I've heard this model of Apogee sound absolutely, incredibly great. Set-up is important with most speakers; with Apogee it's critical.
The speakers do need to be pulled out at least 3 feet from the reflecting wall. The wall should be free from damping material. Make sure your tilt back and toe-in adjustments are as the owner's manual suggests. The amplifiers of that era that work best with the Calipers are Krell (both KST-100 and KSA-250 great) or Classe (DR8 and DR9 again great). There are now many high current, low noise, amps that would probably work well with the Calipers. Apogee always recommended Symo cables, but Nordost (Blue Heaven and above) and Goertz (MI-2 and above) would be more up-to-date choices (and don't forget to biwire).
The Apogees, due to their inherent transparency and speed, were among the most critical to set-up in its time; now days, with really high-end equipment proper set-up is a given. The Apogee's musicality comes through when you take care to treat them right. Over a decade later, they can still sound beautiful.
The speakers do need to be pulled out at least 3 feet from the reflecting wall. The wall should be free from damping material. Make sure your tilt back and toe-in adjustments are as the owner's manual suggests. The amplifiers of that era that work best with the Calipers are Krell (both KST-100 and KSA-250 great) or Classe (DR8 and DR9 again great). There are now many high current, low noise, amps that would probably work well with the Calipers. Apogee always recommended Symo cables, but Nordost (Blue Heaven and above) and Goertz (MI-2 and above) would be more up-to-date choices (and don't forget to biwire).
The Apogees, due to their inherent transparency and speed, were among the most critical to set-up in its time; now days, with really high-end equipment proper set-up is a given. The Apogee's musicality comes through when you take care to treat them right. Over a decade later, they can still sound beautiful.