It wasn't a matter of high-end response-the Advents actually had more of this than the Nine when the latter was oriented so its tweeter beams weren't aimed our way. Compared with the KLH Nine full-range electrostatic, which has some other imperfections and costs over $1000 anyway, the Advents seemed to be playing through a velvet fog. In fact, the only respect in which we felt the Advents took a back seat to any other speaker system was in transparency. There was no trace of low-end distortion until the system was driven to what would normally be entirely excessive (for most people) listening levels. Bass response was very smooth down to around 37Hz, and rolled off gradually below that, producing what we judged to be usable output down to 30Hz. Sweeping an audio oscillator through its range revealed no humps, dips, or rattles.
LARGE ADVENT SPEAKER SWITCH DRIVER
Driver blending, too, was excellent, and the speakers did an outstanding job of reproducing the front-to-back perspective in stereo and mono program material. Dispersion was excellent and so, as a consequence, was the stereo imaging. Probably for just that reason, the Advents proved eminently easy to live with, and sounded equally comfortable and natural at low or room-filling listening levels. They were, in fact, the least-colored loudspeakers we have ever heard, and this includes the highest-priced systems currently available. We couldn't even find any sonic characteristics to hang adjectives on, in order to try to describe their sound. The extreme low end was very deep, evidently good to at least 35Hz, and the highs were extremely smooth, sweet and detailed.Īfter several weeks of listening, we still hadn't found anything to complain about. No squawk, honk or hollowness, no papery or metallic flavor from disc surface noise, no flabby mid-bass boom.
And indeed, the Advents did prove to be about as uncolored as anything we had ever heard. But is that bad? Well, no, as a matter of fact. Our first reaction was Ho-Hum! They didn't send us. Of course, we were pleased to see a new hi-fi manufacturer taking the plunge and we wished them well, but my God, not another oversized "bookshelf" loudspeaker! Who needs it? And at $112, could it possibly be any good? Sure, the Dynaco A-25 was a pleasant surprise, but could there be another one so soon?ĭutifully, though, we hooked up the Advents and gave them a listen. That, at least, is how we felt about receiving a pair of Advent speakers-their first product since the company was formed. The appearance of yet another one that looks like hundreds of others and embodies no radically new innovations to pique one's curiosity is likely to be greeted with a passionate Ho-Hum. After a number of years of equipment reviewing, one gets rather blasé about "compact" loudspeakers.