$20K Avantgardes - Best $20K speaker - New or Used?

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caesar

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May 30, 2010

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• Apr 17, 2016

• #1

Heard these at Axpona and they were spectacular, even at a show in a small hotel room. Sure there are exceptions - if one can find a used MBL 101, Soundlab, or Wilson/ Magico / Vivid , if that's one preference, at a firesale price. But all of these require very expensive amplification to sound good.

The speed and inner detail of the Avantgardes are nonpareil at this price point. It already has built-in amps...Not sure if takes an external dac, or if you stuck with the avantgarde dac. But with a good turntable there is not much more one can ask for at $20K.

 

es347

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Apr 20, 2010

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• Apr 18, 2016

• #2

..which model was at AXPONA?

 

asiufy

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Jul 8, 2011

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almaaudio.com

• Apr 18, 2016

• #3

At that price point, I'm assuming it's the Zero 1 XD.

It has built-in amps and a DAC. You can hook up an external DAC, but that is kinda silly, as it'll go through A-D anyway. Same for the turntable, if you plug a phono stage in the analog input, it'll go through A-D.

I do agree with caesar though, that it's a killer package. Very fast (like horns) and punchy, thanks to the powered, sealed woofers. And driver integration is top notch. Just plug a source and you're good to go!

 

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Whatmore

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Jun 2, 2011

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• Apr 18, 2016

• #4

Heard these in a showroom recently and was quite disappointed.
Not sure if they were set up properly - seating position was almost near field and they were right back against the wall.
They lacked the dynamics I would expect from horns. No sense of scale either.

I'd like to hear them a bit more carefully set up before I pass any further opinions though.

 

Diapason

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Mar 26, 2014

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• Apr 18, 2016

• #5

Exact same experience here, Whatmore, with poor driver integration to throw into the mix too. They were on my radar at the time and I was looking for something new, but that dem put me off sufficiently that I didn't even test them again. Maybe I should have!

 

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nc42acc

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Nov 10, 2015

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• Apr 18, 2016

• #6

The UNO XDs were fabulous on both room visits but not so much with the room playing the Zero 1.

 

PeterA

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Dec 6, 2011

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• Apr 18, 2016

• #7

It is unclear to what speaker caesar is referring. Details caesar?

 

asiufy

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almaaudio.com

• Apr 19, 2016

• #8

As I said, it has to be the Zero 1 XD, as it costs $21k. The Uno XD is $35k.

The Zero 1 has a limitation in terms of positioning. You must be sitting anywhere between 6.5 feet to 13 feet from the speakers for the driver integration to "work". If you're closer or further away, the sound will fall apart noticeably.

It also takes a bit of time to set up, with proper toe-in. Even with that wide baffle, they can be made to disappear, if positioned right.


cheers,
alex

 

bonzo75

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Feb 26, 2014

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• Apr 19, 2016

• #9

Trios with bass horns are among my top 2 favorites, but the smaller ones sound plasticky to me. The Zero IMO is good for someone who wants a simple system, no boxes, only speakers, and put them in a corner for loud music. But there would be other alternatives