Avalon Eidolon?

Anyone heard the Eidolon, or the Eidolon Diamond?
Is it incredibly hifi, or musical?
And does it pump?
What about the others in the Avalon range?
(I've found some at quite a "reasonable" price, though it's still JBL K2 money!)

 

The ones I've heard (at high end Tokyo dealers, it must be said) sounded very hifi. Don't know if that was the speakers or the everything else. Both, I suspect.
Check out Westlake. The big monitors will, for a price, give you everything you could want - and more.

 

I've had a terrible time finding any prices for Westlake gear, and what's also bizzarre is the specifications..
This 2x15" bass driver monster appears to have a -3dB point at 36Hz!
What are they up to?
Or are US Hz bigger and lower than ours?
And what about this beast with 2x18" woofers. You'd think it went past DC and could cause the end of the world!

 

I haven't heard the Eidolon, but Avalon speakers in general are probably as far away from a JBL K2 as you can get. They major on transparency and beauty. Slam and energy are not their forte. They do play music, though, in the right system they are a beguiling experience, and they do have gutsy bass when required, just less than other speakers at the respective price points.

I think it is fair to say the designer thinks other goals are more important than bass, you have to go pretty high up the range to get tons of it.

The Eidolon is pretty high up the range, so who knows ...

 

Perhaps they use imperial Hertz

 

That'll be the first 12-inch mid driver I've ever seen

btw, aren't the eidolons £35k or something

DT

 

£33k for the Diamond version. A couple of my friends have heard them, one of whom is VERY critical of bass reflex speakers, and both have said they are pretty special. Yet to hear them myself. Must admit, they are very well crafted.

 

Well, for thirty-three thousand pounds they better f'kin be

 

I was looking at the ordinary Eidolon - £10k less than the Diamonds and substantially less 2nd hand...
Still, I'll have to decide if I want to spend more than £10k for what will no doubt only amount to a small upgrade!
Mebbe I need to look into an early pair of Kef Maidstones, or something similar..

 

£10k premium for diamond tweeters!

Wouldn't mind so much, if I could wear them on my fingers when not listening to music, but I'm guessing they're a bit delicate!

How badly would you murder your kids if they ever pushed one of those in!?!?!?

DT

 

Kef Maidstones !!
Never found a dealer with a pair of these.
Never seen a used pair for sale come to that.

 

leonard,

it jsut doesnt seem like your kind of speaker.

I mean everything Ive read (including your description) says BASS!

(and good sound of course)

how about something like a JBL 4435? a mans speaker that will make audiophile burr-walnut madness sound like a car stereo!

here's a link to whet the appettite!

http://www.lansingheritage.org/images/jbl/catalogs/1986_pro/a1.jpg

Did you mention westlakes before? Again, I think thats more your cup of tea.

A big pair of JBL studio monitors like those will be ohh... 1,500-2,500 used, and will keep their second hand value.

Surely better than dropping 10k on something that is going to be worth 5k the second it leaves the shop?

NB
All this is just my opinion, but its mine and I definately agree with myself!!

 

NB

If you REALLY want to spend mega bucks, Walrus have a pair of K2's ex-dem for about 8k

 

K2s at Walrus!
Might have to brave the big city (though the missus might not be that keen on the industrial, in fact agricultural, looks of them!)

 

I have heard the JBL K2 on the JBL bases, driven by all Mark Levison CD, Pre and mono power amps in someone's house in Hong Kong. The sound was dull and I didn't like it at all. The horn tweeters are very directional, there is a hot spot where the treble sounds better, but outside it, the sound is very dull.

Just my personal experience.

Hon

 

Dull!
I'd have thought they'd be just the opposite!
Could have been the Levinson, or mebbe I've been led up the garden path about teh K2 sound.. Still don't understand their quoted bass response of 35Hz -10dB - with a 15" driver and that size cabinet? What are they doing?

 

One man's subtle and beautiful is another man's dull.

measurements are anechoic - in room is typically -3db around 20hz as both PM and I have found.

Still suspect you would find something more to your taste elsewhere, the Legacy Focus 20/20 is great fun - heard them in Milwaukee a while ago.

Avalon Eidelons are, like the K2's, about subtlety above all else IMO, about tiny microdynamics jumping out at you rather than being bludgened to death. Leonard, I suspect you really would like the Proac D100.

 

Merlin!
is the Proac D100 anything like the Response series?
I demmed the 1.5 (I think, nearly £3ks worth anyway) - found it to be missing an octave of bass and also a bit dull, as in unexciting...
I'm not look for that flat world PRaT thing, I like soundstages and image etc. but what I really want is a speaker that does all the frequencies I want in an unfatigueing way - so that I can listen for a long time at high level (not worried about going deaf!), but still get that drum thwack in the kidneys..
Am I asking too much?

 

Leonard,

it's part of the Response series but that is where any similaries with Proacs of old end. And the 2 x 10" in each cabinet do kick - and at PA levels to boot. A real speaker if you like, not a hifi prima donna.

I'm hopefully building my own and to be honest, with the tools available these days, it's hardly rocket science to get something that sounds damned good for about 25% of the cost of a commercial equivalent.

But if I wanted to get something form a well known manufacturer that kicked butt, I would listen to the D100 and be surprised if anything else came close at the price.

 

Leonard, you seem to be a like minded hooligan. When you find some speakers that do all those things, get a second pair for me