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NEW Tekton Design Speakers - The Bonnevilles

I have in for review the Tekton Bonnevilles, described by Eric Alexander as a “passion project,” and easily the most attention-grabbing speakers set I’ve had in-home. These speakers aren’t for everyone, but if you have the space and can tolerate the eccentricities of setup, the Bonnevilles offer strengths that many other speakers really can’t match.

They feature four 15" woofers for deep bass, six horn-loaded tweeters arranged in a Tekton Polycell array for midrange, and a seventh dedicated horn-loaded tweeter that handles the high frequencies. Paired with the right amplifier, they can fill a room beautiful and visceral music, like a few other speakers. With proper setup, the Bonnevilles sound vibrant, alive, with absolutely amazing bass.

The Klipsch Jubilees are the closest comparison in terms of bass pressurization that I’ve heard. The Jubilees arguably have a bit more punch in the mid-bass, but the Bonnevilles seem to extend lower. I would also say the midrange and treble on the Bonnevilles are better than what I’ve heard from the Jubilees. The midrange of the Bonnevilles have the characteristic speed and detail that Tekton speakers are known for, but also seem warmer and more relaxed than Tekton’s smaller speakers.

Logistically, these speakers can be a challenge – in more ways than one. They require a lot of real estate in the listening space, they need 2-3 people to move, and turning a corner can be a real problem. But once they’re set up, the Bonnevilles deliver an absolutely gorgeous sound.

As a final brief observation, the Bonnevilles seem to require careful amplifier pairing. While the sensitivity of the Bonnevilles is relatively high – just a couple of watts will create a lot of sound – there seems to be a strong correlation between an amplifier’s power supply and current output, and the overall quality of sound. In short, the Bonneville’s seem pair well with amplifiers that can drop a lot of current.

I currently have three well regarded amplifiers available to pair with the Bonnevilles. Of those three, my current favorite is the Coda No. 8, which has an unusually large power supply and can deliver over 150A of current when needed. The other two amplifiers, while brilliant with smaller speakers, did not drive the Bonnevilles as well as the Coda.

Again, the Bonnevilles will not be for everybody – but a really fun set of speakers to listen to if you ever have the opportunity.

I’ll be publishing a full review of the Bonnevilles in the coming weeks in Stereo Times.

*For a sense of scale – the "little speakers" (as my kids call them) are the REL 212/SX subwoofers.

willrich47
deep_333
2,435 posts
 

Sometime ago, I thought the best sound I ever heard was at a relatively upscale nightclub randomly one night. I found out that it was a large higher end Pioneer PA array (XY-3B). Something about the acoustics of that venue and the PA system made it quite insane/thoroughly enjoyable. The same guys offer something in the ultra high end for the audiophiles at ~150k these days (TAD reference, beautiful finish n all).

If you set up this 15k, 20k, whatever PA kit and this 150k audiophile kit in a larger room with some high end electronics, i would not be surprised if 50% of the audiophiles who did a A/B somehow preferred the sound of that PA system, i.e., the price wouldn’t matter here, just a different type of sound, they preferred.. (Put a blind-fold on them for bias removal, of course).

What Tekton appears to be doing is trying to synthesize together ( trying atleast) the pros of each type of sound delivery ethos mentioned above with their own concoction perhaps. I mean it’s obvious the guy’s around live sound a lot/in a band/in venues whatever.

Many manufacturers don’t even think about it perhaps, anechoic chamber, kliippel, whoop di doo.

If Mark Levinson did the same thing, price will go back up to 200k. Go figure.

Eric and his Tekton design is not for everyone (this model being extreme) but from a sound stand point my

fsonicsmith's avatar
fsonicsmith
995 posts
 

Has Mr. Alexander ever put together a concoction and then thought to himself, "This is a bad idea"?

Even the most revered masters of fine painting were known to have painted over their work such that one canvas worth millions is known to have another painting hiding under the surface. Mr. Alexander, methinks, has nothing in common with them.  

 

danager's avatar
danager
988 posts
 

Devon Turnbull: HiFi Listening Room Dream No. 1 and other works

 

They remind me a lot of Devon Turnbull: HiFi Listening Room.  30 inch subwoofer.  I haven't heard it but hoping he comes to Seattle

deep_333
2,435 posts
 

Most of conventional hifi is a ’bad idea’, i.e. a bunch of matchbox sized lifestyle speakers that are incapable of sounding like the real thing, i.e., lifestyle crap in undersized cabinets made to look good and that's it.

Cables the size of fire hoses, amps the size of washing machines and speakers the size of matchboxes...that is what I refer to as a bassackwards ’bad idea’.

Has Mr. Alexander ever put together a concoction and then thought to himself, "This is a bad idea"?

Even the most revered masters of fine painting were known to have painted over their work such that one canvas worth millions is known to have another painting hiding under the surface. Mr. Alexander, methinks, has nothing in common with them.

livinon2wheels's avatar
livinon2wheels
263 posts
 

Sorry guys, I know some people hold Tekton as ascendant to the throne of ultimate hi-fi, but lets just consider some practical factors here...how much do those damn things weigh? How many people does it take to place them in the listening room, and then, more to the point, how many does it take to position them so they actually sound good, and how long does that take? Sorry, I KNOW moving those myself is impossible so they are NOT on the list of speakers POSSIBLE let alone PROBABLE. All of that said, I need something in a package I can move myself that will allow me to suspend reality and succumb to the illusion of reality the speakers are selling to me thru the recorded performance. If the speakers in question cannot do that, I have NO interest in owning them.

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