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New ESS AMT-1

post #1 of 8
11/26/09 at 1:37pm
Thread Starter 
http://www.essspeakersusa.com/Press1.jpg

I'm planning to buy a pair of these. They'll be driven by a Carver TFM-35 amp and a Harman/Kardon HK 3480 receiver as a preamp and supplemented by subwoofer (right now a Velodyne CT-120, soon to be either a single or dual REL subs).

I owned a 1970s original pair many years ago and was always in love with the sound they produced. I'd like to read a review or two of these new ones before committing but I don't know if that's possible so I may just take the plunge.
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post #2 of 8
11/27/09 at 3:57pm
I have owned a few lesser ESS versions. Their weakness was always their bass (flabby, inaccurate) but maybe these new versions are improved.
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post #3 of 8
11/28/09 at 1:15pm
Thread Starter 
I think they will be improved. I spoke with the head designer of the company and he assured me there will be improvements.

The ESS AMTs with the transmission line bass system were actually very good.

I think matching them with a quick, musical dual sub system and a high current Carver amp along with modern improvements will yield a satisfying integration.
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post #4 of 8
11/28/09 at 4:13pm
I picked up a pair of ca. 1972 ESS AMT-1 speakers last year. Mom'n'Dad carted them off (I will get them back eventually), but they were about the best $300 I ever spent on audio. They needed a few mods and upgrades, but the AMT is top shelf.

I hope they can pull these off at a reasonable price. If the woofer is well integrated, these would be giant slayers.
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post #5 of 8
11/28/09 at 6:47pm
Even the lesser "P" series sound darn good for how old they are. I considered finding 6 or 8 of the smaller Performance series to do a home theater setup.
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post #6 of 8
1/17/11 at 10:38am
Thread Starter 

Lessee... thirteen and a half months later, and I'm still waiting.

 

http://www.essspeakersusa.com/Products.html

 

Here's how ready I am: I actually opened a separate brokerage account which I named "ESS Speakers" on Fidelity's website just for these speakers. It's up 14% since I opened it.

 

I haven't spoken to the owner of the company since November of 2009. At that time he assured me they would be ready by the end of January. Of 2010. But I know it's tough out there...

 

At this point I have to make one of three choices. I mean, my old-skool Infiniti Kappas and Velodyne CT-120 with appropriate isolation are certainly okay (read: better than anyone's house I've personally visited), but I want to move them into the game room. So, besides the ever-popular "do nothing and keep waiting" (we'll call that option #1) I can:

 

2. move on and find some other speaker system in the $3K to $6K range -- I'm thinking only ribbons, planars, or electrostats will please me, and will a single Carver TFM-35 drive any of those properly?

3. purchase my own Heil drivers and build my own crossover and enclosure system

4. start hitting eBay hard for vintage ESS systems

 

A fifth option is to invest in the company, but that's a distant fifth...

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post #7 of 8
1/20/11 at 5:37pm

5th option sounds unwise in the extreme unless you have Trump cash to play with. If you really need that type of tweeter, try some VMPS maybe.

 

For that money, I would get the Mirage OMD-28 from eBay for about $2000-$3200.

 

If the new versions don't improve the bass region, ESS speakers are not worth more than $1000- any version IMO. The tweeters are awesome but the rest was pretty muddy. My statement from before referred to used ESS under $300.

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post #8 of 8
1/20/11 at 9:20pm
As for option 2, take a look at Linkwitz' Orion3 speakers. Within your budget and has a heckuva reputation. My pair isn't done yet - I still need to build the cabinets. But if they stand up to their reputation, they'll be my last audio investment. If not, I'll sell them and stick with fhe ESL-63s.

Though you might want to cast an eye towards the Kithara. Runs $6,000, and uses an AMT.
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