Ohm Walsh Micro Talls: who's actually heard 'em?

Hi guys .. not much happening on the thread lately so I thought I'd share.

A while ago I decided to stop the madness and jump off the merry-go-round. Fortunately I have enough gear in storage to swap in/out when the mood strikes for something different, which is inevitable. I moved to computer audio completely in the past couple of years and have managed to put together a very satisfying system, which is currently:

Mac mini (late 2012, i7, 256GB SSD, 16GB RAM)
SOtM dX-USB HD converter
Chord QuteHD DAC
Odyssey Cyclops Integrated (SE+ w/ps upgrade)

While I’ve been using my Magnepan MMGs almost exclusively, I occasionally swap them out with my Mark & Daniel Rubys, or the MicroWalsh Talls for a different presentation, but always seem to miss the Maggies and put them back in the system. Far from perfect, the little Maggies have a rightness to them that appeals to me.

Well, I’m antsy and the mood for change is yet again upon me. It was 10 years ago this coming February that the MicroWalsh Talls arrived in my home, so I thought it was fitting to give them another extensive listen. Of the changes I’ve made recently, the most significant has been the addition of room correction software via Amarra Symphony w/iRC. The integration with Dirac’s room correction wizardry has been game-changing for me and while on the expensive side (for software), it was well worth the price paid. I recently put the Talls back into the system, hooked up the microphone, and ran the IRC Measurement program to create a correction filter.

One of the niceties of the iRC function within Amarra Symphony is the ability to turn the filter on/off easily while playing music, instantly hearing the difference, and a difference there is. First and foremost I must say the 10 year old Talls are still a pleasure to listen to without room correction. With the room correction filter applied, there is more focus and clarity (somewhat like dipoles) and yet the omni presentation and wide sweet spot is fully intact. Bass is more controlled and nuanced. Timbre is gorgeous as usual. The Talls are simply better behaved from top to bottom. Needless to say, I’m pleased with this improvement.

Room correction has intrigued and intimidated me for years. With this latest Amarra Symphony build the intimidation factor is obliterated with its ease of use. Treating the room in this way allows me to have a living-room/listening-room without bass traps and/or acoustic panels, or hiring a pro for advice. It’s been said many times that Ohm’s loudspeakers shine with better electronics and I couldn’t agree more with that sentiment. I would now include room correction in addition to better gear. After 10 years of ownership these loudspeakers remain beguiling and seductive, a joy to listen to and live with. One day I hope to move up to the 2000’s, perhaps when I find myself hopping back on that inevitable carousel ride.

Many people are using the Mac mini(headless) as a music server and controlling itune with an apple remote app or using an apple remote desktop app, like Splashtop on there ipad, neat.

Interesting write-up, WTF.
I too have gone to Amarra Sym w/iRC. I have the Ohm 5000s and was hoping for more than I got. The result was a flat range alright, but overall flat sound as well, i.e. the life was sucked out of the music. I started with very uneven bass which iRC fixed nicely, but the rest did not need much fixing, so I set the high cutoff point to 200 Hz and the life came back.

I am happy with the results. Now If only I could configure the speakers to fill the hole in the middle better. Not much space to work with moving them around.

Thanks Coot. Glad to hear you got some benefit from iRC. Interesting that your SQ suffered above 200hz. I suppose that may help illustrate how well engineered the 5000s are. Bass around 100hz was giving me the most trouble and is much improved with the iRC filter.

When you say you have a hole in the middle, do I understand you correctly that you can't place your speakers in a way for proper center imaging?

Yes. The 5000s are 6.5 ft apart on centers. Between the speakers is a 44-inch doublewide Mapleshade equipment shelf. The wall behind is 11.25 ft. wide, the speaker centers are 28 in. from the rear wall. The side walls are 30 inches from the speaker centers. The speaker cabinets are 13 in. square and are angled outwards approx. 4 degrees to aid in directing the high frequencies to the listener.

The listening sofa is 9.5 ft from each speaker. The left seat of the 2-seat sofa is the "prime" one although I can't tell any difference between the 2. I used the "sofa" configuration for the XTZ mics. Ceiling height is 9 ft. There is much more "room" description as it has 3 openings and flows readily out to some roughly 13,000 cubic ft of living space.

To the left of the listener is a small upright piano. To the right is a 48-ft opening. Behind the listeners is a 60-inch opening. Behind the left shoulder of the sofa is a 30-in. opening. No openings have closable doors.

So, even though I have called this a "room", it is very much open to the living quarters. It is a repurposed formal dining area.

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Music is mostly classical - full orchestral, pipe organ, chamber, choral, opera, etc.

Bottom line is, yes there is a discontinuance of the soundstage all the away across. And it's not terribly deep either. The omnidirectionality of the Ohm design gets me by pretty well for large-scale works. For more intimate recordings there is more sound left and right, but somewhat empty in the center. If I stand close in, there is a definite centering of instruments that are supposed to be there, particularly in solo singers. For example, Willie Nelson voice and his picking' is more centered and as I back away, he moves to the right.

I have experimented with different angling so as to get the tweeter aimed to the listener, but nothing seems to really solve it. I am more or less reigned to waiting until we can move to a house with a real music room.