Official Anthony Gallo Owners Thread

It's probably about time that an official thread was made, as I've seen a lot of similar questions.

Here's my living room theater setup:
5 x Gallo Nucleus Micros in wine
1 x SVS PB10-ISD

Supporting Hardware:
Yamaha HTR-5730 (AVR), X-Over at 90Hz (fixed)
Sony RDR-VX500 (DVD/VCR)

Future Upgrades:
Mains to A'diva Ti (~6 months)
Mains to Ref 3.1 (dream)
AVR to Pioneer Elite or Outlaw (~1 year)

Likes: The Micros have great vocal reproducing capabilities. They may not have the bass or highs that many around here look for, but for HT use, I don't miss them. I'm looking at getting two A'diva Tis to replace the mains for music for better extension on both the highs and lows. They are great at lower volumes, so I can watch movies late at night without disturbing others, especially if the sub is turned off (and yes, they are listenable without the sub, unlike other famous satellites...). They are extremely high on WAF, especially with their color options (the wine goes great with a reddish tinted wood, like cherry).

Dislikes: For music, the Micros lack a little bit on the low end, leaving a small gap between them and the subwoofer, but that's about it...

In room response (numbers tested using AVIA, test tones, and RS SPL meter):
60Hz: Audible, but very low dB
115Hz: In-Room -3 dB (listening position, calibrated)
130Hz: 1 meter -3 dB (tested in room, away from other objects)
150-200Hz: In-Room +/- 0.5 dB (listening position, calibrated)
18kHz: -2dB
19kHz: -5dB

Glad to see an Anthony Gallo thread. Look forward to chatting about these fine products. I have a 2 channel system with the second voice coil driven by the AG subamp.

I'll be a Gallo Reference 3.1 owner within a few weeks. I'll be using them with a Pioneer Elite Reciever, and will eventually add the Reference AV Center, and Dues as surrounds, but I'm sticking with two channel for now. I've got some speakers lying around so it'll be a make shift surround setup in any case.

Psyched.

Dues are discontinued. Only way you can get them is if a dealer still has them in stock.

I'm not planning on buying any of those items new.

I've been trying to corroborate this information but can't seem to find anything that confirms this. What's your source?

The gallo website is still showing them for sale. I live far from any dealer, so I can order items online. Their internet store shows all current products available. So, the rumor is false or their store isn't up to date, however their store has been updated within the past few months with the reference series speakers, so I'd assume that it's pretty current.

I've heard from a dealer that the regular Micros and A'divas (not the Ti's) are being discontinued, but so far there's no evidence of that rumor being true either.

I needed two more Due's to make my 5.1 into a 7.1. I presently have 5 Due's in black. Gallo confirmed the Due is no longer in production. They have white ones in stock still, but no blacks. I was referred to a dealer in CA where I ordered my remaining 2 Due's today.

Gallo suggested the Due is to be replaced by a forthcoming design based upon the AV Reference line minus 2 balls. So, think of a Due with, perhaps, A'Diva Ti or Micro Ti drivers and the CDT arranged horizontally or vertically for center and surrounds. They are shooting for a Fall CEDIA announcement. Probably, available for sale in 2008. I'm pretty well committed to the Due at this point. So, I didn't ask about estimated pricing.

The Due didn't sell particularly well here in the US, but met with better success in Europe. The design was a love it/hate it affair. Additionally, the A'Diva Ti is so good at its price point that the Due was sort of hard to justify for many at $599. Personally, I love my Due system. These little speakers rock.

I stand corrected. Maybe the dealer was right in that they're closing out certain lines.

I also have a set of Gallos at home. Here is a description of my 4.1 setup:

DVD Player: Oppo 971
Preamp: Outlaw 990
Amp: Earthquake Cinenova Grande 7 (black)
Fronts: Gallo Reference 3.1s (Silver/black)
Rears: Gallo Due (all black)
Sub: JL Audio Fathom F113 (satin)
Projector: Infocus SP5000
Screen: 106" Graywolf
Room: 16' W x 15' D x 8' H with large opening on right to dining room/kitchen

Center will be a Gallo Reference Center, hope to purchase this soon. I will post pictures/freq resp charts of the entire setup sometime next week.

Since you are not running a sub I would set your mains to Large, and the rest to small. If you have the ability to set individual crossovers, I would set the center at 80Hz and the rears to 100Hz.

If you are serious about HT, I would highly recommend the addition of a subwoofer.

Hello Foveus et al ... soon to be Gallo Ref. owner (waiting impatiently), and just rec. my Due's for surrounds ..... I may plug 'em in to have a quick "hear" and break-'em in a bit. I'll be running a Martin Logan dynamo for a sub instead of the Gallo S.A.
Foveus: do u use your system for music as well, or mostly H.T.? If for music (especially sacd, dvd-audio), how does your av center match up "timber-wise" with the Ref 3's?
I bought the Dues for the time being, and if I like the Gallo stuff I will probably upgrade to 4 Ref 3's, and an AV center, if they timber match properly ..... otherwise I may go without a center ..
.. music 70 %, h.t. 30% .....

Just got my Refs in, pics here:
Member System

Nice set-up you have there.

What do those Gallo's sound like?

I'm not really sure how to answer that... My audio vocabulary is fairly limited.
They have a kind of surreal soundstage about them, thanks to the unique tweeter. Highs are "airy" and "articulate" and bass is deep and tight.
Uhh... Yeah, something like that.
This is a good place to start:
http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/gallo/ref3.html

Get ready for 100-200 hours break in but it will be worth the wait!

Hey, everyone .... got my Ref 3.1's in the other room with a sleeping bag over 'em, and am breaking them in as we speak ... rec. the due's for surrounds as well and am breaking them in lightly, as well .... anyone have a downloadable manual for the Due's? Neither of them came with one! Next upgrade: ref av center ... I DO have 2 extra Due's, one of which I may try (as a center ... but I'm a bit anal on timber matching), but if I am going to sell them, I would rather have them new, in box.
After they have the pre-requisite break-in period, I'll writer up a quick review if anyone is interested.

Some suggestions on break-in: I wired my Refs out of phase and faced them towards each other. I then wrapped them in multiple blankets and really let 'em crank for a few days.

As far as the Due's, I found this manual online (from Gallo UK): http://www.anthonygallo.co.uk/downloads/due.pdf

I just purchased a Ref AV center, should arrive sometime next week. I would run the 3.1s with a phantom center until you get the Ref center. I tried a Due for a center and found the timber to be a little off (although not unlistenable). Since your Due's are new in the box, I would keep them that way, especially since they are no longer available from Gallo.

BTW, what kind of electronics are you running them with?

Based on the picture, your Ref 3.1 speakers are reversed. Have you tried pointing bass drivers outward?

I don't know if there is a "normal" or a "reverse" way of looking at it. More likely, "normal" is what works well in your room. I think a good rule of thumb is that if your speakers are close to the side walls, woofers in might sound better.

You can read the manual as well as I can.

"If you have a large piece of furniture or massive rear projection TV between the speakers they should always be in the outward facing orientation."

It appears that there is ample room on both sides of the speakers in his set-up. However, currently his audio gear is sandwiched between two bass drivers.

Sure, I agree with your statement that one should experiment with both arrangements, and choose the one that sounds the best. He may very well have done precisely that, in which case I should probably just shut up.

This has to be one of the best looking speakers.

Maybe I should go demo a pair?

What is the MSRP on these?

3K new, quite a bit less on audiogon.

Vishal!! Thanks for the input! Yeah, I am not used to using a center channel (my last four (!) systems did not have them and I didn't miss it ..... have you HEARD a Ref AV Cntr. with 3.1's, yet? If not please share your honest assessment when you get it. I will probably go the same way that you have and get the dedicated center, do without, or wait until I have room for another single Ref 3.1 in the middle ... I don't have room yet. I plan to upgrade the Due's in the rear probably with two other Ref 3.1's (I told you guys I was anal about this stuff), if I decide to keep the Gallos, which I'll set-up tonight.

My system is:

-2 Ref 3.1's / front.

-2 Due's / back.

-Martin Logan Dynamo sub (to fill in from the Ref 3.1's, rather than go the S.A. route) - hasn't been heard yet .

-Denon 3806 rec., as a preamp, out to ....

-4 Marantz mono amps which will pump out 200 watts / channel in 8 ohms, and something like 300 / 4 ohms !!! - haven't rec. all of them yet (just 1/4) so for the time being, I'll just use the power from my reciever .... *sigh* ...

-Denon 3910 Universal DVD player using direct dig. to the 3806 ... SUPER for sacd / dvd-Audio ..... sorry no vinyl for this cat .....

-Pioneer 300 disc multi-changer for the cd backcatalogue (for non-dedicated listening)

-Monster Power Conditioner HTS 3600 mk 2

-Stock bulk wiring salvaged from my recording studio ... 12 gage ...