Zu Audio Omen Dirty Weekends

It may not be the issue here but I've read reviews where they added a resistor across the terminals on the speaker to get the impedance down to a level that the amp likes better and it improved the sound. Some amps don't like the 16 ohm load from the speakers.

How can you find out if your amp likes and gets a long with different loads? And the DW is a 12ohm load.
 
How can you find out if your amp likes and gets a long with different loads? And the DW is a 12ohm load.

I would guess if they sound good with your amp then it is fine. From what I've seen very few aren't happy running a higher ohm load but I did see it in a review with a different set of Zu speakers.

It is probably not as big of an issue with them being 12 ohm but this is where I saw it: https://www.cnet.com/news/high-expectations-for-a-low-power-audiophile-amplifier/
 
I would guess if they sound good with your amp then it is fine. From what I've seen very few aren't happy running a higher ohm load but I did see it in a review with a different set of Zu speakers.

It is probably not as big of an issue with them being 12 ohm but this is where I saw it: https://www.cnet.com/news/high-expectations-for-a-low-power-audiophile-amplifier/

Thanks for the link. Yeah, I have no issues at all with my amp or speaker combo. Plenty of dynamics and rich full punchy and articulate bass.
 
So I sat down tonight and played nothing but jazz and blues at lower volumes than normal. These speakers are good. Real good. Audiophile worthy. I listened to most of the live album by Ben Webster At the Renaissance. It was spooky realistic and scared me a few times with some of the instruments. It’s a real good recording with great left and right channel separation. It brought out the best of the ZU’s. I forgot I was even listening to electronics.
 
I have a pair of 30 year old Polk SDA 1C and a same age Carver receiver. I should say that this system is both for music and for home theatre and is in a small living room. I thought the Polks were showing their age so on an impulse I bought a pair of DW. They arrived about two weeks ago and I should start by saying they are great looking speakers with impressive fit and finish. To make a long story short I realized that the aging Carver was really the problem. The only other amps I have in the house are Sonos Connect Amps running ceiling speakers throughout the house so I hooked one of those up to the DW just to try something and they sounded much better. I also tried the Connect Amp with the Polks and they really sound great. I'm not sure there is anything wrong with the Polks at all (although they have never had anything serviced in 30 years so who knows how good they used to sound). To be honest the DW sound just ok. I can't help but compare them to the Polks. I'm not sure how to describe it but the DW sound thin with no bass (and I'm not a bass head) and there is a pronounced difference between the sound from the sweet spot on the couch and standing or anywhere else in the room. As others have said they sound better when cranked up a bit. The Polks sound like the sound is coming from the entire wall and is more enveloping. The Polks just sound much better. Now I don't know what to do. This is both a movie watching and music listening set-up so I may get the new Sonos Amp to replace my Carver and then use a couple of Sonos Play 1s for surrounds. Is it the amp? Is it the fact that I'm comparing speakers that were $2,000 list price speakers in 1988 with speakers that are about $1,100 in 2019 so this is really an unfair comparison? Trying to figure out what to do now as my return window slowly closes.

ThomasD. How do your DW compare to your Polks?
@NOLAtoDC First off I wish I could give you a definitive answer to that question but I can't because my DW's are still in the unopened box in my unfinished basement waiting for me to have time to play with them. I've been working out of town most of the winter and just haven't had more a day or two home at a time. All new speakers require some 'burn in' time to loosen the drivers up and certain components of the X/O's. I know Zu advertises that they pre-burn their drivers so not sure if that is an issue in your case. My stock SDA 2a's have been powered by a Carver M1.0t mk11 with great results. Not sure which Carver receiver your using but can pretty much guarantee that it needs a refreshing as do your SDA 1c's ( I'm also assuming that your using the IC cable with your 1c's ). Carver & SDA's are a great combination, please don't consider disposing of either before having them updated. The Carver receiver should be more than adequate for the DW's with some refreshing. I have a Carver M4.0t currently being upgraded by a highly esteemed tech from the TheCarverSite.com. Granted no one speaker is going to please everyone but with all the great reviews and responses regarding the DW's it seems there must be a gremlin in your set up other than the DW's. Any chance of borrowing a different quality amp/ receiver to play with temporarily?
 
@NOLAtoDC First off I wish I could give you a definitive answer to that question but I can't because my DW's are still in the unopened box in my unfinished basement waiting for me to have time to play with them.

Oh, c'mon, hook them up this weekend and give this fellow Carver-Polk enthusiast an early review! You are burning through your return period!

The Carver is an MXR 150 - "The Receiver." It is a damn fine-looking piece of equipment with those loops on the front and the wood-grained sides ... and it used to be a fine sounding piece of equipment too.
 
@NOLAtoDC , I wouldn't worry too much about what others perceive as being "better". Trust your ears. Not to mention, everyone's listening environment is different. The Zu's are nice speakers but there is nothing wrong with preferring something else.

My advice would be to head over to the polkforum and check out some of the upgrades you can do to those 1c's. They are special speakers that can be taken to a whole other level.
 
For sure play around with them. Maybe some burn in/break in period? I am having NO issues whatsoever with bass. Sometimes I have to check to see if my subs are on. Mids are great and the highs are like you said. Pretty accurate and neutral, which is a good thing. I feel like they have just the right amount of sparkle and detail but not bright at all and in your face. Very satisfying sound. They just play music and do it well. I used to only want speakers that were excessive in details and highs and sparkle. After owning the DW's. I realized those speakers were unnatural in sound.

I agree with the amount of bass and subwoofer assessment. I ended up removing the sub altogether because I couldn't find a level low enough to run it at that didn't make the bass overpowering.
 
I agree with the amount of bass and subwoofer assessment. I ended up removing the sub altogether because I couldn't find a level low enough to run it at that didn't make the bass overpowering.

Yeah, the bass on the ZU's are good. Real good actually. Especially when you match them with some power, the 10inch driver really responds well. I found that out moving from 20watts per channel to 80watts per channel.
 
So I finally received my Omen Dirty Weekend Speakers with ClarityCap upgrade last week, after arriving 1.5 months after expected delivery date. Not too keen on the communication from Zu, but it is what it is.

As for the speakers, they sound great.Dynamics are fantastic, and I've been caught off guard by the contrast between loud and soft passages. Mids and highs are crisp and clear and the bass is tight and punchy(they are now - see below). On top of that, they're not too bad to look at either. I've always been a Dynaco speaker guy(a25/Aa5XL,a35) with a bit of Advent thrown in as well. I can't say these loudspeakers are better than the Dynaco's(to my ears), but they're different in a good way and I truly enjoy listening to them. The match with my gear has proven to be a good fit. Currently powering the speakers through a VTA ST70/Erhard Aretha preamp and Micro Seiki Solid5 (Grado Black Body and a 8mz stylus) turntable and it's pretty fantastic Cabling is Zu Mission MK1 cables I picked up on the bay for cheap. Can't say the cables perform any better than my preferred system cables(Frank at Signal Cable). I've also run the speakers with my Pioneer SX-950 and I can't say that the speakers play as nice as they do with my Tube gear. The a25xl's are probably my favorite to run the 950.

Now here's the kicker. As you can see from my photo, I have some challenges with my room in that one of my speakers sits right in the corner. For a serious listening session I will generally pull the speakers over to the couch so I can get them out in the open for proper sound stage, which also cleans up the bass. It's unfortunate I have to do this, as my favorite chair is right in front of my setup! On a whim, I decided to pick up some Herbie's threaded stud gliders to replace the bolts that came with the Zu's. I figured that having some sliders would make it easier to slide these into listening position, and some of the claims on the sonic benefits in reviews were pretty bold. Herbie's has a pretty good return policy so it was worth a shot.

Once these things were installed I pretty much shit my pants. The boomy corner bass had completely disappeared and the bass tightened up considerably from when I had them on spikes. I have the feet adjusted per Zu's recommendation, and it works well for me. I've also tried a slight tilt up and it wasn't as good a fit. Really impressed by these little feet!

Here's the 'too long, didn't read' - Great speakers for a grand. Plays nice with tube gear. Herbie's makes magic feet.

zu2.jpg

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So I finally received my Omen Dirty Weekend Speakers with ClarityCap upgrade last week, after arriving 1.5 months after expected delivery date. Not too keen on the communication from Zu, but it is what it is.

As for the speakers, they sound great.Dynamics are fantastic, and I've been caught off guard by the contrast between loud and soft passages. Mids and highs are crisp and clear and the bass is tight and punchy(they are now - see below). On top of that, they're not too bad to look at either. I've always been a Dynaco speaker guy(a25/Aa5XL,a35) with a bit of Advent thrown in as well. I can't say these loudspeakers are better than the Dynaco's(to my ears), but they're different in a good way and I truly enjoy listening to them. The match with my gear has proven to be a good fit. Currently powering the speakers through a VTA ST70/Erhard Aretha preamp and Micro Seiki Solid5 (Grado Black Body and a 8mz stylus) turntable and it's pretty fantastic Cabling is Zu Mission MK1 cables I picked up on the bay for cheap. Can't say the cables perform any better than my preferred system cables(Frank at Signal Cable). I've also run the speakers with my Pioneer SX-950 and I can't say that the speakers play as nice as they do with my Tube gear. The a25xl's are probably my favorite to run the 950.

Now here's the kicker. As you can see from my photo, I have some challenges with my room in that one of my speakers sits right in the corner. For a serious listening session I will generally pull the speakers over to the couch so I can get them out in the open for proper sound stage, which also cleans up the bass. It's unfortunate I have to do this, as my favorite chair is right in front of my setup! On a whim, I decided to pick up some Herbie's threaded stud gliders to replace the bolts that came with the Zu's. I figured that having some sliders would make it easier to slide these into listening position, and some of the claims on the sonic benefits in reviews were pretty bold. Herbie's has a pretty good return policy so it was worth a shot.

Once these things were installed I pretty much shit my pants. The boomy corner bass had completely disappeared and the bass tightened up considerably from when I had them on spikes. I have the feet adjusted per Zu's recommendation, and it works well for me. I've also tried a slight tilt up and it wasn't as good a fit. Really impressed by these little feet!

Here's the 'too long, didn't read' - Great speakers for a grand. Plays nice with tube gear. Herbie's makes magic feet.
.

Lets see a photo or two of these magic feet.
i like the wall art piece.
 
So I finally received my Omen Dirty Weekend Speakers with ClarityCap upgrade last week, after arriving 1.5 months after expected delivery date. Not too keen on the communication from Zu, but it is what it is.

As for the speakers, they sound great.Dynamics are fantastic, and I've been caught off guard by the contrast between loud and soft passages. Mids and highs are crisp and clear and the bass is tight and punchy(they are now - see below). On top of that, they're not too bad to look at either. I've always been a Dynaco speaker guy(a25/Aa5XL,a35) with a bit of Advent thrown in as well. I can't say these loudspeakers are better than the Dynaco's(to my ears), but they're different in a good way and I truly enjoy listening to them. The match with my gear has proven to be a good fit. Currently powering the speakers through a VTA ST70/Erhard Aretha preamp and Micro Seiki Solid5 (Grado Black Body and a 8mz stylus) turntable and it's pretty fantastic Cabling is Zu Mission MK1 cables I picked up on the bay for cheap. Can't say the cables perform any better than my preferred system cables(Frank at Signal Cable). I've also run the speakers with my Pioneer SX-950 and I can't say that the speakers play as nice as they do with my Tube gear. The a25xl's are probably my favorite to run the 950.

Now here's the kicker. As you can see from my photo, I have some challenges with my room in that one of my speakers sits right in the corner. For a serious listening session I will generally pull the speakers over to the couch so I can get them out in the open for proper sound stage, which also cleans up the bass. It's unfortunate I have to do this, as my favorite chair is right in front of my setup! On a whim, I decided to pick up some Herbie's threaded stud gliders to replace the bolts that came with the Zu's. I figured that having some sliders would make it easier to slide these into listening position, and some of the claims on the sonic benefits in reviews were pretty bold. Herbie's has a pretty good return policy so it was worth a shot.

Once these things were installed I pretty much shit my pants. The boomy corner bass had completely disappeared and the bass tightened up considerably from when I had them on spikes. I have the feet adjusted per Zu's recommendation, and it works well for me. I've also tried a slight tilt up and it wasn't as good a fit. Really impressed by these little feet!

Here's the 'too long, didn't read' - Great speakers for a grand. Plays nice with tube gear. Herbie's makes magic feet.

View attachment 1422017

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Congratulations to another happy ZU owner. I haven’t had a speaker that brings a smile to my face like my ZU’s do. They bring a lot of enjoyment to music for me. I am using my NuForce STA-200 solid state amp right now but am seriously considering a Musical Paradise Mp-301MKIII tube amp. Just to see how they sound with some tube amplification.
 
Lets see a photo or two of these magic feet.
i like the wall art piece.

Here's the feet:
https://herbiesaudiolab.com/collect...g-and-isolation/products/threaded-stud-glider

The size chart lists the size for the Zu speakers and they fit correctly. To me it looks like they took a standard furniture glider and stuck some of their 'fat dot' material under it, and covered the whole thing with a nylon type material that slides easily. You could probably make these for a little cheaper and experiment with different materials, but for me it was worth the splurge.

feet2.jpg feet1.jpg
 
I
So getting the upgrade bug..... Has anyone who has the DW's heard or own the Zu Soul MKII?
I too got the upgrade bug, hints why I bought that center channel speaker. :)
I might have heard that ZU Soul MKII at RMAF but I am not sure. I have heard a lot of ZU speakers. Why stop there, just get the Definition and be done already. Only $16,000 for a base pair. :)
 
Post #85 shows they way my Omens were set up to sound their best i.e. elevated so bottom ports can breathe for less bass congestion and with a back tilt to aim the tweeters at your ears.
 
While I moved my DW’s along to a new home. It was not because I didn’t like them. I loved them and they are honestly going to make a comeback in my home in another color! They do so much right and their tube friendly impedance make them a real contender. If I were to move up the line, my choice would be a pair of Onen Def. Mk II.
 
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