP/Donor
Dec 23, 2012
293
106
908
Norway
I have owned the Indra and the Transcendent and they are both very good speakers. The Indra need a lot of current, the Transcedent less. The Indra is the better speaker, but the Trans are not far behind. There is a new Indra Diamond as well. The Compas I have not heard but I can imagine it is a great speaker. Although at a different price. It also depends on your room and preferences.

JP
 

Audiophile Bill

Well-Known Member
Mar 23, 2015
4,293
4,093
675
Thanks JP. My Analog Domain has no problem driving my Focals so should supply enough for these Avalons with any luck. It has extremely low output impedance and produces 500w into 4ohms with nearly 50amps current at peak.
 

bluedoor

Well-Known Member
Jun 19, 2013
48
12
248
You should so consider the IDEA. Small, cheaper and extremely musical and coherent.
They do like some juice to shine however. Have tried a few amps with them, some better sinergy with ones than the others.
Currently driving them with a Nagra Classic amp/PLL setup - wonderful combination with Avalon.
 

flez007

Member Sponsor
Aug 31, 2010
2,915
36
435
Mexico City
I find the Indra as the best price/performance model in the Avalon basket - but as noted above, they do need a lot of clean a good SS power. Neil uses Avalon in their Boulder facility and sounds great, also Spectal and Boulder are good options - The best sound coming out from my Ascents came from a pair of Lamm Hybrid amps.
 

marba_hr

Well-Known Member
Aug 22, 2013
8
11
310
www.sonetimage.eu
I'm using Compas and driving them with Spectral Audio DMA-200S alternating with Karan Acoustics KA L Ref III and KA S 600 stereo amps.

Regarding price/performance Transcendant is unbeatable.
 

XCop5089

Well-Known Member
Sep 5, 2015
120
91
260
Winchester, UK
I owned the Indra between 2008 and 2015, when I sold them.

They were used with my Conrad Johnson Premier 350SA stereo power amp, which delivers plenty of power and current (66 amps). My preamp at the time was a Karan Reference MKII and I also had an opportunity to swap in a Karan SA450 and David Berning pre and mono bloc power amps for an extended period.

When considering a change, I auditioned the Avalon Compas (non-diamond) for about a month, but found the midrange and treble far superior with the original Indra. However, the bass was good with the Compas, an area where I always found the Indra lacking on rock music.

After the Compas went back to my dealer, I tried the Estelon XA speakers, which I liked, but my partner didn't. Her remark on fist seeing them was, "They're hideous!"

I finally settled on TAD CR1's, which were a bit of a left field choice, being a stand mount design, but they really do everything I was looking for in a speaker!

Shortly after buying the TAD's, I changed my preamp to a CJ GAT series 2, to partner my CJ 350SA.

I am now satisfied!
 

About us

  • What’s Best Forum is THE forum for high end audio, product reviews, advice and sharing experiences on the best of everything else. This is THE place where audiophiles and audio companies discuss vintage, contemporary and new audio products, music servers, music streamers, computer audio, digital-to-analog converters, turntables, phono stages, cartridges, reel-to-reel tape machines, speakers, headphones and tube and solid-state amplification. Founded in 2010 What’s Best Forum invites intelligent and courteous people of all interests and backgrounds to describe and discuss the best of everything. From beginners to life-long hobbyists to industry professionals, we enjoy learning about new things and meeting new people, and participating in spirited debates.

Quick Navigation

User Menu

Steve Williams
Site Founder | Site Owner | Administrator
Ron Resnick
Site Co-Owner | Administrator
Julian (The Fixer)
Website Build | Marketing Managersing