Avantgarde Speakers

Yup :)

These are particularly impressive:

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For me, this is the "retirement" speaker. When you don't want to mess around with cables and multiple pieces. Sounds fantastic too!

It's also perfect for a 2nd, living room system.


alexandre
 

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Yes!!! Although most of the time I have seen them sounding really miserable due to poor choice of system or rooms in shows or shops, I have once listened to them using the old Modell 5 or 3 Avantgarde solid state integrated amplifier and it was a surreal sound experience - coherency, presence and timbre. No typical "horn" it sounded just like music. I think that the system was set up by Holger Fromme or Matthias Ruff and I congratulated them - it was a decade ago and I do not remember the details anymore.

I still dream about a pair of Trio's ...
 
Mike...those are Jerry's speakers. He posts here infrequently from time to time.
 
Wow, Jerry has good taste :) The pair we're going to exhibit at THE Show is in that exact same configuration (wood/horn color)!
It's gorgeous, the finish is exquisite!


alexandre
 
Yes guys, I do post - but infrequently. Sorry about this as I am tied up with new job assignments which require a lot of my time to manage as well as travel (to UK).

The picture indeed is my current system, although I must add I have collected some NIB/Mint new vintage pieces as I am also building my vintage dream - to realise my desire to hear 70's/80's music using the same period gears. Amassed a set of McIntosh 60th Anniversary C22/Mc75 (still in box), MCD1100 CD/SACD player, a completely rebuild Thorens TD160 Super MKII, SME M2-9 tonearm with an Ortofon Mono cartridge (from Vinyl Nirvana - he does an excellent job) - to play Mono records. The rest will still be McIntosh gears (MT5 TT, MVP891, MR87 Tuner - MR88 won't work over this side of the world) as I do like to gaze at Mc stuff in the dark of the night. Speakers? Well, many have crossed my mind, but I am tied on Vintage rebuild Paragons from Kendrick Audio, Japan or a new pair of Tannoy Westminsters. The last will determine the fate of my current system as I don't have a huge place to have these humongous speakers even though I am looking around for a new house. BUT that does not in anyway undermine the current AV setup as they are great speakers having none of the horns bad characteristics. If the change is on course, its because of my desire to run back the clock - listening to vintage music thru mostly vintage gears.
As for Howie, he has moved on from the initial home test of the AV Duo Primos, and now probably listening to a pair of SF Aida with Constellation powering them. I may be meeting him sometime mid June as will be coming down from China (Shanghai) to HK on the way back home mid June.
Thats all from me .... but if anyone wanted a pair of the AV, they are keepers. For me, its just a realisation of a childhood dream thats why the change and not because of anything else. If I have the space, I'll keep the current system too!
Cheers!
 
A pal of mine in Boston has a pair of Duos that he just could not to please him fully and debated selling them for 5 years (thank goodness he is a procrastinator). The main problem was the self-powered bass not keeping up with the horns and he was using an Audio-Tekne 8wpc SET amp.

All changed when our mutual friend (the one that did the demo session with me at Goldmunds a month ago) loaned him one of his Job 225 amps (plus he was doing work on his listening room downstairs and had to displace his system upstairs in the living room -with Cathedral ceiling). The sound exploded! The bass got REALLY fast and easily kept up with the horns...and he was extremely puzzled as his bass module was self powered. I told this to the AG rep at the last Zurich Show and he sais he was NOT surprised. Apparently, the bass modules are only powered up to 150hz and that the wide bandwidth-super fast Job amps were taking over the upper bass work and hence the MUCH better driver integration. The A-T amp was just too slow. All this with a Sony SACD player and the Goldmund Metis 2 preamp. He found he did not need the Job mono-blocs now Telos amps, as the load is not that heavey and the 225 is more than capable. He put back in his old Gen 3 Lampizator and again moved up a notch...with totally black background. He is now thinking of updating his Lampi to a Gen 5. When I showed him the report of the Sound Galleries Monaco system from Munich, he was not surprised as AudioPax amps were always known to be a good match for AG speakers.

Now my pal is LOVING his system and will likely sell off his 2nd system (AT Carbon speakers with AT SET amp).
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That system looks spectacular! I have an old Avantgarde system from the early 2000's. 5.1, with AV being the 5 part, A pair of Duos for Left Right and 3 Solos for center and rears. I have a custom switch that allows me to use the Duos in both stereo and 5.1 configuration, with wired remote from my listening chair. I am currently traveling, so I don't have a shot of the system to show you. Dom Brulhart from Merging Technologies visited me a few years ago and took a picture of my system which shows the AV LCR speakers. It is on the Merging website, under SACD mastering as the background shot - although I don't do any SACD mastering. The picture gives a pretty good view of my system from about 6 years ago. Speakers haven't changed. Sorry I can't post a link - their website seems to be down at the moment.

Larry
 
Avantgarde Trios w/ basshorns driven by a BAT-VK75SE was an amazing audiophile moment around 10 years ago at the SF Stereophile Show. I've never seen an audience give a standing ovation after a demo- in this case, after Pink Floyd's The Wall. I've always wanted to own a pair.

Looking forward to hearing the new versions this week in Newport- apparently the bass is much better integrated. The Unos/Duos look much better as well.
 
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