Auditions

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6 Oct 01

A few days ago I sent out a query for folks to audition the 1801 in their home.  I did this for three reasons.  One, I would like some subjective feedback about the crossover components and the Black Hole 5.  Two, as a newcomer/outsider to this hobby a home audition is quite useful for the "Doubting Thomas" in all of us.  Three, I am confident in the sound quality of the 1801, and am more than happy to share this with others.

21 Dec 02

The list of folks on the audition list seems to continually grow.  I am not sure if there is an end in sight.  This is fine.  The average wait seems to be 3-5 months.  Folks are welcome to email me with inquires about the current wait time.

15 Jan 04

The audition list remains about 6-8 months long.  Also, the traveling 1801s don't have external crossovers for component quality evaluation.  This follows my customers tendency towards the higher quality components.  I sold very few 1801s with Solen/Eagle quality components.  I subsequently changed the traveling 1801s and made the carton about 20lbs lighter.  The better quality crossover components are now installed internally.  Further, very few listeners actually heard a discernable difference between the Black Hole 5 and Military Packing Foam.  Since the Black Hole 5 was/is permanently adhered to the walls of 1 cabinet, both speakers now have Black Hole 5.  Removing the stuff is nearly impossible.  While Black hole 5 makes some improvement, but is extremely minimal in a solid cabinet.  In an a/b comparison I might guess correctly 65% in favor of Black Hole 5.

This is a slightly edited copy of the initial query I submitted: 

Listeners Wanted

 

Gentlemen,

I make this offer publicly here at the Madisound page because there might be someone who has never heard a good home built speaker. I have also included a few items of interest in the 1801 crate that will hopefully quell some of the controversy regarding "better crossover components" and Black Hole 5. Primarily I hope that a newcomer might read this and take me up on this offer for education sake. I too doubted the ability of a home built speaker to produce world class sound. I then had the opportunity to listen to some home built speakers, and I was hooked.

These speakers will be heard at the Washington DC DIY 2001. They will spend some time at Bob Stout’s house in the near future too.

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Seeking a few fine gentlemen with good ears and equipment to listen and write reviews for a new speaker that I am building/selling. Specifics about the speaker are listed here:

http://www.ellisaudio.com

I have learned that the audio underground business relies heavily on educated listeners and referrals. I am confident in my product, and seek reification and referrals.

There are already a few reviews here:

http://www.audioreview.com/reviews/Speaker/product_78653.shtml

The criteria for audition are:

  1. Listeners must be willing to pay ($) 1-way FedEx ground shipping for a @ 100lb crate. Your cost will be incurred from you to the next person that is willing to listen. My goal is to make the 1801 trip somewhat linear to save on shipping cost. I will adjust the 1801 itinerary to best suit geographical locations.
  2. The speakers have two sets of external crossover boxes (4 boxes total). The boxes are concealed. One crossover is the standard Solen variety. The other is the Audio Cap/Foil/Mills variety. The boxes contain identical component values. The box contents are not externally labeled. You will have to decide which crossover you prefer. After you decide I will tell you what you chose.
  3. One speaker cabinet is lined with Black Hole 5, and the other with military packing foam. Differences are present, but very slight. It doesn’t make the "pair" of speakers sound awkward in any way. I will not reveal the Black Hole 5 speaker. This is another area where I would like listener input.
  4. You will have the speaker for about 1 week. The second week will be shipping. The speakers will be on a two listener per-month schedule.
  5. You must write a review for me at audioreview.com.
  6. I would prefer that you had very good ears and fairly good equipment.
  7. My goal is to have the speaker available for the first listener by 15 Oct 01.
  8. The external crossovers require a double cable setup. There is a short cable (Goertz) that goes from the amp to the crossover, then two longer cables from the crossover to the speaker. I will supply the short piece of Goertz. You must have a longer double-set of cables to run between the crossover and the speaker. If this is a problem for someone who has a one cable series crossover speaker (i.e. Dunlavy’s) email me. I can add another run of Goertz HT to the crate if necessary.

Please email me with any questions regarding this query.

Thanks for reading.

Sincerely,

Dave Ellis