Devore 0/96's

Restock said:
Nope - I heard the O/96 in 6 different rooms with about 7 different amps over the last three years. The presentation and observations are pretty consistent and not very room dependent.

What you are reading are just different description from different people trying to translate what you hear into words.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

I'm sure as an O/96 owner you have drawn a pretty good bead on the sound. Those of us that have heard them only once or twice are the descriptions that I'm finding confusing.

What's odd to me is that my experiences listening to the O/96 don't come near to the description of "missing" anything - and this is not to cast any doubts on others' listening experiences. I listened to complex, multitracked and layered recordings as well as smaller combos, both on- and off-axis, within the sweet spot and way, way far from the speakers in a long room. If anything, the additional texture and emotion of the O/96s came at the expense of pinpoint imaging. But I still got the sense of palpable, 3D imaging because the soundstage was so enveloping. Also, even listening to mono recordings, I heard depth layering and distinct imaging. This was at the old Pitch Perfect room, with Mr. DeVore himself setting up the speakers. With all-Shindo of course.

The most logical explanation for these differences is that room and/or system differences were controlling factors.
 
I would agree, but I've heard them with three completely different setups. I didn't listen serious until I heard them in a friends home with his Allnic integrated and a very old CD player. Obviously those could be contributing factors to a less than thrilled conclusion.

But as I said, I've heard them at shows as well. Definitely not my cup of tea....but I'm glad others enjoy them and I can obviously see the attraction with the impeccable finish and interesting story.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Mike said:
I would agree, but I've heard them with three completely different setups. I didn't listen serious until I heard them in a friends home with his Allnic integrated and a very old CD player. Obviously those could be contributing factors to a less than thrilled conclusion.

But as I said, I've heard them at shows as well. Definitely not my cup of tea....but I'm glad others enjoy them and I can obviously see the attraction with the impeccable finish and interesting story.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Oooh....I want to know the story!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
voxshall said:
Hey Mep (thats not short for a character in the muppets is it?),

Like I said in my review, I am more interested in getting lost in music than analyzing soundstage etc. But I guess to me the O96's sound really big and that may give me the illusion I am situated closer to the performance. Talking about performance a Jimi Hendrix album I picked up in Japan recently was giving me goose bumps just before I started to write this, I felt transported to the event and its in Mono. So take what I say about soundstage with a grain of salt, as it's not that important to me in the grand scheme of things and not something I consciously look out for. In fact the more I listen to music with my heart, the more I'm describing emotional responses and the more abstract my descriptions become, so maybe my comments are more confusing than helpful for someone looking for facts on how the speakers sound.
Click to expand...

MEP is the 3 initials in my name. I only commented about the soundstage because several different people talked about these speakers imaging in front of the speakers instead of behind them and I just wanted to understand what that meant in terms of the rest of the soundstage.
 
Mike said:
I would agree, but I've heard them with three completely different setups. I didn't listen serious until I heard them in a friends home with his Allnic integrated and a very old CD player. Obviously those could be contributing factors to a less than thrilled conclusion.

But as I said, I've heard them at shows as well. Definitely not my cup of tea....but I'm glad others enjoy them and I can obviously see the attraction with the impeccable finish and interesting story.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

I can appreciate them not being everyones cup of tea. I also think I know what you mean by certain details not sticking out as much as other speakers. For me, its more holistic sounding music with wonderful texture rather than separated detailed sounds that are easy to hear in their own individual space. I can appreciate listening to all the details can be fun too and every once in a blue moon i get out the headphones for that sort of experience. Having different approaches is one of the things that makes this such a fun hobby.
 
It has nothing to do with listening to all the details. Strads and Dali's are not uber detailed speakers. Quite the contrary. They are very musical.

I guess I just haven't had the right demo with Devore speakers....especially the O/96. Trust me, its a speaker I really want to like. Easy to drive, gorgeous looks, American made, etc.

But every time I've heard them, I've left disappointed.

In the same price range, I much prefer the Harbeth's. The similarly priced 40.1's are more my style.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
mep said:
MEP is the 3 initials in my name. I only commented about the soundstage because several different people talked about these speakers imaging in front of the speakers instead of behind them and I just wanted to understand what that meant in terms of the rest of the soundstage.
Click to expand...

Not sure if you got your answer but I would say the soundstage is really big in all directions. I finally got round to trying the Playstation 1 out. Man this thing is smooth, not harsh sounding at all. A real blast and a great match for the O96's. I don't listen to CD's often but its great for background music when I'm doing things around the house. and don't want the hassle of flipping vinyl distracting me.
 
Mike said:
It has nothing to do with listening to all the details. Strads and Dali's are not uber detailed speakers. Quite the contrary. They are very musical.

I guess I just haven't had the right demo with Devore speakers....especially the O/96. Trust me, its a speaker I really want to like. Easy to drive, gorgeous looks, American made, etc.

But every time I've heard them, I've left disappointed.

In the same price range, I much prefer the Harbeth's. The similarly priced 40.1's are more my style.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Sounds like they are just not your thing. I had a great time cranking Bela Fleck "flight of the cosmic hippo" on Stradivari's, it was great fun. I have to listen to Harbeths again one day, not to change speakers but to understand the appeal, they weren't doing it for me the last demo but that could have been speaker position, over dampened room etc.
 
I have a PS 1 also. It's a nice sounding player, but I just don't listen to it much. When I sit down to listen, I just want to hear vinyl.
I can't see running my Shindo pre/amp for background music, so the PS1 collects dust.
 
I was talking to a guy in an audio shop today, whom owns birdseye maple O96's and he said the same thing word for word. His PS1 is collecting dust. I may go the same way eventually, but I'm going through a Jim Smith "Get better sound" phase where he suggests setting up speaker location with CD's. I have his reference CD too, out of interest for setting up. I'm not doing to well with the tips, I end up moving my speakers all over the place then end up putting them back to the original position, which is similar to where Jack Robert's has them in his O96 review DeVore Fidelity Orangutan O/96 Loudspeaker Review: Part 2 | A Unique Audiophile Experience.

Any other O96 owners have any setup advise?
 
Mike said:
It has nothing to do with listening to all the details. Strads and Dali's are not uber detailed speakers. Quite the contrary. They are very musical.

I guess I just haven't had the right demo with Devore speakers....especially the O/96. Trust me, its a speaker I really want to like. Easy to drive, gorgeous looks, American made, etc.

But every time I've heard them, I've left disappointed.

In the same price range, I much prefer the Harbeth's. The similarly priced 40.1's are more my style.
Click to expand...

+1--Yes Mike I feel I'm with you on this--call me old fashioned, I agree with the posters the DeVores are good speakers-- Just the Harbeths are my choice in this race too

Bruce
 
KeithR said:
How do Devore and Harbeth differ in sound?

Thanks guys
Click to expand...

Hi KeithR,

I merely felt a strong need to voice my finding on both of these designs, as I've owned each of their smaller Mini-Monitors, namely the original Harbeth HL-P3 and LS 3/5A Gold Edition as well as Devore Fidelity Gibbon 3s, and have had in-depth listening sessions with each brands larger, more costly speakers.

To me, if ones music collection consist of say girl with guitar or simple acoustic jazz trio or folk type recordings and wishes for a very beautiful rendition of vocalist based music thrown in?, then Harbeth's have in fact gained a strong following here, but thrown anything more complex at them........, and they seem to fall apart, as if they're looking at the owner to tell them what to do next, or as it they're ready to thrown themselves off their stands and run for cover.

My local Harbeth Dealer - David Michael Audio claimed the 30.1s to be their most dynamic speaker yet, but as a friend and I sat there last year listening to something so simple as Patricia Barber's Smash download.........., it was all nice and beautiful done while she was singing ( talk singing like Michael Franks I call it ) and playing piano........, but as soon as the backing musicians came it.........., it went sideways, backwards and downhill to the point, we both looked at each other and laughed our behinds off, but then again admitily we both like speakers which have that ability to stop/start on the dime sort of sound, so it's subjective as always, and others might prefer this type of presentation?, but I'll pass.

Whereas said Gibbon 3/3XLs and the Silverbacks ( which are the only ones I've heard since 2009 ) have more of what I hear as a directness to them, where they're quite responsive to shifts in the musical flow of things, so once music becomes complex or busy ( as in certain types of improvised or Avant - Garde type jazz ) they keep their cool, and except said notes and patterns in style.

There's a lot to be said about nimbleness - agility and plain olde fashion ability to have that FUN or WOW factor going on with certain designs, it becomes quite clear which is build for a certain type of listener, and in the end, there aren't any rights or wrongs, merely which flavor one seeks as being truer to their ears. I for one hear what I hear, and can only judge accordingly.........., and Devore's draw me into the fiber of each every strand of said music as if heard/felt anew.
 
Jerome would be a good one to chime in here.

Sonically, the 40.1's play bigger and fuller. I know the criticism is that the 40.1's are more colored, but I really like their sonics. Big full top to bottom sound. Tweeter might be a little rolled off compared to the excellent tweeter in the O/96, but overall - the 40.1's to me are much more enjoyable and a screaming good value.

But with the O/96 you get a slightly less cost point, what seems like better build quality to me, a better tweeter, and a much more tube friend speaker (spec wise, but actual practice may vary). You also get a Shindo friendly speaker and after hearing Shindo gear, that's worth a lot.

But at the end of the day, I would own a pair of 40.1's if I had another room and a proper way to set them up. I thought long and hard about them for my family room, but realized I just couldn't get enough space behind them to do them justice.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Kt77 said:
Hi KeithR,

I merely felt a strong need to voice my finding on both of these designs, as I've owned each of their smaller Mini-Monitors, namely the original Harbeth HL-P3 and LS 3/5A Gold Edition as well as Devore Fidelity Gibbon 3s, and have had in-depth listening sessions with each brands larger, more costly speakers.

To me, if ones music collection consist of say girl with guitar or simple acoustic jazz trio or folk type recordings and wishes for a very beautiful rendition of vocalist based music thrown in?, then Harbeth's have in fact gained a strong following here, but thrown anything more complex at them........, and they seem to fall apart, as if they're looking at the owner to tell them what to do next, or as it they're ready to thrown themselves off their stands and run for cover.

My local Harbeth Dealer - David Michael Audio claimed the 30.1s to be their most dynamic speaker yet, but as a friend and I sat there last year listening to something so simple as Patricia Barber's Smash download.........., it was all nice and beautiful done while she was singing ( talk singing like Michael Franks I call it ) and playing piano........, but as soon as the backing musicians came it.........., it went sideways, backwards and downhill to the point, we both looked at each other and laughed our behinds off, but then again admitily we both like speakers which have that ability to stop/start on the dime sort of sound, so it's subjective as always, and others might prefer this type of presentation?, but I'll pass.

Whereas said Gibbon 3/3XLs and the Silverbacks ( which are the only ones I've heard since 2009 ) have more of what I hear as a directness to them, where they're quite responsive to shifts in the musical flow of things, so once music becomes complex or busy ( as in certain types of improvised or Avant - Garde type jazz ) they keep their cool, and except said notes and patterns in style.

There's a lot to be said about nimbleness - agility and plain olde fashion ability to have that FUN or WOW factor going on with certain designs, it becomes quite clear which is build for a certain type of listener, and in the end, there aren't any rights or wrongs, merely which flavor one seeks as being truer to their ears. I for one hear what I hear, and can only judge accordingly.........., and Devore's draw me into the fiber of each every strand of said music as if heard/felt anew.
Click to expand...

its hardly surprising the Harbeth LS3/5a and P3 "fall apart" on complex music as they're cut from the same cloth and meant as a near field monitor. With 83db sensitivity and 25w rating (50w on peaks) you're not going to be satisfied playing Mahler's 3rd.

a better comparison cost-wise is the HL5 and 40 vs gibbon 88 and 0/96
 
Might be better starting a new thread for this. That way the Devore O96 thread can still be relevant for those who are solely interested in this speaker.

Sent from my HTC One.
 
Kt77 said:
Hi KeithR,

I merely felt a strong need to voice my finding on both of these designs, as I've owned each of their smaller Mini-Monitors, namely the original Harbeth HL-P3 and LS 3/5A Gold Edition as well as Devore Fidelity Gibbon 3s, and have had in-depth listening sessions with each brands larger, more costly speakers.

To me, if ones music collection consist of say girl with guitar or simple acoustic jazz trio or folk type recordings and wishes for a very beautiful rendition of vocalist based music thrown in?, then Harbeth's have in fact gained a strong following here, but thrown anything more complex at them........, and they seem to fall apart, as if they're looking at the owner to tell them what to do next, or as it they're ready to thrown themselves off their stands and run for cover.

My local Harbeth Dealer - David Michael Audio claimed the 30.1s to be their most dynamic speaker yet, but as a friend and I sat there last year listening to something so simple as Patricia Barber's Smash download.........., it was all nice and beautiful done while she was singing ( talk singing like Michael Franks I call it ) and playing piano........, but as soon as the backing musicians came it.........., it went sideways, backwards and downhill to the point, we both looked at each other and laughed our behinds off, but then again admitily we both like speakers which have that ability to stop/start on the dime sort of sound, so it's subjective as always, and others might prefer this type of presentation?, but I'll pass.

Whereas said Gibbon 3/3XLs and the Silverbacks ( which are the only ones I've heard since 2009 ) have more of what I hear as a directness to them, where they're quite responsive to shifts in the musical flow of things, so once music becomes complex or busy ( as in certain types of improvised or Avant - Garde type jazz ) they keep their cool, and except said notes and patterns in style.

There's a lot to be said about nimbleness - agility and plain olde fashion ability to have that FUN or WOW factor going on with certain designs, it becomes quite clear which is build for a certain type of listener, and in the end, there aren't any rights or wrongs, merely which flavor one seeks as being truer to their ears. I for one hear what I hear, and can only judge accordingly.........., and Devore's draw me into the fiber of each every strand of said music as if heard/felt anew.
Click to expand...

Great post, thank you for this insight.
 
Mike said:
Jerome would be a good one to chime in here.

Sonically, the 40.1's play bigger and fuller. I know the criticism is that the 40.1's are more colored, but I really like their sonics. Big full top to bottom sound. Tweeter might be a little rolled off compared to the excellent tweeter in the O/96, but overall - the 40.1's to me are much more enjoyable and a screaming good value.

But with the O/96 you get a slightly less cost point, what seems like better build quality to me, a better tweeter, and a much more tube friend speaker (spec wise, but actual practice may vary). You also get a Shindo friendly speaker and after hearing Shindo gear, that's worth a lot.

But at the end of the day, I would own a pair of 40.1's if I had another room and a proper way to set them up. I thought long and hard about them for my family room, but realized I just couldn't get enough space behind them to do them justice.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Also a wonderful post. I love hearing how people compare different speakers, it helps me see different aspects of the sound I never thought of.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top