They're baaaackk! [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

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E-Stat
08-24-2006, 04:57 PM
Guess who? (http://www.apogeeacoustics.com/)

rw

Feanor
08-24-2006, 05:07 PM
Guess who? (http://www.apogeeacoustics.com/)

rw

Oh, protect me! :yikes: I've there's anything that might tempt me away from my Maggies it might be these. Fortunately they'll probably be impossibly expensive for me.

drseid
08-24-2006, 11:20 PM
Guess who? (http://www.apogeeacoustics.com/)

rw

You beat me to it. I just posted this in the news section before seeing your post. :-)

Definitely exciting times for the speaker world.

---Dave

kexodusc
08-25-2006, 04:22 AM
This is great news for audio-enthusiasts...I can't think of another company - possibly the old AR - that's still referred to as much today.
Hopefully they learn from past mistakes and make a better go of it.

GMichael
08-25-2006, 04:56 AM
Oh, protect me! :yikes: I've there's anything that might tempt me away from my Maggies it might be these. Fortunately they'll probably be impossibly expensive for me.

Let me know when you're ready to upgrade.:ciappa:

bobsticks
08-25-2006, 05:32 AM
It will be interesting to see if they conform to the original designs and standards...

Feanor
08-25-2006, 10:33 AM
Let me know when you're ready to upgrade.:ciappa:

But don't hold your breath, I'm afraid.
:17:

topspeed
08-25-2006, 10:55 AM
Flo finally found some funding, eh?

GMichael
08-25-2006, 10:56 AM
But don't hold your breath, I'm afraid.
:17:

Don't be afraid. Just jump in head first. The water's fine.:thumbsup:

Florian
08-30-2006, 02:30 AM
I knew this over a year ago already :-)

All will be original designs, more powerfull magnets and no more foam that rots after 15 years. I dont know what past mistakes Kex speaks from, but be asured that they will be here to stay. He is my source of ribbons for all the Apogee speakers.

The new Synergy 1.5 will be around 12K to 16K we believe. You can order your own Apogees, any model you desire. All is handbuild, CNC cut ribbons with Rare Earth Magnets :)

I have moved and the GRAND will come on Sunday.

GMichael
08-30-2006, 04:57 AM
I knew this over a year ago already :-)

All will be original designs, more powerfull magnets and no more foam that rots after 15 years. I dont know what past mistakes Kex speaks from, but be asured that they will be here to stay. He is my source of ribbons for all the Apogee speakers.

The new Synergy 1.5 will be around 12K to 16K we believe. You can order your own Apogees, any model you desire. All is handbuild, CNC cut ribbons with Rare Earth Magnets :)

I have moved and the GRAND will come on Sunday.

I was wondering when you would get here. Sunday huh? Excited yet?

I believe that Kex refers to their business mistakes. They must have done something wrong. Maybe they didn't charge enough the first go around.

Florian
08-30-2006, 05:03 AM
I was wondering when you would get here. Sunday huh? Excited yet?

I believe that Kex refers to their business mistakes. They must have done something wrong. Maybe they didn't charge enough the first go around.

Well Apogees are extremely difficult to build and take far more engineering then other speakers. The ribbons have to be handcut, the amount of magnets have to be matched and aligned with the ribbons. All frames, crossovers etc.. are all handbuiled and hand tuned by a single person. The amount of time it takes to build one, to set one up and to buy the electronics is horrific. But they simple are the finest sounding speakers in the world.

I am very exited and a bit scared since the Grand will have an insane weight and it is the end of the line in this hobby. Nothing left to buy and nothing left to want, in terms of speakers.

Cheers

Flo

GMichael
08-30-2006, 05:11 AM
Well Apogees are extremely difficult to build and take far more engineering then other speakers. The ribbons have to be handcut, the amount of magnets have to be matched and aligned with the ribbons. All frames, crossovers etc.. are all handbuiled and hand tuned by a single person. The amount of time it takes to build one, to set one up and to buy the electronics is horrific. But they simple are the finest sounding speakers in the world.

I am very exited and a bit scared since the Grand will have an insane weight and it is the end of the line in this hobby. Nothing left to buy and nothing left to want, in terms of speakers.

Cheers

Flo

Cost vs income? Could very well be. Hope they get it right long enough for me to afford a pair.

Nothing else? But what will you do now? I know. Upgrade the room you keep them in? Maybe a big studio apartment. Or convert an old church.

Florian
08-30-2006, 05:26 AM
Cost vs income? Could very well be. Hope they get it right long enough for me to afford a pair.

Nothing else? But what will you do now? I know. Upgrade the room you keep them in? Maybe a big studio apartment. Or convert an old church.

Well, i have moved into a big Apartment already so the Grand has some space. I am gonna look for a pair of Krell Reference Amps and other then that, simply enjoy the finest moments of life.

-Flo

Feanor
08-30-2006, 05:53 AM
Well, i have moved into a big Apartment already so the Grand has some space. I am gonna look for a pair of Krell Reference Amps and other then that, simply enjoy the finest moments of life.

-Flo

Flo,

Enjoy your stuff. I'm inclined to agree: there's nothing better, (at least for stereo). :ihih:

JoeE SP9
08-30-2006, 11:40 AM
Well, i have moved into a big Apartment already so the Grand has some space. I am gonna look for a pair of Krell Reference Amps and other then that, simply enjoy the finest moments of life.

-Flo

Congrats' Flo. Keep the beer cold for my visit.:ihih:

Florian
08-30-2006, 01:37 PM
Congrats' Flo. Keep the beer cold for my visit.:ihih:

Its always cold for you!

Since i am getting them on Sunday, my curiosity is rising daily :)

jrhymeammo
08-30-2006, 01:51 PM
Hey Flo I was wondering if you could possibly mate your Grands with 6 of the VTL Wotan MB-1250 Reference. Would that be enough power for you or not even?

http://www.vtl.com/pages/classic_reference.html#MB1250

Florian
08-30-2006, 01:57 PM
Hey Flo I was wondering if you could possibly mate your Grands with 6 of the VTL Wotan MB-1250 Reference. Would that be enough power for you or not even?

http://www.vtl.com/pages/classic_reference.html#MB1250

Well, the Grand needs 8 channels of power. It already comes with 4 channles so i only need 2xStereo or 4xMono-. They are an easy 3ohm load and have low 90ish db efficency so the VTLs would be a nice choice. But for now, i am looking at some large powerfull solid state beasts until i get enough money for either a VTL 750, Conrad Johnson P5, Krell KAS, Silvaweld OTL100 or something in that range.

audio_dude
08-30-2006, 05:39 PM
hehehehehe, even me, with my teensy tiny stereo am getting giddy over this!

are they going to start producing a whole line of speakers again?

Florian
08-30-2006, 06:23 PM
Some Info for you guys



Apogee Acoustics closed a few years ago, and the only support (custom made rebuild ribbons) have been supplied by Perigee Acoustics. The company Perigee Acoustics was/is the only supplier of replacement ribbons for our Apogee speakers and the owner is a very close friend to all of us Apogeenians. He has bought the name Apogee Acoustics and will bring Apogee back. There is nothing to better on the design exept structural changes (not optically) and of course more precise ribbons with stronger magnets. Other then that, they are the same wonderfull speakers that they always where. The first release is the Synergy 1.5 which is based around the world famous Apogee Scintilla which put Krell on the roadmap and is privately owned by many reviewers and usually the only speaker which doesnt last longer then a day on Audiogon ;-) Apogee Acoustics will be back with a new lineup of models, as glorious as ever but dont expect to find these in the "deals" and High End on a budget section. The are, same as the original Apogees made for a dedicated audience who truly persue the passion of music and will accept nothing but the best for their ears and of course, like with all fancy things enjoy a big pocket book also. Apogees strechted in the past from 4000$ all the way up to 85000$ speakers and i asume the new Apogee Acoustics will do the same.

But in the end, the Apogee Duetta for around 7.5K was the most sold and used Apogee because of is price/size ratio and i am sure that will be the same again. The Fullrange and DIVA where the somewhat affordable top of the line modells, and the Grand was never ment to be sold and was never produced more then 25 times for lucky owners. The same thing will go for the Perigee Definitive i am sure.

Apogee was sold in the past by the most famous High End HIFI shops like "Sound by Singer in NY". Many speculations where made in the past in this forum with pretty crazy comments from some members. I wont get into detail, but watch this closely and you will see and understand why i got so upset and how wrong and injust these comments where from people with no respect to the pioneers and in my opinion, true leaders in Audio Engineering with pure knowledge, technology that used their minds to push the envelope that developed speakers that even 20 years later are not beat. While others design one box after the next and changed some crossovers and drivers, these guys (A Art Collector and a Rocket Scientist) created some of the most extraordinary speakers in the world.


Cheers

Florian

Dusty Chalk
08-31-2006, 02:32 PM
Flo,

Enjoy your stuff. I'm inclined to agree: there's nothing better, (at least for stereo). :ihih:There's a scary thought. Can you imagine 5 of those? Or would it be 4, and you'd have to set your processor for "no center channel"?

PAT.P
08-31-2006, 06:12 PM
Well, i have moved into a big Apartment already so the Grand has some space. I am gonna look for a pair of Krell Reference Amps and other then that, simply enjoy the finest moments of life.

-FloHow's life on your own?Any wild parties yet?:16:

Florian
08-31-2006, 06:56 PM
How's life on your own?Any wild parties yet?:16:

Life is very good so far but no wild partys yet. The first thing to move was the Audio System which took over 1 day to move. Then i installed some lights and bought some pictures etc.. I sure am glad that i reached my level of audio hobby before moving out. Once you have all the bills to pay, its kinda tough laying down 40K for a speaker :)

I had a few friends over, and its a glorious building with soundproof doors, ceeilings and its a optimal layout and area. I will take some pictures once everything is in place. The GRAND movement will be on Sunday, which will be very difficult and i am very curious how they will feel in my 27x17 room, which is a bit too small for them. Overall i am very happy, but getting them and getting the Apartment combined with work is quite stressfull.

There is a large European Apogee get-together party planned next year with a demonstration of the new 150wpc tube amp for 1ohm Apogees from Vacuumstate Elecronics on the Grand. So some stuff, is definetly comming up.

Cheers

Flo

E-Stat
09-01-2006, 03:30 PM
The GRAND movement will be on Sunday, which will be very difficult and i am very curious how they will feel in my 27x17 room, which is a bit too small for them. Overall i am very happy, but getting them and getting the Apartment combined with work is quite stressfull.
I trust you understand that getting them there is only half the battle. Finding their optimal position is the real trick. You may want to get some dollies given their outrageous weight.

Last Sunday, I spent the better part of the afternoon tweaking the placement of the U-1s in my new room. I began with the Cardas golden triangle positioning for bipolars. Then I broke out the Radio Shack SPL meter and Stereophile test record. Ended up trying twenty two combinations of different speaker, listening couch, and bass trap placements to get the flattest overall response. Also experimented with various settings of the bass contour control on the SL backplates. I took ten frequency readings at third octave intervals from 25 to 200 hz for each trial.

While the original position yielded a smooth response for the bottom two octaves, there was a 16 db octave to octave variation between 120 and 60 hz. Big time suckout and peak. It just sounded heavy. Eventually, I moved the speakers further out into the room (about 90"), doubled up on the bass traps behind them, dropped the backplate level and got the best results. I was able to get the critical lower midrange/upper bass region down to 80 hz flat to +/- 2 db. I find this region is extremely important to get a natural sounding balance without sounding either thin or heavy. A primary room node centered around 40 hz causes a gradual and linear rise starting about 60 hz. Ends up with a bit of a built in Fletcher-Munson loudness curve. Which is fine since I typically listen at levels in the 70s and low 80s.

Good luck in your new space. As for the speaker placement, experiment, experiment, experiment!

rw

Florian
09-01-2006, 05:50 PM
Yes positioning and room Acoustics is the key. My Tact RCS 2.2XP is extremely powerfull and the DIVAS are singing at + - 0.5db in the new room already ;-)

The GRAND comes with a movement system, so it will just be heavy as hell. I will let you know how it goes.

Cheers

Flo

audio_dude
09-23-2006, 08:12 AM
YAY, the london sound & vision show has started, anyone got info on what apogee has been showing?

its like the best day ever!

Peter Duminy
09-24-2006, 09:12 PM
Guess who? (http://www.apogeeacoustics.com/)

rw

This is indeed great news for the Audio Industry! All we need now is to get Monsoon Audio back up and runninng as well. It will be like the good ol' days one more. :)