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Re: Zu Druid - myths and experiences (long)

Posted by Analoglvr on February 4, 2007 at 14:01:38:
I too share your enthusiasm for Zu loudspeakers. I took the leap of faith and purchased Zu Definitions (in BMW Cremona Red). They come with substantial break-in at the factory, but still need a lot more. They have continued to improve ever since.
I have heard non-broken in Druids and can understand how someone can come to the conclusion that these speakers suck. Brand new the Druids lack bass and, perhaps, worse, sound thick and opaque. With play the Druids really open up and blossom. The sound become much cleaner and clearer, the soundstage becomes expansive, and the bass improves.
But even completely broken in the Druids do subjectively sound a bit bass shy and also rolled off in the highs. A good balancing act well known to owners of single driver speakers like the Lowthers, Omegas, Rethms. The Druids do not have the subjective bass of even mini-monitors like the Dynaudio Focus 110 or Confidence C1, or small floor-standers like the Totem Hawk.
The Druids just don't seem to generate the visceral bass or midbass that most dynamic-driver speakers do. This can be a good thing if you're used to Maggies or full range electrostats like the Quads, but a disappointment if you're used to the usual box speaker. I can see why you find the warmer sounding Analysis cables to your liking. The Druids may sound overly lean to you with more linear sounding cables like the Zu line of cables.
I can see why many would crave a subwoofer to round out the performance of the Druids. And that's why Zu makes 2 subwoofers.
This is simply not the case with the Definitions. Even with the powered subwoofers turned all the way down, the Definitions have way more bass power and impact. They also are much more transparent and clear sounding. The treble also seems more extended and detailed. I'm not sure why this is the case since both speakers use the same drivers. Of course the Definitions have one more 10 incher per side, but this alone doesn't seem to explain why the Definitions sound so much better. Perhaps the sealed box of the Definitions compared to the vented box of the Druids has something to do with it.
Don't get me wrong, I think the Druids are a great speaker for the price. A true music lover's speaker. But they do have limitations. Limitations that for me that preclude ownership--even with a Method sub. Luckily, I could afford the Definitions, because they are so much better. I fact, I cannot think of any other available speakers under $20,000 that I would rather have. In fact, there aren't any other speakers available for under $10,000 that are truely full range, attractive, home-friendly, and can be powered by my Yamamoto 2 watt amp.
alan