I can understand the fascination with having a new toy, but for anyone who knows the sound of music, I'm afraid it 'aint coming out of a box.
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From AVGUIDE... "Interestingly, though the Sasha W/P is significantly more sophisticated than the Watt/Puppy System 8 that it replaces, it will sell for $26,900/pair—slightly less than the price of the outgoing Watt/Puppy System 8. Wilson explains that the price reduction is made possible by leveraging the increased efficiencies of its new manufacturing facility." |
I would suggest Wilson dropped the retail price due to the current economic situation in combination with other factors. Many retail brands including watches, jewelry, clotihng manufacturers have cut Suggested Retail Prices by about 20-30% this past year. Unfortunately the retailer is hurt with less margin as this happens, and needing to discount to make a sale which has no profit built in. |
Sdrenslow - I think the presentation is very well done. Wilson has put a lot of thought into the redesign. IMO progressive WATT/Puppy's have gotten more transparent and the bass has improved (flatter). With trickle-down technology improvements (midrange and tweeter from Maxx, improved crossovers) the Sasha model is going to be very interesting to hear. I would venture to guess there's a 25% improvement over the WP8. I don't own Wilson speakers but have heard them many times. |
It seems clear to me from Wilson's promotional material---the history movie on the website---that the Sasha is competing directly with the Magico V3. The discussion of the Sasha's cabinet materials makes direct reference to Baltic birch plywood with metal baffles, and the price point is almost identical. Magico strikes back with a version of the V3 with a high gloss black piano finish shown at the Munich show. There's no doubt any company in a niche field knows its competition and responds accordingly, at least if they wish to stay in business. We benefit from their competition. Let's wait and hear how the Sasha sounds. Michael |
I've auditioned the Sasha yesterday. Driven by all Ayre gear, the C-5xeMP, KX-R, MXRs and Transparent cabling, the speaker sounded surprisingly warmer and slightly darker up top than most other Wilsons. The Sasha sounded engaging and musical and was well balanced top to bottom. I currently own the Sophia 2 and having heard the Sasha, I bought a pair on the spot. The only unkown to me were the MXRs but I own the Lamm M1.2s and the KX-R so I expect them to be very musical in my own system as well. The synergy between the Sasha and Ayre was great, dynamic, deep, well controlled and nicely articulated bass, excellent imaging and focus, warmer mids and slightly darker top than W/P 8's for example. Great speaker to my ears, job well done. If you didn't like Wilson speakers before, give the Sasha a listen. http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd18/PHC1_2007/Wilson%20Sasha/IMG_1075.jpg http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd18/PHC1_2007/Wilson%20Sasha/IMG_1074.jpg |
No I bought the Sasha because I found them very musical and engaging and a bit smoother/forgiving overall. The Sophia 2's are great speakers but the Sasha elevates the bar especially in the bass. I like the slightly warmer tonal balance as well. Like I said, unless the MXR imparted such a deep sonic signature on the Sasha, that the new sound is really not the speaker but the amps. I did find the Sasha to be extremely enjoyable with a variety of music I threw at it. In the end that's what matters, if the speaker/system connects with you and evokes a positive emotional response, then that is a great system/speaker for you. I found the Sasha did just that. |
Flyski referred to several points of comparison and explained why he made the purchase based on the audition and comparison--including listing components for context. His reference to "darker on top" seemed reasonable given comments others have made regarding older Wilson designs sounding prominent or bright through the treble. You seem to go out of your way to misrepresent what he actually wrote. This forum should have more first hand reports of that quality and less flippant condescension. |
Dave_b, you are twisting my words out of context. I said "slightly darker up top". Again, I am not familiar enough with the MXR amps as this was the first time I heard them to really know if that is the sonic character of the MXR or the Sasha. Trust me, the Sasha will not disappoint in any performance parameter in a room of appropriate size for them with appropriate amplification. I've heard many Wilson speakers before and this combination was just as dynamically impressive as Wilson W/Ps usually are but it was also very enjoyable, engaging and musical with a variety of music thrown at it. I've heard the Alexandria X2's in that same room and the Sasha/Ayre combo while not being able to reproduce quite the same scale and overall visceral impact as the Alexandria X2/Krell Evo 900 combo, had a more engaging personality that drew me into music much deeper. |
That's a better answer Fyski. I didn't twist anything..jus wanted clarity. FYI, I've had the $20K cable rigs from Transparent and trust me, they are not Transparent sounding..especially when used as a complete solution. They still have that signature closed in/claustrophobic sound compared to MIT or Cardas etc... The MXR amps also have a slightly dark character up top. so no wonder you experienced a sense of opacity or darkness in the demo system:O_ |
Is this opposite day or are you guys smoking something extra special? I re-read my question and subsequent posts and for the life of me, cannot figure out how I was twisting anyones words. I have owned Wilsons and have enjoyed them immensely, but when someone mentions a characteristic of a speaker in couched language I just may want to understand what the details of the comment are...is that clear class? What a freakin bunch of mindless twits...ugh!! |
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Having Auditioned extensively most of the Wilsons and owned Maxx 2 and now Alexandria X2.2s, the darker on top comment makes perfect sense to me. Previous Wilson's I have heard (especially the WP7) were bright on top with the wrong accompanying equipment. They have progressively worked that characteristic out of the line. The Sofias were the first I noticed this on. Then the WP8's. My Alexandrias are quite a bit "darker on top" than the Maxx2's. There are probably better words one could use to describe this. They are similar to Tara Zero's in this respect. They somehow manage to deliver all the detail but in a more relaxed presentation. |
Hi, I have to agree also with the darker on top, however I'd like to add with no loss in resolution and maybe really improved resolution and extension. This is a critical point to add because most assume dark as less high end info or closed down top end. Not so in this case. I have owned WP 6's, 8's, Maxx 2's and now Maxx 3's. Dave b: I own the MX R's. I don't agree with your comment that this is what is causing flyski's results. The speakers are different and better. |
Thanks Bflowers for a reasonable answer. I owned WP6's, 7's and Sophias plus an I had the opportunity to hear the Maxx 2's extensively at a friends house. I also recently heard the Maxx 3's at my local dealer with Krell/Transparent gear. For me, whether matched with ARC/BAT or Krell reference gear, as I had used, the WP 6's were my favorite. Recently, the Wilson sound has gone too far toward the relaxed, forgiving or if you will "Dark Side". One of the main reasons I went with Magnepans is because of the enhanced tonal complexity they offer in the upper registers. Another problem exists when mating Wilson speakers with Transparent cabling which uses a Bessel filter approach to noise reduction...their in line filters chop off the frequencies above 20Khz, as do many components. When you combine speakers and equipment that shelve frequencies above 20Khz you get a slightly claustrophobic sound. At first it may sound relaxed and polite vs other systems, but over time you want to reach for the oxygen tank and get a fresh breath of air:O) |
I auditioned them this past weekend with near top VTL gear (S400, 6.5), DCS digital and mostly transparent cables. Honestly, they sound like a Maxx III in a smaller package. They are noticably bigger in size and sound than the WP8s and my Sophia 2s, and I'd say they sound closer to the Maxx III and Alexandria II's than the WP8 or Sophia 2s. Simply, they have a sense of "weight" in the midrange that the smaller WP8/Sophias can't touch. They also sound effortless and uncongested and natural. They are very, very coherent and balanced. This will sound cheesy, but my first comment to the sales rep after the demo was "Every Wilson speaker sounds impressive, but these new Sashas are the first Wilson speaker to sound gorgeous." The new Sashas are a bargain, I'm thinking about upgrading my Sophia 2s... |
I listened to them on the same day I heard the sophia IIs. The Sashas were fantastic, smoother on top, and the bass rounded out the bottom. The sophias, driven by ayre equipment, were bright to the point of being too harsh for me. I felt the Sashas communiciated plenty of treble information without crossing the line. They were driven by some heavy duty Mac tube monos, great sound. One of the surprises in this session was hearing magnepan 3.6, driven by Mac solid state. On a ravel string quartet, I think I liked them more than the sashas - the air was amazing. On Rolling Stones and Patti Smith, they couldn't compare to the Sashas - too diffuse. |
You may be right. I did not mix and match. i could see tube monos and pre being more forgiving. The sasha's did sound fantastic. But the big revelation was the magnepan 3.6 on a string quartet. My god! The notes attack, the body, the decay, just floated out there. So palpable. It was like time was slowed down. I wish I could have a pair just for chamber music! Believe the system was Mac solid state amp and pre, rega cd player. |
Robert, Just out of curiosity, did you audition the speakers in Cincy? Your description of the equipment sounds exactly like what I heard at Audible Elegance. They had the Sashas driven by Mac 2301 tube amps, the 3.6's driven by Mac 402 solid state, and the Sophia II's. My impressions were very similar to yours, although I thought the Sashas were a little loose on the bottom end with the Mac tube amps. I actually ended up buying the Sashas and am using a Mac 402 solid state amp which has better control of the bass. Regards, Dave Neumann Louisville KY |
Robertd- I agree with Elberoth2. Were the Sophia II's driven by Ayre V5xe? I auditioned the W/P 7 & 8 with the Ayre V5xe and had the same experience. However, auditioned the W/P8's with the Ayre MX-R and it was a whole new ball game IMO. Elberoth2--I have Sasha's as well. How is the Nagra VPA with the Sasha's? |
For the last week or so I have been driving my W/P Sasha with a lil Krell S300i integrated. The amp sounds GREAT with those speakers, absoulutely no problem with driving them to high SPL. I just though I would share this piece of info in this thread, since so many ppl (me included) have worried that W/P Sasha would be very difficoult to drive. I guess they are not the easiest load, but they are not THAT hard to drive as specs may suggest. If $2500 integrated can drive them without problems, then almost any HQ poweramp should be up to the task. BTW - S300i is a great lil amp. MUCH better than the 400xi it replaced, very un-Krell like. If you need an integrated for your office/second system, this one is worth checking out ! |
