More power for my Duos?

Luke,

Thanks for the post. Clearly, everyone hears something different. When I heard the AG's, they seemed to paint with a pretty full brush, as opposed to the sketch to which you referred. I've been wanting to hear the Hyperion's, as they certainly garner a lot of positive attention.

Frankly, however, I've just never heard any speaker do dead-on, spine-chilling midrange like a horn. That is, I literally get the chills running down my spine--when the component synergy & placement is right, of course--and I cannot assess the music in advance of actually feeling it. Everything else to this musician's ear sounds massaged. Not inaccurate, necessarily. Rather, it just sounds smoothed over, as if the intention is to make the music more pleasant, or more palatable.

What I am asking in regard to horns & live shows, however, is with respect to actual artist performances. I think you thought I meant audio conventions. I am sitting in front of my 27 yr old horn speakers right now, and it sounds like the vocalist is smacking his lips on my ear lobe. The immediacy and urgency of the sound is physically verifiable, and I'm just wondering if horns are indeed NOT the most accurate at reproducing the music, why then are they used at every live concert and performance? Every concert hall uses them. Every theater. Every comedy store. Why wouldn't they project by another speaker format if it indeed had more accurate presence and dynamics than that of a horn?

What's the difference between home audio and a live performance, if not simply the swapping of a CD player or turntable for an actual person? And why don't we ever see a row of twenty Hyperions (or Wilson's, or Apogee's, or Magnepan's) chained up at the rock arena, or on the stage at Carnegie Hall if they were believed to be a more truthful purveyor of the source?

That is my question. Again, I'm not trying to challenge anyone to a duel. I know what I like, and I respect the listening preferences of others. OK, so I don't quite get Norah Jones. But hey, that aside, can anyone answer this question for me?

Thanks, everyone.
Howard

I listened to the AG's a few times.
I would match them with something really fast + good sounding amps.
Atma-Sphere OTL for example, or Pass Aleph amps.

Hi Boa,

Horns have been the mainstay of live musical events for ages, because they are so efficient, not because they are more realistic. Which means engineering costs and physical sizes of cones can be more manageable, and power amps can also be more manaegeble. Furthermore, the speakers are there for an artificial purpose, that is to increase the volume of the musicians to an ARTIFICIALLY hiher volume level to allow every one in the audience to be able to hear the music clearly.

The 'smacking of the lips'that you refer to is simply detail you are hearing as a function of the microdynamic capability of horn speakers. BUT that is not to say that cone speakers are not capable of such microdynamics. Detail is often described as transparency and this often comes at the expense of broad brush strokes which communicate more tonal warmth.

I donot think we are talking with the same understanding of the terms we are using, and it may well be difficuult to demonstrate what we each mean without being in the same room with the speakers. Nonetheless if you would kindly read steve rochlins review of the Galantes compared to his reference duos you will understand better what i am trying to describe to you.

Boa, I believe it would have been far more accurate and useful statement if you had proposed the following:-
Why is it that audiophiles who fill the pages of audiogon forums, audioasylum, reviewers etc etc. are all using horn speakers? which of course is the opposite of the truth. Afterall it is the audiophile that spends hours upon hours comparing his units with his audiophile mates, using repeated precise mental assessment of the pieces he hears. PA system designers and users have other more important practical issues to consider, and I know for sure sound quality is not at the top of their agenda's.

Luke.

Seems that the answers are more than what I bargained for. Unfortunately apart from Seadogs no clear answer to my question.

David Berning Siegfried 300b: Simply amazing resolution, transparency, and dynamics. Never heard better along these metrics. No congestion with classical music. I also didn't think the amp was lean in any way. However, the amp is no longer made and my friend won't sell mine back to me. I regret getting rid of this amp. I would highly recommend this one for the Duos. I think it would suit your purposes perfectly.
Kronzilla SM: Full bodied and good timbre. This is my current amp. It's a decidedly warmer sound than the Berning. Also not as forward. The soundstage emanates from behind the speakers but is coherent and stable. I don't like the fact that it emanates from behind the speakers but others do. All-in-all a great choice if you like a warm, full-bodied sound. Again everything is relative. It's a neutral amp but is on the side of warm and full-bodied but not to a fault.
Viva Sentesi: Similar to Kronzilla but not as resolving and the top end seemed rolled. Everything else was good though, especially at the price point.

Hope this helps. Someone I know uses the Kondo Neiro's with great results (not surprising).