Yeah, I failed the acid test on this one. Honestly my brain ended up short wiring as the seller auditioned them for me in his garage. He first played a Celine Dion CD then something else that was really overproduced and shrill. I’m not a basshead, but I didn’t detect any of the slam or depth I was expecting, instead the highs just seemed super glassy and etched. Then came some Chicago and Sinatra, which are better, but it seemed as though the speakers were kinda shouting at me at whatever volume.
I had run around all day preparing to buy them, and after a long drive I should’ve just snagged them and listened to them at length on my own system. I didn’t even have the presence of mind to attenuate the tweeters or mids a bit, I got hung up on the woofers and the lack of perceived frequency balance, and grew antsy about whether the refoaming or reconing was done correctly. I listen to ADS L880s in my living room, where the L112s would have gone, and in my mind I was thinking, “These don’t sound nearly as smooth or natural... what gives?” (Different speakers, of course. I’ve also been hunting for L980s, and part of my brain was thinking, “Walk away and find those instead. You already know you like the sound signature.”)
I have my regrets. I started replaying the sequence over and over on Sunday trying to piece together how I lost the plot and watching this thread silently. But hey, live and learn. This was my second shot at a pair for a reasonable price (though I was unemployed the first time). Unlikely to fall in my lap at this rate, though they certainly seem to come up for sale online fairly routinely.
