AE 301s

[BigH]

Anyone heard the Acoustic Energy 301s yet?

 

[AEJim]

I have! Does that count?

We've sold through the first two production runs faster than expected so someone must have them! Admittedly they were only in a limited number of UK dealers for the first couple of months as export took the bulk of stock but they should be finding their way into more areas now... Would be nice to hear more feedback on them too, always good to know how a product is working in the home as well as the demonstration room!

 

[BigH]

Thanks Jim, I'm having trouble finding any dealers in Essex that stock them.

 

[AEJim]

Hi BigH,

Not sure I'm allowed to discuss the details here really but I'm told Richer Sounds in Romford should have their stock around now, by all means give us a call in the office and I can arrange a demo set to go out if need be.

Cheers,

Jim.

 

[BigH]

OK thanks.

 

[bigblue235]

Good to see you around, Jim.

On the subject of people receiving demo stock, I don't suppose WHF are receiving 305s?

 

[AEJim]

Thanks bigblue,

Due some in shortly, hopefully next week - then I'll give the guys a bell about getting a 5.1 system over... The purchasing department were a little conservative with the 3-Series it seems so I've been waiting on some free stock! Normally I get some from the first batch but some of our overseas customers took priority over me...

 

[bigblue235]

Good, good!

I'll look forward to the review as there's nowhere near me to demo. I'm presuming you don't supply anywhere in the Channel Islands?

 

[Philim]

Hi ae jim

Out of curiousity how would you rate 305s against the radiance 3?

 

[AEJim]

Hi Philim,

They're quite different to each other - the Radiance have a lot of character and are quite mid-forward, the 305's are more laid back with a drier "meatier" sound. I'd say neither was "better" than the other but would more depend on personal taste.

I had a local chap pop in a couple of months back after he'd seen the Radiance 2's win a group test but as he was closer to us than a dealer we arranged to let him have a listen. He wasn't that keen on Radiance 2's for his taste of big band / swing music (too much emphasis on the horns) so we went through most of our ranges and the 305's were by far his favourite. He felt the 301's were very good and a close second but on a slower Sinatra track ("It Was a Very Good Year", from memory) they couldn't quite convey the deep richness of his voice as well as the floorstander.

If you have a system which lacks a little life then I'd say the Radiance would help inject a little spark into it, if you wanted a more balanced sound then I'd go with the 3-Series.

 

[Philim]

Hi Philim,

They're quite different to each other - the Radiance have a lot of character and are quite mid-forward, the 305's are more laid back with a drier "meatier" sound. I'd say neither was "better" than the other but would more depend on personal taste.

I had a local chap pop in a couple of months back after he'd seen the Radiance 2's win a group test but as he was closer to us than a dealer we arranged to let him have a listen. He wasn't that keen on Radiance 2's for his taste of big band / swing music (too much emphasis on the horns) so we went through most of our ranges and the 305's were by far his favourite. He felt the 301's were very good and a close second but on a slower Sinatra track ("It Was a Very Good Year", from memory) they couldn't quite convey the deep richness of his voice as well as the floorstander.

If you have a system which lacks a little life then I'd say the Radiance would help inject a little spark into it, if you wanted a more balanced sound then I'd go with the 3-Series.

Thanks for the reply jim. I am a radiance 3 owner with a nait xs (after your comments they were designed around the SN). Happy with this combination but was curious where the 305s sat.

 

[AEJim]

Yeah, the Naim matches very well with the Radiance, I don't think "new" Naim has anything like the character of the older stuff, far more even presentation to my ears.

The Radiance will have a sweeter top end than the 3-Series thanks to the flashier tweeter and DXT lens whereas the new one in the 3-Series is designed to fit tonally with the driver with a little less high frequency output (the stuff well out of hearing range).

 

[Audioholic2013]

I recently purchased the 301s without a demonstration and I am very happy with them. I previously had a pair of Monitor Audio BR2s, needless to say, the 301s are in a different league, sonically and aesthetically. The sound is incredibly detailed with amazing clarity, and they haven't even ''burnt in'', yet. I shall be upgrading my Chord Canival Silverscreen speaker cable to something like the Chord Odyssey or Epic to really bring out the true potential of these speakers.

 

[stevebrock]

be careful!

I did this but preferred the Carnival Silverscreen

Can you borrow a demo pair just to be sure?

 

[Audioholic2013]

Hi, yes I'm sure I can borrow a pair to try. I can't see myself preferring the sound of the Silverscreen over something like the Epic!

What didn' t you like about the more expensive cables?

 

[stevebrock]

before i get shot down in flames.............

I thought i lost a bit of excitement of the Carnival, I was actually quite dissapointed in it 'in my system'

i then sold it on and changed to Rumour, which to my ears was the same as the Odyssey

Got Rumour at the minute - but I have been caught hook, line & sinker with cables - I am going back to a quality thick copper cable - might even try Rega Quattro as its cheap

 

[stevebrock]

before i get shot down in flames.............

I thought i lost a bit of excitement of the Carnival, I was actually quite dissapointed in it 'in my system'

i then sold it on and changed to Rumour, which to my ears was the same as the Odyssey

Got Rumour at the minute - but I have been caught hook, line & sinker with cables - I am going back to a quality thick copper cable - might even try Rega Quattro as its cheap

 

[BigH]

Some people prefer Van Damme Blue or OFC to Rumour, if you search there are 1 or 2 posts on here about it. VD is cheap around £3 -£5 for 4mm, Van Damme is made for the pro market rather than the hifi market. So if you are thinking about Rumour I would try Van Damme as well.

 

[BigH]

Never got to try the 301s, RicherS Watford did not have them in stock, said something like special order only.