Gallo REfF3's-All their cracked up to be?


Having won award from Absolute Sound,6Moons etc just wondering if how they compare with others in $25r00-$5K range.With Maggie 1.6/3.6's,Spendors,Harbeths,B&W Nautilus 803's etc not to mention used Quad 988.989,Infinity Preludes that have been seen as low as $3500,Gershman RX-20's used,offerings from Audio Physic (again good values used,heard Sparks where I liked low volume dynamics and read the Gallo's need to be pushed to come alive) well it's a crowded market.But seems like the twop speakers that have major buzz factor are the Gallo and NHT Xd system (selling for a bit over $6K).Live in sticks anbd would like to hear from folks who have put the Gallo's up against other speakers with empahsis on accurate midrange.Had as pair of Ref 2's but never got system set up around them nor dialed them in correctly.Was so nervous that tweeters might blow which were irreplacable got me nervous and I got rid of them pretty quickly.Have heard from dealers that Gallo can be unpleasant in cutomer support and lack of back tweeters could have been his resent ment that they did not sell better.But even though that's speculation is does say that they could be beter in support area.Maybe new models and sales might correct this.,They seemed to have great attributes but also weakneeses.Couldn't shake the feeling they were "gimmicky" in some respects but againn perhaps they were not dialed in proprly.Would lkike to run with 40 watt glass but could go 200+ solid state.Any auditions or owners who could give the good ,the bad and the ugly?
Thanks
Chazzbo
chazzbo

Showing 4 responses by kkm

Regarding the SA , I haven't heard it, but given the same price, would it make more sense to get a seperate subwoofer? I would think that the 2nd voice call would add more resonance to the whole unit as oppose to a seperate sub unit away from the speaker.

On a somewhat related topic, I've tried the speakers without the points and they really resonate around the speakers, it sounded less focus probably because the vibration carries it back to the whole speaker, with its large base against the floor. I've seen some dealers do without the feet because it is easier for them to move the speakers around, make sure when auditioning they are at least on. I temporarily elevated the speakers with some books to see what that sounded like, and it improved it in 2 areas. There was less resonance since it was further away from the floor and the energy was able to drain away. The image height increase since the tweeter was ear level. I did find someone who does a custom stand at a fraction of the cost of the Bright Star that I should be receiving next week. It's sand fillable and I requested that the height be 6" since I thought 8" is too high, given my experiment, I would think that it would be a marked improvment.
Dave, don't want to hijack this thread and get off-topic, so I'll e-mail you and get you a photo later. I haven't receive the stands yet, so I don't want to be too premature with my assessment.
Finally had the DIY stands completed and running for a couple of weeks now and it's been quite an improvement. For photo's follow the link:

http://www.audiocircle.com/circles/viewtopic.php?t=28857&highlight=
Rolloff, they are not attached, I do have some threaded screw from the bottom of the speakers to the holes on top of the stands to prevent shaking or knocking off since I'm in earthquake territory.