It Has Finally Materialized! Here it is... - Page 8

I thought that at first too, but the more I looked at them they started to grow on me. Like I said, in the store there was almost no contest between them and the 805di's. But the placement was different, gear was different (the 805's were driven by Arcam gear) and so on. I am really curious how they'll measure up today...

LOL,

It's coming guys...

Tim, I am also dealing with Magnolia.

One of the reasons I went there was your review of the 805's. While there, the SF's caught my eye and in their room, they sounded more musical than the 805's. Please keep in mind that HT use is not a priority for me.

The rep showed up about 1pm yesterday, but unfortunately he did not bring the 805's. He drove a Yaris, and it would not have been enough room... Also, he remembered I did not care for the 805's in the store.

Tim, you said it best about the 805's: "lack of coherence between the mids and highs" - this is why you are da man!! This was my feeling after listening to them, especially in comparison with the SF's. The finish was gorgeous though!!

We first listened to my Monitor Audio Gold Reference 20. Well, let me say that these speakers truly are good! Being used to them, I sometimes forget it but when an opportunity comes along where I can compare them with something twice their price they really shine!

In all honesty, the GR20's are way underrated. I know there have been reports of sibilance - I couldn't hear it. It's either I can't hear it, I can't hear it because of my components, it doesn't exist or the Sonus Faber's have it also!!

Helping the rep to carry the Sonus Fabers in, I couldn't help noticing how sturdy these babies are in spite of their frail look!! They are both heavy and well built! The finish is remarkable, while not as dazzling as the 805's, in person they look really classy, beautiful workmanship.

We set them up exactly where the MA's were, and started the demo. One thing for sure, the Pass amp sure made them work!!!

Vocal jazz first: Melody Gardot, Louise Rogers, Xiomara, Buika and others, then on with some rock, classical, some dynamic pop and so on.

Again, the first thing that stood out was how musical these speakers are. Warm, yet in contrast they are incredibly detailed, more detailed than I would have expected them to be (in a good way, of course). The fact that I felt compelled to keep cranking up the volume is also a testament to how easy they were to listen to. The midrange is what stands out - and I love that in a speaker - yet again, very detailed.

One of the things I thought they did better than the MA's was how well they isolated the vocals, very well placed within the soundstage. The MA's were right up there in terms of the width of the soundstage, perhaps not as much depth but I am not too sure about this...

They handled dynamic music better than I expected them to, based on my previous discussion with the rep which by the way was really knowledgeable and also a pleasant person to deal with.

One thing I've noticed - and again, I'm not 100% sure - they were not as "fast" as the MA's with more dynamic tracks. I'll have to give it another listen... We had about three hours as the rep had to be back, so I was a bit overwhelmed by all the things I had to pay attention to. I think next time I'll just have Tim over and let him deal with it...

I also thought they did classical a bit better than the MA's. David Garrett's Stradivari sounded very lively and crystal clear. Martha Argerich piano also was very pleasant to listen to.

The conclusion you ask? Definitely tougher than they look, very well built, the cabinet workmanship is second to none, beautiful sound... I like them and I want them! They are not inexpensive (at least to me) and I think the stands are way overpriced at $1200 a pair!! I could build me some nice stands, but the original ones are gorgeous!

These is what I can remember, if I can think of more stuff I will post back.

Pics in a few minutes!

Cable management is next, please forgive the mess...

The Mrs. just got the kitchen finished, so I might be a step closer to them SF's...

Thanks for the props, Tim and Jeff!!

I will definitely get the stands, I agree with you guys 100%...

Forgot to mention the bass aspect. As you might imagine (and Tim has menitoned it) they are not a strong bass perfomer. I will be using them with 2 subs (hsu, rel and rythmik are currently in the race) so it's going to be ok.

Thanks again for the nice words!

Not at all HTG, y'all are welcome any time. We love food here on this side of the country!!

I didn't demo any movie material, but I did put them through their paces in terms of music. Plenty of dynamic material. Like I said, I am not too sure but I tend to believe that the MA's are a bit faster. The differences are not as big as you'd expect but still, the SF's sounded really, really good...

Cheers

Dan

Thanks, DDigital!

If you are referring to the floor, then here is what happened: when we bought the house about a year ago it came with that floor, it's solid oak. The problem is that it's glued to the concrete subfloor with a nasty adhesive and it would have cost an arm and a leg to have it removed... So with small kids and everything, we decided to just let it wear out and when it does, I want to do 18x18" travertine tile. We just did the baths, I'll take some pics and post them in the next day or so.

I defintely don't want hardwood floors in the kitchen anymore, had brazilian cherry in the house we've sold and it was a pain to keep clean, especially with a lot of cooking...

Cheers!

Tim, I don't know how I missed your post...

Done deal! Just have to work out the details, I am also entertaining the possibility of getting a pair of slightly used Guarneri's... for about the same price as a new pair of Auditor M's...

You know, you are within driving distance (ok, a long drive) but either one of your cars should make it way fun!! We drove to Seattle a few years ago to take a cruise to Alaska and enjoyed it tremendously! (Both the drive and the cruise...)

Wabo, this is why you da man!! Haha, me likes it!!

Thanks Brolic,

The truth is, my cabinets are oak and the had that nasty, dirty yellow finish. I re-finished them myself for under $300 in materials, and the cool thing is everyone who sees them thinks I spent well over $6k to redo them...

If you or anyone else is interested, i can dig up the name of the product and post it. It's readily available from either Home Depot or Lowe's.

I did all the work in the kitchen and baths myself, (so all that money went to audio gear). Took a long time but it looks all right.

New cabinets are insanly expensive, even in this economy...

Cheers, Frank and Charles!!

Yesterday evening I went to Magnolia and placed the order for a pair of Sonus Faber Cremona Audior M. With the stands. It is going to take 4 to 6 weeks to get here (LOL, I KNOW there are faster means of transportation than sailboats nowadays...)

I still haven't decided whether I should keep my beloved Monitor Audio Golds, but I think I will put them on Agon... not without some remorse...

Better pics to come when the new babies arrive.

^^ Yes, I wrote a quick review it's a few posts up, post #215.

While the MA's are awesome speakers, the SF's were a notch above overall. They should, they cost more the double the MA's. They also seemed to do classical music better, which was the first thing my wife noticed in the 2 min 18 secs she was in the room during the demo... The finish is also superior, in fact it's gorgeous.