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Eddie Current ZDT - Anyone try it with speakers?

post #1 of 16
3/22/10 at 11:21pm
Thread Starter 
It seems like I have been waiting forever for my ZDT. The website says "Shipping in March" so it can't be too far away.

I know most here have probably bought the ZDT for headphone use, but has anyone tried driving loudspeakers with these?

I bought this amp for my Grados, but have recently started looking for a pair of speakers for home use--nothing high end--just low end for general use (ie: B&W CM7 or Living Voice Auditorium), and I am wondering if anyone has any experience on how the ZDT performs with speakers.
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post #2 of 16
3/23/10 at 8:52pm
Considering it only puts out 8 watts in 8 ohms you need to find a pair of very efficient speakers. If you like relaxed and warm sound I would recommend you to look into Coincident speakers but If you like more bright and aggressive sound I would go with Klipsch Heritage series. Among them my favorite one de to it balanced sound is the Cornwall.
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post #3 of 16
3/23/10 at 9:07pm
You should be fine with a pair of speakers with sensitivity of 96db or more. Look for speakers that are recommended for SET amps.
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post #4 of 16
3/23/10 at 9:20pm
Some of the most respected high efficiency speakers are the Klipsch Horn (105db) and the Zu speakers. The Druids (101dB) are really nice but have been replaced by the Zu Essence speakers which are rated at 97dB. The Essences got on the cover of Stereophile recently for their great performance
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post #5 of 16
3/25/10 at 2:31am
Thread Starter 
Thank you for the great suggestions! Craig mentioned these as an option as well: Omega Speaker Systems - Products > Super 8 Alnico Series. I am definitely going to look into the Klipsch speakers too. Now if only any of these are available locally for a listening test....
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post #6 of 16
3/25/10 at 9:57am
I don't know where in Canada you are but Coincident Speakers (Coincident Speaker Technology Loudspeaker Page) are made in Canada. The company is located in Thornhill, Ontario. They are spacially design for tube amplifiers. They are very musical speakers.

I had Klipsch Heritage series speakers long time ago. I had the Forte just as they came out to the market and then upgraded. For the upgrade I had the chance to buy any of them including the K-Horn but to my ears the Cronwall was the more balanced sound. To me the Belle and K-Horn were to bright with to much midrange and highs. The Cornwall use similar size midrange and tweeter horns like the Heresy but with a 15" woofer. The midrange and tweeter honrs in the Scala, Belle and K-horn are a lot bigger. Just my opinion.

Cornwall III Floorstanding Speaker - Cornwall III --- Floorstanding Loudspeaker - Klipsch Heritage Series - Overview
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post #7 of 16
3/27/10 at 3:11am
Thread Starter 
Coincident didn't list any dealers in Canada, but you've got me intrigued. I am going to give them a call and see if they have a dealer on the West Coast. Thank you for your detailed description of each speaker--without the chance to listen to all these, your descriptions are very helpful in helping me narrow down my choices for starters.
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post #8 of 16
3/27/10 at 4:52am
The ZDT is fantastic driving my FE206E backloaded horns!
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post #9 of 16
3/27/10 at 11:18am
I love my Zu Essence speakers. I am running them with some 25 watt Quicksilver mono blocks. I did consider the ZDT.

Other speakers to consider are the Tekton Line. This is another USA speaker maker. He makes beautiful boxes with Fostex full range drivers. I have a pair of nearfield desktop speakers for my desk at work. These will be a good alternative if you don't want the bigger, pricier Essence.
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post #10 of 16
3/29/10 at 3:50am
Thread Starter 
Wow, here I was worried about not being able to find speakers for the ZDT, but looks like I won't have lots options! ThankS!!
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post #11 of 16
6/24/10 at 11:30am

Actually, if the 8W into 8 Ohms is real, then almost any speaker above 85dB that is a benign electrical load should work.  I use an 8W 300B amp to drive 82dB senisitve 10 Ohm LS3/5A speakers and the sound is magnificient.  It sounds even better on my 90dB 6 Ohm Audio Note AN-KSpe speakers.   

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post #12 of 16
9/20/10 at 4:56am

These look like they could sound good with the ZDT. At least in specifications it is a match.

 

http://www.ascendacoustics.com/pages/products/speakers/SRM1/srm1.html

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post #13 of 16
9/23/10 at 6:48pm

I am just going to note that the sierra-1 needs plenty of power. I wouldn't drive it with anything without a little grunt like a NAD 50w.

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post #14 of 16
9/23/10 at 9:11pm

Yes they do. When I had them I used a PS Audio Trio A100, which was very good for the time. I still wonder how good is the ZDT as a speaker amp.

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post #15 of 16
9/25/10 at 5:23am

Maybe, but from 100-400 hz these speakers present a load that is at or below 5 ohms.
 

Quote:
Originally Posted by JIGF View Post

These look like they could sound good with the ZDT. At least in specifications it is a match.

 

http://www.ascendacoustics.com/pages/products/speakers/SRM1/srm1.html

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