Another great speakers company
Ricardo
Posts: 10,636
Yesterday I spent one hour at Thiel facility in Lexington, KY.
I wanted to have the cloth of the 3.6's changed to black; the grills of these speakers are unique in that the cloth is not just stretched to the grills, but use the baffle as stretcher when they are on the speaker. So when the grills are off, what you have is a loose cloth. I thought it would be best to have them do this, and since they are relatively close, I decided that instead of sending the grills I would drive there and take the speakers. I had talked with them and they offered to check the speakers and retouch any and all veneer imperfections to make them look like new...so why not? (This last at a cost).
When I got there I was received by Gary Dayton, the Support & Service manager. I thought he would say hi, receive the speakers and go back to his busy day. Well, he didn't. He spent one hour with me, a guy that bought a used pair of their speakers.
He first took me into their listening room. My guess is that it's a 18x25ish room, fully treated. They have their past and current speakers line up and some gear that I had never seen and probably will never see again in my life.
I listened to the new CS3.7's driven by two 160 lb each Krell Evolution monos and Ayre source and pre. I did not want to leave. The 3.7's are smaller than the 3.6's, have a price tag of $10,000 and sound absolutely beautiful.
Then he showed me the whole manufacturing facilities. They make everything in there, except for some of the curved parts of their cabinets that they contract to a furniture company. They design and MAKE their own drivers, right there in Kentucky. Crossovers are done with custom parts and no circuit boards.
It was an awesome experience, and the one thing that called my attention the most, is how every person we met in the building said hi with a big smile. From the highest executive to the guy loading the trucks. What a great example of a customer oriented company!!
I wanted to have the cloth of the 3.6's changed to black; the grills of these speakers are unique in that the cloth is not just stretched to the grills, but use the baffle as stretcher when they are on the speaker. So when the grills are off, what you have is a loose cloth. I thought it would be best to have them do this, and since they are relatively close, I decided that instead of sending the grills I would drive there and take the speakers. I had talked with them and they offered to check the speakers and retouch any and all veneer imperfections to make them look like new...so why not? (This last at a cost).
When I got there I was received by Gary Dayton, the Support & Service manager. I thought he would say hi, receive the speakers and go back to his busy day. Well, he didn't. He spent one hour with me, a guy that bought a used pair of their speakers.
He first took me into their listening room. My guess is that it's a 18x25ish room, fully treated. They have their past and current speakers line up and some gear that I had never seen and probably will never see again in my life.
I listened to the new CS3.7's driven by two 160 lb each Krell Evolution monos and Ayre source and pre. I did not want to leave. The 3.7's are smaller than the 3.6's, have a price tag of $10,000 and sound absolutely beautiful.
Then he showed me the whole manufacturing facilities. They make everything in there, except for some of the curved parts of their cabinets that they contract to a furniture company. They design and MAKE their own drivers, right there in Kentucky. Crossovers are done with custom parts and no circuit boards.
It was an awesome experience, and the one thing that called my attention the most, is how every person we met in the building said hi with a big smile. From the highest executive to the guy loading the trucks. What a great example of a customer oriented company!!
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***\\\\\........................... My Audio Journey ............................./////***
2008 & 2010 Football Pool WINNER
SOPA
***\\\\\........................... My Audio Journey ............................./////***
2008 & 2010 Football Pool WINNER
SOPA
Thank God for different opinions. Imagine the world if we all wanted the same woman
Post edited by Ricardo on
Comments
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I worked with Gary Dayton when I needed to get a tweeter rebuilt. He was super helpful, even when I was dumb enough to suggest trying out some Vifa / Seas tweeters instead of having the originals rebuilt.
Great company! I think my next set of 2-channel speakers will be something from Thiel as well. . . although my HT will always remain Polk.Stereo Rig: Hales Revelation 3, Musical Fidelity CD-Pre 24, Forte Model 3 amp, Lexicon RT-10 SACD, MMF-5 w/speedbox, Forte Model 2 Phono Pre, Cardas Crosslink, APC H15, URC MX-950, Lovan Stand
Bedroom: Samsung HPR-4252, Toshiba HD-A2, HK 3480, Signal Cable, AQ speaker cable, Totem Dreamcatchers, SVS PB10-NSD, URC MX-850 -
I know where there is a pair of 3.5s for $300.00 if anyone is interested.
REGARDS SNOWWell, I just pulled off the impossible by doing a double-blind comparison all by myself, purely by virtue of the fact that I completely and stupidly forgot what I did last. I guess that getting old does have its advantages after all
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uh, where?Stereo Rig: Hales Revelation 3, Musical Fidelity CD-Pre 24, Forte Model 3 amp, Lexicon RT-10 SACD, MMF-5 w/speedbox, Forte Model 2 Phono Pre, Cardas Crosslink, APC H15, URC MX-950, Lovan Stand
Bedroom: Samsung HPR-4252, Toshiba HD-A2, HK 3480, Signal Cable, AQ speaker cable, Totem Dreamcatchers, SVS PB10-NSD, URC MX-850 -
here in this ad. scroll down till you see the speakers for sale. its a killer deal. they list for $800.00 used average on audiogon bluebook. http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?ampstran&1194798440 Heres a pic.uh, where?
REGARDS SNOWWell, I just pulled off the impossible by doing a double-blind comparison all by myself, purely by virtue of the fact that I completely and stupidly forgot what I did last. I guess that getting old does have its advantages after all -
here in this ad. scroll down till you see the speakers for sale. its a killer deal. they list for $800.00 used average on audiogon bluebook. http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?ampstran&1194798440 Heres a pic.
REGARDS SNOW
Zip code is Atlanta, GA. -
They are in the Audio Deals thread. With very little money they can be fixed._________________________________________________
***\\\\\........................... My Audio Journey ............................./////***
2008 & 2010 Football Pool WINNER
SOPAThank God for different opinions. Imagine the world if we all wanted the same woman -
Georgia is a bit of a hike. Knowing how heavy my 1.2s are, I can only imagine those would be a beast to ship or even pick up.
Maybe someone in Georgia will see this and grab them to at least keep them in the family.
Good find! He has his PE 45A overpriced, and speakers grossly underpriced (unless they're dinged up pretty badly).Stereo Rig: Hales Revelation 3, Musical Fidelity CD-Pre 24, Forte Model 3 amp, Lexicon RT-10 SACD, MMF-5 w/speedbox, Forte Model 2 Phono Pre, Cardas Crosslink, APC H15, URC MX-950, Lovan Stand
Bedroom: Samsung HPR-4252, Toshiba HD-A2, HK 3480, Signal Cable, AQ speaker cable, Totem Dreamcatchers, SVS PB10-NSD, URC MX-850 -
Awesome deal HT! Sounds like a blast. I still find it odd that the state of Kentucky is home to two fairly renowned speaker companies, but doesn't have a hi-fi store in the entire state.I never had it like this where I grew up. But I send my kids here because the fact is you go to one of the best schools in the country: Rushmore. Now, for some of you it doesn't matter. You were born rich and you're going to stay rich. But here's my advice to the rest of you: Take dead aim on the rich boys. Get them in the crosshairs and take them down. Just remember, they can buy anything but they can't buy backbone. Don't let them forget it. Thank you.Herman Blume - Rushmore
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Atlanta?
ATTENTION SHOPPERS! PAGING MR. ABERNATHY!
MR. ABERNATHY! PLEASE MEET YOUR PARTY AT THE FRONT OF THE STORE.
BDTI plan for the future. - F1Nut -
If I remember correctly, Mr. Abernathy just had a birthday and is in dire need of an audio present to himself!
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Ricardo, please elaborate on the sound of the 3.7's. Do they sound better than the 3.6's? Just doesn't seem possible that the sound can get any better.
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Ron, agree; tough to say. I heard them only for a few minutes, and have heard the 3.6's for a short time also; different settings, different gear, etc. Impossible to tell the difference. I asked Gary this same question, and he assured me that the 3.7's sound better, specifically in the level of details in the mids....I know, the 3.6's are VERY tough to beat in that area, but they are backordered......at $10,000 a pair, if they are selling every pair they can build, they must be good.
If you ask me, the difference is not worth the $8,500 or so price difference
_________________________________________________
***\\\\\........................... My Audio Journey ............................./////***
2008 & 2010 Football Pool WINNER
SOPAThank God for different opinions. Imagine the world if we all wanted the same woman -
Thought I'd share this:
Email received from Thiel the day after I picked up the speakers:
I meant to give you a THIEL sign to replace your Polk banner! Sorry I forgot yesterday. If you want one, just let me know and I'll send it to you.
My Response:
I am sentimentally tied to Polk, so cannot promise it would be replaced but if you dont mind sharing the front stage with Polk, Id LOVE to have a Thiel sign
And their response:
It's our pleasure to share the stage with Polk. I've got a tremendous amount of respect for their company and their products. It's a really cool looking room you've got. I'm glad you can have a music haven in your home. Enjoy the CS3.6s! Have a great weekend.
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***\\\\\........................... My Audio Journey ............................./////***
2008 & 2010 Football Pool WINNER
SOPAThank God for different opinions. Imagine the world if we all wanted the same woman
