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Review 2 of 2 Summary:
I have lived with the Genesis 200 speaker system for nearly three years now,. and, before getting into my gut-feelings I must explain the progression that led up to such an exorbitant purchase. My previous speakers, reminiscing chronologically in reverse, were as such: Genesis II.5, Avalon Ascent, Wilson Watt Puppy's( very short stay), ProAc Response 3's, EHS (a rare but beautiful speaker from a Belgian cello manufacturer), KEF 107's, preceded by 4312 monitor made by... name escapes me.
Each movement, appearing to be an improvement, was coupled with modification to associated equipment. Great insidious disease-like hobby. I learned much about systems and attepting to attain the " absolute sound". Foremost, I discovered the trade-off syndrome. Gains in one area, such as staging, imaging, clarity, speed, accuracy, impact, etcetera, etcetera always detracted or disturbed some other characteristic. Most importantly, the attempt to capture the "you are there", or as Pearson so aptly puts it, "the gestalt", is something I so seldom delude myself believing exists. Though I do try... I really do.
With all this diatribe crap done and said, I must say this remarkable speaker system comes as close to the "live-like" sound I have had the pleasure to experience in my home. Only, in a Chicago Best Buy store, which, in an attempt to market the Eosin line, demonstrated the Genesis Ones, did I experience a more live-like sound. This was done in a huge room, with production of sound just as huge. Paul Mcgowan, who was then with Nudell at Genesis, suggested the 200's were 90% of these fabulous Ones.
The bass out of the servo-powered 16-eight inch woofers is so tight and powerful, you really need to here them to experience. The 15 tweeters per panel are sweet, delicate, quick, never harsh. The 4ft. midrange ribbons blend so beautifully to both the upper and lower frequencies that nearly no seam is ever detected.
The woofer amplifier, I believe a Mcgowan creation, is completely remote controllable. Makes for ease of room adjustment. The midrange-tweeter panels being seperate from the woofer towers also allows for compensatory freedom. The footprint, though large, still works in my relatively small 26ft. x 13ft. x 7ft.(Ht.) (most damaging dimension) listening space. A larger room is definitely required to allow these babies to breath.
In comparison to some of the other speakers I have enjoyed owning, the Avalons come closest to creating this type of reproduction. It's anemic bottom end, especially teamed with tube gear, was the Ascent's most dominant weakness. The midrange and highs were just remakable. And their capability to image was totally astounding.
I presently run the 200's with Jadis JA 200 amps, Jadis JP80mc preamp, VPI TNT turntable fitted with Airtangent arm and Clearaudio sig. cart., Timbre Technology/Sony digital, Genesis digital lens, and lots of expensive wire. And, of course, dollars and dollars of tweeks.
I have heard these speakers driven by solid state with incredible speed and detail. My affinity is towards the tube sound.
Good luck, if you get a chance to audition these gems, or better yet, to own and experience a near live sound. Just kidding.
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