New colors and price increase for Revel Ultima2’s
 

I read that Revel will be offering new finish choices in the Ultima2 and Performa3 lines. Among the colors are Midnight Black Metallic and Walnut.

The author is a known, authorized Harman dealer. He mentions a $5,000 price increase on a pair of Salon2’s. Yoiks! :eek2:

Still a bargain compared to much of the competition, but they'll need to do more than add a walnut finish and some new paint to gain fresh ink in the audio press. Still the most satisfying and easy to listen to speakers I have ever owned. They are as near perfect a window into the music as you can buy almost a decade after their introduction. The only meaningful knock I can think of is their sensitivity, which I wish was a few dB better, but if nothing else the tradeoff of efficiency for extension means you are presented with the need for a man's amplifier to drive them, and who doesn't crave some extra power from time to time?

They've been at the same price forever. I don't see the price hike as unreasonable after all these years. Nice speakers but couldn't get over the ugly.

given the respectable discount offered off msrp they are still a bargain IMO.

I just listened to Wilson Audio Sasha’s with D’Agostino Momentum amp and preamp (gorgeous electronics!) today at a dealer in Ann Arbor, MI, they sounded great! :thumbsup:

I came home and played the same Mozart symphony (41) on my system, it sounds just as delightful to my ears. :D

refreshing, good to hear Karl ..... :thumbsup:

+1

I adore my Revel’s

What you’ve said summarizes things well - they represent exceptional value, don’t receive much ink, and sound superb.

Introduced in 2007 and still no reason to upgrade anything but the aesthetics. Amazing feat of engineering.

$5K seems like a hefty increase (almost 23%), but, when you look at an inflation calculator, it's reasonable.

What cost $22000 in 2007 would cost $26,714.78 in 2017.

When you look at what you can buy them for used (about 1/2 MSRP), by far the best bargain in high end speakers.

Agreed. Way under priced for the incredible performance of these beauties. Oops. I hope Revel
Isn’t reading this. Yikes.

True. A careful and patient shopper can buy these for near dealer cost and certainly score a mint pair for half price as Rex already mentioned. There is absolutely nothing on the market that can compete for performance and integrity of design at the actual price a consumer can obtain these for even when new and especially when gently used.

I don't think they're ugly, rather purposeful and straight forward. The finish on mine is excellent and has stayed that way. You don't get unnecessary doodads, or an outrageous visual statement. All the money is on the inside and in the engineering, which is just fine by me. I'm not buying a sculpture and prefer form that follows function instead of the inverse. They look exactly like what they are; a fine pair of loudspeakers, not an abstract of a sea creature or the Eiffel Tower. More importantly, every exterior feature and shape, especially the baffle, is there for a reason.

From the pictures that were made available, the walnut finish looks absolutely gorgeous on the Salon2. Better than the mahogony, in my opinion. I also liked the macadamia auto paint finish, but would personally choose the walnut over it.

I still think that we'll see the Ultima3 line within 2 or 3 years, but I may be wrong. Consumers are fickle and hard to predict.

Are there pictures of the new colors out on the web, somewhere?

They were posted on another forum. I don't know how enforced the "don't link to other forums" rule is, so I made an imgur album of all the pictures I've seen.

There are apparently 1 or 2 finish options that haven't been shown yet.

https://imgur.com/a/SmkvX

Thank you!

The last time my dealer discussed Ultima3’s (some time in 2017), he said that Harman told him it would be many years.

I’ll ask him for an update on that. I know from experience he is well connected with them, so I trust what he reports.

I mean, it's nothing more than a hunch on my part. But the Ultima2 line is the oldest part of their lineup. My personal belief is that after they finish the Be lineup they'll set their sights on improving the Ultima line. Improving it could be a multi-year effort, though.

I find the Salon2's quite beautiful compared to JBL M2, Genelec , ATC, PMC, Meyer etc. The front baffle on the Salon 2 is a true work of art and science. Minimum diffraction and gorgeous!

I have time with my dealer scheduled for this Friday, so I expect to here the latest shareable information.

I’ve only had mine unboxed since late November, but as I spend more time with them, they endear themselves to me further. The Voice2 is to die for, I don’t miss a lick of dialogue.

As Kal Rubinson would appreciate, 5 channel music is so incredibly immersive with this mix of Ultima2’s. The soundstage is seemless and the notes unveiled. Just delightful! :thumbsup:

I do. I do.

They're special.

Nobody doesn't like Sara Lee!

Rnrmf1971, I see in your signature you have a pair of VA Beethoven's, congrats! If there's 1 speaker I regret selling it was my Beethoven's �� I sold them because they didn't go loud enough but the fact is the things those speakers do well can't be touched by any other brand near their price. If you ever sell them pm me.