Hi Everyone!
Super excited to soon be Sarah 300B owner, posting first time here a question I am sure you must have seen multiple times.

I have KLH 5s and although I plan to try the Sarah with them, I would like to go for a pair of more efficient speakers in the near future.

I have been doing a lot of research on line, and I would love to narrow it down to a couple that I can listen to.

Klipsch Forte IV: My only worry with this one is the treble, I am very sensitive to upper region shoutiness and I want to make sure that I don't end up sending these big boys back.

ESS AMT1D Revival: These are the new versions of this old speaker. Has anyone heard them? I do like an AMT tweeter, but is the bass fast enough to keep up with it? Does anyone have any experience with these?

Omega Super 8XRS: How does it work with complex passages is the main question here. Although I listen to softer stuff usually, I do like my classic rock as much as the other middle age crew here. Louis can also do an AlNico version of these, is it worth it?

Zu Union 6: Have read great things about it, does anyone here any experience with them?

Lii S10EVO: It's on sale for $2500 but it's pretty hefty and a single driver and coming from China so would love some input before pulling the trigger.

This is pretty much the list, I would love some input and some other recommendations if you have any. I won't buy Tekton as the looks just bother me.

The room is 16 by 14 open on one side to a dining room and kitchen all with 10 foot ceilings. There is a bit of acoustic treatment and the room is not that live.

Thank you all and happy to be a part of the tribe!

Welcome!

Let me say a few words about Omega speakers, of which I am a big fan. I have the Super AlNiCo Monitors (SAMs) and I love them to death. I have 2 UFO25s, so a couple watts less than Sarah, and my room is a little smaller than yours, and half open on one side. I listen to a lot of "complex" music: symphony orchestras, Bach organ music, The Buddy Rich Big Band and once in while I like to crank up The Wall. And it all sounds really good. You shouldn't fear a (well designed) single driver speaker, but I would strongly recommend AlNiCo, it is totally worth it. And with "softer stuff" they are magic: solo piano (or guitar or cello), vocals, string quartets, Kind of Blue, Getz and Gilberto all sound stupefyingly real. Decware and Omega are a 21st century classic IMO. Note also, if you haven't heard already, Omega has a waiting list.

Thank you Donnie, I appreciate the input. I will definitely take a look at them.

Hi Jak B, Congrats on the Sarah!

I don't envy the task of having to decide from a line-up of great speakers, but it certainly is a fantastic and fun position to be in. All of your listed options are nice as are the recommendations of Decware and the Omega SAMs.

You may find that after receiving your Sarah that the KLH's sound great but at 88db (?) efficiency, I also think you're on the right track of possibly going with much higher efficiency speakers to get a much more satisfying sound.

I can only give my opinion on the Zu sound since that is the only experience I have of the speakers listed. (I would love to audition all those speakers as I'm sure you would!)
Unfortunately, I can't speak directly of the Union 6's since that is their new line where they have consolidated a family of varied but similar speakers into this one coherent line. Now all with 8 ohm impedance.

I had the Omen MkII-B before upgrading to the Soul Supreme's a few years later. The high efficiency and lower frequency ability (30hz) of the Supreme's allows me to run them with my UFO25 pretty effectively. They tend to have a lot in common with some of what your considering i.e. high efficiency, no crossover, small shop, great build quality, direct to consumer, and great customer service.

I really like the sound I'm getting (but of course the UFO25 and the rest of the chain allows it!) The speakers are able to respond to exactly what they're delivered: accuracy and neutrality at all frequency levels, precision of soundstage, clarity and great imaging, as well as deep bass. I did not want to introduce a sub-woofer into my room, and this was the ticket. In fact, my Zrock2 is only set at roughly the 12:30 position (just barely above unity gain) and that's all I need for now. However, my room is relatively small (12x14x10) with a reasonable amount of treatment, but we all know that small rooms have big bass issues (and I'm unable to treat that properly with diaphragmatic absorbers,etc) so take that for what it's worth.

My best guess with the Union 6's is that they will have a very similar signature as the Soul Supreme's (especially if you can swing the 'supreme' version of the Union 6's which I'd recommend) but with 99db efficiency, an 8 ohm impedance instead of 16 ohm like the Soul's and having the Sarah at 6 watts instead of the UFO25 at 2.3 watts, you'll get a very rich and satisfying sound level. Your larger and somewhat open room will probably benefit from a lower bottom end as well. (although all spaces differ so obviously really hard to know for sure)

Another option that folks rave about are open baffle speakers. They seem to need space from the front wall, but when able to, people report great results. Obviously, all the speakers you and others have mentioned seem to have a lot of the qualities one way or another I just described which doesn't make it any easier to decide. Your personal preference, aesthetics, room (and maybe WAF) will all come into play.

Anyway, good luck on your decision and please keep us posted, always great to hear real world results.

Hey Chipster,

Thank you very much for the detailed response. I am seriously considering the Zu speakers, as well as the ESS' I wrote in my original post, they have a 60 day in home trial and that should be plenty to asses if I would be happy to live with them long term. I am also interested in the Omegas.

So far not a single person has come back with a Klipsch Forte IV recommendation, which kind of makes me think not a lot of Decware owners are using them.

I used to have a pair of Spatial Audio open baffle speakers and loved them. Now Clayton Shaw who used to be the owner of Spatial has his namesake company, building an open baffle speaker called The Caladan, which I am very curious about as well.

I think audiophile heaven would be where all these speakers are available to listen to in our own environment and somebody else dealt with the packing and moving

Gut feelings tell me that a very large portion of Decware users are running Klipsch speakers but just aren't posting on forums.

I have Forte IV's and seldom hear any treble harshness and the few times it did occur it was a crappy recording that sounded harsh on every speaker/amp combo it was played on.

I have used the Forte IV's with a .5 Rachael , UFO standard and 2 versions as well as other SE and push pull tube amps. Forte IV's aim to please.

Ive use Zu Omega II B's also and love them.

I have not heard current ESS line but have gobs of hands on experience with a lot of the variations of the speaker you are considering and as you mentioned the point of bass /treble playing well together ? It is why I never kept a pair. They always sounded odd to me with big fat rubbery bass and then tinkly airy treble floating up in space all by itself with a large gap left in between. That was always with medium to high power SS amplifiers .

Nice problem to have shopping for new speakers ! : )  Maybe factor in that you will own more then 1 pair to rotate.

Hey Kahuna Jack!

Thanks for the input. I am glad to see you're enjoying your Fortes. It really is the easiest buy for me tbh. I can buy it from Amazon with 12 month payments and no interest. It's the most bang for the buck with least money upfront. So it's great to know that the treble harshness that troubles me is not a thing.

Yes, it is a great problem to have to be on the market for speakers, I think I might have to succumb to my curiosity about the new ESSs and give them a 60 day home trial. If they have fixed the past issues, it could be a fantastic speaker.

"new ESSs and give them a 60 day home trial"


the best test on the planet !  your gear, your room and your truth  [smiley=icqlite20.png]

Congrats—Sarah is special and I dig your ‘Liquid Gold’ descriptor!