What are the Top Horn Speakers in the World Today? Vox Olympian vs Avantgarde Trio vs ???

bonzo75

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Hi Wil,
If you don't mind, why did you move away from the AGs? Anything you miss about them? Or wish for a higher-priced model?
Thanks

He had duos, not trios
 

caesar

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I listened for about 45 min to the avantgarde trios at audio life in buren nice shop by the way
I ll post a vid later.
Sounds nice , nice with vocals
Plenty of adjustable bass .
Better then expected.
Both with AVM transistor / tubes and the built in amps
I think the question is can you listen to them for 45 days? Four and half years? Or is it just a shock and awe effect?
 

bonzo75

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I think the question is can you listen to them for 45 days? Four and half years? Or is it just a shock and awe effect?

They are very good, but as one member who had the hORNS Universum and whose local audiophile had the trios pointed out to me, it depends on the style of listening - the trios were like an all out concert for 1, 2 hours, then fatiguing. His style was more of listening to 6 to 7 hours a day, for which he preferred his Uni. I have heard Unis numerous times for 4 - 5 hours and agree.
 
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christoph

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andromedaaudio

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I think the question is can you listen to them for 45 days? Four and half years? Or is it just a shock and awe effect

Probably shock and awe .
But it didnt sound bad at all .
With the tubes it sounded more recessed , with their built in amps it sounded big direct voluptuous
Its definetively a big ( show off ) sounding system .

But you know Ceasar , after having heard the Wilson XVX and Alexx V and Magico M6 which were often declared more or less Best speakers you can buy.
Declared by those over the Ocean magazines , all bets are of afaik.

They looked well constructed and they go for 130 -150 K IIRC
To be honest not a unreasonable deal , you get a adjustable sub and you can put the amps you want .
I reckon with a bit of fiddling / adjusting and an approriate room you could get something quit special .
Whether the horn/ cone material is without colouration in the long run is a question that can be asked .
But hey has anyone found a perfect speaker yet
 
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andromedaaudio

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He also had GIP horns / compression drivers in a room but i didnt hear them
 

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caesar

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Probably shock and awe .
But it didnt sound bad at all .
With the tubes it sounded more recessed , with their built in amps it sounded big direct voluptuous
Its definetively a big ( show off ) sounding system .

But you know Ceasar , after having heard the Wilson XVX and Alexx V and Magico M6 which were often declared more or less Best speakers you can buy.
Declared by those over the Ocean magazines , all bets are of afaik.

They looked well constructed and they go for 130 -150 K IIRC
To be honest not a unreasonable deal , you get a adjustable sub and you can put the amps you want .
I reckon with a bit of fiddling / adjusting and an approriate room you could get something quit special .
Whether the horn/ cone material is without colouration in the long run is a question that can be asked .
But hey has anyone found a perfect speaker yet
Hi Andromeda,
Thanks. Yeah, when I heard the new Avantgarde's at Axpona, it was awesome. I was there with a friend who is more a music lover than audiophile, and the blonde Avantgarde dude played a song my friend was familiar with. To say the least, my friend finally understood why people catch the audio bug. By the look on his face, it was an experience he will never forget for the rest of his life.

As far as finding a perfect speaker, I really do love the MBL sound, and can live with it forever. But at the same time, I have 4 systems, and because there are trade offs between different technologies, each one provides a different emotional interpretation of the performance.
 

microstrip

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Audiophile Bill

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Thanks - very nice technical description of the new active version.

Yes I found that review very refreshing. The reviewer at the end gives a warts an all perspective that is useful.
 

spiritofmusic

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I suspect of the Trios G3 max out what they do best compared to other spkrs types, you're gonna be aware of their mild deficiencies a lot less.
For me, the old Trios artificially larger than life presentation was jarring over the course of the demo I attended. If the new G3 has moderated that while maxxing what the old Trio was very convincing at, stuff like lack of pinpoint inaging won't be a deal-breaker to many potential customers.
 

bonzo75

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Yes I found that review very refreshing. The reviewer at the end gives a warts an all perspective that is useful.

What's good is Armin, he is always excellent and is also the host at their factory. The "reviewer" has just heard these and the previous ones in Munich and that comes across
 
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wil

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Thanks for clarifying.. I remember your negative comments about the Duos
I had the Duo Mezzo's XD's. I don't know if Ked ever heard those? With the bass dsp I thought the bass/mid integration was excellent. My only issue was that I became tired of what I perceived as a slight horn coloration. I have no way of knowing, but I felt wood in the horns, rather than abs, would have produced a more "organic" sound.
 

bonzo75

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I had the Duo Mezzo's XD's. I don't know if Ked ever heard those? With the bass dsp I thought the bass/mid integration was excellent. My only issue was that I became tired of what I perceived as a slight horn coloration. I have no way of knowing, but I felt wood in the horns, rather than abs, would have produced a more "organic" sound.

I have heard a couple of older versions of the duos, then the Duo Mezzos at the AG factory itself in the same room as the trios, and the Duo mezzo XDs at Marslo's just before lockdown started. There is no real difference. These kind of differences are minimal to the issues they had, and that included causing the horn coloration reputation that is now so prevalent among people who haven't experienced proper horns. I would any day take a cone speaker like Wilson or Magico over these type of horns.
 

morricab

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I had the Duo Mezzo's XD's. I don't know if Ked ever heard those? With the bass dsp I thought the bass/mid integration was excellent. My only issue was that I became tired of what I perceived as a slight horn coloration. I have no way of knowing, but I felt wood in the horns, rather than abs, would have produced a more "organic" sound.
Love wooden horns...
 

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