Athena Audiotion Series 2 brochure

[SilverMK3]

I emailed Athena Technologies earlier today to see if I could glean any information about their upgrades to the Audition line. Here's what I wrote, their response, and a link to their PDF Brochure of the Audition Series 2 (http://3ntreri.net/forums/Audition%202%20Final%20May%202005.pdf).


Hi There,
I was recently at my local Futureshop store looking to add the Athena AS-F2 towers to my home theater setup but was told that the line has been discontinued. I'd like to confirm that this is true, and ask if there are any other retailers where
I might find the F2's to complete my 7.1ch system. I currently have an AS-C1 center, a pair of AS-B2's as fronts, two pairs of S.5's as side and rear surrounds, and an AS-P300 subwoofer. Can you recommend a decent set of floorstanders that would work
well with the C1 center?

Thanks.
Dave


Hi,
The AS-F2.2 is the new version, and it’s nearly identical to the old version. I’ve attached a brochure for you. FS will be getting this inventory in a few weeks, so the salespeople may not be aware of the new line up.

Thank you for your interest and for your support.

Best Regards,

Joe Fraser
Brand Manager
athena TECHNOLOGIES
A Division of Audio Products International Corp.
www.athenaspeakers.com

[Sheep]

SWEET. Wow, those look so nice. I wonder how they perform compared to the old audition series. I like the subwoofers too. they see to dig deep down for what they have.

sheep

[Bird]

Thanks Silver,

Having just completed my Audition 5.1 system with the close out sales I'm happy to see there isn't a lot of changes. I do have one concern with the F1.2's. My F1's weigh 41 lbs and, according to this brochure, the F1.2's come in at 29 lbs. I wonder if they shredded some cabinet weight and if so would that would change anything. All other specs are unchanged as far as I could see.

[Takeereasy]

Nice post. I don't see many cosmetic changes though. I thought that they were going to be changing the colours a little. And I've gotta say that's odd what Bird is pointing out. Where did that 12 LBS go? Hey, as long as they can keep up the high quality and low costs, who gives a heck?

[SilverMK3]

The 12lb's is concerning, it looks like they're using different drivers for the entire Series 2 line. The Series 1 drivers were all black, these new ones are all silver. I wonder if they're using a different magnet as well?

[SilverMK3]

I just sent a follow up email to Athena asking about the MSRP of the new Series 2 line, got a response within 20 minutes. Wow! Great support.


Great. Thank you!!

Do you happen to know what kind of price-point the new Series 2 will come in at? Will it be comparable to the Series 1 MSRP?

Thanks
Dave


It’s exactly the same actually!

Joe Fraser
Brand Manager
athena TECHNOLOGIES
A Division of Audio Products International Corp.
www.athenaspeakers.com

[Buckeyefan 1]

The ASF2.2's weigh 44 lbs. It must be a misprint on the single woofer tower. I'm glad Athena didn't chuck that line. They actually look pretty cool with silver drivers. The new "toothpick" line sucks trailer hitches. They seem to be Audioholics "best bang for the buck" so far this year based on members opinions. Too bad CC or BB won't carry the Venturi or Acoustech lines. I think they would steal some of Athena's thunder.

[cabron1]

Nice to see the Audition series has not been "tampered" with. They are a successful line of speakers, with excellent sound, great price, and looks awesome.

They do not appear to have changed at all from the previous line, except for the weight. Perhaps the cabinet material changed.

Keep it up Athena.....

[Clint DeBoer]

I love companies with great customer service. We probably need to contact them and see if they want to start some reviews.

[Ohmage]

The ASF2.2's weigh 44 lbs. It must be a misprint on the single woofer tower. I'm glad Athena didn't chuck that line. They actually look pretty cool with silver drivers. The new "toothpick" line sucks trailer hitches. They seem to be Audioholics "best bang for the buck" so far this year based on members opinions. Too bad CC or BB won't carry the Venturi or Acoustech lines. I think they would steal some of Athena's thunder.

Hmmm...the ASF2 weighed 51 lbs each. That is quite a big difference. I wouldn't think that something as important as a product brochure would have such a misprint. It could be a new 8 inch driver with some kind of new and lightweight magnet, but even that is a stretch. It better not be the cabinet being lighter, because that would be a bad thing with the dimensions kept the same; now, that would definitely be a stretch, or did I mean flex...yikes!

Hey SilverMK3, do you care to send a reply back to Athena about the new weight of the ASF1.2 and ASF2.2? We would greatly appreciate this. Thank you.

Ohmage.

[HookedOnSound]

I love companies with great customer service. We probably need to contact them and see if they want to start some reviews.

Oh yes! Please! Please! Pretty Please!

[HSM]

I have read the interest in the new Athena Auditions and having purchased both the AS-R1 and the AS-B1 I got out the boxes and checked out weights. The carton weight for the AS-R1 was 11 lbs each. New version says carton weight is 7.5 lbs. The pair of AS-B1 were 30 lbs, new version says 23 lbs. Looks like all Audition Series 2 speakers are lighter than past series. HSM

[Buckeyefan 1]

I have read the interest in the new Athena Auditions and having purchased both the AS-R1 and the AS-B1 I got out the boxes and checked out weights. The carton weight for the AS-R1 was 11 lbs each. New version says carton weight is 7.5 lbs. The pair of AS-B1 were 30 lbs, new version says 23 lbs. Looks like all Audition Series 2 speakers are lighter than past series. HSM

If the dimensions are the same, they could have gone from 1" MDF to 3/4" or 1/2" MDF - which would be a crying shame!

[Sheep]

i think (and hope) the weight issue is from the drivers. If they cut down on the enclosures, the price would have changed, but it didn't. It has to be better, lighter drivers, which is good.


sheep

[cabron1]

I see the Athena web site is updated to include details on the new Audition series 2 line, as well as the WS series.

It appears that there are two differences between the old audition series and the new; weight and the drivers. The new drivers have a dark center, and a silver material around the darker center, and then a darker material around the outer edge. It could be just different colors; rather than different drivers.

Love to gain better insight from Joe Fraser at Athena.

The burning question is; Are there any differences between the series 2 and series 1.

I own F2'S, B2'S, R1'S, C1'S and the Point s.5 sytem; along with the ASP-300, and a velodyne DPS-10.

Love the Athena line, great sound and great value.

[Buckeyefan 1]

i think (and hope) the weight issue is from the drivers. If they cut down on the enclosures, the price would have changed, but it didn't. It has to be better, lighter drivers, which is good.


sheep

If the weight issue is the drivers, then they must have eliminated them. Two 8" woofers dropping 7 lbs per tower is absurd. My 12" subwoofer has a massive magnet weighing in at 70oz. (4.3 lbs). Magnets are magnets. My guess is they found out what a hot ticket they had, and looked for ways to maximize profit. Rather than change the drivers, they would keep the dimensions the same and lighten the load. It might not have much of a sonic effect on sound, but 1" MDF (if that is what they used) makes for a very impressive cabinet. Ask the rep from Athena why the weight changed. I'm sure he'll be honest with you.

Here's the specs on the first model AS-F2:
1" Teteron Dome
8 ohms compatible
Dual 8" Injection Molded Polypropylene with Rubber Surround
41 1/2" H x 9 1/2" x 15 1/2"D
35Hz - 20kHz +/- 3 dB
250 watts per channel
51 lbs each
93dB
55 lbs shipped

Here's the second model AS-F2.2:
1" Teteron Dome
8 ohms compatible
Dual 8" Injection Molded Polypropylene with Rubber Surround
41 1/2" H x 9 1/2" W x 15 1/2"D
35Hz - 20kHz +/- 3 dB
250 watts per channel
44 lbs each
93dB
51 lbs shipped

[Bird]

I love companies with great customer service. We probably need to contact them and see if they want to start some reviews.

When I bought my F1's as an "Open Item" one of them was missing it's floor spikes. I emailed Athena about where I could buy a set and got an email back within an hour with a link to purchase the spikes online ($11 w/shipping). I had them in my hand in 4 days.

[HookedOnSound]

I emailed Athena, got a response within minutes! WOW!

Mr. Fraser said they changed wood supplier and that is why the cabinets are slightly lighter.

I guess we'll have to see once the new speakers come out (AS-F2.2) how they sound.

I was considering Paradigm Monitor's to replace my F/R speakers but after listening to the AS-B1's (bookshelf) at Futureshop the other day I am tempted to wait until the new Audition Series v.2 become available. I was very surprised by the sound vs. price. After hearing those bookshelf speakers, I am seriously reconsidering my whole plan. Might pickup some of those AS-B2.2's instead.

[SilverMK3]

I sent this email at 8:12am this morning, and got the reply back at 8:14am... :eek:


Great! I'll keep an eye out for them at Futureshop.

Looking at the brochure you sent me, it appears that the new Series 2 speakers are a bit lighter than the original Audition series. The AS-F2, for example, used to weigh 51 lbs whereas the new F2.2's only weigh 44 lbs. Aside from the new silver drivers, what else has changed in the design? Would I be better off trying to hunt down a set of original F2's? I like the look of the new ones, but the weight difference concerns me.

Thanks again for your time
Dave


The wood supplier changed, and the cabinets were a bit lighter than before. According to the engineers it didn’t change the sound hardly at all. They are still MDF, and are braced just as before.

But what it did was allow us to retail them for the same price as we did when we launched Audition in 2002.

It’ll be quite hard to locate AS-F2’s, but that’s your decision.

Best Regards,

Joe Fraser
Brand Manager
athena TECHNOLOGIES
A Division of Audio Products International Corp.
www.athenaspeakers.com

[HookedOnSound]

...didn’t change the sound hardly at all

That doesn't sound positive :(

[ducker]

perhaps that's a...
we know we had a kickass product at an incredibly low price point for the sound quality. We can skimp a little on this one aspect and hardly effect the sound quality at all and increase the profit by quite a bit...!!

I guess the final verdict is once we hear them (broken in) up against an original F2.

[Takeereasy]

Futureshop ny my house is clearing out the b1's for $99 cdn. That is a great buy.

[Ohmage]

That doesn't sound positive :(

Agreed. Let's say that the two 8 inchers and tweeter weigh 15 lbs combined (this is conservative), that would leave the ASF2 cabinet at 36 lbs (51 lbs minus 15 lbs). If the drivers are nearly identical, then the new ASF2.2 cabinet weighs in at 29 lbs; that is a 19.4% decrease in cabinet weight! Very disconcerting. What kind of new wood would be this much lighter, unless there is actually less wood? And then the ASF1 goes from a hefty 41 lbs to a lean 29 lbs in the ASF1.2 incarnation?! That is 29.2% lighter! Wow!

Buckeyefan 1 mentioned "they could have gone from 1" MDF to 3/4" or 1/2" MDF"; I think the 19.4% to 29.2% decrease in weight IS akin to reducing the thickness of the MDF from 1 inch to 3/4 inch or more. Shame.

It is sad to say that the ASF2.2 may not be the worldbeater it was anymore. Athena groomed a waterboy in the ASF2, and built a champion; those championship gloves have turned into glass slippers. It is a good thing I was able to buy my dad a brand new pair of ASF2's for early Father's Day a couple of weeks ago.

You may only hear slight sonic differences with less than average equipment, but any half decent equipment should reveal any obvious sonic deficiencies. Not good. We'll have to wait and see.

Ohmage.

[Ohmage]

Originally Posted by Joe Fraser - Athena Technologies
The wood supplier changed, and the cabinets were a bit lighter than before. According to the engineers it didn’t change the sound hardly at all. They are still MDF, and are braced just as before.

But what it did was allow us to retail them for the same price as we did when we launched Audition in 2002.

It’ll be quite hard to locate AS-F2’s, but that’s your decision.

Best Regards,

Joe Fraser
Brand Manager
athena TECHNOLOGIES
A Division of Audio Products International Corp.
www.athenaspeakers.com


I dug up this old thread just to make a point. I am still waiting for the Audition Series 2 to be released from Futureshop in Canada, so that I could go in for an audition, still no luck.

Regarding the quote, "...allow us to retail them for the same price...." Sounds like a good deal, no? Not at all. We're paying the same price for a lesser product, therefore we are effectively paying more for this new series than the original AS-F1's/AS-F2's, and for a product that will most likely be sonically poorer due to the changes.

Ohmage.

[stonep]

I dug up this old thread just to make a point. I am still waiting for the Audition Series 2 to be released from Futureshop in Canada, so that I could go in for an audition, still no luck.

Regarding the quote, "...allow us to retail them for the same price...." Sounds like a good deal, no? Not at all. We're paying the same price for a lesser product, therefore we are effectively paying more for this new series than the original AS-F1's/AS-F2's, and for a product that will most likely be sonically poorer due to the changes.

Ohmage.


It appears that some who once enjoyed Athena F2's, will have to move on to other speakers. Its not a good sign here, and it is clear they are saving money to increase profits and offer a lesser product. While the NEW F2.2 might still be a good speaker, it won't be like the original. While I still feel energy/athena are a good company I can't continue to support a company who is selling a product for the same price with not the same build quality, but They where honest to a certain degree in that email.

Time to find the new low range diamond in the ruff.

[Bird]

It appears that some who once enjoyed Athena F2's, will have to move on to other speakers. Its not a good sign here, and it is clear they are saving money to increase profits and offer a lesser product. While the NEW F2.2 might still be a good speaker, it won't be like the original. While I still feel energy/athena are a good company I can't continue to support a company who is selling a product for the same price with not the same build quality, but They where honest to a certain degree in that email.

Time to find the new low range diamond in the ruff.

Although the weight loss concerns me, I would wait for final judgement. Athena (or API) has been an excellent speaker mfg co for some time and I think they deserve at least an audition before condeming the new audition line.

[Takeereasy]

I agree with bird. For all anyone knows they could have found a way to reinvent the wheel. So far athena has made outstanding bookshelfs and towers for the money. This is only their second line of these speakers, let's reserve final judgement untill they have been given the once over by owners of the previous model. I do have to confess to a degree of doubt myself with regards to the weight reduction, but who knows.

[Shadow_Ferret]

Holy cow! Those subwoofers take up the whole living room! Definately low WAF! :D

[karsfri]

This is the first time I write somthing on this site but I've been reading it for couple of months.

I've had my eyes on the Athena F2 since February, and finally I could afford them today (I am a student so I work only during the summer). Like most of you I have concerns about the "weightloss" so I found a pair of the old ones on ebay I purchaised. But I always ment to buy at least for of them but couldn't find any more on ebay so I bought a pair of the F2.2 from audioadvisor l along with the center channel (AS C1). So it looks like I might be the first one to compare these two models (uncommited that is). I live in Iceland so they will not arrive until the 22. of July but I'll be sure to write a review as soon as the new models are propperly broken in. Ohh and by the way, the amp I'm using is the sony str da5000es.

[Audiosouse]

Last time I checked weight doesn't determine sound quality. With proper bracing, which they've incorporated, a few missing pounds is a non issue. Talk about making a mountain out of a mole hill! :D If anything, it makes our lives easier.

Cost savings is definately a factor, lighter shipping weight means lower shipping costs. How can you possibly knock a company for wanting to increase profit margin that offers speakers of this quality...at this price point! For all you non business types, profit allows API to reinvest in R&D so we get even better products for lower prices in the future. Damn good deal if you ask me.

Since all API companies share technology (Athena, Energy, Mirage and Spherex), the drivers are obviously new as updates have occured at Energy as well. I personally think the .2 models are better looking. All this and price increase!

I dare anyone to show me a speaker that outperforms Athena at anywhere near their price point. I double dare you to find a manufacturer that designs AND manufactures their products in Canada and still prices them like Athena. Even Axiom outsources to China (I would rather support my local ecomony).

If I waited until series 1 went on sale, this is how much a 5.1 system would have cost me in CDN $:
Athena AS-F2: $449
Athena AS-C1: $99
Athena AS-R1 Dipole Surround: $79.97 ea. or $159.94/pair
Athena AS-P300 subwoofer: $199.97
Total: 907.91!

That's regoddamndiculous! If I sound pissed that's because I am! My Paradigm Monitor 7v3's alone were as much as this whole system! :mad: I've convinced myself they sound 2 1/2 times better and nobody will tell me any different! :D