Kudos now in the USA

Tyler is a great guy to deal with and if he's carrying this brand I'm sure they sound great. 

Interesting...he has been a big Dynaudio dealer for quite some time. I have not been to his new shop but did visit his prior showroom a few times. Very nice guy and a great Naim resource  

Great that Kudos has a proper dealer here in the US-they should make quite a splash!

Next Level Audio is the U.S distributor and no other dealers are listed. Looks like a bit of a work in progress but gotta start somewhere. Be interesting to see how they do against the competition. A huge market if they can get some traction. Would love to hear them myself if they get out to Southern California.........maybe Gene Rubin or Venice Audio. Good luck.

Finally !!!

I still have the Kudos X2s and the Kudos Super 20s. I've gone from NaitXS -> 202/200 -> 282/250 -> 552/300 and now to 552/500. During all this, the Kudos were a constant in the system. Gone through tonnes of gear, but the kudos were a constant in my systems.

The Super 20s totally outgunned even the Ovator 600s. Even at the end of the 552/500, the ovators sounded shut in at the top frequencies compared to the super 20s powered just with 552/300s (and even 282/250s).

The Super 20s just go outclassed at the 500 level. Time for the 606s or 707s - Trip to Chicago is in order.

It will be good to see Tyler again - had a great time at Axpona listening to the wonderful Danish speakers - good as they were (35K?), I wasn't planning on trading the Kudos for them.

The Kudos X2 with UnitiQute are super engaging.

My understanding of the situtation last time around was that 
a) Fidelis was a pain to deal with
b) there was some issues with Canadian vs. US distributors..

Anyway - glad that Tyler is the distributor (congrats!)

(Also, I'm glad there is a US distributor carrying Kudos - it'll be easier for me to trade in the Super 20s for the 606/707s with more folks interested in the Kudos). :-)

Odd .. on the Kudos web site it has:

USA

Gated Hi Fi Distribution
Dana & Tyler Mueller
32W270 Army Trail Road
Wayne IL 60184

Gated HiFi Distribution is a new company they created for distribution.  Next Level remains the name of their retail business.  Same address for both.

I believe they will be adding 3-4 brands for distribution in the near future.

I'm hoping that they will sell Chord Electronics soon. The Chord distributor will be demoing their stuff next week. I'm anxious to hear what Tyler thinks of the Blu2/Dave combo. I have Dave and have been waiting for 12 weeks for my Blu2 to be delivered.  Very popular item.

Bud

Thanks for the clarification Bud .. Hope you're keeping well .. we have the wood stove roaring up here today.

OK, rub it in.

What’s playing on your Mu-So?  I’m listening to 1,000 Classical Hits from a UK Internet station on mine.  Naim has better choices than Aurender so I sit here listening to a device that costs less than 1% of my fancy system.  As Naim says, source matters.

The good news from Arizona is that the Snow Birds have left. The bad news is it’s Monsoon Season and we have high dew points to go with our 100+ temps.

Bud

Hi Bud

Did you get the Blu2 yet? If so is it broken in and how does it sound?

Mangomonkey - you were at Axpona in Tyler's room? I spent all 3 days at Axpona with most of the time in Tyler's room. I also just saw all the Kudo's at Tyler's but didn't have a chance to listen. Hopefully next weekend. If you go to Axpona next year let Tyler know because I would like to meet the guy who bought Kudo's over My Dyn C1 Signatures LOL!! What did you think of Danish stuff besides being uber expensive? BTW I went from the D1's to the D2's to the D2.1's and settled on the D3.1's.

Octa- Tyler has the full line of Kudos in his shop for demo? 808's? 

ATB,

Mark

Mark I'm guessing Yes. Do they retail for 35K? if so yes for sure.

George

I've really never paid attention to Kudos so I'm trying to learn them. Still haven't listened to any yet. Tyler has been busier than a one armed wall paper hanger and I even have a hard time getting a hold of him. Where are you located? I live in Streamwood which is 9 or 10 mi from him (or about a 15 min drive).

Octa- You should give the Kudos a listen...I suspect that they may impress you as they did me. I like the Dynaudio presentation as well and had a pair of S3.4's for a few years. I live in Wheaton btw...

ATB,

Mark

Varat I don't have Dyn's anymore. I went the Raidho route. But rest assured i will listen to the Kudos soon.

Mark

Yes Tyler does have the 808's. I heard the entry level X2 I think and the super 10's last weekend. Mighty impressive. IMO they both trounced the Dyn Contour 20 in mid range. Highs sounded a hair smoother but the lows deeper in the C20's but no where near as tight.

Tyler may be having a Kudos demo this coming weekend but not sure which day. He will be demoing them an a Naim stack. If you don't get an e-mail invite I'll let you know what day if you're interested.

George

Thanks for the heads -up George

I will not be in town this weekend or next,,,bummer. Hopefully Tyler will do another Kudos night at a later date. I think I will need to check out his new shop !

ATB,

Mark

PS You need to hear the 808's

Mark I think Tyler said he was going to demo the 808's. He did say they are incredible. It will be interesting to hear how they compare to my Raidho D3.1's.

George, I am curious to see what Naim System he uses. Perhaps a ND555?

Some time ago I read that Derek the Kudos designer owns a 252 and a 300 so it is not surprising that Kudos are popular with many forum members. I wonder if Tyler may run some Ansuz power products in the demo as well? I am sure the results will be interesting!

Tyler's 555 was shipped last week.... He should have received it now.

Feel free to stop by Next Level HiFi and Wayne, IL this Sunday, August 12th starting at noon for an informal gathering of friends and music showcasing Kudos Loudspeakers.  Kudos is known for extreme musicality, value, and craftsmanship (hand-built in the U.K.) and Next Level is proud to be the first dealer in the U.S. carrying this amazing line.  We have all models in stock and on display from the X2s to the flagship Titan 808s and we will rotate the various speakers in and out during the demo.  While the official launch for Kudos in North America will be at RMAF later this Fall this will be a good opportunity for enthusiasts and friends to get a sneak peak at these amazing speakers.  Refreshments and snacks will be served.  Please RSVP to: tyler@nextlevelav.com if you would like to join us.

Did anyone here happen to go? I would be interested to know how they sound.

BPW posted:

Did anyone here happen to go? I would be interested to know how they sound.

I talked/text a few people that were there and all said Titan 808 was a hell of a speaker. 

Yes I was there yesterday. Fun time. We listened to the X2 S20a Titan 606 and Titan 808. The gear was a 272 and 250. With a full Ansuz D2 loom. No Tyler has sold one ND555 and the other was already out on loan.  All speakers were set up about 7' apart 16" from back wall with very little toe in. Tried no toe in and the sound stage wasn't sounding right. I'm guessing if the speakers were closer no toe in may have sounded better. Not 100% sure of the pricing.

The X2 was pretty amazing for being a small floorstander and I think a list price 3K. Bass was very good for it's size - mids sounded pretty natural and the highs were also very good.

The S20a had an upgraded tweeter and a Titan driver. Much better and deeper bass. Mids were a bit clearer along with the highs. I think the list price on those were 7K.

The Titan 808. Wow talk about real deep bass. Super clear mids and highs. At low to mid listening levels to me that sounded great. But when you turned them up it seemed as if the 250 lacked control. List price 35K

The Titan 606 was my favorite out of these 4 pairs. Reminded me a lot of the 808's but Tyler said when it was over he didn't think the 250 was the right amp for the Titan series He will be in England this week to finalize everything and will see which amp Derek uses to Voice the Titans.