Had a nice visit at Hanson Audio in Cincinnati today. Had the listening room all to myself which was fantastic. They teased me with the SF Cremonese. Crimany those are great speakers. They should be at 55K. Of waaay out of my price range. He knew it but fun to listen. Next up was the Sorento. Nice speaker but at $5K no thanks. Then we got down to why I went. Magico A3. Build quality is fantastic. They look much better in person however I really wasn't impressed with the sound. Nice deep bass but was tubby almost. Extended highs and decent midrange. Hate to say it not for me. But the salesman said my amp was not a good match. A3 needs some solid state juice to make them sing. So my review take it with a grain of salt. I'm sure with a higher powered solid state amp they would sing nicely. They better but geez kinda disappointing. Lastly, the Olympica Nova 3. Night and day difference. First few notes and WOW. This is music. The soundstage really opened up and instruments floated in the air. Depth, detail, focus and overall musical. The bass was tight and tuneful. No congestion whatsoever. My Audio Research Ref110 was a perfect match. The salesman said and I'm not bullshitting, I've never heard the Olympica sound so good. Honestly, I think he was dead serious. All music was streamed with Qobuz. Overall an impressive speaker.
Then for shits and giggles we went into the Magico room. I think they were M5's but while they through a huge Soundstage, too detailed for these ears. At $135k those puppies better pour me a bourbon lol. My opinion they are not for rock or really dynamic music. Jazz, classical yes. They were powered by huge Boulder monos. And I mean HUGE. Speakers are a personal choice but Magico not for me. Build quality very impressed.
