Scaena Loudspeakers - these look very cool ....

joeinid

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Anyone hear these?


CES & THE Show 2011 • Too Marvelous for Words
by Paul Bolin | January 31, 2011
There were many excellent sounds to be heard at CES 2011, with Venture, Nola, VTL, BAT, Audio Research/Magnepan, Marten, and BAlabo/Tidal toward the head of a distinguished list. There were, however, two rooms that stood out from even the very stiff competition at this show. In both of these exhibits I heard sound at a level that was something well beyond anything I have experienced. These two very different rooms came closer to presenting live music as it really is, in all its dimensions, than any audio systems I have heard.
I have heard the Scaena speakers on a couple of occasions and been very impressed, but this year’s exhibition was supreme. For those unfamiliar with them, the Scaenas are very narrow line-source towers (available with 24, 30 or 36 "pods" per side) supplemented with pairs, quartets or sextets of powered subwoofers that incorporate digital processing for room matching. The speakers shown at the show were 24-pod towers with two subwoofers per channel and go for $60,000/pair. A complete dCS Scarlatti digital front-end and Scaena exec Sunny Umrao’s laptop (fed into the dCS gear) supplied the tunes. Conrad-Johnson’s 275W ART mono amplifiers drove the main towers. Cabling was Nordost Odin from stem to stern.
The towers were set up in the nearfield on the higher part of the two-level room, with the subs located well back on the lower level. In the distance between was the single most freakishly holographic presentation of recorded music I have ever heard. Life-sized musicians were present, and the original recording's acoustic was authoritatively and utterly forced into the room. Timbres were superbly lifelike and resolution was phenomenal. As impressed as I was, Umrao was also sufficiently blown away by the Auger/Driscoll track to demand that he be allowed to rip it before I left the room.

scaena_speakers.jpg



MODEL 3 SYSTEM




SCAENA Model 3.1

2 towers with Quartz base and 4 machined
aluminum retractable spiking footers.
12 mid-ranges per side / 9 ribbon tweeters /1 woofer
with 1 aluminum woofer base. Woofer amplifier and
electronic crossover.

SCAENA Model 3.2

2 towers with Quartz base and 4 machined
aluminum retractable spiking footers.
12 mid-ranges per side / 9 ribbon tweeters /2 woofers
with 2 aluminum woofer bases. Woofer amplifier and
electronic crossover.

SCAENA Model 3.4


2 towers with Quartz base and 4 machined
aluminum retractable spiking footers.
12 mid-ranges per side / 9 ribbon tweeters /4 woofers
with 2 aluminum woofer bases and 2 aluminum stacking
mount bases. Woofer amplifier and electronic crossover.

MODEL 2 SYSTEM


SCAENA Model 2.2

2 towers with Quartz base and 4 machined
aluminum retractable spiking footers.
15 mid-ranges per side / 9 ribbon tweeters /2 woofers
with 2 aluminum woofer bases. Woofer amplifier
and electronic crossover.

SCAENA Model 2.4


2 towers with Quartz base and 4 machined
aluminum retractable spiking footers.
15 mid-ranges per side / 9 ribbon tweeters /4 woofers
with 2 aluminum woofer bases and 2 aluminum stacking mounts.
Woofer amplifier and electronic crossover.

MODEL 1 SYSTEM


SCAENA Model 1.2

2 towers with Quartz base and 4 machined
aluminum retractable spiking footers.
18 mid-ranges per side / 12 ribbon tweeters /2 woofers
with 2 aluminum woofer bases. Woofer amplifier and
electronic crossover.

SCAENA Model 1.4


2 towers with Quartz base and 4 machined
aluminum retractable spiking footers.
18 mid-ranges per side / 12 ribbon tweeters /4 woofers
with 2 aluminum woofer bases and 2 aluminum stacking
mounts. Woofer amplifier and electronic crossover.
 
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Somehow have the impression these are extremely impressive, and I know on the East Coast, the NJ dealer (Ear Doctor?) is a CJ dealer and loves showing them with the top end CJ equipment...which should be a good thing for you given your new electronics. A lot of people like the 'freedom' these narrow line-source tall speakers elicit, plus the ginormous bass which can be placed in more optimal locations than when integrated into the main tower. In general, conventional wisdom seems to suggest from what I've read that the 4-tower solution really does work 'everything else being equal'...which is what you've got here. They were bloody expensive back in the day (IRS Beta, ML Statements, Genesis 1.1)...but are making a comeback as uber-hi-end budgets expand...Tidal 4-tower, Wilson XLF + Thor, Genesis Dragon, Gryphon Pendragon, Martin Coltrane Supreme, Scaena, etc.)
 
Hey I know Dave . He's a good guy and knows his stuff.
I been trying to get upto his place for months. Just don't seem to find the time.
 
He is a passionate guy about Audio, having spoken with him once. Do post if you get up to his place!
 
I heard their speakers they set up at the 2011 NY Audio show, they sounded very nice.

Joe, due to their woofer setup, I wouldn't attempt to set them up in anything but a very large room. So you're safe for now. :)
 
I think you guys hit the nail on the head. Setup is key, as well as appropriate room size. These are formula one speakers, meaning they are finicky and need TLC tweaking to sound their best. That being said, I have heard them at several shows, where we all know things are set up quickly and sound quality is usually hit or miss, and they certainly sounded OK but not great.

Seems to always be sub integration that is the culprit. Same used to be said for their grandfathered Pipedreams.
 
I have heard them a few times. Every time has been an experience. They are amongst the most transparent, detailed and effortless speakers i have ever heard.They were set up by their owners and designer and that makes a difference. they need space and they need very high end electronics. If you can assemble this combination, you will be rewarded with one of the best musical experiences ever.
 
Serum,

Welcome to the forum!!!

Thank you for joining.
 
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