opera audio consonance eric-3

I heard these at THE Show in Vegas this year... Quite nice speakers for the money, and maybe the best floorstanders I have heard to date in the below 2K/pr. new class (most sub 2K floorstanders I don't care for as a general rule, these are a notable exception).

I believe the Eric-3s were powered by all Consonance electronics, so I can't make a direct observation on hearing them powered by McIntosh, but I am confident they would match fine.

---Dave

Thanks Dave.

I will have the opportunity to audition them at the importer's home soon within an all Opera Audio system.
Meanwhile I would appreciate other opinions.

Charles

Charles,

Where are you located? Who is your importer? Have you had a chance to listen to the Eric 3 yet?

If not, as you read this keep in mind that speaker sound is an extremely personal thing and very room dependent. Only you can decide what you like and what will work in your room. What sounds good to me in my room may be a bad thing for you in your room. Don't believe all the reviews because the reviewer always has his own perspective, likes, and dislikes, and is not listening with YOUR ears in YOUR room. For example, I’ve read many great things about Omega single driver speakers, but when I listened to them for myself, I liked what they did well (midrange) but did not enjoy the overall sound quality of them (not to my personal taste, or lack there of).

With that said, here are some comments on the Eric 3:

The short version: I own a pair. Great speakers! Very “musical”. Detailed without sounding analytical. You’d have to spend a lot more to improve on them overall.

The long version:

Von Schweikert Comparison - I’ll give my impressions of the Eric 3 compared to the Von Schweikert VR-2 and VR-4jr (I auditioned the VR-2 side by side with the Eric 3 and I own the VR-4jr and the Eric 3). I would place the Eric 3 between the VR-2 and VR-4jr in terms of sound quality. I feel the Eric 3 are a better value than the VR-2, if not the VR-4jr (close call). I feel the Eric 3 is actually more revealing of detail than either the VR-2 or VR-4jr but does not have the ability to bring the musicians in the room quite like the VR-4jr. The Eric 3 has a more forward midrange and high end than the VR-4jr, where the VR-4jr are a bit laid back-ish (the VR-4jr, being so smooth in the mid/high gives them a slight lack of that ultimate last little bit of fine detail, making them seem laid back). The highs of the Eric 3 are more etched and zippy than the VR-4jr. I attribute this to two things: 1) the VR-4jr are an EXTREMELY smooth speaker in the mid and treble range (at least to my ear) so many speakers will sound this way (brighter/zippy) in direct comparison to them, and 2) My Eric 3 do not have a lot of running time on them and are not broken in yet (I do not have them hooked up all the time and have not had the time to listen as much as I’d like … it’s been a busy spring/summer). I expect my Eric 3 to smooth out over time (the broken in demo pair at the dealer are not zippy like mine). The VR-4jr go lower in bass than the Eric 3 but the character of the bass is somewhat similar. Both are tight and articulate and do not seem to favor any particular frequency (as can happen with ported designs). Imaging and soundstaging between the VR-4jr and Eric 3 are comparable on width and instrument placement but with the edge going to the VR-4jr in terms of depth. Let me say that my room and speaker placement requirements create a tremendous challenge to any speaker when it comes to imaging (way too close to walls, and basically only one spot for the speakers). The fact that either of these speakers is able to create anything resembling a soundstage in this room is incredible! They both do a better job when away from walls than when in my forced placement.

Paradigm Studio Comparison - I used to own the Paradigm Studio 100 v2. While I never compared the Eric 3 directly to them, I did lug the 100s into the dealer to compare them to the VR-2. As good as I feel the 100s are, the VR2 blew them out of the water in terms of musicality. And, as I stated above, to me the Eric 3 are better overall than the VR-2 so I can surmise that the Eric 3 would be much better in side by side comparison with the Eric 3. (One of my problems with the VR-2 is that they start to get hard/compressed/congested as the volume goes up. The 100s are a bit better overall at high volume than the VR-2. Don't get me wrong, the VR-2 is an awesome speaker, as is the Paradigm.) From memory, the 100s soundstaging was inferior to the Eric 3 in my room - less depth and often instruments would collapse to sound like they were coming from one of the speakers (blame the room though, as I have heard the 100s do a fine job when they are away from the walls).

Amplification – I know nothing of McIntosh amps so I can not comment on them. I have run these at home with SS and tubes. I feel the Eric 3 work well with tubes. I have run them at home with the Sound Quest SQ-88 integrated amp using KT-88 (~55 watts) and EL-34 (~35+ watts) tubes. Both tubes sound great with the Eric 3 (and I prefer them on the 8 ohm tap rather than the 4 ohm tap). The KT-88 tubes provide better bass and more slam, and the EL-34 provide a more seductive midrange but less “speed”. My Krell KSA-50S also worked quite well with the Eric 3 providing exceptional speed and bass control. I like the tubes better though.

By the way, I own the pair of Eric 3 Drseid listened to in Las Vegas. I bought the THE Show demo pair. :-)

I hope this helps!

Enjoy!
-- Bob

Why you sneaky devil Bob... I *knew* I should have snatched those Eric-3s up when I was there first... ;-)

I *did* however walk away with a demo of the CD-120 player from that same room though... :-)

---Dave

Drseid/Dave,

Oh, did I forget to mention that I also have a CD-120? Great player! You have excellent taste! ;-)

If I had the space I'd have a Consonance Droplet CD player. Unfortunately my rack setup can not accommodate a top loading CD player. :-(

Disclaimer: I do not work for Consonance nor any dealer. I am just a happy owner of Consonance products. :-)

-- Bob

Hi Bob

Thank you for your insight,
In short after having the opportunity to audition the eric-3
speakers at home for one week,I am now the happy owner of the
demo pair,still not fully broken in.B.t.w. I live in Israel.
I first listened to them at the importer's home w droplet cd player and 800 monoblocks.I was surprised how detailed and refined the mids and highs were,but I found them to be a bit
bass-shy especially on rock music w electric bass and bass drums.
I think they needed to be broken in because after a week with them I feel the bass is very good for the size with plenty of detail and speed.Of course the Infinity Kappa 100
w 2 12 inch drivers that I had listened to were amazing in that department.
I have a narrow and long room and have them sitting close to the wall and it's not really letting them shine but still they do a great job.I will try moving them to the long direction to give them plenty of free space behind them.
I had an opportunity to listen to rhe vr-2 w. my amp and liked them a lot but I feel the eric's are in the same league and having an opportunity to buy a pair at less than
half the local retail of the vr-2 made the decision easy.
I think they are a real bargain ,detailed ,musical,dynamic,
involving.I just wish the looks were as good as the sound
(e.g. Usher or Aurum Cantus).
B.t.w. I use them w the 4 ohm speaker taps,because the speakers are rated 4 ohm.I didn't try the 8 ohm ,but logically it should not sound better,or should it?

Charles

Hello Charles,
I appreciate your insight on these speakers. Based on your evaluation I bought these used in abosolute mint condition off of Audiogon! I love them!!!
I was going to buy a NOS Von Schweikert VR-2's but opted for the the Opera Consonance Eric 3's! Thre VR-2's are monsters in size but do sound quite good. I preferred the Eric 3's sound because they are full and rich. I have a Nad M3 Integrated & Nad M55 universal player I was able to adjust the tone control/bass and treble to where it was acceptable in my room. I played all types of music; Eric Clapton, Robben Ford, James Taylor and each artist sounded very smooth but produced an exciting presentation. Sounding like a much larger pair of speakers. I didn't audition the speakers with tubes but I would like to try it one day. Overall cosmetically the cabinets are truly high quality and are made of first class veneer African Hazelwood unlike the Paradigm 100 V2's MDF board. This speaker is not perfect, but overall for the price you can't beat them! Not a whole lot to dislike. I prefer the size 38 1/2" H x 8 1/4 W x 12 1/2 D and they are a perfect fit for my room. My wife even likes them! I have had many speakers in my 30 year hobby including at the retail $6000.00 range and I can honestly say that this is the best bargain in a speaker that I have ever had. Don't laugh, they are Chinese made! Exactly where all the other high end speakers now have there speakers made for the European and North American market.
Thank again Charles for you talented analysis of these fine speakers!
Best regards,
Tim Audio01 / Audiogon