What is it with ADS speakers that some folks are so high on?

I'd say this about the larger speakers, such as the L880 II's I owned:

The tweets are detailed but not harsh. Mid-range production could be called lush, full and engaging. Good, tight control of the bass without being boomy or sounding like a reverb circuit depending on the power supplied and the pre-amp settings.

Well made cabinets, very simple exterior design that fits most decor, excellent quality binding posts.

They are efficient speakers with a great sound.
 
I'd say this about the larger speakers, such as the L880 II's I owned:

The tweets are detailed but not harsh. Mid-range production could be called lush, full and engaging. Good, tight control of the bass without being boomy or sounding like a reverb circuit depending on the power supplied and the pre-amp settings.

Well made cabinets, very simple exterior design that fits most decor, excellent quality binding posts.

They are efficient speakers with a great sound.

Thanks much, Michael. Which models are your personal favorites?
 
Crystal clear, highly detailed sound, superb imaging. I like some ADS models even more than others, but I've never heard a bad one. I've had a set of Sat7s for 18 years. I'll go out and listen to newer speakers and there are a few that are as good, but not enough to justify the 4 figure cost, especially given the Sat7s size.
 
I have the L630's. I would reiterate what has been said; very lush sounding, smooth well extended highs, solid bass, very even frequency response, very transparent sounding. The imaging is extremely realistic. I listen to a lot of classical music and it sounds like you are right there in the concert hall. Impressive bass, too.
 
Thanks much, Michael. Which models are your personal favorites?

You are welcome, Mike.

Well, my first real love was the L880 IIs because they blew me away when I auditioned them, they fit my space, they are a 3-way speaker and they were the first model, IMHO, that really presented what ADS and their Chief Engineer Michael Kelly hoped to achieve with the speaker line once production moved to Wilmington and US product design was no longer driven by the Braun corporate group. By the way, Mr. Kelly is the owner and Chief Engineer of Aerial Acoustics and I currently own some Aerial Model 8s. Best sounding speaker I have EVER owned. Interesting that my two faves were designed by the same individual.

The L980 speaker was less well known but a significant step up in power handling, from 200W @ 8 ohms in the L880 to 300W @ 8 ohms. Looking at the 880 & 980 side by side you would be hard pressed to tell them apart. The L980 did drop a bit lower into the lower frequency band, down to 37Hz compared to 40Hz for the L880 units. I really liked the L980s I owned, almost as much as I enjoyed the L880s. It would be very hard to pick one over the other if I were the one doing the picking.

Stepping up beyond those two models I found I really enjoyed the L1290 speakers. I owned a pair for a few years and in comparison to the 880 & 980 units, they require a bit more power to drive them efficiently due to the second 8.3 inch woofer. Interestingly enough, you can bi-wire or bi-amp these speakers as they do have a second set of binding posts behind a panel in the back and you can increase or reduce by up to 1.5 dB if you want to tone them down a bit in smaller spaces. Frequency response remains the same as the L880 II's but in reality, the bass is just a bit more noticeable if you bi-amp these. I'd characterize them as a bit more forward and brighter than the L880/L980 offering. For me, I'd pick the L1290 over the L880/L980 models depending on how much space I had to play with.

Beyond those models I have not spent any real time listening to other ADS models. I do have a pair of L700s but the oldest son absconded with them and I didn't really get a chance to listen to them. He's welcome to them, though. I won't be swapping out the Aerial Acoustics Model 8 pair for anything else. In fact, they are specifically mentioned in my will along with the rest of my gear.
 
For me, on first listen to my then new L570's, it was accurate timbre. Notes just sounded correct. Plucked bass sounded like plucked bass. Snares had good transient attack. Plus, music had very good detail and definition, without being too harsh or too rolled off and muted. I guess ADS made very balanced speakers. Musical.
 
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