Well it's about time I shared a few of my thoughts about these custom loudspeakers I got recently from Edward of Adelaide Speakers.

Firstly the models are all of the Timberwolf range and are all floorstanding units.

2 x Mains are a Timberwolf 101093TKRL

1 x Centre is a Timberwolf 262KRM

3 x lastly the rears are aTimberwolf 6642KV

Now for those that want to know what is being used for the source and also what feeds these monsters.

Cambridge Audio DVD99 for SD DVD, CD, SACD and Audio DVD

Sony BDP-S350 for Blu Ray

Pre/Pro is handled by a Pioneer AX2AS

450wpc Power is supplied by Pro/PA type amplifiers which are Biema WW330II

Now to my thoughts on these speakers, I'm not very good with reviews but will do my best as many have asked. I talked with Edward a few times about my wants/needs from a speaker and all I can say is the man is a champ and has a very strong desire to please his customers and to meet or exceed their wants. It has been a very long time since I have seen such dedication and passion, he is not only very good at what he does but obviously have a love for it. As to the environment and set-up of the speakers, well I have no dedicated room for listening so our lounge room is used. The speakers are set-up to fit in best as can be and are moved about/out for crittical listening but sit where they fit for the rest of the time.

The build quality is very good and solid, the finish is beautiful and matches the rest of our timber furniture. We went with a New maple stain completed in a satin finish so we could enjoy the wonderful character of the real timber (Oak) veneers. The speakers are all quite heavy being floorstanding models but I must admit I wasn't expecting to need 2 people just to lift some of them, those mains are something else. I'm extremely pleased with the quality and finish, I can not fault them.

The bit that matters now, how they sound !
I find it hard to compare these to other speakers as I've not heard anything like them before I must admit. The clarity is the cleanest I have heard, every little nuance and detail is there even in the highest of highs yet isn't harsh at all. Just crisp and in full splender as the mids are just the same and can go quite deep but never chesty or muted leaving you feeling like the singer/artist/instrument are right there with you in the room. If you closed your eyes you can swear in some recordings that they actually are right there with you as the sound has the emotion of live music or real sounds, before now things have always seemed rather flat or plastic like a thin copy of the real thing.

Bass response is amazing to say the least, tight and musical but extremely full and powerful. Movies just leave you feeling numb after a good action flick, you not only hear everything but as I was saying before you can feel everything. Things have taken on life now, explosions litterally blow you away even little sligh sounds such as someone breathing make the hairs on your neck stand up and you feel like turning around to see whos there. The is such detail and the sound is so different I feel like I'm watching a movie for the first time when I have in-fact seen it many times before, it's like colour after a black 'n white world. Vocals and voices are clean, powerful and crisp with a fullness that I've never heard in recordings with even slight rasps, spits and details that is normally lost and only heard in person to person or life is now back there. These little nuances and details I find amazing, to some they may be annoying but I'm just floored by it all. They are very true and honest in their reproduction with pin-point accuracy.

Depth of the sound stage is the deepest and strongest I have ever felt, being a movie fan I am nothing less than amazed now by how much emotion and ambience is felt now. I had a movie night with friends and neighbours and they have never had such a experience before, not even at the cinema. They all actually felt like part of the action and became as much a part of the movie as life itself. The front stage is very good having all ribbons but even still the back is almost seamless with the domes, Edward has done a amazing job. I must say I used the rears as mains for a couple of days and they are fantastic in their own rights and I was amazed how low they could extend. I find it impossible to pick the xover points in any of the speakers and have found myself having a much greater renewed insterest in music now as well.

The mains are made up of 2 x 10" woofer, 6" kevlar mid and large ribbon tweeter
Centre is 2x the 6" Kevlar that is used above with a medium ribbon tweeter
rears using 2 x the same 6" Kevlar with a done tweeter.

pics are here
http://www.dtvforum.info/index.php?showtopic=74609

Nice one Wayne!

I'd love to know how much more detail you are getting than what I am with those ribbons.
I think I would have like to have used the ribbons, but was a bit scared off by their supposed narrow sweet spot, but thinking now, reckon they would have been ok. Next time maybe!

Those 10" woofers would certainly pack some punch. Do you use the sub for music at all, I'm guessing not!

Certainly not much room for any drivers left over, good use of space!.

Looks good, congrats and well done.

Curious to know, what did Edward think of them?

TB

I might have the same dome in my rears as you have in your mains though I'm not certain. Theres quite a bit of difference depending on the recording between my rears and my fronts as I used the rears as mains for 2 days while Edward finished the mains. Hard to judge in ways though as the mains being so powerful need more power/volume to get the most out of them but thats more in the bottom end. The tweeter are extremely clear and detailed to the point where they sound a little louder/more powerful so they had to be tamed down a little by Edward for me. The guys a champ, even came out to my place to tweak them untill he was completely happy though I was already impressed with them lol. The sweet spot isn't that narrow really, it's more of a problem in the vertical plane than horizontal and as to the 10" woofers I think they surpass my sub lol but your correct in that I don't bother with the sub for music.

I think he was impressed himself on both counts of the fronts and rears, the rears are stunning in their reproduction and range. Those 6" kevlars are something else and very efficent too, I think the mains are maybe one of the best Edward has made. lol We both love them, if you like sometime your very welcome to come have a listen to compare them to your own seeing as your local mate. At some later point I'm sure Edward could just upgrade the drivers in yours if you felt the need. I am blown away by the mains but I was expecting them to be that good, what really surprised me was the ones I'm using as rears. They sound like a much larger speaker and are very commanding. But yep, long story short Edward was very impressed himself I think and I'm just left in awe personally. I don't think anything costing 3 times as much could even come close.

Nice review and very nice speakers, When I have the funds to upgrade my speakers I think I will be taking a trip to Adelaide to check out some of these speakers and have a chat with Edward.

Wayne good to hear you are happy.

Good review, alot of what you said apply to my summoners as well. Very detailed and clear.

Edward called me last week in regards to the harshness I am hearing in the tweeter. He detailed how I could fix the issue if i wanted. He said he had done some thing a little different with my crossover. I am going to leave it another couple of weeks before I touch them as i believe they are settling down.

He not only makes fabulous speakers but his customer service is second to none

Maybe all of us Adelaide owners should get together and compare notes.

There has to be a few of us out there by now.

Daywalker

That would be a wise thing to do as I'm certain it would be hard to go wrong getting a speaker from Edward. The more I use/listen to these speakers the more I am amazed at how much more I am hearing. He does ship though with air fares getting so low at times these days it wouldn't cost much to fly for a chat. When your ready I'd at least give him a phone call, you owe it to yourself.




I'm never certain if things settle down over time or if we just adjust to the new things ourselves lol. I'm sure my speakers have settled more but then I just wonder is it that I have become more used to them myself. Either way I'm pleased as punch hehehe. Is it harshness or just that they might be a little louder or more pronounced/higher detail ? His customer service is the best I have seen for 20 years, he is not happy unless you are. IMHO I think the guys a champ.

I think a Adelaide Speaker get together is a great idea, I'm certainly up for it .

Hi Guys,

I'm seriously thinking about going with Ascension for my HT setup which has been a long time coming. I don't have a bundle to spend, does Edward kind of make a bundle to a certain price point? i.e. can he suggest stuff which will go together well for movies, but also excel in music; for example?

One thing that scares me off is the thought of shipping from Adelaide to Melbourne though.. I suspect shipping an HT kit will cost a bundle. Might be worth a weekend drive over!

cheers,
Kieran

Edward gave me a very good price and it was only for the L/C/R I bought Kieran . Very good at matching drivers for seamless surround panning.

I was very happy with the freight charges for my timberwolves and center to Newcastle

If you look at his website under the HT section, Edward does suggest some bundles, however you can pretty much have whatever you want depending on your preference for size, power, specs, budget etc. Also if you buy a 5.1 package, you get 10% off which would almost cover your shipping.

I would suggest you call him and have a chat. He is extremely easy to deal with over the phone and will suggest all sorts of options, pros and cons for you at the price you wish to spend.

I went with the Summoner 1093TL's as mains with an upgraded tweeter, great for both HT and music. I think it was only an extra $150 or so to get the ribbon tweeter which I kinda wish I had gone for now too.

I would suggest that Edward builds all of his speakers to be musical first and foremost, but with that comes good HT anyway.

If you havent already seen it, there is a long thread on them HERE and PJK40 did a big review of them in the attachment section recently. Also a few threads over at SNA on them.

cheers
TB

Nice looking speakers Wayne. I'd love more pics if you have the time especially ome close ups of the back and those ribbon tweeters.

Sorry for not responding sooner, never got any notification that people had left replies here for some reason.

I can take some pics for you AJM, did you mean the back of the speakers ? Which part of the back, the whole back of the speaker or just a certain part of it.