just auditioned tannoy yorkminster

heard them at a dealer with moscode amp, conrad johnson pv-12 preamp, bat cd player, and unidentified vinyl gear.

the yorkminster with super tweeters were very revealing, transparent, truly full range, had great retrieval of details, but somehow not as engaging/musical as my setup. female and male voices were clear and smooth. full orchestras and small jazz ensembles sounded very natural and lively. but of the 2 piano recordings we've heard (including one of mine), none connected with me. my piano cd sounded choppy, incoherent, and harsh through the yorkminster, but never through my system.

perhaps:
1. i am too used to my system's warm and golden sound
2. my room is much larger
3. my cds were not well recorded and my system is too forgiving
4. the yorkminster is not fully broken in yet
5. the dealer's electronics were not on par

i am still a tannoy fan. i was also a bit surprised how reasonably priced the legendary westminster royal ($24k) is comparing to the yorkminster ($14k) and the likes of b&w original nautilus ($40k), jm lab grand utopia be ($70k?), acapella (rocket lift off)...

sorry for the rather inconclusive, unscientific, baseless report : )
scottie