I bought a pair of used Numens and initially used them with a Cambridge Audio CD-4 and A1MkIII. The sound was clear and smooth - perfect for Coltrain's "A Love Supreme" - but seemed to lack overall punch and warmth in some of my rock favorites. Bjork's voice sounded thin and dry and the drumming in Led Zepplin's Dazed and Confused was muddled and flat. With the same CD player and a Micromega Minium Amplifier the sound was much more full, however clarity was lacking in the high treble. It seemed the sound was artificially warm at the expense of detail. I did, however, like the Minium's ability to adequately drive the speaker at low volume - something my downstairs neighbors also appreciated.
In frustration, wondering how much one had to spend to equal the fun and performance of my old self amplified Acoustics Research Speakers/ Denon PORTABLE (emphasis intended) CD player, I sprung for a Naim CD-3.5 and a NA92/NAP90. The difference was astonishing!!! The sound was effortless and smooth in all regions of the sonic spectrum. The big powerful bass brought the Source Direct's Drum and Bass classic "Exit 9" to life. With the Naim source components the Numens were vibrant, transparent, open, crisp and most of all MUSICAL. The Naim player is, in my opinion, better than some almost twice the price (Meridian) and perhaps this is the reason. There was, however, a bit of boom in the lower bass and the treble on some pieces (Baroque Violin) sounded a tad harsh. I recently heard a friend's set of much cheaper PSB speakers with an again much cheaper NAD source and noted that his system had a bit more "air" and three dimesionality to the sound. Vocals, in particular, seemed more real. It was almost as if Tom Waits was standing in his livingroom. However, in terms of pure excitement, pace, and rhythm, my Numen/Naim system is in another league altogether.

Under the assumption that the Numens haven't yet reached their full potential with the "entry level" Naim amplifier, I'm considering upgrading with a Flat Cap to see what the difference is. If it's still not to my ultimate satisfaction I'll try a 82/180 before I abandon the Numens (The Naim 52/250/Supercap set up is just too expensive to justify purchasing. I could buy a beautiful house in Budapest for that price). The jump from the Cambridge system to the entry level Naim was so enormous I'm convinced that by upgrading the Naim amplifier I'll be able to push these already quite convincing speakers up to an even greater level of performance. Right now, however, I'm in no real hurry as I'm enjoying music more than I have since I was 16 (20 years ago) and spinning Hendrix and the Stones on my modest but delicate Dual ULM turntable.

Of all the speakers I've heard auditioned at audio stores in the last year, the Celestion A3s (with a Naim CDS NA102/NAP140/HiCap) were the only ones that sounded better than the Numens when used in my own home with decidedly cheaper source components than those used for the Celestions. Although the Numens are obviously not the ultimate in loudspeakers, I'm not about to spring fifteen grand on a pair of "Class A Speakers" just to find that my music only sounds only 5-10 % better than it did on the Numens (Which, I should add, I picked up used for only 700 bucks!)

The Numen 5.0 is a simple 2 way stand mounted speaker with Focal Kevlar drivers, 6.5" woofer and 1" tweeter, with a 4 kHz passive crossover. $2400 Can. /pr.
They are made in Hamilton ON, Canada and it may be very difficult to find Numen speakers in the U.S. They are made in small numbers. They do not have a web page! Those very interested should contact Audio Access in Hamilton.

I am not an "audiophile", I relate the word to nerds who incessantly talk about what someone else tells them sounds good. I only love music. These speakers are about music, not sound.

I have previously listened to mostly Teufel's (German), Rogers LS 3/5a's, and Linn Keleidgh's. These and everything else I've heard is colored and strained and unmusical in comparison with the Numen's. The 2 kHz peak associated with Kevlar is barely evident, actually it adds a nice and realistic punch to percussion.

Wonderful speaker, everyone should have one. We have the gods of mass marketing to blame for the oversight of this little god.

FYI, my system is a pretty average Linn Intek and Arcam Alpha, totally wired with silver (which makes a more than impressive difference between sound and music at very low cost).