Infinity IRS V's

[CB22]

Was traveling with the family to Colorado and stopped in at PS Audio to hear their infinity IRS v's. Holy smokes, the sound stage, and imaging from the speakers was mind-blowing. I listened to Pink Floyd, Katie Melua, a Bach string quartet, and Herbie Hancock. When listing to Bach there was an awesome lifelike presence that I felt, like the musicians were playing in front of me. Super awesome. When I listen at home I felt like listing to very well recorded music and when I listened here I felt like it was listing to very well recorded music in the exact room and or studio where the recording took place. The one thing that really stood out was the mid-range when it came to female vocals when listing here vs at home. I think the mid range from the BMRs was actually way more detailed than that of the IRS, however, the mid-range from the IRS seemed to be a lot "smoother." Anyways, I couldn't AB test any of their electronics so I can't really speak too much to that side of things but all and all it was a great experience and super nice people. I feel like with my home set up I'm 85% there. The missing 15% is the lack of soundstage and some ambient detail that I had not heard in some tracks, which I'm very familiar with. What I heard today was epic. So go check it out if you have the opportunity.

 

[davidscott]

This sure brings back memories. I first heard a pair of these back in the late 70s sitting outside a high fi store in a mall of all places. Needless to say the acoustics weren't optimal but they sure sounded good. I wonder what kind of amplification was used.

 

[ryanosaur]

Nice boxes!
But d@mn.
Not really a BMR killer... unless you are independently wealthy. And happen to have 17'x27'x13' room in you pocket.

 

[CB22]

Nice boxes!
But d@mn.
Not really a BMR killer... unless you are independently wealthy. And happen to have 17'x27'x13' room in you pocket.

Agreed, you literally need a small fortune to get this system but I now understand a bit more about high-end audio and why people are willing to spend that much money on their systems.

 

[ryanosaur]

Agreed, you literally need a small fortune to get this system but I now understand a bit more about high-end audio and why people are willing to spend that much money on their systems.

Indeed. Though I haven't heard them myself, or anything really over the ~2500-3k/pair club, I get that there is some reward for some of that high-end gear. It's also been noted that the returns, after a certain point, are also greatly diminished.
What that point is, I don't know. For me, the Phil 3s are astounding at the price point I purchased at. Don't know if Jim, or anyone will keep them alive, or if Dennis will post the plans for them... but at 4K/pair, the SQ has been compared favorably to speakers costing more than twice that. Other people have said the SS8 from Salk's Soundscape line are the best speakers 'they've ever heard,' even when compared to 20K speakers.
I do hope to get a chance to experience the bigger shows like Axpona and RMAF... gonna go to the show here in Oakland this year in June or July.
But that's going to be as close as I get to anything like that... unless I build it.

Consider that Illuminiso kit from Selah Audio... 3K gets you drivers, finished crossovers, the plans and all accessories you need... but you still have to buy the wood and build the cabinets... or have them built for you. When I asked, Rick said the finished Iluminosos might sell for around 10K. I don't know how to quantify the going rate for high-end cabinet building, but consider the cost of the kit as a certain measure of Rick's time involved +parts... add to that roughly another 3K in professional cabinet work and finishing, and another third in profit, perhaps? *shrug... just speculation of the cost for a single example in a small operation.
I think the kit would be well worth the cost! I could never buy the finished speakers.

Regardless, it's all just a version of chasing the dragon! We want the best quality sound... but at what cost? Where does that last 5% or 1% of SQ come from? Does the best Jansen or Mundorf XO component do that? Is it the Amp? The Amp Stand? The cable risers?

How far would you go, CB? What's a realistic dream system going to cost for you?

Me, about 7-10K... TOTAL, including wall brackets, stands, etc. That's not my bill, mind, but I think over time, that's what many spend to achieve a successful HT/Music rig that is Atmos ready. (Not counting incremental upgrades.)

 

[CB22]

It's also been noted that the returns, after a certain point, are also greatly diminished.

I couldn’t agree more with you, after experiencing the system I can tell you that the only two big things I could notice was #1 more detail in environment where the music was recorded and #2 in the epic soundstage. Now does this just to find a price tag for the entire ~$60,000 system , in my opinion no.

Regardless, it's all just a version of chasing the dragon! We want the best quality sound... but at what cost?
How far would you go, CB? What's a realistic dream system going to cost for you?

Ya know it all depends where I’m at in life, so if I had a house that was paid off the car that was paid off and a lot of disposable income I would probably be willing to spend 15-20k on speakers provided I had a dedicated room to put them in. Although if I had this kind of money saved up I would definitely take some serious time to go to different audio shows and hear as many speakers as I could. For all I know I could have the same experience with a $5000 pair of speakers as I did with the IRS Vs. Long story short, if I did have serious money to go buy new gear with, I would try to think about it in terms of experience I had with the music rather than the price tag. You know I feel like, part of it is a mental thing e.g. just because it cost more it must be better.

Without being able to A.B. test the electronics it’s really hard to know the return that you’re getting. For example, they had 3x $10,000 power plants that were putting out a perfect sine waves but I don’t know if I’m gonna be able to hear the difference without really playing with the gear. How much improvement would I get an SQ from high send mono blocks versus my AVR? To be determined.

 

[ryanosaur]

For example, they had 3x $10,000 power plants that were putting out a perfect sine waves but I don’t know if I’m gonna be able to hear the difference without really playing with the gear.

I'm stoked where I am... for 5-10 yrs? I think so.
Maybe by then, I can build my own 20K equivalent speakers.

I wonder if my 2200s will still be pumping then?

 

[baronvonellis]

I went to Axpona, I listened to $15,000 -20K speakers and honestly liked Salk speakers better. Some giant box speakers 6 ft tall sounded more like a club PA speakers than a hifi speakers to me. The only ones I liked better were the omni speakers from MBL for $100k. I felt like I wasn't even hearing a speaker, it just seemed like the band was in the room playing. The speakers totally disappeared. To me that was perfection, but unless I win the lottery I could never afford that. So I put in an order for some Salk Song 3's, now I just have a long wait.

I haven't heard the IRS V's, but I heard PS audio's new IRS killers that are supposed to be $14k. I didn't like them at all. The tweeter and midrange were having some major phase cancellations and comb filtering going on. The mids sounded washed out and not coherent with the highs and lows. Maybe he's still tweaking the crossovers, but I wouldn't get them at $1000 how they sounded at the show. Hopefully, he can get the crossovers right. Maybe Dennis Murphy should help him!

 

[CB22]

I felt like I wasn't even hearing a speaker, it just seemed like the band was in the room playing. The speakers totally disappeared. To me that was perfection, but unless I win the lottery I could never afford that.

Agreed, the sense of environment I got from the speakers was unreal. Fyi, I was not super impressed with the mid-range from the IRS V's but have not heard the "IRS killers." That little bit extra that I hear certainly does not justify the price tag imo. I have no intention of doing any upgrades any time soon nor that kind of $ to spend any time soon either.

So I put in an order for some Salk Song 3's, now I just have a long wait.

Did you do a custom finish? I'm mean the amount of work and craftsmanship that goes into making those custom made veneers is just astonishing.

 

[ryanosaur]

Did you do a custom finish? I'm mean the amount of work and craftsmanship that goes into making those custom made veneers is just astonishing.

This is one of my all time favorites: Song 3 BeAT with Spalted Beech. The ZebraWood, Ebony, Bubinga, Australian Cypress, Ziricote... veneers can be super sexy too!

The process of applying the veneer and dying it doesn't change, but the cost of the veneer itself is based on supply... and some of those are rare woods. The Pao Ferro Rosewood, for example, retails at one location for $230 per 2x8' piece... and you might need 2 ea per tower! Another company advertises 4x8' sheets at $339 per. Yet another, AAA grade retails at 87.41 per 14x55" sheet.
Compare to one source of Curly Maple. 13x80" @ $24 per sheet.

Done right... and Jim is more than capable of this... even those standard veneers can be quite stunning! Curly Maple in the right light can be hypnotic!

 

[CB22]

This is one of my all time favorites: Song 3 BeAT with Spalted Beech. The ZebraWood, Ebony, Bubinga, Australian Cypress, Ziricote... veneers can be super sexy too!

Wow, that is certainly an endgame speaker imo.

 

[ryanosaur]

Song 3 BeATs or Encores are worthy of that... Forever Speaker. My eyes were on his V-HT3s, If I had the money, or the SS 8s if I had complete financial impunity!
Regardless, that’s what I wanted in my Phil 3s And Quite frankly, I have no second thoughts. Of course, that's not gonna stop me from trying to do better as I learn to build my own!

 

[baronvonellis]

Agreed, the sense of environment I got from the speakers was unreal. Fyi, I was not super impressed with the mid-range from the IRS V's but have not heard the "IRS killers." That little bit extra that I hear certainly does not justify the price tag imo. I have no intention of doing any upgrades any time soon nor that kind of $ to spend any time soon either.

Did you do a custom finish? I'm mean the amount of work and craftsmanship that goes into making those custom made veneers is just astonishing.

The mid-ranges might be the same or similar, it's a planar ribbon. I've never heard it before his speaker.

Yea, I'm getting waterfall bubinga! I went to a veneer website and picked out the actual veneer pattern. Bubinga looks amazing, I can't wait to get them! I asked him to do a subtle burst edge, he suggested darker brown on the edges and a touch of red dye for that type of wood. Hopefully a burst edge isn't too much with that wood grain, but I trust Jim to do an awesome job with the veneer and finish.

 

[ryanosaur]

Nice choice. That looks like it should be stunning!

Please do share some pics when you can! Especially his teaser photo... I love those!