Naim and Elac Adante, Wow


The new Elac Adantes are creating a lot of buzz both good and bad.

We were mixed on the speakers initially as certain sonic aspects were fantastic while others were less then satisfactory.

The Adante AS 61 has a relatively low sensitivity so we thought 40 watts will not be enough.

Surprise the Naim Uniti Atom with Wireworld cables produced an intoxicating sound.

The Atom is warm and punchy so the combo matched perfectly.

Elac and Naim fantastic together and affordable.

3k amp which includes dac and streamer,  plus 2.5k speakers other then cables and stands this combo would make a lot of people very happy.

We would urge prospective Adante purchasers to seek out this combo these two products mesh while other combos of electronics with the Adantes may be why some people are not liking the speakers.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ
128x128audiotroy
gpgr4blu and ctsooner..ok most of the planets are back in alignment.....fly out to the Emerald City and we can get high on balsa wood and a few decent Davis Family Wines...nothing high technology or innovative about them....I know they have email....that is how i order it....

right now I have JJ Cale cranked up a bit....loving it...

Mikapen,

It is hardly painful it is a pleasure, google our business and see.

It is one thing to have an discussion and raise points and not reconize the validity of your opponents opinions, or not.

If you notice we said on countless posts that the 1C and 2Ce are great value for dollar speakers, we are not in love with the other models as some of these other gentleman are and prefer our products for the price and value which they represent.

Nor do we love planers after owning numerous ones.

One particular gentleman got bent out of shape when we disagreed on who and what constitues revolutionary vs evolutionary. Yes a balsa wood cone is innovative but is it better than anyone else driver employing their composites?

Do you think that Kef and B&W and Focals cones aren’t perfectly pistonic?

If you actually read what we wrote you woud see we know a lot about many different brands and sound in audio.

Where we differ is we don’t blindly recommend the same products to everybody.

Good luck to you and if you are in the area you should stop by.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ

PS Tomic you will get much higher not smoking balsa wood.


Tomic, bob and I would have a blast out there.  That's a great idea.  As long as you can accommodate my rollator, I'll be fine, lol.  Teh walking sticks aren't doing it anymore, ;). Would enjoy your system for sure.  
Post removed 
Post removed 
@fsonicsmith writes:

" Audiotroy, I hate to break this to you, but your constant touting of Legacy and your slow but ramped-up cheerleading of Elac is growing tiresome. You are shilling the lines you sell, plain and simple."

Agreed. I've reported the posts. I hope you and others do likewise. All I see is abuse behavior towards other members and their likes/dislikes, and spamming/shilling for one product line.  
The worst part is — if you follow these posts, you get email notifications of every post. So you get to see the posts of users complaining about him before they vanish (aka get deleted by Forum moderators). I think he himself is reporting all posts of that kind.

This place would be far better without him.
Gee Contuzzi guess what?

We never contacted the moderator not once.

As per better without us there are at least 4 people who have contacted us in support of what they have learned.

I wonder how many people have learned anything from you?

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ


As always, your points are short sighted.

Four people huh? I think you’d be surprised how many more don’t enjoy your posts.

Oh, and the other point you made about how many people have learned anything from me — again, very short sighted and not a very intelligent point. I don’t post nearly as much as you, and don’t try and be as “helpful” (read: pushing brands you carry) as you because I don’t have the time. Look at your post count compared to mine, and worse, the length of your posts.  

Next time try harder.

Two terrible points.
Fssonicsmith 

I guess reading isnt your strong point.

We talk about how much we like Rockport loudspeakers we arent dealers for them.

So i guess we are shilling for them too.

By the way most dealers talk about the products they sell or they would not be endorsing them.

Ask Contuzzi if he is shilling for Paradigm as he mentions them alot also.
Post removed 
Too bad Repeluso.

You dont read either. 4 people found our comments helpful.

You are not adding anything to this disscussion. 

Do you have a comment about Elac Adantes or not?

Go check out our shilling of 0 products on the room/speakers post.

Or the guy with blown Avalons post 

Or the guy who needs a Forsell serviced again 0 discussion or mention of any of our products.

Interesting that you never managed to comment on those posts where we offered good advice without getting anything.

Guys like you need to grow up and not be questioning someones motives.

If you dont think there are tons of unannounced real shills on this site you got another thing comming.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor Nj

Want to see why we know so much

https://m.facebook.com/pg/audiodoctor1/posts/

Where do u work?
One last point Cotuzzi most of the thread posts  have been to rebuttals of 
Guys like you. 

There would be very little need for any rebuttals if people would stay on track.

This is a forum to discuss products and how to set up and enjoy them not a forum to name call who is or is not trolling or shilling.

Any dealer that mentions a product they sell in a positive light is technically shilling. 

Good luck to you please continue to believe in what you want to believe like all amps which measure well sound the same, and cables and power conditioners are a scam.

We will continue with what we do test and listen.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ
Post removed 
Plenty busy actually.

The point is we work in the audio industry, it is our job to know, test, and to evaluate audio gear.

Funny we find a guy like you with your narrow point of view to be childish.

You questioned our motives when you stated that we are shillling for our products.

To which we showed you in several posts we try to assist people whenever we can.,

There is so much misinformation on this site.

And again stick to the topic ELAC Adates  got an opinion on em?

I guess not or you would actually be doing what a forum is supposed to be about. Talking about audio.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ
To be fair to the moderators, I did make a post (first as new Audiogon member!!) and then deleted my own post that was antagonistic to Audio Doctor, because I realized it had loaded language that should only be an issue about 1.5% of the time yet may have been in this instance.

If there is such drama and sanctimony on an audio forum and people can’t enjoy such a delightful subject matter, this world is screwed. And of course the culprit of this derision is also the one that declares they are “harassed”.
Gerdessc

You are correct it should be fun and people should be able to express ideas and points without people blowing their tops.

You got guys saying they would never come into our shop, based on what they read, here, come on, if you think the experience of talking with someone on a forum is like meeting someone in person or talking with them on the phone it isn't.  The ultimate proof is hearing the products and systems setup and seeing for yourself if you agree or disagree that the sound is good and to your taste.

We even said the Elac's have a tendency to be a bit hot and require careful matching. The problem is how overblown people's love and support of their products is. 

You should be able to openly discuss, drivers, technology, engineers, etcs, without feeling threatened. Whether brand X or Y employs technology which would be considered by some to be "revolutionary" while others do not feel that that technology is classified as such should engender an open discourse 

The derisive term that some posters have been raising towards us is shilling or trolling, for gain, the reality is that almost 0 people have purchased anything from us, by our replies on these forums, read what Zzsantabarbara  wrote about what they learned from us

The point we keep on making is that audio products are just tools if you can find a better one who cares out with the old and in with  the new. 

We are passionate about our products but quite frankly don't care so much about the brand we are always discovering and trying out new brands and equipment. 

In the case of Elac the Adantes are brand new and are controversial because they do have a pronounced flavor, if you care for a dynamic, visceral speaker with a big sound stage and a bit forward treble, you will love them.

If you prefer a softer treble, a richer midrange and less pronounced deep bass these are not the speakers for you.

If you notice in our posts we often mention different products as we sell many brands of loudspeakers, including, Dali, Legacy, Elac, Paradigm, KEF Rethem, Gradient, Cabasse we don't feel that any one brand of these speakers is more correct then the others, while other dealers, posters feel that only brand x is the path to musical nirvana.

This post was started to demonstrate that you can put together a fantastic package that is affordable and makes the Elac's come alive with a very complimentary package and not to go off track with a discussion of other loudspeakers design attributes. 

The moderators are doing a terrible job, posts that are not related to the subject should be removed. Period, no member should be attacked because you don't like what they write. 

If you don't like what they write don't get indignant just don't read the post.  There are many great people here with different points of view and likes and dislikes.  

The market is vast and you may be surprised by what you can learn from stores like ours we have over 60 brands on display, because we try to find products to fit the client, not fit the client to the product. 

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ

@audiodoctor I hear your points and don’t doubt your motives or expertise, but you are discounting how you come off to others. Your comments serve to diminish others’ preference, which is de facto subjective, patents and innovation aside, as well as their experiences. People don’t like to be browbeaten; much of your lengthy prose does just that. 

I don’t have a dog in the fight, haven’t heard Elacs and own a number of your brands (where’s Primaluna in the lineup?!?) but perhaps some genuflection is in order. 
Gerdessc,

Never have we browbeaten anyone, nor do we diminish anyone's preferences.  

We like and respect many brands that we don't sell, but unlike some of the other posters, we do not subscribe to the only one brand is better philosophy. We believe in offering real choice, sure we have our preferences but if you visited our shop and were shopping for speakers we would play you many different loudspeakers till we found a system that made you happy. 

As we have discussed on many other forum posts, there are fantastic loudspeakers that are first order time aligned designs and ones that are not, that are also fantastic. 

We do not believe that there is only one truth in audio so the Wilson guy who loves Wilson or the Vandy guy who loves Vandy may or may not love our Paradigms or Legacys or Kef's but there are some who may be shopping for these products and fall in love with the sound of some of these. 

We have recommended our brands as we wouldn't be recommending them if we didn't think that those products represent the core values which we believe in you will notice that in these general discussions we talk about other loudspeakers we don't sell that we like as well. 

Lets just agree that we all have preferences and even if a system is well setup and voiced a particular way may not be to a particular persons liking. 

Our preference generally is for very dynamic, transparent, loudspeakers, transistor amps and digital sources, that is not to say that we don't also love vinyl and tubes. 

On only one occasion have we brought in something totally different which is the Rethem Bahava which is a wide band single drive with isobaric bass as a really cool alternative type of speaker.

You seem like a nice fellow, but don't get suckered in by some of these very negative people and perhaps reach out and talk to us and see what you think. You may be pleasantly surprised by what we can offer you in terms of ideas on how to make your system even better. 

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor
"but unlike some of the other posters, we do not subscribe to the only one brand is better philosophy"

Dave, you have used this tired argument against me and others constantly and it's just incorrect.  Most of us like plenty of speakers.

"We do not believe that there is only one truth in audio so the Wilson guy who loves Wilson or the Vandy guy who loves Vandy may or may not love our Paradigms or Legacys or Kef's "

You are correct, I have heard the first two plenty of times (most of their models and recently) and they are way to bright on top for me and not coherent to MY ear.  Doesn't mean that any of us espouse to only ONE truth in audio at all.  Again, wrong

"Lets just agree that we all have preferences and even if a system is well setup and voiced a particular way may not be to a particular persons liking. "

Correct.  Then why do you keep making such long posts calling out anyone who says they don't like speakers or a system that YOU sell and are telling everyone how great they sound at your place and that they are they best things that are twice their price?  This is what so many posters get on you and your using this board as your marketing.  Everyone of us who posts here knows and respects others who like things that are different than what we like.  You are the only one who seems to not realize that part.  

"but don't get suckered in by some of these very negative people and perhaps reach out and talk to us and see what you think."

First off, I don't feel any of the posters who call you out are negative people.  Glad that you can make a statement like that, but you also posted in a Wilson thread that you used to work at Andy Singer's place and would laugh at and I think, made fun of folks after they left the store.  Can't back track on that as it was obviously what you guys did.  

I know that you PM posters on these threads to try and sell to them. I've had a couple of folks ask me what's up with that.  

Let me understand correctly, you say you aren't SELLING on this board, but you are asking folks to reach out to you to talk off the board where you have their ear.  THAT'S SELLING Dave.  No other way around it and please don't even try to twist it (but you won't be able to help yourself we already know that).  Then you have the audacity to say that folks are " getting suckered in" if it's a poster that publicly disagrees with you.  That's why no one can have a disagreement with you and why you MUST always have the last say in anything.  

I'm sure this will get under your skin and you will have a very very long restort that will be highly entertaining for most of us.  



Ctstooner,  really rather amusing.

If we were to check your 1,700 or so posts how many other loudspeakers have you ever endorsed or even mentioned vs one partiuclar brand?If you like so many different loudspeakers how come you never seem to discuss any of them?   

If someone is interested in Vandersteen do you ever mention any of the other louspeakers in the price range that many other people endorse like Golden Ear, or PSB, or Focals,  or Rockport, or a zillion other choices?

Sorry CT don't see it. How many posts did you mention Ayre over and over again, and now I think you discovered the Overdrive is even better?

If the answer is no, that you are biased and in fact more so then us, 

As per contacting people here on PM quite frankly is almost never happens I wonder how many other dealers do this? 

If you also can't understand hyperbole, no one acutally laughed at anybody at SBS or any other store, you mistake figurative vs literal. 

And also as mentioned before, you suffer from the same behavior as Grgr4blu, the discusion post is about Elac Adantes. 

Do you have an opinion about them? What was the combination that you or your friends/dealers found that works well with them?

I find it super interesting that several people here have more of a personal vendetta about things that have been said about certain brands of other speakers rather than staying on topic, which is not about us it is about a particular set of speakers and finding matching electronics.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ








Glad to amuse you Dave.  Since I'm not a dealer who makes his living out of posting and selling, I can post about anything I want that I love.  :)

As for how many other speakers I have talked about that I love?  It doesn't' matter since I'm just a poster on an internet board that was originally set up for we audiophile to have fun adn get away from dealers, hawkers etc...  Others just aren't as transparent as you and YOU are the only one I personally know of who PM's posters (that to me is like spamming) because when you post most call you out.  (see, I can play your game of posting long and loud and often). 

It's not up to me to endorse a damn thing Dave, lol.  You use dealer terms and I"m just a poster having fun like 99% of the board.  Plenty of others will ALWAYS share what they own or love.  Since those posters also have nothing to gain....   Oh, go read my posts Dave and you will see plenty of places where I've talked about other brands as there are a few that I like. Oh, I have even done that in this thread when I was told to stay on track by teh board policeman..YOU, ha.   Is this like graffiti when posters call you out while you are marketing yourself? ;)

As for DAC's, go read and stop being so emotional Dave.  I LOVED my Overdrive and always have said so.  It does some great things.  So does my Ayre. The Ayre works much better in my system, not that I need to even justify to YOU of all people, lol.  (this really is kind of fun).  BTW, if you read the thread, you'll also know that I am getting The Memory Player server/DAC and I STILL love the Ayre for the great value it offers.  Wow, I also love Steve Nugent's gear too as well as the Trinity when I heard that a few years ago (only like 4 in the US).  I"ve also enjoyed other digital gear too.  

I"m biased to gear that I own and love and to other gear I love and can't afford. (I would say that most posters who aren't dealers are biased to what we own and that's why we PURCHASE this gear or are saving up to do that).   You are a dealer who has ZERO credibility no matter how many times you MAY mention a couple of other brands so you can say that you talk about other brands you don't sell.  Again, we are way smarter than that Dave ;). 

As for contacting folks via PM on here who don't ask for it, I know of a few adn I'm just 1 poster, lol.  For you to ask 'I wonder how many other dealers do this'....are you for real?  None, that anyone has shared with me and I'm in touch with MANY from the boards.  

"If you also can't understand hyperbole, no one acutally laughed at anybody at SBS or any other store, you mistake figurative vs literal."

You posted that in one of your emotion rants Dave and it was NOT hyperbole.  NO ONE took it that way and you spend a few posts trying to backtrack on that etc... It's OK Dave, it's human nature to make fun of people who don't agree with you since you have to be the expert as all your posts show.  You have. a comeback to everything and you MUST get the last word as this thread alone proves, so again, you are not sharing the truth Dave and you know deep down what you did at Singer.  This is a very small community and there are many who have worked with you at Andy's and remember you well.  

"And also as mentioned before, you suffer from the same behavior as Grgr4blu, the discusion post is about Elac Adantes.

Do you have an opinion about them? What was the combination that you or your friends/dealers found that works well with them?"

So two good posters SUFFER from some behavior? Other than the 4 customers of yours who you ask to post on your behalf, others are just amused by all of this as am I right now.  

Dave, it's obvious that you don't 'think I've heard the Elac's, but again you are dead wrong.  I"ve spoken to many about my thoughts on them and that includes over 5 dealers who have sold or do now sell them.  I've also shared my listening experience's with them as well as with other posters and audio friends who have no time for threads like yours.  Go back and read my thoughts on them if you care that much. If you think you are calling me out somehow, again you fail, sorry :(...

"I find it super interesting that several people here have more of a personal vendetta about things that have been said about certain brands of other speakers rather than staying on topic, which is not about us it is about a particular set of speakers and finding matching electronics.

Dave, I find it super interesting that you hawk your home store and use the board for your marketing.  Are you saying that I have a personal vendetta or are you talking about others?  Staying on topic goes for everyone Mr Board Police.  More threads than not meander Dave.  Go read.  The longer the thread lasts, the more it meanders.  That is because we talk about systems and not one component and when someone brings in something that your marketing posts don't want, then you try and tell folks to 'stay on topic'.  You always make everything about YOU Dave. 

You can't keep on topic Dave.  You have to get the last word in as you wear everyone down.  When posters call you out for your using AG to market yourself, then you go on your rants.  I guess if you post long enough posts and more often than others, you win.  Not sure what the winning really is as if folks really care bout spending their hard earned money, they will go listen to folks who come off as professional and don't get into these fun tit for tat posts, lol.  
Long Rants Ct really look at yours?

Staying on topic really?

Please list all the dealers you heard Elac-Adantes and what they were using?

That is staying on topic which i see you cant as per having the last word laid everything out in the last post you didnt need the rebuttal.

Common CT look in the mirror your biases are crystal clear.

Dont make a living by writing on these posts however the amount of misinformation is staggering.

Go look at many of our recent posts where we mention TAD, Sopras as speakers to check out we dont sell either brand.

And most of our brands arent exclusive so who are we helping?


Dave, I was responding and not ranting.  There is a difference, lol.  

As I posted, but you didn't understand, threads often times get off topic and you certainly have that in you as you always have to defend yourself.

As for places I've heard them, I don't answer to you.  I never ran them down either, so I"m not sure of your problem.

I rebutted, the same way you do in every single thread Dave.  

Dave, everyone has biases.  I'm not a dealer who's selling on the boards for free.  Again, you fail to understand this basic concept.

Are you calling misinformation what posters are posting about their thoughts about products they own or have auditioned?  Staggering?  

I don't follow you Dave and I honestly don't care about who you mention or why you mention them.  

You are helping yourself Dave. If you can't see that you just aren't being honest with yourself. 
I guess we will agree to disagree.

I wonder if your posts have assisted anyone?

We can name at least 6 people who followed our advice however i see you just cant even stay on the topic which I recall is Elac.

Asked you what these people are using with them?

Get over it Ct stick to the topic or move along. 

The post is about Elac Adates and combos that work with them.

It is not about us vs Ct or anyone.

Stick to the topic or stop replying.


And this is why I dislike unmoderated forums. I click on this thread because it’s about a pair of speakers that I’m very interested in, but instead I get a pi$$ing contest between members. Sad. 
I am interested in the AS61 as well. Mostly how it sounds compared to others in its price range and how it might compare to others that cost more?

Does it do anything special sound wise to distinguish itself from its competitors in that price range? What other models of similar size does it compete with?


I would run these off a 60w/ch BEl Canto C5i integrated amp in my smaller family room system.

I also have the option of using a subwoofer as needed. Current speakers there are Triangle Titus XS. I also have Dynaudio Contour 1.3mkII and OHM Walsh 100 S3 (8" main driver) that I have run in there. All work well but somewhat higher efficiency of the Triangles is a plus with only 60w/ch in a larger open area family room.   Powered sub picks up the slack as needed.  Sounds very good!

Mapman and Cn, yes the moderators do need to step in.

A post whether you like the poster, or not, or agree or disagree with the points being made does not mean that people should be stepping off target and making some of these ridiculous assertions.

For the record we have almost never received anything from these posts.

We post because we have over 30 years of experience in this, not as a hobby but as a full time vocation and if it isn’t obvious, we are the kind of store that moves in and out of gear to find what is the best products for our clients and we test new products vs our older staples constantly.

For example recently we brought in Mytek, Anthem STR integrated, Anthem STR seperates, Naim Uniti Nova. LH Harmonic Davinci 2, CJ Classic 62Se,Rethem, Innuous servers, Elac Adantes and probably I am forgetting a few pieces.

In the case of the Elac Adantes way too much positive buzz about how they sounded at CES not to take notice.

Mapman, the AS 61 we can compare to the ATC SCM 11, and 19, the Kef LS 50, Dali Mentor Minuet, Paradigm Prestige and Persona, and KEF Ref 1.

The Adante has a very dynamic sound with a very tight punchy bass, a very clean midrange, and very big soundstge, they do tend to be a tad forward in the treble.

If you like the sound of the Wilson WP especially the original 5, and 7 you will love the Adantes they really slam, and they have a lot of bass so they can over load a small room if your tastes tend to warmer more laid back sounding speakers like Harbeth you will not like them at all.

The ATC throw a more focused soundstage with a bit less bass, however, the Adante will most probably be the winner over the SCM 11.

The Bel Canto can easily drive them, the only issue will be they are a bit more forward in the treble than the Dynaudios. So choice of cabling and sources can be an issue.

Adante think very clean, dynamic and punchy. A great rock speaker, great for jazz, big robust sounding speakers.

You will really not need a subwoofer with them. In our 18 by 14 demo room the bass can rattle the windows a bit.

They do not sound good at all out of the package.

Hope that helps and thanks for getting the post back to talking about speakers.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ



I've found the Dynaudios can sound a tad hot in some setups, but not with the C5i.   

How do the ELACs compare to ATC SCM 19?
Great commercial Dave.  Glad you could get all those names in lol. It’s important that a dealer brings in gear that sells. I would too as we all like different things. Buzz is proven to sell. You put a smile on my face.

 I already stated that they are tuned bright and need very good electronics that have a lot of power to wake them  up Parasound and Bryson work fine.

 


I'm currently using LS50's in a small (11x12x8) dedicated listening room. Power is the new Anthem STR integrated, with a REL T5 rounding out the bass. I'm interested in the AS-61's because I'm basically looking for a LS50 with more body. The reference 1 is a little more than I want to spend, so I'm thinking that the Adante might fit the bill. My other choice is the KEF R300
Hey I've got an idea. How about when Audiofool posts, we all ignore him and continue the thread as if he is not there. It would drive that shill crazy.
@crn3371  I briefly auditioned the passive LS50s (driven by Parasound A21), and while the imaging and soundstage were amazing, I also was missing the heft or body or whatever you want to call it. I returned the passives and bought the wireless version. I then added a REL T9i and integrated it using the KEF app. I can tell you this combination is significantly better than (now sold) Bowers & Wilkins CM10 driven by Parasound A21. If you like the KEF sound, you ought to try out the LS50w's before anything else. I know that I'm not selling mine for a very very long time.
Arafiq hardly surprsing. We are a Parasound dealer, and although they make  a good amp for the money
Parasounds products generally sound warm and a bit closed in.

The LS 50w would sound cleaner and more open due to active  crossover, 0 cabling, and perfectly designed amps.

As per Elac Adantes vs Ls  50 no comparson there. The Ls 50 sounds like  a fantastc monitor, the Adantes sound like a floorstander.

Cr if you have specific questions PM us.

We currently have the Kef Ls 50, Kef Ref 1, Elac Adates, ATC Scm 11, Scm 19.
 Paradigm Persona B on display.

So we can answer questions pertaining to any comparisons.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ
"Cr if you have specific questions PM us.

We currently have the Kef Ls 50, Kef Ref 1, Elac Adates, ATC Scm 11, Scm 19.
 Paradigm Persona B on display."

Dave, please share how this is NOT a commercial?  Just wondering how that works, lol...HA

I’m on the West coast, Dave is on the East coast. I’m basically housebound due to medical reasons and am forced to buy online, and ONLY from vendors with good return policies. Dave carries my current speakers and amp, along with many of the speakers I’m considering to upgrade to. If I can pick his brain and get some hands on insight, then I consider that a bonus and not a schill for my business. 
Another review with an additional group of measurements came out for the Adante bookshelf, and while they subjectively reviewed well for bass quality, the tweeter subjective and performance measurements provide a good insight to how they were engineered.

As the tweeter begins to cross over with its mid diver, a flare at around 10 degrees off axial occurs ranging form the upper mid range to mid treble. This levels off at around 30 degrees with the axial response and then the typical upper treble roll off that occurs with most tweeters. There is a mild notch at the upper end of the mid treble as well, which may be attributed to that oddly designed cover.

Considering its designer, this is certainly an intentional voicing and my expectation was to create a broad and vivid sound. You would likely need some very specific positioning to get these speakers to work. Very little toe in would be a good start and maybe some room dampening. 

If you test these for yourself, certainly bring your most favored recordings, but I would also bring some less than ideally mastered stuff to see if you can enjoy all of your library with it. A speaker that doesn't allow you to enjoy your library isn't something I would purchase for myself.
mmey, excellent.  Thanks for sharing.  That's probably why I heard that treble peak and why the dealers I heard them at all wanted to use a warm group of electronics.  

crn, I can appreciate your situation as I am housebound much of the time also with MS.  First point is that Audiogon isn't supposed to be used by businesses for marketing and sales. That's why they have the paid forum.  They have been very specific about that and I don't think it's changed.  

As for buying coast to coast, these companies usually have a very protective territory.  That protects the dealers.  It's just a good business practice.  I personally know many dealers on your coast who would probably love to earn your business too.  Many have a great return policy also and depending on where you live, they may even bring over a system for a day or two and help you listen in your own home.  I have had two dealers close to me bring over equipment when they know I'm serious.  

For those who like class D amps (not the biggest fan), that 300X2 watt Peachtree integrated with built in DAC is nice with the Adante line also.  For the price though there are so many good options as it's a tough market to play in.  You just need to figure out what compromises you are willing to make.  All speakers have them regardless of the cost.


Ctstooner your points are being raised for what reason exactly?

There is no paid forum on Audiogon. As per gaining sales, so far has almost never happened.

Any dealer that responds to these posts and mentions their dealship name is "selling " or calling attention to their dealership and their expertise, however, if you are not supposed to be an invisible non identified person who works for a dealer so hiding anonomously that isn’t right either.

I don't see you raising these objections when a particular Vandy dealer friend of yours answers or makes comments on these boards and signs off with his dealship's name, you can't have it both ways. 

People are free to make up their own minds on whom they want to do business with. As per manufacturers protecting dealers, you can order, almost anything on line and have it shipped directly to you by dealerships like ours or others or on line shops like Cruthfield or Music Direct.

It is up to the respective reader to see if they want to discuss a possible purchase or not with whomever they like.

As per Peachtree class D anything is not going to be exactly peachy with these particular speakers as most ICE based amps sound noticably thiner with great bass control but tend to have a less warm sound compared to a good class A/B amp, however, with that being said we haven’t heard the latest Peachtree stuff. We have had Ice based amps, Hypex and NCore here and haven’t found one yet that we actually wanted to listen to. We have found the Nuprime amps which are hybrid Class A/D amps and the NAD to actually sound good, but haven’t tried these amps with the Elacs.

We do recommend a really good tube/solid state hybrid. Do you know of any, we know of an amazing sounding one, but hey I can’t mention names now or that woud be shilling right?

Perhaps you should hear the combo we recommended in the post initially?

And yes there are ton’s of good choices in this price point including Vandy, Kef, Dali, Paradigm, B&W, Golden Ear, ATC, Harbeth, Focal as well as the Elac Adantes, we just have the added advantage of having most of the major players to compare them to in one location, which is why we post in the first place.

Go google Audio Doctor and see what people whom have either worked with or visited our shop have to say about working with us. One of the reasons we get people comming in to our shop is the selection of top competing brands is very wide, because we seek out what is new and setting the market on fire because our philsophy is to support the clients not the manufacturers, if someone is making a better dac or amp or speakers then what we sell we replace that brand or model with the new one.

For many people there aren’t any good dealers with a wide selection left in many parts of the country.

We will go find a Peachtree to listen to, why don’t you find a Naim to listen to and see what you think.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ





The review is from Stereoplay April edition and isn't available online without paywall access.
The key for an amplifier pairing is going to rest within the presentation balance. Put something a bit to forward and the flared response is going to become an issue. The Adante wasn't too bad with impedance, but it still requires something that could swing some voltage. The max level they could achieve without distortion is lower than the Kef Ref 1, Focal Sopra 1, or B&W 805D3 as distortion from the band pass woofer rises rather quickly. Still, those are much more expensive and unsurprising from my perspective.

The reason I bring up those speakers that in Stereoplay's subjective ranking system, which being a sort of numerical combine, place the Adante right up there with these other bookshelves. But looking a bit closer it became clear the ranking came about due to the high scoring from the bass section of the speakers. It would appear AJ's focus on the band pass design with an acoustical and electrical part of the crossover paid off well. Within its dynamic limits, its pretty darn good. These rankings, like any,  are generally skewed based on priorities and weightings.

Its a bit of insight to the Adante's that we hadn't seen in empirical numbers. With some effort, it can likely get a good in room response at the listening point, but there are more balanced designs out there.


Mmeysarosh, you raised some good points, however you missed one key point, which is the Adante is a $2,500.00 set of speakers and the Kef Ref 1 which are $8,000.00 the Sopra 1 which are $9,000.00 or the B&W 805D which are $5,000.00 a pair.

Mr. Jones did not design the Adantes to be a flagship, like the Unifi series before them, the Adantes were designed to offer much of what an uber speaker system delivers for less money so compromises had to be made.

As we mentioned before the Adantes sound like a Wilson Watt Puppy 5-7 series in terms of soundstage, bass punch, and clarity.

With the Adante being built to be a $2,500.00 set of speakers they are going to have some dynamic limitations.

The Kef Ref 1 are better speakers and they should be at that kind of price difference so are the Sopras.

The point about system matching is starting to sink in you must have the right partnering gear with them which requires a bit of care and an investment in something that will match the speakers sonic flavor.

The Naim Atom works so well because the Naim sonic palate is warm midrange and good bass control and excellent punch. the top end is very smooth and even though it is 40 watts we got good volume long before the amp is running out of steam.

It is going to be interesting to see how this thread develops as more people try the Adantes with a whole bunch of different gear.

Last thought about matching, we just put out today a Quad VA amp 15 watts tube with a pair of Quad S2 loudpeakers a compact bookshelf with a ribbon, combo which was designed and voiced together sounded amazing, then played the Kef LS 50 on the same electronics and not good in comparison.

So either two things are happening either the Quad speakers are better than the LS 50 or the amp isn’t partnering well.

See goes back to that damn audiophile thing of matching speakers to amps. sources to electronics, cabling with everthing and then room tuning, positioning and tweeking.

Last point, we would take in your words a less balanced speaker system that offers so many wonderful attributes but you have to be prepared to work with vs a more balanced design that does a lot of things well but excells at few of them.

The Adantes are not perfect but if you value what they do, soundstaging, bass punch and definition, alot of clarity you will be seduced by them, they have a very life like visceral quality, if your tastes goes for  warmer midrange, less treble detail and bite, and are not into super tight bass, and want a less thrilling more romantic sound these speakers will not be for you.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ
@audiotroy 

I had mentioned the results weren't surprising as the others were considerably more expensive, no missed facts and I instead used them as peers due to Steroplay's subjective scoring system. I didn't know the exact current pricing and wasn't invested enough obtain those figures, but understood they were in orders of magnitude.

I don't agree that the balance of the speaker was a budgeting factor as Andrew Jones has demonstrated the clear ability to design a neutral coax driver for considerably less. They have dynamic and resolution restrictions, but it still retains a balanced response. What I am eluding to is the speaker is specifically voiced and my impression is the goal was to create a vivid and bold sounding product. Budget considerations did come in, but it surfaced in differing manners of compromise. The first is obvious in terms of fairly mundane finishing options.

Now as for the soft dome tweeter, while its certain to have been cheaper over something like Be used in some of his past work at TAD, I do know that earlier prototypes sported both Ti and Al materials. Of the two, only Ti might be notably more costly over the soft dome and the main advantage of Ti over Al in a tweeter diaphragm resides in better internal dampening over Al. I doubt the extra fatigue or sheer strength of Ti made an impact. Strength to weight ratios are similar as are the poission's ratio. You could gain a stiffness advantage in shaping due to the lower density of Al, but shaping is more so used for dispersion over stiffness derived from shape. Why the soft dome? I honestly do believe he took advantage of the higher internal dampening, provided knowing it would serve his design better with its tailored response. A tweeter with resonance issues would have likely seen more exposure of flaws in this design than in others.

Do remember though that Kef uses an Al alloy for its high frequency driver and they applied a pretty elaborate FEA derived shaped and stiffening ring to push resonance up. Al is rather quite capable when invested into, and part in having a lower material density over Ti that gives the potential advantage. This, while not specific material cost, was certainly an engineering expense that I'm keenly aware of due to my own FEA systems that are likely a bit more extensive and horribly costly in their own right.

Where we can agree is that this speaker will require more careful pairing with partner electronics. I would not specify a specific topology on sound profile alone, but instead point to the impedance and phase response first. Since the Adante doesn't exhibit major current dependency, you are certainly more freely able to choose amplifiers that are not low ohm stable. Something that isn't true for the Focal Sopra line as an example.

Just like speakers, electronics can have a voicing. I would bet some of the Simaudio stuff would work well as would Mark Levinson (maybe either not a typical pairing). I have too little exposure to tubes to make a comment here. As for Class D, it depends on the generation and specific design. Some of the very most recent modules are a possibility and I do believe one of those mentioned Peachtree devices use the most recent 300ASP module, which is better in upper frequency response than past ICE designs. Another thought would be Classe, and considering their recent comeback and have produced a sound in recent products that might be complementing. You've certainly made a case for Naim in this regard.
Again you raise some valid points, have to diagree with a few of them.

We never thought the Unifi's the Debuts or the Pioneer spekers were neutral. 

A different perspective could be our assertion that the Adante line will be followed by a TAD like product with even better drivers, and other nicer things. The next realease will be the Argo line which is similar to Adante but with different drivers and powered. So we are estimating 2020. 

It is clear that Elac is using Mr. Jones to upgrade the public face of Elac. 

We were Elac dealers years before the Adantes and the Jet tweeter was excellent, their speakers were very refinded but they where not exciting designs. 

The other reason for changing the system could be due to parts costs which may have made the  prototypes too expensive for the price they were trying to hit when the final product would reach the shelves and if the Adante drivers were approaching TAD level for $2,500 and $5,000 speakers how could they then develop a higher end line?

Never cared for the Sim gear always sounded thin to us like the Ayre gear, so have to disagree. Haven't heard the lastest D ice modules either.

Classe has always had a darker tonal balance so yes that one coud be good.

And yes we do agree that this speaker does need careful matching but when you do you can get some very good results, as we reported the monitors remind us of the WP 7 not exactly the same but to emulate a $17k plus pair of speakers in any way is kind of an accomplishment.

To understand what Mr. Jones was thinking you should listen to his interviews. 

Nice talking with you lovely to have a civil discourse like the forums were designed to do.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ


wow Audiotroy you really talk some crap! I cannot defend Vandersteen -not my cup of tea -however several people do think the Balsa skinned carbon cones are a breakthrough and I have seen the measurements -have you seen the Focal driver measurements? contact Kieth Howard and he will provide you with dozens of Focal measurements - in there most expensive lines horrible break up modes and resonances -no they are anything but Balsa clean like the Vandy 7 -this is the only Vandy i would want to own by the way  anyway those cones are incredibly free of breakup modes. As for Harbeth they have especially formulated cones that no one else has that are said to be very revealing in the all important midrange .You go on about the newer speakers sharper treble -have you not read any of the articles where this is referred to the old age hearing aid curve that speaker designers have to have so there old fart half deaf customers AudioTroys need to have to hear any detail anymore ? anyway you then stait that the Adante deliberately has a flaw in the treble because they are bringing out dearer lines -rubbish most designers try to have as few  flaws as possible the real reason is the Adante is overpriced rubbish and i'll take the German designed Elacs anyday over them  Also anyone who thinks the original Wilson watt and early puppies were accurate please i know its legal over there but lay off the weed ! +- 10 db or more errors in response give the credit to focal for the drivers not Wilson show me a square wave passed through them -time accurate like Duntech for example not even close -anyway i only read half way so far Vivid I agree about he knows his stuff shame it is just so blastard expensive cheers
Audiogod66, really!  We call em like we here em. The Adantes are a good line of speakers for the money, are they better than anything else for the price that depends on the listener and their  tastes.

We have done demos of the Elac AS 61 a $2,500.00 monitor vs both the Harbeth Compact 7 a $4k monitor and the ATC SCM 19MK II also a $4k monitor. Harbeths are intrinsically colored you can not have a box which resonates and tell me that a lively cabinet is not going to impart some desgree of coloration to the sound. 

We never stated that the Adantes have a flaw in the treble because they are bringing out a more expensive line, the Adantes are built to a price point that fact that they actually aquint themselves very well vs some of the most highgly respected monitors the Harbeth and the ATC for example talks volumes about how good they are for the price. 

We would never expect a $2,500.00 set of monitors to be pefect and are willing to overlook their flaws vs what they do well for the price. 

Also we never said anywhere that the original WP were accurate they were not, they were however one of the best selling expensive pairs of loudspeakers that ever hit the market because they were exciting and dynamic sounding loudspeakers. 

As per the original German Elacs we owned them and they were very nice speakers, they were however, not a particular good value for the money and were generally eclipsed by the Dali loudspeakers we were selling at the time. 

Most of the top loudspeaker manufacturers makes pistonic drivers, do you honestly think B&W or KEF who are giant companies with huge resources can't make a cone which is pistonic?

As per Duntech sold em in the past, they weren't that good, as per Vivid excellent speakers, we prefered the new Paradigm Personas and the Kef Reference but the Vivid's were excellent. 

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ