New K2 S9900

[Titanium Dome]

After they left and we were finished cleaning up, there was some open Champagne and some strawberries and chocolate to dip them in, so Huiky suggested we go over to the couch and listen to some music. The log in the fireplace was still burning and a few candles were lit.

We put on the Heart disc she likes so much and listened from start to finish. She eventually dozed on my lap while Ann and Nancy finished their set. The K2s looked gorgeous in the flickering light, the room was warm, the music was warm, the sound was so perfect and effortless--from knock the house down rock and roll to delicate, soft ballad, these babies can do it all.

---------------

And yes, in case you're wondering, I'll keep mentioning moments like these, in part because I think it's a testament to the staying power of the design and its execution that I can be continually amazed by them. For me music is a very personal thing, and to have found a product that elicits such an ongoing response seems remarkable; therefore I remark.

[Hooster]

I had a graduation party tonight for the employees who finished the assignment for their Senior Executive Training Class. I tasked them with creating an emergency transition plan (in case I die or go crazy for real), present it to the board, and get the board to adopt it as company policy.

At the party, the K2s drew the admiration of one young man in particular who plays guitar in a local band. He was mesmerized by them. We kept cranking them louder and louder until everyone was forced to come over and listen. By then it was chest thumping, floor shaking loud, but as clear and unforced as a whisper. Toes tapped, heads bobbed, arms meringued, and hips swiveled.

These are all 20 and 30 somethings, who don't get much exposure to this kind of musical quality. "Better than a concert..." was the general consensus. The musician quipped, "The kick on that drum is just like when I'm on stage!"

So here I am almost to my sixth decade, admired by people half my age or less all thanks to the K2s. (Or maybe because I'm so old but still alive in their eyes.)

And then...

"These are all 20 and 30 somethings, who don't get much exposure to this kind of musical quality. "Better than a concert..." was the general consensus. The musician quipped, "The kick on that drum is just like when I'm on stage!""

That's what it's all about. Too much hi fi is dead, sterile and overly analytical. Sounds like you have your cake and you are getting to eat it too.

I think there are quite a few high end speakers out there that cost considerably more than yours that are really no match for the mighty K2.

Cleaning up after a party should not be too bad, as long as you can crank up the K2s while you are working

[JBLAddict]

After they left and we were finished cleaning up, there was some open Champagne and some strawberries and chocolate to dip them in, so Huiky suggested we go over to the couch and listen to some music. The log in the fireplace was still burning and a few candles were lit.

We put on the Heart disc she likes so much and listened from start to finish. She eventually dozed on my lap while Ann and Nancy finished their set. The K2s looked gorgeous in the flickering light, the room was warm, the music was warm, the sound was so perfect and effortless--from knock the house down rock and roll to delicate, soft ballad, these babies can do it all.

---------------

And yes, in case you're wondering, I'll keep mentioning moments like these, in part because I think it's a testament to the staying power of the design and its execution that I can be continually amazed by them. For me music is a very personal thing, and to have found a product that elicits such an ongoing response seems remarkable; therefore I remark.

Doug, so sorry to keep hearing of your buyer's remorse for not getting the Revels

[Titanium Dome]

Doug, so sorry to keep hearing of your buyer's remorse for not getting the Revels

You got me there!

[Titanium Dome]

Yesterday Roger Dressler (now retired) of Dolby Labs came over, accompanying one my friends, Sanjay Durani, from the LA Home Theater Group. Roger saw some of the calibration graphs (thanks Grumpy) from the Two Jims Theatre that I posted online and wanted to come hear the Synthesis® system, as he was intrigued by the calibration curve and general set up. My buddy said, "Oh yeah, I know the guy."

On the way through the house, we stopped at the K2s. "I really need to hear those." So we did. Naturally, he had his own disc with some very nice recordings on it, as well as test tones and other stuff. He gave me the disc when he left.

I had a pile of gear sitting around, trying to work my way through to the "perfect K2 component combo," and he scrutinized it briefly. Before long we were turning things on and off, plugging and unplugging stuff, and he was carefully listening to things that, unassisted, I would not have heard.

Grumpy can attest to this TiDome phenomena; he's seen me "not hear it" many times.

Based on Greg Timbers' previous advice to get a good amp or two and passively bi-amp the K2s, along with a sub or two, I had some multichannel amps, stereo amps, and a variety of subs. Here's where we ended up.

FAA 1000.5 amp: using four of the five channels to passively bi-amp the K2s. JFET/MOSFET/switching power supply/trans-ana design/200W/ch
FA 4125 amp: four channels bridged to two to power two subs. MOSFET/toroidal/225W/ch
JBL S3S Synthesis® subs. LE120H-1/ported/THX
Outlaw 990 in two channel stereo with bass management; sub crossover set at 40 Hz
Panasonic XP50* player using optical out to the 24/192 DAC in the Outlaw

There's a lot more to the story, including his tweaking of my Performance Series set up (which he called "one of the best; perfect for me. It sounds the way I want music to sound.") and his reaction to the Two Jims Theatre (including, "Wait 'til I tell Fosgate he's got a fan!" I guess they're pretty close having worked on PLII, etc.), but for this thread, I'll summarize the rest regarding K2.

I'm sending every piece of auditioning gear back tomorrow. I'm not buying any new electronics for now* , because I am very, very pleased with this set up. I'm simply going to enjoy it and stop messing around for a while. I see no reason to spend $3-$5k for an amp when these amps sound better right now, or $1.5-$2k for a pre when this one surprisingly excels in this regard. I'm sure much of it must be component interaction and Roger's expert ears. He just knew what to do to get the most out of this combination, and he only cared about the best sound, not the brand. I could mix and match for months and not get it this good.

Well, yeah, who knows? Maybe next year...

Naturally I took them both out for a big lunch at a nice portside restaurant after that, then they were heading back to the airport where he could catch his plane home to Bend, OR. Many, many thanks!

--------------------------

* I'll eventually bring in the Oppo BDP-83SE and use its DAC and two-channel analog outs when its replacement arrives for the Two Jims Theatre.

[edgewound]

Very cool. Nice Sunday treat.

TiDome...Your home is an envious collection of JBL goodies.

You have every right to be proud and share your experiences of what you've assembled.

[Titanium Dome]

Due to the recession, Huikyong's credit union skipped the annual holiday dinner for the second year, so we ended up hosting just the Accounting and Finance Departments. To keep costs down, I volunteered to cook rather than have catering, so between the cleaning, the cooking, and the entertaining, it was a busy frickin' day.

At her request, I played holiday music at a low level on her now favorite speakers, the K2s. I streamed stuff from my iPad so people could be entertained by the album art as they listened. Everyone was impressed with the overall look of the K2s, but of course listening to Xmas music at low levels while 30 people talk is not really a true K2 experience.

There was the obligatory trek down to the Two Jims Theater for an ear-popping, eye-popping demo, then we went back upstairs and one of the husbands asked, "So where did you get those (pointing at the K2s), Best Buy? That's where I buy my audio gear."

Grr-r-r-, but I kept my cool. "No, I bought these through a specialized dealer in San Francisco. The Synthesis® stuff downstairs came from a dealer in Memphis."

"Oh. that was pretty impressive, better than my Bose, but these seem to sound about the same."

Grrr-r-r-r-r!

"We like the little speakers. You can hardly see them, but they put out amazing sound. These are just too big, and I don't think my wife would let them in the house. They're kind of old style, right?"

Grrr-r-r-r-r-!! After pulling my tongue out of my throat, I responded, "Actually these are brand new, state of the art, cutting edge units. See how the cabinents have no flat sides? See how the horns are integrated into the design. This driver is Beryllium, this one is Magnesium, the first of its kind. See this battery compartment? It's for charge-coupling the networks..." and on I went.

His reply, "Wow, I don't understand most of that. I guess that's good. Have you heard Bose? I don't hear any difference."

Grrr-r-r-r-r-r-r-r!!! I decided to risk my relationship and stopped the Xmas music. "Sit down fellas, and let me show you what these babies can do." I asked my main commentator, "What do you like to listen to?"

"We go clubbing a lot and we like dance tracks. You probably don't have any."

(Guess again, Sherlock.) "Sure I do. Look, here's Ultra Dance 2010. Which track do you like?"

He picked one. Huikyong inquired from the next room, "What happened to the music?"

"Oh, these guys want to hear something."

(Various comments from the ladies about men/boys and their toys. So I held back a little bit on the volume.)

As soon as the track started, eyes got wide, glances were exchanged, feet started tapping and heads bobbing, and "Wow! This is great! It's like being in the club, only better. Amazing! it's super loud, but it's so clear; it doesn't hurt at all." etc. Even the ladies gyrated in place.

After the demo he asked, "So where can I get these ? I don't think I can listen to my Bose anymore. It sucks." Thankfully at that moment his wife said, "What you have is fine! Thanks, Doug, now he'll be begging for these." So I didn't have to tell him he'd never pay what these cost. If he thought they could be bought at Best Buy, I'm sure he was thinking maybe a couple of grand.

Anyway, mission accomplished: Bose crushed and myth debunked. New reverence for JBL by several men who had no clue beforehand. Women put in their place--oh wait, man put in the dog house is probably more like it.

[polar_bear_0104]

yohoo!!!

my daughter the other day asked me who I was talking to when we were in her room watching telly...i told her, "no one sweetheart." truth is, i was muttering to myself while the Bose commercial was on. When the line " you just wouldn't believe that kind of sound coming out from those boxes......" were careening from my right to left ear, giving me a migraine.

[timc]

HAHAHA. Great story TiDome. Thats the way to show them Bose people!

[ronaltronics]

Way to go.

No concept of quality. Will that be a Quartz watch or automatic............

Bose Please..

[Robh3606]

" you just wouldn't believe that kind of sound coming out from those boxes......" were careening from my right to left ear, giving me a migraine.

You just have to turn it around. Yes I do believe what I hear and I don't like it. Works for me.

Rob

[caladois]

Yesterday Roger Dressler (now retired) of Dolby Labs came over, accompanying one my friends, Sanjay Durani, from the LA Home Theater Group. Roger saw some of the calibration graphs (thanks Grumpy) from the Two Jims Theatre that I posted online and wanted to come hear the Synthesis® system, as he was intrigued by the calibration curve and general set up. My buddy said, "Oh yeah, I know the guy."

On the way through the house, we stopped at the K2s. "I really need to hear those." So we did. Naturally, he had his own disc with some very nice recordings on it, as well as test tones and other stuff. He gave me the disc when he left.

I had a pile of gear sitting around, trying to work my way through to the "perfect K2 component combo," and he scrutinized it briefly. Before long we were turning things on and off, plugging and unplugging stuff, and he was carefully listening to things that, unassisted, I would not have heard.

Grumpy can attest to this TiDome phenomena; he's seen me "not hear it" many times.

Based on Greg Timbers' previous advice to get a good amp or two and passively bi-amp the K2s, along with a sub or two, I had some multichannel amps, stereo amps, and a variety of subs. Here's where we ended up.

FAA 1000.5 amp: using four of the five channels to passively bi-amp the K2s. JFET/MOSFET/switching power supply/trans-ana design/200W/ch
FA 4125 amp: four channels bridged to two to power two subs. MOSFET/toroidal/225W/ch
JBL S3S Synthesis® subs. LE120H-1/ported/THX
Outlaw 990 in two channel stereo with bass management; sub crossover set at 40 Hz
Panasonic XP50* player using optical out to the 24/192 DAC in the Outlaw

There's a lot more to the story, including his tweaking of my Performance Series set up (which he called "one of the best; perfect for me. It sounds the way I want music to sound.") and his reaction to the Two Jims Theatre (including, "Wait 'til I tell Fosgate he's got a fan!" I guess they're pretty close having worked on PLII, etc.), but for this thread, I'll summarize the rest regarding K2.

I'm sending every piece of auditioning gear back tomorrow. I'm not buying any new electronics for now* , because I am very, very pleased with this set up. I'm simply going to enjoy it and stop messing around for a while. I see no reason to spend $3-$5k for an amp when these amps sound better right now, or $1.5-$2k for a pre when this one surprisingly excels in this regard. I'm sure much of it must be component interaction and Roger's expert ears. He just knew what to do to get the most out of this combination, and he only cared about the best sound, not the brand. I could mix and match for months and not get it this good.

Well, yeah, who knows? Maybe next year...

Naturally I took them both out for a big lunch at a nice portside restaurant after that, then they were heading back to the airport where he could catch his plane home to Bend, OR. Many, many thanks!

--------------------------

* I'll eventually bring in the Oppo BDP-83SE and use its DAC and two-channel analog outs when its replacement arrives for the Two Jims Theatre.

So, can you tell more about the amp you use to drive your dear K2s ? What's a FAA amp ?

[Titanium Dome]

So, can you tell more about the amp you use to drive your dear K2s ? What's a FAA amp ?

The FAA 1000.5 is a Fosgate Audionics Amplifier with five 200W amp modules in it. it's a Class G amp. Yes, not an A, AB, D, or H, but a G.

http://www.fosgateaudionics.com/products/FAA_1000_5.asp

It's a dreamy amp with JFET inputs and MOSFET outputs in a Trans•ana design. I'm using four of the five channels for the K2s, plus the bridged four-channel Fosgate Audionics 4125 to drive the two subs.

Here's an interesting if slightly bizarre analysis of the amp if you're curious.

http://www.iar-80.com/page77.html

I find I agree with most of it and scratch my head at the rest of it.

These are Jim Strickland designs, an outgrowth of his patented work at Acoustat (which he founded BTW), along with Mark Albers at Rockford Fosgate. I think it was around $3500 new.

[Titanium Dome]

Over the past three weeks we've had guests in the form of my son (one week) my daughter and grandson (two weeks), families from my direct report staff at work, members of Huikyong's department, girls' night out (not me), and my former assistant, so finally at 2 PM yesterday it was all over.

We were exhausted, and after I did some cursory cleaning, she suggested we start a fire, sit in the living room with snacks and wine, and listen to Christmas music on the K2s. Sure, why not?

So we turned on our little Christmas tree, lit the fire, lit a few candles, played some Wynton Marsalis and Andrea Bocelli Christmas music, drank wine, ate snacks, and relaxed. I reminisced a bit about the times after my parents bought the Magnavox console stereo when I would sneak downstairs after midnight and listen to the Messiah or other Christmas music, lying on the floor between the console speakers, listening at volumes so low the music could barely be heard.

We didn't have indoor plumbing or central heat, and there was only one electrical outlet in the house, but we had a Magnavox console plugged into it, and it was heaven to me, freezing on the bare wood floor. Well, hey! The K2s are a long way from that! But that's certainly where the seed was planted for bigger and better gear.

Long story short, the K2s continued to work their magic at Christmas time, and Santa even provxxx a xxxxxxxx xxxx!

With every passing day, these beauties increase in value to me, while the cost of ownership seems smaller and smaller as the days go by.

[tom1040]

Quote: had to copy/paste:

And yes, in case you're wondering, I'll keep mentioning moments like these, in part because I think it's a testament to the staying power of the design and its execution that I can be continually amazed by them. For me music is a very personal thing, and to have found a product that elicits such an ongoing response seems remarkable; therefore I remark.

That's great td. I had the same kind of moment with the 1500/1400 Array(s). I have some McIntosh sources which are not really liked on this board but, to me-and that is all that counts, continue to deliver my kind of sound. Smooooooooth and, yes, I shared it with my West Coast Swing dancing wife (cancer free!!!). Sweet.

Staying power has great affect on women (& design).

Happy holidays everyone-I hope everyone is healthy. THAT is the MOST important thing in life. Be well.