New speaker day!

[gus6464]

UPS dropped off my new Dali Ikon 2 about an hour ago. Although they weren't technically new since I got off audiogon, they were dealer demos and from what I can tell they might as well be brand new. They are replacing a pair of Epos ELS-3 and I must say they are huge. Will post some pics later today along with initial listening thoughts.

 

[Brett A]

UPS dropped off my new Dali Ikon 2 about an hour ago. Although they weren't technically new since I got off audiogon, they were dealer demos and from what I can tell they might as well be brand new. They are replacing a pair of Epos ELS-3 and I must say they are huge. Will post some pics later today along with initial listening thoughts.

Congrats, man. A happy day indeed. I look forward to the report

 

[trnqk7]

I as well-I just ordered Ikon 6's, Vokal 2, and Ikon 1's...they are being loaded up in Denmark and will leave there Thursday the dealer tells me. Unfortunately, they won't arrive for another 4-5 weeks from there. I look forward to your impressions of the Ikon 2 to help "tide" me over until mine get here!

 

[Davemcc]

I share your excitement. I just brought my brand new set of Dynaudio Focus 140's into the house. These come with an element of danger that adds fuel to the excitement. My wife doesn't know I bought them. Heck, an hour ago I didn't know I was going to buy them.

 

[stratman]

I share your excitement. I just brought my brand new set of Dynaudio Focus 140's into the house. These come with an element of danger that adds fuel to the excitement. My wife doesn't know I bought them. Heck, an hour ago I didn't know I was going to buy them.

Congrats!! You my friend like to live on the edge!

 

[trnqk7]

Wow, not sure I would have the balls to try that one. You have some big cajones my friend.

 

[Davemcc]

She'll be home in an hour. It's going to get ugly. We were talking about meeting for lunch but I stopped at the audio shop and stayed till three. What I'm going to do is pull out the audio rack and rip out all the wires to re-wire the system with the new cables from monoprice. The house will be such a mess that the new speakers will be the least of her worries, I hope.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to Gus' comments on the Dali's and I'll be sure to post my impressions of the 140's.

 

[trnqk7]

We'll know whether you survived or not if you have posted in the next few hours I suppose Good luck!

 

[gus6464]

Here are some pics.

Old speakers on top just to get a reference on how big these things are.

 

[trnqk7]

Did you experience any delay in getting the light oak color? My dealer says they don't stock it in the US and I have to wait 4-5 weeks to get it shipped from Denmark on a container ship...They look very nice!

 

[Brett A]

Well, do they sound better than your old ones? First impression?

 

[billy p]

I share your excitement. I just brought my brand new set of Dynaudio Focus 140's into the house. These come with an element of danger that adds fuel to the excitement. My wife doesn't know I bought them. Heck, an hour ago I didn't know I was going to buy them.

Dave, does this mean the ERA's are for sale. I'll be looking into some PB D5's very soon!

 

[gus6464]

Here are my initial impressions of the speakers:

The first thing that jumped out at me upon listening for the first time in my room is the highs. The highs these speakers put out is just leaps and bounds better than the Epos. The amount of detail they put out is just astounding to me. I first realized the limits of the Epos upon hearing some ABBA LPs I have. It felt as if they were trying to put output more detail out of the song but just couldn't. The Dali put out these details without breaking a sweat.

The midrange on the other hand is very on par with the Epos. I feel the ribbon tweeter hasn't fully broken in yet as the very high frequencies are being over emphasized a bit. Since I have heard these speakers at a shop I know that what they are doing right now is not normal. But other than that the midrange is great while a bit laid back when compared to the Epos.

On the low end front while they hit a little lower than the Epos, it still leaves something to be desired when you compare the size of the two. But I think this is a problem with the room as right behind the curtain is a window which I don't think is helping much. I will be getting some bass traps to put behind the curtain right behind the speaker. Since I listen at nearfield I don't have to worry much about rear reflection points so I am certain that with some strategically placed acoustic panels things will improve a lot.

Placement wise they are extremely easy to place. Pointed straight ahead is best as it makes the soundstage huge and it's what Dali recommends. While the Epos required some toe-in to disappear in the room, the Dali achieved this very easily. Also these fare a lot better with rock than the Epos did. The drivers on the Ikon are definitely faster and have no trouble keeping up with rock like Muse and Queen of the Stone Age. I have yet to listen to the other tracks I use to test speakers but I doubt they will have a problem shining. Build quality is great and cabinet feels very sturdy. Speakers are of good weight (20lbs each) and I can't find any imperfections on the finish. But all in all I am extremely happy with my purchase especially at the price I got them at which makes them an absolute steal. Although I wish they hit lower than they do all in all I am very happy with the upgrade.

On a side note I though my wife was going to be pissed as they are a lot bigger than the Epos but she said the system now looks a lot better. She even said that they would look great in the living room where the Mirage are. I also have another upgrade coming on Thursday in the form of an Arcam A80 integrated so I will post later if it ends up making a difference.

 

[gus6464]

Did you experience any delay in getting the light oak color? My dealer says they don't stock it in the US and I have to wait 4-5 weeks to get it shipped from Denmark on a container ship...They look very nice!

I got them used on audiogon from a dealer in CA.

 

[codexp3]

Davemcc - I had to agree to pay for the wifey's boob job in order to get approved for my new system...Next time I'm going to just going to go with similar looking speakers and hope she doesn't notice.

 

[Davemcc]

Dave, does this mean the ERA's are for sale. I'll be looking into some PB D5's very soon!

I'm not at that point yet. I still love the Era. I just wanted some variety in my listening, kind of the wife/girlfriend deal (life's better when you have both). God I hope my wife doesn't read this.

 

[Davemcc]

Gus, It's a testament to the Epos that it could even be used as a basis of reference against a speaker like the Ikon. The Epos M5 even gave my Era D5's a run for their money on a dollar for dollar value proposition.

I'm glad to see you like the Ikons. I'm curious to see if the ribbon settles in over time or if the over-emphasized highs are simply a function of your room's acoustics. In the meantime, a one or two db cut in the treble might help to tone it down a bit in the meantime.

I'm especially glad to hear that your wife likes them and didn't demand a boob job or some other favor to pay for her approval.

 

[gus6464]

Gus, It's a testament to the Epos that it could even be used as a basis of reference against a speaker like the Ikon. The Epos M5 even gave my Era D5's a run for their money on a dollar for dollar value proposition.

I'm glad to see you like the Ikons. I'm curious to see if the ribbon settles in over time or if the over-emphasized highs are simply a function of your room's acoustics. In the meantime, a one or two db cut in the treble might help to tone it down a bit in the meantime.

I'm especially glad to hear that your wife likes them and didn't demand a boob job or some other favor to pay for her approval.

Yeah this just made me realize how crazy good the Epos are for the money. There must be something to that super simple crossover network Epos speakers use. Also I didn't tell my wife the speakers were coming until she overheard me talking to UPS lol. I will definitely be looking into proper treatments for the room.

The easiest way for me to describe the Ikon compared to the Epos and Mirage is this: Epos & Mirage = recording Dali = live music

With the Dali I feel like as if the artists are performing in my room which makes them more exciting to listen to.

 

[gus6464]

Hey Dave what made you decide to get the Dynaudio on the spot? Were you looking for new speakers or did they just blow you away that you had to have them? I got to do an A/B/C with the Focus 140, PSB M2, and Dali Mentor 2 and I was just amazed at how much low end the Dynaudio put out for their size.

 

[Davemcc]

Stupid Dynaudio's have been haunting me since I heard the imaging on the Focus 220 last time I was in the shop. I stopped in there today to ask the owner about the Focus Audio line 3db mentioned in another thread. I spent a few hours there and got to spend some time listening to the new Era D14 towers, the Focal.JMLabs Chorus 705V and 826V. In reality, I knew that I just had to cure this Dynaudio fixation once and for all.

Well, that and a CC with a virtually zero balance. I was almost ready to pull the trigger on a set of Focal Electra 1007Be but that's a pretty huge jump. Another day, perhaps, but for now the Dynaudio itch is scratched.