Does Anyone Not Like Wilson Speakers?
 

Just curious if there are any former owners who moved on from Wilson Audio speakers and their reasons why?

I sold my Wilson Sophia 2 speakers and bought a pair of Sonus Faber Amati Futuras.

I could not listen to the Wilson’s for more than an hour without getting listener fatigue. The kind where you start turning the volume down until it might as well be off.

I have been enjoying the Futuras for many years now in two different homes and can listen at realistic volumes for hours and hours without fatigue.

Over the last thirty years as I have built increasingly better systems I have auditioned dozens of system. One of the most memorable experiences was listening to a WHAM... or whatever they called it.. the speakers $375K, Rowland components, Transparent interconnects. I have never have been so struck by an incredible system. I said, “incredible!... but I do NOT want that! They sounded like a wonderful magic trick... one good for a little while and impressing others. Never paid any attention to Wilson after that. I enjoyed ribbon speakers, but for the last ten or fifteen years Sonus Faber, now Amati Traditional.

I never liked anything designed by Dave Wilson, and have some experiences where Wilsons have driven me out of the room in less than 5 minutes.

My understanding is that the newer models designed by Daryl Wilson (e.g. Sasha DAW) are significantly different and better-sounding.

Ok, I'll bite, although the OP just recently expressed his negative experience facilitated by some unknown experience with Wilson and the dealer and in combination with stating that the Wife Acceptance Factor rules out Wilson for him....



My experience has been the opposite. From 4 different Sonus Faber which I enjoyed very much, to a pair of Sophia and Sophia 2's with Lamm gear which was outstanding.

Wilson house sound at that time brought a different set of strengths, like any other speaker would when introduced in the context of the same system. I learned to appreciate the "dynamic contrast" concept much more.

Sonus Faber were either romanticizing everything (I enjoyed that for a few years) or sounded rather neutral but unengaging (I had 4 different pairs of SF over the years).

When I moved into another house and had the dedicated 2ch/HT room built out to custom dimensions and completely acoustically treated so that the room itself would not be a part of the equation (that was always my goal) the speaker became a voice of a much truer character, uncolored by the room and early and late reflections were no longer a concern.

Even the dual layer of drywall was separated by special rubberized spacers so the drywall could not "sing" to the speaker.

I was finally able to tap into the sonic signature of whatever speaker came through much better. It was at that time I decided to leave Wilson Sophia 2 behind and try going back to SF. SF Elipsa, matching center, and 4 surrounds in the form of Cremona Auditor Elipsa Surround Speakers became the setup. A true 7.1 setup with speakers all voiced to each other.

The Elipsa 2ch/HT was a very enjoyable setup. The rather neutral presentation of Bryston amps with the Elipsa worked well for most genres of music. Not much unnecessary sweetening, not offensive to the ear by any means either. Here it is https://youtu.be/a3i_DETaCg0


After a while I did start to miss the Wilson sound again. So my dealer worked with me to make the transition a no brainer with more than reasonable trade in allowances, etc... We made it happen with a an all Wilson theater. First with Sasha and then moving on up to Alexia, a Polaris center, Wilson surrounds, etc. D'Agostino 3 Momentum Monos powering the front 3 channels.

Now I know we all have our preferences, that is logical and that is to be expected and the reason we have perhaps over a few hundred serious speakers to choose from? :scratch2:

But I will wrap it up and just say this, the pinnacle of that room was Alexia with D'Agostino amps and I have since to hear anything quite like that combo for my ears and my preference. Able to convey the minute micro-detail, the flow, the pace, the rhythm, the timing, the emotional content of any musical piece played through it. With exquisite tone/timbre, the Alexia/D'Agostino combo simply scaled up the highest peak of my personal audio nirvana expectations and left me speechless each and every time. No listening fatigue here, it was jaw dropping music each and every time. Here is that combo. https://youtu.be/yh7J8u_7Lvs

I know, it can be difficult to stay "objective" in audio, realizing that no great system was ever just thrown together and often the first impressions are such that they may leave one with a very different set of impressions due to less than optimal conditions.

It was no different for me the first time I heard a pair of B&W 800D speakers. My mind was set right from that moment, they sounded impressive but very sterile and cold. Although I have heard the various iterations of B&W and they were much better since, I am still not convinced I could ever live with any B&W speaker... Just does not agree with my ears.

The last time I visited my local dealer, I listened to a pair of Sabrina's (not the X). They were a departure from what I remember the Sasha and Alexia being in my own system but I thought, "man, what a fun speaker to listen to". In combination with VTL gear, it sounded, rich, full, dynamic, expressive and truly engaging. I can easily live with a pair of Sabrinas and not even worry about what the X upgrade brought. :thumbsup:

So it goes, you choose that which sounds closer to your personal taste as we all hear things quite differently it turns out. Nothing wrong with that, it is what it is, choose wisely for maximum personal satisfaction. :music:

I'm absolutely not a fan of their aesthetic... I down right hate how they look.. Such that even though I acknowledge that they sound the best, I'd still go with something else..

Small coincidence but while watching my favorite YouTube Cobbler restore a pair of boots, the guy he was restoring them for comes on around 25:00 min into the video and what's sitting behind him??? You go look for yourselves ;)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrJ85pyP-F8

I have listened to several Wilson speakers and, while they did some things great, I felt as though I was listening to a stereo and not wowed. My wife would leave the room after a song or two. I had some vintage Mac speakers, which I liked, and some Sonus Faber's, which I also liked but they were rather polite. I thought I was just not listening to the Wilson's correctly or was too much of a hack amateur to appreciate them. Then I heard Rockport Technology speakers and realized what the Wilson’s were missing. Rockports played music and the Wilson’s missed the music by that much. I describe it to my non-music loving friends as, to me, Wilson are the technical prodigies on an instrument. They can make the instrument do amazing things perfectly. Then the musician comes out and reveals their soul through the instrument and moving music is heard. I think this is why some singers with horrid voices are so engaging...they reveal their soul. Think Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, and Leonard Cohen.

The above are my opinions only. If their was a perfect sound pleasing to all, there would only be one stereo brand.

I have only heard Sabrinas and could listen to them for days. They sound wonderful.

I've never had the pleasure of hearing them in person. Those micro adjusters on the larger Wilsons would not be my cup of tea.

Pre-Watt/Puppy Vs were terribly bright with solid-state to my ears. Forgotten the model name (edit - Duette) of their first monitors, but to my ears they were simply 'bad' sounding speakers.
Everything I've heard from Wilson since has been much, much better, including the Cub IIs I had for a couple of years and would happily own again. Has been a couple of years since I've heard any new Wilsons but am thinking a pair of Sophia 2s or 3s would be a terrific addition.
One of the biggest drawbacks to our hobby these days is the difficulty of listening to speakers. So few good brick & mortar listening venues. That is why forums like AAf are so important.