Evolution Acoustics MMMicroOne

With all due respect to Robsker & Calloway, if the MMMicroOne's were mediocre, great electronics would not make them sound great.

When we voiced the loudspeakers we used all types of amplifiers including an $800 Rotel and they always sounded special to us. We feel this is absolutely a reference level product regardless of the price. I am sure that there are people that will use $300 amps all the way up to mega expensive amplifiers with our loudspeakers.

I will also share with you that there were many people who came to me and said they that thought our MMMicroOne's sounded better than some $30k monitors that were at the show.

Also there were quite a few show reports that gave us "Best Sound at Show" with our MMMicroOnes. Price does not always reflect the quality of a product.

Jonathan Tinn
Evolution Acoustics

I see your point JT, if you cannot trust a reviewer, who can you trust. :-)

Robsker, Calloway,

I agree with Jonathan. Another way of saying it is that since the speaker is downstream of the electronics, if the setup with excellent upstream electronics sounds exceptional then that is testament to the transparency of the speaker just as much as the electronics themselves.

Therefore, one would expect that the same speaker with lesser electronics will mirror the sound of the electronics and not sound as good as with the better electronics, BUT that is not the fault of the speaker. In fact it is its strength. Also, I believe that the transparent speaker with lesser electrronics will still sound better than a less transparent speaker with those lesser electronics. The reason is that you will still hear the micro/macro dynamics, speed and transpareny of the speaker even though the electronics may be of a lower grsade.

Moreover, in my experience, most decent low-priced electronics are much better than you think. I believe, through experience, that speaker quality is much more critical than the the quality of the electronics.

At the end of the day, you want a speaker that sounds great with high priced electronics irrespective of the fact that you may use lower-priced electronics. My two cents.

Andrew

JTINN:

I in no way intimated that the speakers were mediocre. I said that I do not doubt that they are fine speakers. That said...

while it is true that a fine speaker will show forth the quality of the electronics feeding the speakers and that it is impressive that the system with 2K speakers and 80K of electronics sounds great... people need to realize that they are hearing an 82K system. Aoliviero states that speakers are far more important than the quality of electronics. Well... yes. But when ludicrous extremes are used, like 80k of signal to feed 2k speakers to endeavor to sell the 2k speakers... that is almost unethical.

JTinn... If you really thought your speakers were so great (and again, they may be) and that they sound great when driven by lesser electronics (as you state in your post) then by all means audition your speakers at shows with 8K of electronics, not 80K. Give a realistic audition to potential buyers. Certainly you should not fear such an audition.

Last salvo. I have not heard your speakers... but give me an 82K system... say with 50K speakers and 30K of electronics... I guarantee that the system will smoke the system with 2K speakers. That is, after all a very fair comparison --- same priced systems.

The point? It is crazy to push your speakers driven as they were at the show.

Robsker: I am sorry to tell you that IMO, you are just wrong. I say that knowing that you have not yet heard them. I would put our $2500 MMMicroOne's with stands against any bookshelf loudspeaker regardless of price.

As a matter of fact, I would put them up against just about any loudspeaker regardless of price. I understand that the last octave might not be it's strength, but it is a true reference loudspeaker that I would gladly use in my main system.

You stated: "JTinn... If you really thought your speakers were so great (and again, they may be) and that they sound great when driven by lesser electronics (as you state in your post) then by all means audition your speakers at shows with 8K of electronics, not 80K. Give a realistic audition to potential buyers. Certainly you should not fear such an audition."

You can say the same thing to any loudspeaker manufacturer who brings their product to a show and you would be wrong in doing so. Magico showed a $25k - $35k mini monitor that they used very expensive amplification to drive. Do they fall under the same criteria as you suggest we follow?

To make things clear, if someone called me and had a small room and was not looking for the last word in terms of the very deepest bass and had $100,000 amplifiers, I would not hesitate in suggesting that they use our MMMicroOne system.

You also say: "Last salvo. I have not heard your speakers... but give me an 82K system... say with 50K speakers and 30K of electronics... I guarantee that the system will smoke the system with 2K speakers. That is, after all a very fair comparison --- same priced systems.

The point? It is crazy to push your speakers driven as they were at the show."

Such a generalization is what is crazy and has no credibility. I will take that bet anytime as long as you do not choose any equipment that I represent and it is a system you can use in a small room. You are ultimately focusing too much on the price.

BTW: The last few shows we used the following electronics:

darTZeel CTH-8550 Integrated amp/preamp/phonostage - 20,300
Playback Designs MPS-3 - 8500

That comes to $28800, not 80k. Still pretty expensive, but quite a bit less than the 80k you mention.

Yikes, this is getting good!

JTinn, you may want to think about going ahead and bringing the $800 integrated to CES for grins. Cheers, Alan

Evolution Acoustics MMThree would be my dream speaker. But JTinn, I am on Robsker's side of argument. Take a look at my system. By your standards it is probably in class C/D/E.... But think - when I want to upgrade, I will always want to hear components in my range. I once was heard a PSB Silveri being driven by Krell mono blocks - this was about 12 years back - at a show. I was really mesmerized by the "ease of flow" of the music. Later when I wanted to put in a real system, I auditioned the same PSBs at a dealer. This time it was driven by a NAD power amp and later switched to Arcam integrated amp. Guess what - I was not that much impressed. I am not saying that the same will imply for the MMMicroOne.

But if you are targeting the MMMicroOne speakers for regulars like us, then the demo with real-life-electronic-partner will make more sense. (As of now) I cannot afford $20k+ electronics. If I could afford that, I would easily afford $20k+ speakers.

Andrew,
You are right. It is the speaker's strength to show the quality of electronics being used. But with a demo like that, I will always be frustrated knowing that my electronics will always be my weak link in the chain.

Well Pilgrim, there was also that NVS TT ($45,000) along with a Durant tonearm...The new Telos ($14,500) plus the second tonearm. Maybe even some tasty ICs, SC, and PCs. Then there was the really beautiful and well thought-out Mike Spitz (cool, Mike!) creation, the ATR-102 Reproducer/Recorder ($8-14,000.) A cartridge maybe...Ortofon A90 ($4200.)

JTinn, these above-mentioned items, with the darTZeel CTH-8550 and the PD MPS-3, are a little north of $100,000 worth of kit at retail feeding these EA speakers. It does appear that Robsker's number was actually a little light with an estimate of $80,000.

Wow - some wild claims being made around here these days!

JTinn:

You ask about magico and do they need to have to have real world mating of equipment too... well, of course.

The Magicos cost 25K --- anyone purchasing such speakers, based on that price, will likely have 35K to maybe 45K in electronics for a 60-70K system. So... they should audition their systems in that manner.

A basic rule of thumb for most buyers is that their speakers constitute ca. 33 to 40% or so of the system price. Some may drop to 25% of system price --- so to audition a 25K speaker it would be reasonable to have, I suppose, as much as 75K in electronics feeding it. For a 2.5K speaker, then having say up to 7.5K in total electronics feeding it is reasonable. Now, in your case where you are making the case that your product performs well above its price (which may be the case) you might set up twice, two rooms or two systems in one room --- once w/7.5K (the realistic system) and do the other one with maybe 40K or so of electronics, representing the "radical" side of system whereby the system could be compared w/ca. 10K speakers (as most 10K speakers would have ca. 40K electronics associated with them (or less).

All I ask, as a consumer, is that auditions be set up in a realistic fashion that is useful for the consumer.

The facts, as seen by a reviewer (If you can't trust me, who can you trust?):

The MMMicros are exceptionally good; whether they are among the very best will be determined when Jonathan sends me some to review. ;)

Robsker has a legitimate point from some audiophiles' perspectives. He is right in asserting that the massively high end system ahead of the MMMicro One does radically influence the sound of the speaker. The community should know that this is universal, not particular to any given brand. You can take the Best Buy Insignia speaker and put $75K worth of gear on it; the speaker will sound far different than with $10K (this is a generalization, of course, as you all understand) worth of gear. I have done so myself. IOW, the quality of the gear ahead absolutely dictates the performance level reached by the speaker in the same fashion the quality of the rocket engine dictates how high the rocket gets.

When the Magnepan 1.7 was being used in review with $80K of gear ahead of it I pointed out to potential owners on the message boards that they should not expect that level of performance from the speaker; the performance experienced by the rank and file audiophile with $10-20K of gear would typically be quite different than in the review. The speaker was not a sea change but a freshening up. Time has borne out that some were disappointed that the speaker was not radically better. There is only so far any more economical speaker can take the music.

Now, to address Jonathan's valid point; Whether the speaker is worthy of the upstream gear is another question altogether. The Insignia poops out quite quickly with serious flaws showing themselves. The MMMicro has the guts to acquit itself well with better gear. It is a reference caliber, affordable, bottom-end limited speaker. Frankly, I don't know too many economical speakers of which that can be said. :)

The logic that the introductory model should be showcased more cheaply is interesting. If I were making speakers aiming for the top end of the market would I want to set up a low end rig to showcase them? I think not; it would likely be terribly confusing to customers. Why should someone who's making a statement product, regardless of price, treat it like a thoughtless comment? It seems obvious to me the statement of quality potential in terms of a system is in the system accompanying, while the statement of the speaker's sound quality itself is independent, yet subject to system variables. The statement of value is in the pricing.

I'll tell you what the discussion would be if Jonathan had put an econo-rig together for the MMMicroOnes:
A segment of audiophiles would surmise that Evolution Acoustics had compromised their quality standards, that the internals of the speaker were not up to snuff, and that's why the sound was not as primo as a fully pimped system. People would be saying, "Why didn't they show the speaker as well as it can sound?..." It would certainly cross my mind, and it would be my goal to find out if it was true or not.

It's a "no win" for Jonathan when he puts his absolute best foot forward in terms of demo, but is shot down that it was TOO good! ;) I'm not sure this point has been made; I skimmed the responses to the thread, but keeping the rig he same in terms of attending components allows people familiar with Evolution's sound to confirm that the house sound is intact. I believe that was happening at those demos. Robsker's core point of performance relative to systems is correct, but is not an obscure influence like a hidden subwoofer. You don't need to defend yourself, Jonathan, the MMMicros are superb as I have heard at shows.

For those with incessant skepticism regarding reviewers, I have spoken to Jonathan prior about reviewing the MMMicro One's but I have not to date reviewed any Evolution Acoustics products and am not currently, nor any associated gear shown in demos.

With all the talk abou them, I had to give them a listen at RMAF this year. It was obvious that the electronics were doing a nice job, the noise floor was very low ... one of the lowest at the show. The MMMicroOne's did sound nice, but in my opinion appropriate with the price point. There are plenty of speakers in the $2000 range that the small Evolutions outperform, but also some that are equal or better for around the same price. They're certainly not ground breaking.

It is quite clever to make them so similar in appearance to their much more expensive speakers. People assume they're using more expensive drivers than they really are. I doubt Jtinn would post pics of the backsides of those drivers, but talking with a speaker builder friend of mine at the show, he said it's just a $50 Air Motion Transformer tweeter and some approx $20 each anodized aluminum cone woofers.

My real problem is the liberties taken with published specs. They are NOT flat to 35hz as printed, sorry but not even close. I know what that sounds like, and I'd guess they're flat to maybe 55hz.

I think MicroOne marketing is not one centered on pricing, but rather focusing more towards competing products, and is pre-dorminantly result oriented. In all fairness, they have to use at least equal caliber gears (ideally same) with which their competitors are using in order to equally shine at shows and show off their best, how else?

All that said, I as a consumer, would be more concern of how the MicroOnes actually sound in comparison to those said $25-35k competitors. If at all 'near', or as many people claim to even surpass, then at $2.5k, we got ourselves a true audio bargain, a joyous news, and a refreshing break in the high end world--regardless of how it was demo'ed.. imo.

Prairie wind blowing through my head...

Doc77, I have never heard the Evolution Acoustics speakers but everyone keeps raving about the sound....except for you. I typically read a poster's other threads to get an idea about their listening likes and dislikes.

I'm not saying you are not correct in your opinion HOWEVER you only have 4 posts in these forums and they are all touting Vapor speakers. Are you in any way affiliated with Vapor audio? I've never heard Vapor speakers either, I'm sure they are fine speakers. ALOT of ears....well trained ears repeatedly pick the Evolution Acoustics/JTinn rooms at shows among their best of show.....show in, show out. I'm just curious about your affiliation with Vapor.

Stereo Mojo.com says the MM Micro One sounds better than the Magico Q1 in their RMAF Show review. Having attended this show and hearing both speakers(different systems, but both very expensive) I`d agree the Evolution speaker was much better and certainly more involving and natural.

I would assume at a cost factor 10x higher the Magico used more expensive parts. So itemizing various parts/prices is`nt always an accurate way to judge the finished product. DOC77 what`s the point in focusing on the individual speaker part cost? Ultimately the ability to reproduce music well is the only meaningful objective.

I was just about to mention that Stereomojo show report. Everyone should read it, simply for the pure entertainment, compared to other show reporting which is basically just listing the room and gear without giving opinion regarding the sound.

Anyway... they did point out the MMMicro One was a better sounding speaker than the Magico Q1, and the Magico did use much more expensive upstream equipment.

But I am with Robsker on the opinion good amplification can make average speakers sound fantastic, and a Dartzeel integrated amp is not chump change.

My affiliation with Vapor is I own a pair and have literally fallen in love with them. Because of them my entire paradigm of what stereo reproduction should be has changed. I've been a lurker for years.

Hey guys, I said the MMMicroOnes sounded nice. Actually I'd agree as well that they sounded better at RMAF than the Q1's ... but Magico is an easy target. I also thought the Fritz speakers sounded equal or better than the MMMicroOnes for even LESS money.

I suppose all the boastful claims from Jtinn are what prompted me to post.

Interesting. I was standing outside, talking to Irv Gross, Magico sales manager, when the Mojo couple came out of the room. I am pretty sure I heard them asking Irv if they can get a pair of Q1 for an audition. I guess they are masochists.

I haven't heard either one, and the Micro One may very well be an excellent speaker. However, it's hard to take Stereomojo seriously when it comes to, well, anything........

Shakey

I find Stereo Mojo more credible than Jonathan Valin.After hearing those speakers, Stereo Mojo was "much" closer to the truth than Valin`s gushing review. I thought the Frizt speakers were better sounding than the MagicoQ1 YMMV.

Interesting posts and points...

As to the reply regarding my earlier post commenting on trust.. I appreciate the reply; however, it is helpful when one does not confuse "facts" with opinions and the resultant expressions. Maybe it has to do with the locus of control; maybe not...

Agisthos: How much should one spend on an amp and preamp for the MMMicroOne? Would 8k for an amplifier be unreasonble? How about 8k for a preamplifier? The darTZeel CTH-8550 is 20k but also includes a fantastic phonostage. Is it really that unreasonable to use that combo?

Also, I show the products I represent. I have responsibilities as an owner of Evolution Acoustics, Playback Designs, Wave Kinetics and importer of darTZeel to keep those products seen at trade shows. I believe Hervé Deletraz loves the MMMicroOne and has no problem with us using a $2500 loudspeaker / stand to show off his electronics. Why should anyone else?

Charles1dad: Thank you. I do question one thing:
You state: "I would assume at a cost factor 10x higher the Magico used more expensive parts."

I do not necessarily know this to be so. I could have priced our MMMicroOne at what I consider ridiculous margins, as I believe Magico and most other speaker manufacturers do. Magico has a huge advertising budget which I am sure is built into the retail price of their speakers, we do not. Why should you and others pay for their advertising?

Doc77: I understand why you say most of what you say and respect the fact that is your oponion. However, where you are totally off base is the statements you made as if they are facts I take serious issue.

You stated: " I doubt Jtinn would post pics of the backsides of those drivers, but talking with a speaker builder friend of mine at the show, he said it's just a $50 Air Motion Transformer tweeter and some approx $20 each anodized aluminum cone woofers.

My real problem is the liberties taken with published specs. They are NOT flat to 35hz as printed, sorry but not even close. I know what that sounds like, and I'd guess they're flat to maybe 55hz."

I will absolutely post pictures of the drivers and other parts used on our website in the near future. What will that actually tell you? Your speaker builder friend is an complete idiot if he thinks he knows what he is talking about regarding our drivers. We build them ourselves and I assure you the quality is incredibly high and the cost is not close to what he is telling you.

The biggest problem I have with your post is you saying that our published specs are a lie. That comment is very insulting and you are ABSOLUTELY WRONG!

You have nothing to lose by making statement like you have. As a manufacturer, we work incredibly hard at designing and building a product. I have a lot invested in my companies and taking pot shots at my products is quite an insult and that is just wrong. Again, we all have the right to our opinions, but some of the statements you made are allegations, not opinions. It is just wrong.

There's no reason to get so snippy. What I say is that you're taking liberties with your published specs ... as most manufacturers do. There's just no way those are flat to 35hz.

Now before you blow up again take a step back. I also said they sounded quite nice, I said they were better than the Magico Q1's. It's just difficult enough to try and decide on speakers as it is, having to sort through specs that are deceiving doesn't help. That's my only point.

And I assure you my speaker building friend is no idiot. He's been in business for over 20 years. He just said that to me while talking down in the lobby at RMAF because somebody else made the assumption that the woofers were Accuton, which of course they're not. But is he incorrect in saying that it's an Air Motion Transformer tweeter and an anodized aluminum cone woofer? Personally, I don't care what the components cost ... just how the final result sounds.

Jtinn,
My assumption regarding higher part cost price for the Magico could certainly be wrong. I was giving them the benetfit of doubt given the large price difference between the two speakers.
You are correct, part cost may not necessarialy be higher.

JTinn:

Thanks for the responses. I did not know that you are as well connected to Playback Designs, Wave Kinetics and were the importer of darTZeel. When you say "I have responsibilities to keep those products seen at trade shows" that makes perfect sense to me and certainly legitimizes your auditioning your speakers as you did. What I objected to is such expensive front end on your speakers --- it was perceived by me initially as yet another example of what I have seen too often -- a vendor forwarding their product under unrealistic conditions that can come at the detriment of the potential consumer. Now that you explain why you did what you did (your being connected to and part of much of the associated equipment as well) you have convinced me that what you did is far, far, more reasonable a thing than I at first thought.

So... I would simply suggest that you consider --- in addition to what you have been doing --- also demoing your speakers with lesser electronics at some point so as to enable consumers to project what your speakers might sound like in a system consistent with what most 2.5K speakers have as a total system

I do apologize to you for causing stress. As you say, it is easy for us consumers to post... we have no livelihood associated with the product --- you do. Again, apologies.

Please recognize that all along I have never doubted the quality of your product, just the context of the demo. I actually would love to hear your speakers at some point... with about 10K of front end!

Best of luck with your products... clearly those who have heard your speakers are eminently impressed. I simply ask all who have posted on this thread, no matter what your position might be on the demo context, acknowledge that JTinn has clearly made a product that must be pretty darn impressive. Again, I hope to hear it soon.

Doc77: Fair enough. But when your friend makes completely wrong statements as he did, he might not be an idiot just one prone to idiotic statements :) As a side note, I know some people who have been in this business for much longer than 20 years that are complete idiots. Time has nothing to do with it.

Again, you are also completely wrong about the specs being exaggerated. We took no liberties, I believe it was you who did with your assertions.

As far as the drivers are concerned, our tweeter is based on air motion transformer principles. We have a proprietary motor structure and chamber system as well as other numerous differences that I cannot not go into.

Our midrange driver utilizes a ceramic cone with a magnesium aluminum inner skin. This gives us all the benefits of the drivers we use in our other series, without the fragility.

Next time you are at a show and visit our room, please introduce yourself. I would love to meet you and I will buy the first round.

Robsker: Thanks for your understanding and your well wishes. Please let me know if you ever get to hear the MMMicros. I would love to know what you think.

Douglas: Thank you as well.

Charles1dad: I now find myself thanking everybody :)

Well almost...

Jtinn, I do not think 20k of amplification is too much or little for any type of speaker price range. I am just pointing out that it is a very expensive integrated amp.

I hope that the MMMicroOne can give a substantial amount of it's performance with an integrated in the 3-5k price range, which is where it will mostly be used.

btw, are you the same Jonathon Tinn that was behind the Lyra Connoisseur preamps from years ago? They were very highly regarded equipment, and got the ravest reviews of any product that did not use advertising bribery (which always says something).

Greetings JT: I do understand your desire to defend and protect your position with the resources that you have available. It does even make some sense that you feel questions at times may be directed with fun intended to make a point at your expense. I may even be guilty of a few of making a few of those comments, I apologize if I have unintentionally offended you.

However, it does surprise me somewhat when you take a position ascribing motives and business methods to your competitors (recent example, your above-mentioned Magico comment) to artificially enhance your position...JT, any thoughts?

Take a look at speakers which use multiple ceramic/ceramic composite drivers. Their specs are not as expected for such small drivers. A few years ago I would not have agreed that such diminutive drivers could plumb those frequencies, but it's happening due to technological development. It takes exceptional engineering to have a smaller driver put out lower frequencies. It can be done, but there are trade offs, of course.

It seems the past five years has seen a development technologically of a new breed of drivers (How many ceramic drivers did you see prior to five years ago?) which can do lower frequencies even though more diminutive. The magnets, baskets, coils, etc. everything is changing to achieve that result. I saw very few ceramic drivers several years ago at shows, but now they are becoming quite accepted and for good reason.

Douglas: That is absolutely correct. Our diminutive mid-woofer driver is actually built like a subwoofer.

--> Agistos,

You may referencing Jonathan Carr :-)

Regarding the MMMicroOne...my spouse and I thought Jonathan Tinn's room at THE Show in California was in the top tier of rooms for Best of Sound -- FWIW. ;-)

Best,
Sam

Unoear,
He is not alone in that. It sure felt like that at the show, when in so many rooms I found myself listening to some kind of "Magico bashing" or why my "$1500 so and so is so much better" conversation.
Jtinn and Douglas,
My $30 (Or less) PC sub, has a 4" driver in it. I wouldn't necessarily want to listen to it as a main speaker.

One two bashings - likely na', probably motives driven.
Three four five six - umm.. just maybe.
Many?? - sounds to me like a consensus of that product's ability.
Can't be conspiracy can it?
Have not heard both, but the MMMicroOne sure perks my interest.

Djanggo,

Sure. No motives, whatsoever... Just some greenish halo.

>> Can't be conspiracy can it?

Only when it come to the press. How else would you explain all these false accolades.

Usermanual,
"Magico bashing" or just simply people honestly expressing their opinions after hearing and comparing various speakers.
Wirhout question there were those at RMAF who thought the Q1 was good or even great sounding (not me). Taste and preference are what they are.

I think what struck many listeners is that for 25K the Q1 was not impressive and in fact in their opinion this speaker was out performed dy considerably less costly speakers under similar show conditions.

Some will find the Q1 superb and a very fair value, if that`s the case then I say go for it.
At 1/10 the cost I found the Micro One to sound superior, at the very least I can say the system sounds better than the Magico room/system.

It you really like the Magico and trust your ears, why would you care about other`s contrary impressions ?

Looks like the Magico Q1 will be to standmount speakers what Nordost Valhalla was to cable builders. A high dealer margin product to aspire and beat for a much cheaper cost.

My comments were made after some of Jtinn remarks here, and in other posts as well. Not just regarding Magico, but other competing brands to the assortment of products he represent. It is not about "people honestly expressing their opinions ". It is about representatives of competing brands. I find it a bit tasteless, that is all.

I have been trying to pre-order these speakers from January. I have sent a few email to Evolution acoustics to try and get some help. The only response I got was to the first email - to the effect that Absolute Sounds (UK) were likely to take on dealership of the brand. Unfortunately, that seems not to have materialised. My subsequent queries (I must sent a dozen or so) have simply received no response. Can anyone enlighten me as to the best way to establish effective contact/communication with the seller?

Usermanual,
My reference was your statement about listeners in various rooms prefering their "1500.00" speakers to the Magico Q1.
They were expressing a choice just as you are. You like This speaker, nothing wrong with that.

But I was not talking about "listeners". I was talking about competing manufactures. Just like Jtinn. Hope it is clear now.

Usermanual okay I understand, reading your earlier post that was`nt clear, as show attendees made similar statements/comparisons also.

Late to this thread but having heard the micro one at Newport I can attest to their lifelike sound whether it be rock or jazz or classical. I think it was better than the similarly sized and more expensive Harbeth monitor which is quite good in its own right. At the price point this will sell it, it is an audiophile bargain.

How people can comment about any aspect of its sound without hearing it is difficult to fathom.

I love the dartzeel but could see my Ear integrated amp sing with these speakers.

I heard the MM Micros at RMAF, and I thought they sounded fantastic.

While I understand the desire to hear a product demo'd with similarly priced components, I for one do not begrudge manufacturers who demo their products with much more expensive components. I don't feel misled by this practice, and I don't believe it invalidates a product demo, for the following reason...

Objections to the practice seem to be based on the belief that, during the demo, the less expensive component will be "helped" by the more expensive components with which it is partnered. While that may be true, it is not inherently misleading. It would be misleading only if the more expensive components were somehow MASKING THE FLAWS of the less expensive component. In my experience, that is seldom the case. I believe that, as a generalization, the better a component gets, the more it REVEALS THE FLAWS of the components with which it is partnered.

Hence the practice of demo'ing an inexpensive product with much more expensive components can be considered a way of demonstrating not only the product's CAPABILITIES but also its LIMITATIONS. And that may just be the most honest demo of all.

Bryon

P.S. I have no personal or financial relationship with Jonathan Tinn or Evolution Acoustics.

Excellent point Bryon, there`s no place to hide flaws as you increase the quality of accompanying components, it`s all laid bare and exposed.It is indeed a tribute when a modest priced component can shine with far more expensive audio gear.

I think JTinn makes an excellent point that if darTZeel, a very high end company, does not object to using much less expensive speakers, Evolution Acoustics MMMicroOne, then that is a great compliment to these speakers because of course they would want the sound of their electronics not to be compromised by less than excellent speakers, regardless of cost. Just because Jonathan Tinn distributes both lines does not necessarily mean they should be displayed together.

"Can anyone enlighten me as to the best way to establish effective contact/communication with the seller?”

Since your question received no learned response, I’ll suggest that you try contacting Jtinn through the Audiogon system. What have you got to lose?

They sound way cool.