Rage Against the Machine, Lou Reed and Elvis played live in my local town today .....

Lucky you! I've heard a couple of Statement demos, but both were with those big Focal monsters, and however impressive they sounded, I just couldn't relax and enjoy the sound they produced.

Tom Morello via Statement. Not the input I'd have expected but one I'd love to have heard. I'm envious!

OK, not for me then:  The speakers wouldn't fit in without me having to cut holes in the ceilings of my 17thC house!

Huge,
If you do cut a hole in the ceiling and pop the top half of the speakers through, then you can have music upstairs and downstairs at the same time!

2 systems for the price of one; a bargain...

Best regards, FT

Skyhigh posted:

 Well, almost.

I had the pleasure of hearing the finest hi-fi system in the known universe courtesy of Ceritech Audio in the Forest of Dean. Thanks to proprietors Sam and Simon Jackson, they brought a taste of the high end to the West Country, demonstrating the Naim Statement amplification system, with Naim's top streamer, the NDS with dual 555 power supplies. Sounds were reproduced through Danish speaker manufacturer Dynaudio's state of the art offering, the Evidence Platinum. Standing at over 2 metres high, these slim towering speakers are an imposing sight.

My best description of the sound would be like the world's best concern PA system. Capable of playing at very high volumes, but with absolute control and complete lack of harshness. The only limitations were the desire for the light fittings to start vibrating in the room.

We heard a few "hi-fi" test tracks, including the obligatory London Grammar offering, before Simon stepped in, and with a good deal of courage and offered us Rage Against the Machine's Bullet in the Head. Never have I heard this hard driving, aggressive rock track reproduced with such stunning power coupled with absolute control. The first time I ever heard this was at another Naim audio demo, over 20 years ago at the Bristol Hi-Fi show, played at volume 11 on the then entry level system - it was impressive then, but today was in another universe.

Bill from Dynaudio closed the demo, telling us of his love of the last track and how he'd tried to construct and improve his DIY hi-fi system in pursuit of audio gratification. A Walk on the Wild side indeed was just that. Lou Reed and his accompanying musicians filled the room with wondrous sound, the upright bass and female backing vocals in particular rendered as never heard before. In as succinct a summary as I can offer, it just sounded like fantastic music, making you wish you could trawl you music collection rediscovering old favourites. There was no area open for critique, nothing that it felt possible could be improved upon in our short acquaintance with this uber system.

The downside? Performance like this doesn't come cheap - factor a cool quarter million pounds in round numbers, and consider perhaps as much again to construct a building in which to enjoy it, unless you're fortunate enough to have a dedicated room large enough to accommodate. Only around 50 customers worldwide have so far invested in the Naim Statement, but that isn't the whole point. In a manner similar to automotive manufacturers producing exotic supercars, by pushing the envelope of possibility, these technologies begin to trickle down into the more mainstream products accessible to a wider audience.

Thank you Simon & Sam at Ceritech, Mike and Jason of Naim Audio and Bill of Dynaudio. I'm expecting it will be a considerable time until I hear anything close to equaling this. Perhaps for the first time ever, it might be time to try my luck with a lottery ticket!

 

Yes I went too, enjoyed the day - thought their choices of music for the demo quiet good, have to say when London Grammar - Lou Read and Ryan Adams where palyed thought the system really came into its own, never heard Dynaudio in demo - not sure I would choise them at 115kg and very tall

quite liked the contour C20's with NOVA - altough I did feel they needed a little bit more drive - something like a 272/250DR would really suit them

never been to shop before really liked the staff - for me the main reason was to hear Statement, and yes what a musical delivery, would like to hear the Statement and Kudos Titans 808 IMO the best speaker I have ever listened too

Glad you enjoyed it too AnthonyD.

I enjoyed the Lou Reed in particular. Of course it isn't as good at home, but my SuperUniti + ATC SCM11s are making a nice job of a clean bass line (via Tidal). I must get it on a CD to try on my old/big system (CDS into Active Isobariks).

Interestingly, my research on this showed (via Wikipedia) that the the bass player was Herbie Flowers, who's work on War of the Worlds I appreciate very much. The story goes that Herbie made sure he devised a dual bass line played on upright and electric bass, so as to ensure he got 2x the session musician's fee for the recording - reportedly just 17 pounds at the time.

How many great musical works contain key contributions from either lowly paid, or unpaid and uncredited session players?

Skyhigh posted:

Glad you enjoyed it too AnthonyD.

I enjoyed the Lou Reed in particular. Of course it isn't as good at home, but my SuperUniti + ATC SCM11s are making a nice job of a clean bass line (via Tidal). I must get it on a CD to try on my old/big system (CDS into Active Isobariks).

Interestingly, my research on this showed (via Wikipedia) that the the bass player was Herbie Flowers, who's work on War of the Worlds I appreciate very much. The story goes that Herbie made sure he devised a dual bass line played on upright and electric bass, so as to ensure he got 2x the session musician's fee for the recording - reportedly just 17 pounds at the time.

How many great musical works contain key contributions from either lowly paid, or unpaid and uncredited session players?

Raphael Ravenscroft played the famous saxophone riff on Baker Street by Gerry Rafferty, one of the biggest hits of the 1970s. While the song was earning Rafferty £80,000 a year in royalties as recently as 2011, Ravenscroft was paid a measly £27 for the session. And to top it all, the cheque bounced, whereupon Ravenscroft had it framed and hung on his solicitor's wall.

I'd love to hear Statement and Dynaudio but with a vinyl source.

Regards,

Lindsay

The Strat (Fender) posted:

I'd love to hear Statement and Dynaudio but with a vinyl source.

Regards,

Lindsay

Did bring this up on the day - Ceritech do sell decks jnc LP12 but it was a Naim - Dynaudio demo day

it was mentioned with a source with the quality of statement the deck would need to be set up perfectly and settled, - i have heard Linn LP12 through a stunning Linn set up with Kudos Titans 808 at Cymbiosis - which was outstanding - would love to hear LP12 - NAIM Statement - Kudos 808