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ARX A3 - "If It Sounds Good It Is Good"
Posted this review of my expereince so far with te A3's in the owner's section also.
“If It Sounds Good It Is Goodâ€
If The Duke was still with us I’m sure he’d repeat his famous and oft quoted words hearing his music on the ARX A3’s. I’m not a golden ears type audiophile by any stretch. However, I know what I like and I like the way the ARX A3’s sound. These speakers are not just “Diamonds in the Rough.†In my opinion these are relatively unknown “Highly Polished Gems.â€
Have enjoyed numerous speaker systems since college during stereo’s so called golden age. Various offerings from Advent, KLH, Infinity, Polk, Yamaha, Magnepan MMG, Energy CF-70 and Martin Logan Source have all been enjoyed through the years. Not exactly a speaker system newbie.
Was looking for good sounding speakers for a strictly stereo zone 2 system for my 16’ X 18’ X 8’ ceiling family room/dining area. Power is provided by an Onkyo M-282 100 watt/channel amp. Whatever speaker system would have to mesh up well with the Martin Logan mains in the living area. Despite the 3-way design of the Energy, the midrange just wasn’t there. Plenty of bass but too much treble “sizzle.†Infinity P363’s have excellent bass, midrange and treble and image well. But they exhibit a somewhat annoying “metallic†edge. Magnepan MMG’s are excellent but power hungry. Also learned they need to be placed 3.5 to 4 feet in front of the front wall to sound their best. Don’t have that kind of room. Heard some ribbon/planar tweeter speakers years ago and remembered how good they sounded. That’s how the ARX A3’s wound up in my family room.
Learned of the ARX line on various websites but couldn’t find too much info on them. Jumped into Audio Insider’s site and there they are. Saw the A3’s and was somewhat skeptical but figured they’re worth a shot. Well, my skepticism is unfounded. Am amazed at how these modestly priced speakers are so coherent, well balanced, full bodied and, most of all, musical. Plenty of well defined bass, extremely present midrange and very sweet treble with no irritating harshness. I’ve never heard such a well balanced system at this price level. They only have about 100 hours on them so far but are already beginning to “disappear†into the wide and deep soundstage. The ARX A3’s will be around my place for some time. Thanks to Jon Lane and all the folks at Audio Insider for developing such a well engineered and tastefully subdued product. They’re worth far more than the ask. :D
“If It Sounds Good It Is Goodâ€
If The Duke was still with us I’m sure he’d repeat his famous and oft quoted words hearing his music on the ARX A3’s. I’m not a golden ears type audiophile by any stretch. However, I know what I like and I like the way the ARX A3’s sound. These speakers are not just “Diamonds in the Rough.†In my opinion these are relatively unknown “Highly Polished Gems.â€
Have enjoyed numerous speaker systems since college during stereo’s so called golden age. Various offerings from Advent, KLH, Infinity, Polk, Yamaha, Magnepan MMG, Energy CF-70 and Martin Logan Source have all been enjoyed through the years. Not exactly a speaker system newbie.
Was looking for good sounding speakers for a strictly stereo zone 2 system for my 16’ X 18’ X 8’ ceiling family room/dining area. Power is provided by an Onkyo M-282 100 watt/channel amp. Whatever speaker system would have to mesh up well with the Martin Logan mains in the living area. Despite the 3-way design of the Energy, the midrange just wasn’t there. Plenty of bass but too much treble “sizzle.†Infinity P363’s have excellent bass, midrange and treble and image well. But they exhibit a somewhat annoying “metallic†edge. Magnepan MMG’s are excellent but power hungry. Also learned they need to be placed 3.5 to 4 feet in front of the front wall to sound their best. Don’t have that kind of room. Heard some ribbon/planar tweeter speakers years ago and remembered how good they sounded. That’s how the ARX A3’s wound up in my family room.
Learned of the ARX line on various websites but couldn’t find too much info on them. Jumped into Audio Insider’s site and there they are. Saw the A3’s and was somewhat skeptical but figured they’re worth a shot. Well, my skepticism is unfounded. Am amazed at how these modestly priced speakers are so coherent, well balanced, full bodied and, most of all, musical. Plenty of well defined bass, extremely present midrange and very sweet treble with no irritating harshness. I’ve never heard such a well balanced system at this price level. They only have about 100 hours on them so far but are already beginning to “disappear†into the wide and deep soundstage. The ARX A3’s will be around my place for some time. Thanks to Jon Lane and all the folks at Audio Insider for developing such a well engineered and tastefully subdued product. They’re worth far more than the ask. :D
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