Swan Owner's Thread - Page 99

I will as soon as I return next weekend

This thread has been kind of slow lately so I thought I'd post. I should have a pair of Diva 6.1's, R3's, and a C3 arriving at my house any day now from Oz. I'm really excited to get them and set them up. If I get ambitious, I might even post some pictures of my setup.

Just one question though, I've read on this thread that Swan owners say 100-150 hours is typical for a noticeable break-in period. Is there any preferred method? I was thinking of just leaving a radio station on at a reasonable volume while I was at work, in addition to my normal evening usage.

Thanks

I'm interested in the answer about break in also.

I just received a pair of 6.1's to go with my 4 R3's and 2 C3's and so far am really enjoying them. We watch BluRay's and TV shows and the dialog from the Swan Diva's is so much clearer than my old speakers! We don't have to crank the volume way up or keep rewinding scenes to hear what is being spoken. I'm amazed how we can now hear and understand spoken whispers as before with my old speakers we could not.

Bought all my Diva's from The Audio Insider and must say that Jon Lane is a heck of a great guy to deal with. He was very knowledgeable and patient with all my endless questions.

Well, I just gotta say I sure miss my Swan setup. I have been house sitting for almost five months now and can't wait to get a place again so I can set up my system, especially since I have new additions to my Swan system. Before I had 6.1's for fronts, 2.1's for rears, a Klipsch KSP-C6 for the center and two TAD-SW100's for subs, all hooked up to my Pioneer Elite VSX 49txi. I recently picked up a pair of 4.1's and a three more 2.1s (I sold a pair, leaving me with one for a center). Sooo, I will now have a 7 channel Swan setup. I am not sure how good the 2.1 will serve as a center, but I can't imagine it will sound bad. I guess I should just buy a C3 and try to find a lone 2.1 to mate up with mine.

Did anything ever come of the x.1 mods???

I have a 6.1 channel setup. Diva 6.1 mains, C3 center (with the top-mounted tweeter) , R3 surrounds with a 2.1 rear center, all matched seemingly perfectly to my rosewood HSU VTF-3R. (essentially the same as the current VTF2.3), only rosewood with the piano black top is no longer available.

Here is a pic and review of the VTF.

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volum...er-1-2004.html


Even after 7 or 8 years , I could not be more thrilled with my system!

Nothing has come of the X.1 series mods, at least not yet. We'd talked this over a long time ago but hadn't settled on a plan of action.

As far as models that would respond favorably to a redesign, the 6.1 probably has solid potential owing to the drivers, driver topography, and cabinet build. (The R3 and C3 compliment the 6.1, and we have no plans to drop either in the near future. The R3 is always challenging because the bloody overbuilt things run us a ton, but we keep them around to fill out the 6.1 + C3 system.)

TAI has a new custom designs channel so we're finally fast-tracking the upgrade path for speakers that benefit strongly from a purist redesign philosophy. (We began with the D2.1se and M1, and are turning next to the M3 and M1B. We redesign the models and Sean at Skiing Ninja assembles the networks.) Since I co-developed the 6.1, it's familiar and would probably be a useful upgrade project in terms of time in versus user benefit out. I hadn't considered it before this comment, but I wonder what a C3 redesign would achieve...

I'm rambling but the short answer is "no, but not necessarily forever." I'm open to the idea, so a PM would be fine.

Thanks, folks.

I purchased a set of swans 4.1, C3, 2.1 way back when AV 123 were selling them. 2001 I think. they have produced wonderful sound all these years. Two questions. Three of the cones have what appears to be crescent moon like impressions in the center of the cone. I never thought much of this, however a friend of mine found the same thing on one of his speakers and at lower volume gets a scratchy like distortion from it. His speakers were purchased the same time as mine. Should I consider replacing these cones? Can these imperfections distort the speaker performance. Secondly If I were to purchase the 5.2 for the front and move the 4.1 to either the side or rear, would the 5.2 match as far as pairing with the rest. The 6.1s are just too big

cornerstone, drop us a line or phone one of us and we can take a look at this and get it rectified. There are thousands Divas out there and by now Swan have probably made zillion of their drivers but personally I've never heard of this happening. At any rate, we probably have drivers to fix it.

It sounds like overdrive has pushed the voice coil former into the cone body, but the question is how, since Swan has installed a special yoke between the two that spreads that force adequately. And their alloy and its thickness had always been ample.

They say there's always a first time - shoot us a line, maybe include a foto, and I think we'll probably have replacement drivers on hand we can send out. I was told we'd run out of the 8" woofers (Diva 6.1) awhile back but I think we should have restocked and everything else in the Diva X.1 driver inventory is probably still on the shelf.

The 5.2 and 4.1 are in different series but among technically dissimilar product lines they match well. Identical tweeters and quite similar responses.

THANKS Jon I will

Jon,

Know anybody in the Tampa area or Richmond, VA. that I may be able to audition the Divas? Or...anyone else that can help. I will be here through Saturday and then back to Richmond.

I listened to the other line by Swan, but they did not have any Divas.

Thanks,
Rob

Thanks,
Rob

I will post when I return to ATL

So my Swans arrived via FedEx hours ago. I just ran home to put the boxes in the house but I had to come back to work so I didn't get to open them. I plan on setting them up tonight and I will give my first impressions and experiences sometime this weekend probably.

Thanks Kraig@Oz for all your help.

So excited, I don't know how much actual work I'll get done this afternoon.

Glad they made it Jason, let me know if you need anything else and we appreciate your patience while we waited for the new container to land from Swans.

Kraig

The Swan F2.6 is a 3-way 4th order vented box system with powered 1-way sealed box system, it is actually 2nd from the bottom of the Ultimate Series- it is Swan's answer to whether it can replicate it's statement F2.3BF in a smaller more accomodating package.

Based on the package itself, it is a half or pint sized version of the F.2.3BF. It is not a stripped down version similarities rather than differences abound. The F2.3BF utilizes 16 RT 1.3 isodynamic ribbon tweeters and 16 DMO midrange drivers the F2.6 uses 8 of each. The major difference is in the mid woofers and powered subwoofers, where the F2.3BF uses 4 x 6.5" PD6 midwoofers and an outboard 15" subwoofer, the F2.6 has 2 x L6-4R midwoofers per side and an integrated 150 watt rms 10" side firing powered subwoofer in each cabinet. The front drivers are mounted to an aluminum faceplate midwoofers mounted to their own faceplate. Just slightly over 4 ft tall and 14" at their deepest point they are over 2 ft shorter than the F2.3BF and much more accomodating in mid size rooms. Though, don't let the small size fool you, as I am finding out they will over power a small and some mid size listening rooms! Take heed if you are foolish enough like I am to put them in a small room (13' x 12' 4" x 12') you will yearn for larger accomodations.

Swan controls it's price points by putting most of the money in outward appearance, great looks, excellent cabinetry and great drivers. They do cut some cost internally not vying for exotic cabling and capacitors like Aurum another great Chinese speaker builder who uses exotic cabling and Raimund Mundorf M-cap Supreme & MKP capacitors from Germany in their speakers. I am not an expert on such things but do know they make a difference as I did a direct comparison on different caps inside of speakers made by VMPS.

The F2.6 is a line source speaker that relies on the foundation of low distortion and power, and I can attest it is both things in abundance. In considering driving these speakers appropriately I wanted to make sure I had enough reserve power for these babies, their nominal impedence is 8 versus 16 ohms in the F2.3BF and 89 versus 90 db efficiency of their big brother. I chose to use my Wyred4Sound 500 watt stereo amplifier, I think I have successfully linked an amplifier which will not compromise the F2.6's sound quality. I am also using a PS Audio preamp which has been modified by Cullen Circuits (designers of my amp) and an ESound platinum CD player. External wiring is by Nerve Audio, very good inexpensive cable (see http://www.nerveaudio.com/products.asp for details).

The F2.6 is a very finicky speaker, each change of components to every movement (and they are very heavy > 200lbs each) of the speaker created something different in the soundfield. Initially I toed them in only to find in my room I compressed the sound field. I finally settled on pointing them straight ahead (47" from the front wall 19" from the side and 64" apart).

From the first CD it was plain to see that Swan did not create a cheap version of the F2.3BF but a speaker designed to create a statement of it's own. It is a paradigm of balance, a blend of subtlety, tonality, imaging and dynamics. Transparent to a great degree going much further than my F2.2 and with some of the aforementioned potential upgrades can go to a higher plateau! It is very difficult to create a speaker of this magnitude with this many drivers paper and ribbon, upper and lower midrange, powered and unpowered behave appropriately, with different dispersion patterns, power handling capabilities, etc. behave appropriately in any room especially a smaller than required one. I can't get it to disappear, but I am close, damn close, especially with this much surface area across the face to boot!

The one thing I liked about the F2.2 was it's bass power, and the ability to sound real and play deep, that was it's forte'. Now add outstanding midrange drive and outstanding treble balance and you get a giant leap forward in the F2.6. This speaker goes deep, down into the low 20s. Now I must warn you I am probably a fan of speakers that emphasize the mid to upper bass. Though this speaker sounds extremely coherent to me.

Last Sunday I saw a magnificent performance by Stanley Clarke with a very remarkable pianist named Hiromi from Japan whose style reminded me of the great Ahmad Jamal. I went straight home and fired up the system and listened a cd I had just purchased by Hiromi, my my did the piano have a realistic presentation. from top to bottom this speaker seems to have the coherency I am looking for in a speaker, I cannot hear the drivers as individual components, they integrate as one seamless instrument (after much work with the phase, crossover and gain controls on the subwoofer) portraying the musicians as a group, not emphasizing one over the other.

The midrange is lifelike on most instruments one of my test tracks is an Opus CD, "House of the Rising Sun" with Cyndee Peters on vocals. I have heard this CD on many great designs from Wilson to Magico. The F2.6 keeps pace, the vocals are delicate and slightly laid back while the Tenor sax has power and majesty. There is a sax solo where you can actually tell the sax player is moving to the front of the band. This CD has it all, from vocals to bell sounds, and they are all realistically rendered by the F2.6. Another CD I like to use is by Oscar Peterson, "We Get Requests" which portrays the piano very realistically. The resolving power, transient speed, and timbre are remarkable. As I am writing this I am listening to the 25th anniversary rendition of "Kind of Blue," wow Miles trumpet, Coltrane's tenor and Cannonball's Alto sound 'in the room' realistic so dense and the saxophone's reedy and full bodied. These things start and stop on a dime, I hear subtle nuances I have not heard before... The soundstage is sharply between the speakers, still playing with absorption and diffusion....

I still have a lot of work to do, still fine tuning, Nerve Audio is sending some different cables for me to try, we'll see....

Wow, that's some speaker! Thanks for the report. Look forward to hearing your further adventures with these sonic marvels.

Meanwhile, I've gone the opposite direction and acquired Swan's cheapest speakers, the S3W. Meant for the pc, connected to an old Paradigm sub it acquits itself very well in the main system, alongside my F2.2s!

I have the swan diva's on my short list of speakers to purchase. I started the following thread. Could anyone comment on how they sound compared to some of the others I've listened to? I'd like to find out if these speakers are right for me, or if maybe others on the list are a no go or a maybe as well.

I read the last 10 pages of this thread and about the first 10.

I've found some people reviewed the swans to the axiom m80 and m60 and others have numerous times compared the paradigm studio 60 to m60 and studio 100 to m80. I've heard the studio 60 and did like them. If the Axiom is about the same but < half price that's a no brainer for me, but others have said they prefer the swans over them so that might rule out already the Axioms. Wanting to narrow my list down the best I can as these internet direct speakers I really can't audition unless I do the free in home trial and I really don't want to do that.

Here's the link to my thread.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1253296

So after playing with my new Swans over the weekend, I'll post my experience.

The packaging was pretty impressive. The outer boxes were fairly beat up as one would expect. When I removed the inner boxes though, they were perfect so I knew nothing got through to the inner packaging. I imagine my neighbors laughing though watching me drag the huge 80+ pound boxes into my house because they were too bulky to just lift. Each box also came with a length of speaker wire (12 or 10 gauge, not sure) and white gloves to protect the finish when handling the speakers.

The finish of these speakers is just fantastic. The piano black gloss top and bottom are incredible looking. Even the "budget" faux black cherry finish looks great. The 6.1's and C3 appear to be vinyl but the R3's seem to have a veneer. They look really nice. With the grilles off, the drivers look impressive (because in audio, looks are everything ).

I put the supplied feet on the 6.1's...my room is carpeted but I left the flat part on instead removing them for spikes. The binding posts for the 6.1's are pretty robust...they're not messing around. I put the R3's on my existing speaker stands (they also came with wall mounting hardware) but they're probably pushing the edge of the weight the stands are rated for. They seem stable enough. The C3 wouldn't fit in my TV stand so it's on the floor angled up right now...will have to build or buy a stand for it eventually.

After running through the MCACC calibration on my Pioneer Elite 01 receiver, I tried them out with CD's (U2, Silversun Pickups, Anberlin) in my Elite 79 DVD player. I use an Emotiva UPA-7 amp too. The sound was a lot better than what I had before (but then again that's why I upgraded). I was impressed by the transparency of the sound. I was able to identify different instruments and musical themes a lot easier. Cymbals were crisp, the Edge's guitar was amazing (I guess that is independent of my speakers but this is how it SHOULD be heard) and vocals were amazing. I haven't had the chance to really watch any movies yet. I am trying to use them a little while because other owners say there is a break-in period.

I would like to say I haven't done any back-to-back comparisons in my room but I've heard offerings from Klipsch, JBL, and Polk at friends' houses, and B&W 684 at a dealer. I've also researched the likes of Axiom and AV123 Rockets. I just wanted to make that statement to show I didn't blindly jump into this but I also can't answer questions like "Swan 6.1 or..." since comparisons in different settings weeks and months apart can be less than decisive.

Just wanted to say that I am more than pleased with my Swans so far and the people at Oz did a great job. I know I had to wait a little while due to the 6.1's being on back order but that's not anyone's fault. The wait was worth it!

Right now, I'm thinking about getting the Swan T200B speakers for my computer... has anyone here had a chance to try these out before?

Also, this is my first time buying Swan speakers, so I'm wondering how good of a value their stuff typically is... As a law student, I'm not exactly rich at this point, so it's kind of important.

So I'm having trouble hearing dialog... I think its my PS3 but i'm not sure. It seems like when I watch DVDs on my PS3 I have to turn my Onkyo 805 up to like -15 or so but when I play games its at like -25 to -35.

I'm runing 6.1s, C3 and 2.1s. Even at -15 I can hear my PS3 fan over the volume of the speakers. The xover is at 80 and I have a Epik sub woofer.

I'm thinking about getting an amp but I feel like my 805 should handle it... Maybe I need a new DVD Player to diagnose the issue.

I was under the impression that the Audio Insider was the only place I could order Swan speakers from. After breezing through this thread I found OzHometheater.com and realize I just threw away nearly $500 ordering from TheAudioInsider.com. Good news is I only ordered them an hour ago so I should be able to cancel it! Im really confused as to how it could be that Audio Insiders prices are so much higher than apparently the only other dealer in the states.

So bummed right now.. I know they already charged my CC as I got a phone call to confirm the transaction from the bank.

I guess the real math on my order is that I'm paying about an extra $250 by going through The Audio Insider..

Rosewood 6.1's and C3 center.

"The Swan Diva 6.1 floorstanding loudspeaker is The Audio Insider's classic high-output home theater loudspeaker. For the best value anywhere, this full-sized speaker is only offered - and guaranteed - through our Internet-direct channel."

Quite a premium for a "guarantee".. but I have to say that paragraph is a bit misleading to fools who skimp on research when they see something they want (me). Oh well, no regrets. Can't wait to get them.

Jim, drop me a line tomorrow. OZ is our dealer associate and we supply their sales. I can clear this up for you...

Thanks Jon.

I didnt know OZ and TAI were related. Great CS Jon. Jim please post impressions of these when you get them, pics would be nice too

Hey Jon,

Does [email removed] connect me to you? I'm going to send you an email with the specifics of my order.

Im2sexy - I will definitely be doing that. And I will post some detailed pics as well. I was unable to find any on the net when I was looking.

Jon was able to work things out for me, which I'm sure comes as no surprise to anyone else who has done business with him.

As I said when talking to Jon in private I really appreciate what he did for me and I am very much looking forward to getting my speakers.

Cheers guys

I've read great reviews of the Skiing Ninja crossover in other speakers. Has anybody had the privilege of hearing the results with the D2.1se? How do they compare to the standard D2.1se or other speakers ,such as my current Focal 807V? Does anybody have specific musical comparisons? I primarily listen to acoustical music such as jazz, bluegrass, and folk.

This is my first post, so thank you in advance for any replies.

i am owning this pair right now. it is a great spkr for PC, built in amp. come with XLR & RCA input. Remote control, most important it is very good looking
SQ wise, it is very good for vocal with adequate bass.

SO far it is the best multimedia spkr i have auditioned, for lower budget u can opt for m200mk3.

more detail in below link

http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?sh...80438&hl=t200b

Well I have them sitting in the garage right now. Diva 6.1 and C3 center. I'm surprised by how fast they got here especially considering the holiday weekend. I had checked the tracking number yesterday to see the progress and it still listed them as being in the Reno, NV warehouse since 6/30 with no estimated delivery date. So cut to this morning, I got a phone call from Fedex at 8am to make sure that somebody will be here to sign and take delivery. (I'm here). One package had a hole through the double boxing but the speaker looks unscathed. The Fedex guy said he marked that on his hand held. I think it will be fine though. More updates to come later but you can be pretty sure its just going to be me gushing about how in love I am with these speakers considering what I'm upgrading from.

Cheers guys,
Jim