Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
NOT TOO MANY PEOPLE HAVE HEARD OF THESE SPEAKERS. THIS IS UNDERSTANDABLE SINCE THESE ARE MADE IN CHATTANOOGA BY A SMALL SELF MADE COMPANY. THE GUY WHO BUILDS THESE SPEAKERS IS AN ABSOLUTE GENIUS AND THIS IS REFLECTED IN HIS SPEAKER DESIGN. THE AP-2 CONSIST OF 2 SIX AND A HALF WOOFERS AND A SWEET TWEETER THAT THIS GUY SWEARS IS THE NEXT BIG THING. THE SOUND THAT THESE SPEAKERS PROJECT IS NOTHING LESS THAN STUNNING. I HAD THE OPPURTUNITY TO AUDITION THESE A FEW TIMES AND LET ME TELL YOU MY MUSIC NEVER SOUNDED BETTER. THE IMAGING IS SECOND TO NONE IN THIS PRICE RANGE, ACTUALLY ITS THE BEST PERIOD. STEELY DAN'S KING OF THE WORLD SOUNDED HUGE. VOCALS WERE OPEN DETAILED AND RIGHT UP FRONT. THE BEST FAGAN AND COMPANY HAS EVER SOUNDED TO ME. NEXT WAS THE BASS TEST. HE PALYED SOME DIGITAL BASS CD IM SURE ANY 16 YEAR OLD WOULD HAVE IN THEIR COLLECTION SOUNDED DEEP EXTENDED AND DID NOT MUDDLE THE MIDRANGE AND VOCLAS. IN FACT I THINK I HAD THE SAME CD BACK IN MY HIGH SCHOOL DAYS OR SOMETHING LIKE IT AND THESE BABIES EXTENDED WAY BELOW WHAT MY 2 TEN INCH SOUNDSTREAM SPLS DID WITH 300 WATTS DRIVING THEM. BUT THE BEST HAS TO BE THE THE TWEETERS. I DONT KNOW WHAT THEY ARE MADE OF ALLOYS PLASTIC OR SILK BUT THEY BLOOM AND EXTEND AND COULD EASILY RIVAL SPEAKERS COSTING A BIT MORE.

THE BOTTOM LINE HERE IS THE AP 2S COULD EALILY GO FOR AT LEAST A THOUSAND MORE. IM SURE THEY COULD HAVE SOUNDED BETTER BUT HE WAS RUNNING THESE WITH A SUB-PAR HARMON KARDON RECIEVER AND DVD PLAYER. AT THE MOST WERE SPEAKING OF 70 WATTS OF RECIEVER POWER WHICH IS, AS MOST KNOW, NOT IDEAL WHEN DRIVING A 1500 DOLAR SET OF SPEAKERS.

THESE RETAIL FOR 2000, BUT YOU CAN GET THEM FACTORY DIRECT AND PAY 1500. TAKE MY ADVICE YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPOINTED THESE ARE THE BEST SPEAKERS YOU CAN BUY, IN THIS PRICE RANGE, IN THE SOUTH THAT I KNOW OF.

Strengths:
REAL WOOD, BI WIREALBE, DEEP BASS EXTENSION, HIGHS THAT ARE JUST PLAIN GORGEOUS, AND A FAT FULL BODIED MIDRANGE THAT WILL OT DISAPOINT. THE SUBTLENESS OF THE UPPER END IS UNEXPLAINABLE FOR SPEAKERS AT THIS PRICE

Weaknesses:
NOT A DAMN ONE

Similar Products Used:
DEF TECH 2004TL, 2002TL, KLIPSH, DYNAUDIO 72

Summary:
I recently picked these up used off the web for $525. They are large, very heavy (80 pounds apiece) floorstanding speakers with two 6.5" woofers and a tweeter, the two woofer set up above the tweeters. I bought these sound unheard, going on some archaic reviews of sister models from Stereo Review and Audio magazine from the mid '90's. I set them in my basement in very non ideal places (they are rear ported, but I had them only 18 inches from the back wall, and one was in a corner), plugged them in (single wired, though they are biwireable), and sat down and tried to listen to the speakers. I failed. The sound wasn't coming from the speakers. My first week's listening consisted mainly of Diane Krall's 'All for you', Holly Cole Trio 'Don't smoke in bed', and The Flecktone's 'Live Art' and 'Three flew over the Cuckoo's Nest'. On the female vocals, I could distinctly place the voice, and it certainly wasn't coming either speaker. On the more complicated tracks of 'Live Art', the soundstage was very wide and very 3-D. The bass went down fairly low (rated to 35 hz. at -3 db) and, to my ears, flat. There was no mid-bass boominess (except for a little due to the fact that a speaker was in the corner). The highs weren't at all harsh to my ears. I'm not sure how much is related to the front end, but my setup is much more detailed with a better soundstage than my friends setup with a Nak receiver and Snell speakers (small floorstanders, not sure of model), and is almost in the same league as a another friends homebuilt WATT/PUPPyish homebuilt things based on Dynaudio drivers (only one woofer vs. Wilson's 2), but he spent over $1500 just on raw materials, not to mention that he has a much nicer amp (musical fidelity). So I give them five stars. I don't think I could have gotten better full range speakers for anything less than $1000. (I think you can buy these for ~ $1200 factory direct, new).
My system:
Philips CDC-875, modified by Stan Warren
adcom gtp-400 (I think that this will be the first to go)
adcom gfa 545 II
digital phase AP-2
transparent the link 200 interconnects throughout
MIT T6 speaker cable, single run
total cost...< $1250