Wilson Audio Sasha DAW: looking for advices

[renabot77]

Hi,

I’m owner of Sasha 1 speakers since 2012 and I’m very happy with them. Since the Sasha DAW’s release, however, I was considering the upgrade due to lots of reviews and interviews of Darryl Wilson showing the great advance in sound performance of the DAW comparing with my speakers. I’m negotiating with Wilson’s local dealer a trade in and it will be a large amount of money I will have to invest to get the DAW speakers (almost two times of my speakers value in this deal). I would appreciate very much some comments and advices indicating if it will be a good deal despite the DAW’s price.

Best regards,

Renato

[2fastdriving]

Well "good deal" is all relative, and it depends on your financial situation I suppose.

But I had the Sasha 1, then the Sasha 2, and now the Alexia 1. I've heard the DAW many times. I can confidently say it is far better than the Sasha 1, and definitely better than the Sasha 2. I personally don't think it's better than the Alexia 1, but many seem to believe that. It is probably slightly higher resolving, but gives up some bass extension and sense of scale in that comparison.

So...higher resolving than an Alexia 1 but slightly less bass is nothing to sneeze at! DAW is a very high performing speaker and it has many of Wilson's latest advancements.

[renabot77]

Originally Posted by 2fastdriving

Well "good deal" is all relative, and it depends on your financial situation I suppose.

But I had the Sasha 1, then the Sasha 2, and now the Alexia 1. I've heard the DAW many times. I can confidently say it is far better than the Sasha 1, and definitely better than the Sasha 2. I personally don't think it's better than the Alexia 1, but many seem to believe that. It is probably slightly higher resolving, but gives up some bass extension and sense of scale in that comparison.

So...higher resolving than an Alexia 1 but slightly less bass is nothing to sneeze at! DAW is a very high performing speaker and it has many of Wilson's latest advancements.

Let’s say I can afford them, but it will be a huge financial effort. I don’t consider moving to other brands (Wilson audio is definitely my choice when I think in loudspeakers). I thought my Sasha 1 speakers would be my final speakers, but the opportunity to have speakers with alexias 2 and wamm drivers sounds tempting. The question is: will it worth this huge effort?

[2fastdriving]

Originally Posted by renabot77

Let’s say I can afford them, but it will be a huge financial effort. I don’t consider moving to other brands (Wilson audio is definitely my choice when I think in loudspeakers). I thought my Sasha 1 speakers would be my final speakers, but the opportunity to have speakers with alexias 2 and wamm drivers sounds tempting. The question is: will it worth this huge effort?

Obviously you'll want to hear from more people than just me, but the upgrade will be substantial, if I wasn't clear enough earlier. I was comparing to the Alexia 1 because I know it well, and you probably heard that. Have you had a chance to listen to the DAW's?

The more resolving your electronics and cabling, the more you'll be rewarded with this upgrade, in my opinion. The DAW is very highly resolving compared to Wilson speakers in the past, including the Sasha 1 and 2.

[renabot77]

Originally Posted by 2fastdriving

Obviously you'll want to hear from more people than just me, but the upgrade will be substantial, if I wasn't clear enough earlier. I was comparing to the Alexia 1 because I know it well, and you probably heard that. Have you had a chance to listen to the DAW's?



The more resolving your electronics and cabling, the more you'll be rewarded with this upgrade, in my opinion. The DAW is very highly resolving compared to Wilson speakers in the past, including the Sasha 1 and 2.

Your opinion is most welcome to me. You have a great experience with many Wilson’s speakers and it is very rare to find. Unfortunately, my dealer does not have the speakers for a listening experience. He is bringing two pairs of sold DAW speakers to Brazil until next March and he will give me this “special buying condition” if I close the deal until next week because of reduced shipping costs. It is almost a one time opportunity with the conditions he offered. It will be much more expensive if i want to order later. It’s the price of living in South America, I’m afraid.

[boilerkj]

I skipped a generation and moved from a Sasha 1 to the DAW which, as highlighted, is not an insignificant change. Not only is the DAW a pretty large architecture and component departure from the Sasha 1, it's also a relatively easier speaker to drive. The Sasha 1 had a challenging minimum load at certain frequency ranges. It essentially took the bulk of the drivers from the W/P 8 and leveraged new cabinet design/materials (not insignificant either). If you're running a little light on amplification, you probably stand to gain some benefits in the lower end.

I feel Wilson has done a very good job getting the most of a speaker that fits the profile and footprint of this size before jumping to the larger siblings. I contemplated the Alexia 2 previously which I have thoroughly enjoyed demos of. In the end, I opted to maintain the existing cabinet size with the DAW and drive it with high quality components to get the most out of it. It's challenging to state whether the juice will be worth the squeeze for you personally, but I'm extremely satisfied with the upgrade. Good luck in your decision.

[audiohippo]

boilerkj - that’s an impressive system you have there, I bet those Pass amplifiers have a lot of control over the DAW.

[Audio 1]

I have experienced demos of the Sasha DAW several times and each time, regardless of the environment, they sounded amazing. Prior to owning my current Alexia 2's I owned Sasha 2's and the DAW is quite honestly superior in every parameter. For me there is not really a comparison as the Shasha 2 was not even close to my current speakers, but the DAW is far closer.

If you are comfortable with the outlay for the upgrade I do not see how you will not be greatly rewarded with the end result. While not inexpensive by any measure the price of the Sasha DAW compared to others is not unreasonable.

[boilerkj]

Thanks! Always evolving. Love your setup as well. I have a few more tweaks coming my way courtesy of Santa Ivan. Should be some fun holiday listening.

The XA-160.8s made a huge difference running the old Sashas compared to the old XA-100.5s I used to have. The holographic presentation of the new .8 series is amazing, but the extra juice really helps to get the most out of both the older and new/current Wilsons.

Originally Posted by audiohippo

boilerkj - that’s an impressive system you have there, I bet those Pass amplifiers have a lot of control over the DAW.

[renabot77]

Originally Posted by boilerkj

I skipped a generation and moved from a Sasha 1 to the DAW which, as highlighted, is not an insignificant change. Not only is the DAW a pretty large architecture and component departure from the Sasha 1, it's also a relatively easier speaker to drive. The Sasha 1 had a challenging minimum load at certain frequency ranges. It essentially took the bulk of the drivers from the W/P 8 and leveraged new cabinet design/materials (not insignificant either). If you're running a little light on amplification, you probably stand to gain some benefits in the lower end.



I feel Wilson has done a very good job getting the most of a speaker that fits the profile and footprint of this size before jumping to the larger siblings. I contemplated the Alexia 2 previously which I have thoroughly enjoyed demos of. In the end, I opted to maintain the existing cabinet size with the DAW and drive it with high quality components to get the most out of it. It's challenging to state whether the juice will be worth the squeeze for you personally, but I'm extremely satisfied with the upgrade. Good luck in your decision.

Thank you very much. Your experience, added with other opinions gave me the courage to accept the challenge this upgrade will be. I have booked a meeting with the local dealer. Next Tuesday, if everything goes as planned, I will close this deal. I hope I will have my DAW speakers with me next March and I will be glad to share my experiences here soon.