If Warmth Is a Distortion, Why Do So Many Audiophiles Still Defend It?

I can understand why so many have different ideas about what warm speakers sound like, and what causes them.  I can say that my system sounds very warm.  To many audiophiles, especially the detail driven, they will be too laid back.  

It is not a distortion here, it's a tonal choice.  To be warm you have to be smooth though.  Some speakers, like Magico, are incredibly smooth but, to my ears, cool. 

If you aren't sure, listen to Monitor Audio's high end or Fritz, and even modern day Wilsons to some extent, and perhaps even Vanderteen.  

The opposite of Warm to my ears is modern B&W or Triangle, McIntosh (speakers), Focal.  

@viber6 

Which conventional dynamic speakers have you heard to make this claim? 

I have heard most of them and have been disappointed.  My 1st audiophile speaker in 1978 was the Maggie Tympani 1D, a huge 6 foot tall, 4 feet wide in 3 16" sections.  Compared to my college small Advent speaker which was musical, the Tympani was a planar magnetic (ribbon tweeters would come later) which had superior midrange/HF delicacy and extension.  But I quickly grew tired of the bloated image which was unnatural.  My next speaker was Rogers LS3/5a.  Within its dynamic range, it was among the few dynamic speakers with excellent midrange/HF.  The ProAc Tablette was smaller and a little better for focus, midrange/HF extension.  I lived with the LS3/5a for several years, but knew that dynamic drivers could not match low mass drivers such as electrostatic or ribbons for low coloration and speed.  I have lived happily with my Audiostatic 240 since 1985.  I listen to its small single panel 50" tall, 5.25" wide, to achieve minimum panel area, enough for decent SPL, but not too large to result in bloated imaging and lack of time coherence.

The main problem with most electrostatics on the market is large, curved panels.  The larger, the worse for clarity.  The reason is that the listener hears summation of non time-aligned out of phase sound from many points on the panel.  The worst speaker I ever heard was the 4 foot square huge Dayton Wright electrostatic whose sound was a mess.  Any dynamic speaker is better than that.  I have enjoyed listening to smaller, thin Martin Logans.  But the huge Neolith is another bad Dayton Wright, incorrectly designed, and violation of the principles of time alignment.  The upper Wilson models are among the best of that line, because the drivers are physically aligned for time coherence.

Interesting YT video of the good TAD CR1 monitor vs Popori large electrostatic.  You can hear the midrange neutrality of the Popori vs the warmer TAD.  Despite the incorrect large panel design of the Popori, the thing to note is its lack of coloration vs TAD.  Dynamic drivers have warmth, which is really fuzzy distortion and veiling.

@viber6 

Thanks for the response. I was curious about how many of the top brands you have heard. I find most of the ESL speakers too bright and detailed. I really love my Rockport Avior ii speakers and find no flaw in them. 
 

Regards 

Ron 

More on warm concert venues……

From my experience “live” concerts are warm.

Even more so if there is a warm up supporting act on first.

Nothing new….. the World is warming too.