I owned the Tekton Lore Reference for about a year and a half and they were great for the price. I ran them with a 50w tube integrated and it was a nice combo. For $750 I had no complaints except perhaps that the paint was cracking on one of the rounded corners. I ended up buying a pair of Gallo CL-2 for an office system on closeout direct from Gallo for $390/pair. After they were broken in I found myself listening to them more than the Tektons after awhile. I was getting addicted to the CDT tweeter.
Based on that experience I ordered the CL-3 refurbished for $650/pair shipped (crazy steal) and they were on a different level than both of the above. Sonically, one defining moment for me was listening to Joni Mitchell, Both Sides Now. (I think the Track was You’re My Thrill. ) During the intro there is a brief flute soli. With the Tektons it sounded like a really nice flute section that was very homogenous sounding and blended. With the Gallos I could hear each individual flute player and their unique tones and vibrato. The bass was also deeper and tighter on the gallos and the imaging was just amazingly holographic and wide and deep.
I know the timing of this is interesting as the Tekton hype train seems to be at full tilt right now with some of his higher models and I am curious to hear them. The 2 things that would give me serious pause and keep me from moving up the Tekton line are 1) the size and aesthetics 2) The very much "in your face" house sound that can get tiring to me. Just wondering what others have moved on to from Tekton and what they heard that moved them in that direction.
So I heard the Triton Reference, Paradigm Persona 3f and triton 2+ all with my amp today and I learned that in many cases you do get what you pay for. The personas were very impressive. Out of my range unless I wait. Thanks for the Ascend sierra tower rec. I forgot about them
Yup I heard the personas as well. They are impressive. I used to own the Triton Ones. Depends what you are looking for. The Personas are ruthless in a sense. The Golden Ears not so much as well as a lot of other speakers. No dought that technically from measurements the Personas are superior probably to most of what is out there now. They are really amazing IMO.
I would agree with mofojo on the looks. Not everyone's cup o tea. The Goldenears were quite nice as well and they actually had me convinced until I started listening to a couple of my jazz reference recordings. first of all, they image too high at the speakers if that makes sense - take the Joe Lovano nonet recording Streams of Expression for eg - the rhythm section is center stage and the horns are panned accross the right and left channels to varying degrees in front of them. Well, the horns sound like they are sitting down (as they are) with all other good speakers I've listened to including the Paradigms - on the Triton refs they sound like they are not only standing up and bunched way together, but that they are all 6ft5in. On my speakers and on the Personas they sound more spread out, bigger and at a normal height. I noticed a similar effect in a couple other recordings as well. The guy at the store said that was a common finding with them and that even Sandy Gross recommended canting them forward with something under the back of the speaker. hmmm other than those 2 things I really liked them. The Triton 2+ were not in the same league at all of course, but imaged at a more reasonable height. First world problems lol
I didn’t have these guys on my list, but there is a dealer not too far from me that has Piega, Scansonic MB2.5 and Raidho - I will go hear those Nordic beauties next, then it’s on to Vandersteen and Ryan.
Wait, are you sure you guys don't all know people who have sold their $20,000 speakers for the $3,000 Tektons? Are you guys just missing the boat? There is a paradigm shift going on here!
Up to 5k new or used. I am a musician so I love realistic sounding voices and instruments but I don’t like rolled off sounding speakers. I tend towards special tweeters most of the time like ribbons, amt’s, beryllium and of course my current Gallo CDT. Not an absolute must, but a very high quality tweeter has been something that has been key for me in realism and staging in general. I would add that it needs to be close to full range also - good response into the mid-30hz region preferred in-room. I would consider the Proac d20r's that pop up time to time but I keep hearing they really prefer tubes?
Thanks, yes very difficult. I'v been pretty underwhelmed by the current Kef offerings below the reference range. Spendor D7 is on my radar as well, as is Proac. I'm also waiting to hear from Audio Doctor Dave on the Quad Z-3's if they live up to expectations.
Update: The Quad Z3's sound like they are going to be pretty killer and I can't wait to hear them.Word from my reviewer friend who listened to them for me is they don't have the bottom end of the Magico A3 but they are more refined and magical in the mids and top end. Like a great panel speaker with much better bass and more realistically sized images. So they are definitely at the top of the list currently. I am also considering the Salk SongA3 and trying to find an owner near me so that I can hear them. Will be hearing Ryan, PMC, Proac and Wilson Benesch (demo) soon in Atlanta to see if we have any real contenders in that group. I still think about trying at least the Impact Monitors just to see what they are all about but I showed my wife the pic LOL big mistake. Dude makes some ugly ass speakers - luckily they sound good.
I still think about trying at least the Impact Monitors just to see what they are all about but I showed my wife the pic LOL big mistake. Dude makes some ugly ass speakers - luckily they sound good.
Actually they don't IMO.Very uninvolving,lacking finesse along with speed a monitor should have again IMO.Some have suggested rebracing the boxes and relining them,other claim changing crossover part help.For 2 grand ill pass and yes they are butt ugly...and I say BS to the" people swap 30 grand speakers for the DIs"...
@clarinetmonster2 Those all sound like very solid auditioning choices, and I'll be very curious to hear which one comes out on top after your visit to Atlanta.
Spoke to Wally at Underwood and he seems as high on the Z3/Z4 as Audio Doctor Dave. Said he would take them over anything else he carries in that price range including the Scansonic and Elac Andante floorstanders. Getting excited about the Z4 but I will give a listen to the Salks etc. as well as I would have to buy the Quads sight unseen.
I called Deadalus - they all seemed priced out of reach for me - starting around 8k now I believe since he discontinued the Pan. I think the only pair anywhere near me is one of the top end models
Hmm. Also spoke to Wally about the upcoming new LSA lineup. Things are getting interesting now. I found some coverage on them from Part time Audiophile at Axpona that sounds very promising.the larger Floorstanders will have a copper/beryllium tweeter and a new patented woofer. I think the -3db point will be about 24Hz and the intro pricing will put them right in my range. Ah choices.
Ok, I found a Tekton DI (with upgrades) owner in Atlanta that will let me have a listen when I am up there in a couple weeks so right after I hear the Salks. I'm really curious to at least hear the DI's and I certainly didn't want to have to order them just to hear them, so thanks Facebook.
Well...sorry for the delay, this has been a long time
coming. I mentioned earlier in this thread that I had purchased a set of
ANK Kit 03 speakers (Audionote AN E LX HE specifications) to replace my Tekton
DI's. Long story short, I ran into some equipment issues, some self-inflicted,
some not.
But the main system is up and running and I've been living with the ANE kit
speakers for only about 50 hours so far and they are everything I felt that the
DI's lacked in my system. They are blowing me away at every listen and
are absolutely addictive in their sound.
My equipment is as follows and was the same as I was using on the DI's:
Macbook Pro to Tidal/Audirvana to Chord 2Qute DAC to Linear Tube Audio MZ2 pre
amp to a Line Magnetic 508. (Upgraded
speaker cables and interconnects)
I never talked negatively about the DI's and I still won't. I just have
to believe the low frequencies weren't working out for me with my equipment and
listening room as others constantly rave about the low frequency
response. I also won't get into positioning, room treatments, cables etc
as I have had numerous speakers through the same room and with the same
equipment that have all sounded fantastic after proper positioning. I really enjoyed everything they did except
the low frequency response and the size/appearance of them.
The AN E's will appeal to a totally different crowd I'm sure. The DI's
lean more to the neutral side of things whereas the AN E's lean more on the
warmed up side. In saying this, they are not dull or veiled in any sense
but quite the opposite. They are very dynamic and musical but have loads of
detail and transparency. The Seas tweeters
do not lack any sparkle or sheen but are entirely non fatiguing. Not sure how they pulled this off as it would
seem contradictory in some speakers. It’s
a sound that needs to be experienced.
The bass depth and texture are staggering. These are not one note wonders and never over done or to the point of
smearing the rest of the frequency ranges.
But wow does it ever add excitement to any music. And my biggest complaint on the DI’s was on
classic rock or compressed music. The
low frequencies suffered. Not an issue
with these. They work their magic on any
genre or recording quality. They also seem
to better maintain their sound stage at low volume levels than the DI’s. The bass foundation and soundstage cues are always
there. I found myself constantly turning
up the DI’s to get sufficient bass impact during quiet listening. Of course, YMMV and I am running tubes vs
solid state.
It’s been said that anyone demo’ing these for just a song or
two won’t be impressed. I can
wholeheartedly agree with that. I’m not
sure what changes in that first few hours with these speakers but I went from “huh
these are a little dull” to “these are the most incredible things I’ve ever
heard”. I feel like an a$$ even saying
that but it’s true.
I know I’m only 50 or so hours in on the AN E’s but these
will be staying. (Although I have spent time with factory built AN E’s) And all reports say the break in time is quite
long on them. I’m now in the midst of
running dedicated AC to my system as well as trying out my new power cords,
receptacles and fuses. Can’t wait to
hear what these speakers reveal.
I tried not to make this a “review” of these speakers but I think
I failed. Although I did leave some
things out. Sorry guys!
I happened to go through Malthuse's
Tekton experience through a thread on CAM. Some of you guys are being judgmental, regardless if you know the whole story, or not. He's entitled to his opinion. I own a pair of Pendragons and they are great IMO. I have been up grading around them and I'm seriously thinking about getting a pair of DI's. That is why the initial post is a good one. It's good to see that there is possibly better or at least different sounding speakers compared to Tektons's. (as if we need more options, lol) To add to the question, if people have moved on, are the speakers they moved onto in the same bang for your buck category?
Ok, call me crazy but I'm actually considering at least trying the Tekton Impact monitors if my wife will let me. If I really love them I would probably return them and get the DI's I just don't want to start with the DI's just in case I don't fall in love. Shipping would be crazy. I've come to this point because I've auditioned so many speakers in the under 10k category that just have too many compromises as far as I'm concerned and many are grossly overpriced for the performance.
Harbeth 30.1 & HL5+ PMC 25.23 Ryan 610 and 630 Bryston Mini T Elac Andante AF61 Monitor PL100II Monitor Gold 300 Vandersteen Treo CT Langerton Configuration 217 (no longer made) Sonus Faber Olympica I and III Martin Logan Classic ESL 9 Goldenear Triton Ref Paradigm Persona 3f PSB T3
@clarinetmonster2 Have you heard the Tekton DIs yet? (as you said you would in Atlanta, few weeks ago.) What is your impression? Also, Any DI owners in sw Ohio? I am dying to give them a listen. :-)
madhav no, I couldn't find the time to go hear the DI's since the day dedicated to listening to speakers was filled with traveling to 3 stores and hearing about 10 different brands/models. Going a different route on monday - going to hear Harbeth C7es3 and M30.1 with my amp as well as Audio Note with my amp then tubes.
Today I drove down with my amp and some CD’s to the Harbeth/Audio Note dealer and heard the C7es3, M30.1 and Audio Note AN-E (not sure which level). They all sounded really nice with the Job INtegrated but the real standout for me was the C7es3. Absolutely amazing synergy with the Job. Shocked me really since I had heard them at a store in Chicago with Cary separates driving them and the results were not great. This was like a whole different universe, bass was full but fast and articulate. Tonality of instruments and voices was spot on - never heard such realistic brass section tones from a big band recording. Image depth was amazing as was width. We put the M30.1 in there to compare and they had their own sort of magic, but with my amp the C7 were overall better by a fair margin. They sounded more full range, fuller and more effortless dynamically. Imaging had more depth as well. The AN-E sounded wonderful as well but I only heard them briefly as I found out they were the 2nd from the top level and were crazy expensive when new. The dealer assured me that the $7500 pair sound very similar. He also had a pair of AN-J there that I didn’t hear - I might ask to hear them just to make sure when I go back to pick up the C7es3. EIther way, I’m very excited to bring them home in a couple weeks when the money comes in. I really can’t imagine a much better marriage between amp and speaker to my ears.
thanks guys. xrayz, I need to sell the Gallos. are you interested? I know someone on this forum said they were but I think it was someone else. I would just need to come up with some boxes. I live in Jacksonville FL.
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