Adrian Low
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New WAMM details
Saw a full size mock-up of the new WAMM. David Wilson has his reasons for not going into too much detail until the speakers are finally released. I'll just give the info as I have them.
Each presentation is by invitation only. Wilson started by thanking and acknowledging those present for the company's success. He went into some detail about how the WAMM began; his initial speaker experiments inspired by Gilbert Briggs of Wharfdale, discovering that he could get different qualities of sound by moving drivers physically relative to each other, to building tracks in the ceiling, hanging drivers by metal wire off the tracks, and pulling them forward or back. These experiments laid the foundation of the time alignment and aspherical group delay that his speakers feature today. By the way you can see a picture of a Dalquist DQ10 with an ESR electrostatic midrange and a Braun tweeter stacked on top of each other. This was the original inspiration for the WAMM. Wilson Audio: A Brief History of Wilson Audio
As an aside, David was very passionate about how much more important the time domain is compared to frequency response. He mentioned scientific studies that seem to indicate that.
The original WAMM was built because David was frustrated with commercially available speakers at the time being unable to reproduce the sound he heard while recording full scale orchestral and organ works. His wife Sheryl then showed pictures of Daryl and Debby as kids, listening to the original speakers. Debby was sitting on the top of the WAMM woofer tower.
Then the speaker was unveiled.
We were not allowed to take pictures and I can't really describe it well save for the obvious. There are 5 smaller independent modules stacked above the 2 bigger bass/mid bass modules(?). Grills were left on. The main chassis can be used without a full size subwoofer/s. From the side, there are obvious aesthetic clues from the XLF, with the horizontal cut/ curves. Wilson hinted at finding inspiration from Ferrari/formula one cars' use of the undertray air flow technology to increase downforce at speed, though he didn't elaborate.
Height: 82" without spikes / 208.28cm (7' tall with spikes)
Width:23"/58.42cm
Depth:35"/88.90cm
No electrostatic panels will be used. All modules can be adjusted in the time domain except for the lower 2 presumably. Sub towers are passive, so user will need to add amplifiers.
Qualified dealers will be trained extensively at the factory to install and optimize the performance of the speakers. Each prospective WAMM customer must be vetted by the dealer and separately by Wilson Audio. Among other criteria, only current owners of Wilson speakers (current or previous models) will be approved.
Anticipated release is probably later this year, possibly at the Munich Show though this is purely speculation.
Wilson then described how the development team has been spending countless hours with the finest orchestras during rehearsals, listening to the sound intimately. You can see videos of this on Wilson's website. David pointed out that having direct and intimate access to the world's finest orchestras and conductors helped them achieve a level of understanding and therefore, performance, that far exceeds anything they've ever done. The new WAMM will embody all that they've learned.
The above is mainly objective reporting of what I remember. On a personal note, I observed how touched and emotional David Wilson was when he thanked all present for the company's success, for having made good friends in the industry. The passion he displayed when he talked about how little attention we pay to time characteristics compared to frequency response. The obvious pride in his son Darryl who has been playing a critical role in the development of all new speakers, among the rest of the development team.
While I'm sure everyone present would have loved to have heard the speakers, David was clear that the WAMM is not quite ready, but could not wait to share their latest and best with friends.
I apologize in advance if there are any factual errors. I'm no trained reporter. Just a fan from the first pair of Watt1 with rosewood sides in 1988 ...
Saw a full size mock-up of the new WAMM. David Wilson has his reasons for not going into too much detail until the speakers are finally released. I'll just give the info as I have them.
Each presentation is by invitation only. Wilson started by thanking and acknowledging those present for the company's success. He went into some detail about how the WAMM began; his initial speaker experiments inspired by Gilbert Briggs of Wharfdale, discovering that he could get different qualities of sound by moving drivers physically relative to each other, to building tracks in the ceiling, hanging drivers by metal wire off the tracks, and pulling them forward or back. These experiments laid the foundation of the time alignment and aspherical group delay that his speakers feature today. By the way you can see a picture of a Dalquist DQ10 with an ESR electrostatic midrange and a Braun tweeter stacked on top of each other. This was the original inspiration for the WAMM. Wilson Audio: A Brief History of Wilson Audio
As an aside, David was very passionate about how much more important the time domain is compared to frequency response. He mentioned scientific studies that seem to indicate that.
The original WAMM was built because David was frustrated with commercially available speakers at the time being unable to reproduce the sound he heard while recording full scale orchestral and organ works. His wife Sheryl then showed pictures of Daryl and Debby as kids, listening to the original speakers. Debby was sitting on the top of the WAMM woofer tower.
Then the speaker was unveiled.
We were not allowed to take pictures and I can't really describe it well save for the obvious. There are 5 smaller independent modules stacked above the 2 bigger bass/mid bass modules(?). Grills were left on. The main chassis can be used without a full size subwoofer/s. From the side, there are obvious aesthetic clues from the XLF, with the horizontal cut/ curves. Wilson hinted at finding inspiration from Ferrari/formula one cars' use of the undertray air flow technology to increase downforce at speed, though he didn't elaborate.
Height: 82" without spikes / 208.28cm (7' tall with spikes)
Width:23"/58.42cm
Depth:35"/88.90cm
No electrostatic panels will be used. All modules can be adjusted in the time domain except for the lower 2 presumably. Sub towers are passive, so user will need to add amplifiers.
Qualified dealers will be trained extensively at the factory to install and optimize the performance of the speakers. Each prospective WAMM customer must be vetted by the dealer and separately by Wilson Audio. Among other criteria, only current owners of Wilson speakers (current or previous models) will be approved.
Anticipated release is probably later this year, possibly at the Munich Show though this is purely speculation.
Wilson then described how the development team has been spending countless hours with the finest orchestras during rehearsals, listening to the sound intimately. You can see videos of this on Wilson's website. David pointed out that having direct and intimate access to the world's finest orchestras and conductors helped them achieve a level of understanding and therefore, performance, that far exceeds anything they've ever done. The new WAMM will embody all that they've learned.
The above is mainly objective reporting of what I remember. On a personal note, I observed how touched and emotional David Wilson was when he thanked all present for the company's success, for having made good friends in the industry. The passion he displayed when he talked about how little attention we pay to time characteristics compared to frequency response. The obvious pride in his son Darryl who has been playing a critical role in the development of all new speakers, among the rest of the development team.
While I'm sure everyone present would have loved to have heard the speakers, David was clear that the WAMM is not quite ready, but could not wait to share their latest and best with friends.
I apologize in advance if there are any factual errors. I'm no trained reporter. Just a fan from the first pair of Watt1 with rosewood sides in 1988 ...
