Speaker upgrade - Kharma DB7

[mcq]

I recently purchased a pair of Kharma DB7s. I considered these to be best speakers at last year's show at the Burlington and my initial findings were confirmed when I heard them again in the Cloney Audio showroom. It is important to note, however, that I had been delighted by my then-existing speakers, the Spendor STs, and was in no hurry to upgrade on any kind of whim. To my mind, the Spendors are the best speakers that I auditioned in their price range. They boast a very balanced and refined soundstage, with a notable maturity of presentation in that they don't immediately grab your attention over a short space of time and only relinquish their qualities over extended listening sessions. What I particularly treasured in the Spendors was their sense of seamless cohesion across the frequency range and their refusal to spotlight, for example, the treble, over the midrange and bass which the B&W 800 series are particularly guilty of with their sweet-sounding diamond tweeter (in my opinion, of course). This indicates the speaker designer's sense of loyalty to conveying the innate naturalness of the recorded performance, as opposed to drawing attention to the speaker drivers themselves.

The Kharmas are exceptional speakers which, like the Spendors, really deserve an extended listening session in the comfort of your own home to fully appreciate their considerable qualities. Physically, they are a little deeper than the Spendors, but they are by no means room-dominant. They sound so much better in my room than at the Cloney Audio showroom. I was a little concerned when I heard the bass output when I heard the speakers in the showroom but there are no problems whatsoever in my room. I do think the Nordost cables match very well with these speakers and do a very good job of controlling the bass, but my Nordost cables are near the top of the range whereas the Kharma cables were entry level. (There was a hint of slightly excessive warm bass when I heard these speakers in the showroom with the Kharma cables but this has been completely ameliorated by the Nordost cables, which control the bass very well and also inject a sense of energy to the proceedings.) The treble of the beryllium tweeter is so smooth and so detailed. The bass is extended, detailed and warm without being overpowering. The midrange is astonishingly natural. Vocal rendition is, quite simply, the best I have ever heard and is vividly lifelike. Instrumental timbres are convincingly realistic. String and woodwind textures are sweet and pure. Brass and percussion have just the right sense of pungency and bite without being in any way brash. Just like my Spendors, there is a natural cohesive seamlessness to the presentation of the recorded performance and no part of the frequency range is unnaturally highlighted, but the overall level of excellence is significantly increased. And the synergy with my Lavardin IT15 and Meridian 808.3 is, quite simply, sublime.

Most important of all, though, is the level of emotional communication. It is pointless for a speaker to have all of the aforementioned attributes if it cannot move you on an emotional level. What these Kharmas do is take you much closer to the recorded performance in a very natural and intimate way. It sounds like a cliche to talk about hearing new things in recordings you know so very well, but that is exactly what I'm hearing. There is an added depth and spaciousness to recordings, and this is conveyed with a beautiful sense of warmth and ease which is essential for long listening sessions. In addition, there is an abundance of detail in the presentation but it is a textural sense of detail which excels in the communication of musical phrases rather than the artificial spotlighting of individual notes. I have spent about three weeks now in the company of these Kharmas and my respect for their abilities just grows and grows. It is worth underlining the fact that in these straitened times, they are a significant financial outlay, but music means a great deal to me and the personal sacrifices that I have made in putting together this hifi system have been repaid many times over by the sense of emotional and spiritual nourishment that I find when I sit down with a favourite CD and find myself utterly and profoundly transported.

[fergus]

Long may you enjoy them Paul and I wish you the best of luck with and much listening enjoyment from them!

[Seán]

Congratulations and may they provide you with many happy hours of listening pleasure.

[cybot]

Congratulations Paul on your wonderful system, speakers included! Thoroughly enjoyed your review and personal findings on your long road to audio nirvana; And, make no mistake about it, it is a long road and sometimes frustratingly so. The personal sacrifices are worth it to experience something as special and life changing as the natural live rendition of music in your sanctum sanctorum.....Long may you enjoy!

[mcq]

Many thanks, lads, for your kind words. I'm listening to Bill Evans right now (the 1980 recordings at the Village Vanguard with LaBarbara and Johnson) and the sound is breathtaking. The poetry of the master's playing has never before been communicated so profoundly. Just heavenly.

[Diapason]

Congratulations on the new arrivals, mcq. I too have been very impressed by the DB7s every time I've heard them, and I think they are a tremendously satisfying listen. I wish you all the very best with them!

[mcq]

Many thanks, Simon. These speakers really are built for long-term listening pleasure. There's a rare sense of maturity and sophistication about them which is very satisfying.

[Youngren]

Many thanks, Simon. These speakers really are built for long-term listening pleasure. There's a rare sense of maturity and sophistication about them which is very satisfying.

That's right MCQ I've had mine for 5 years now!

[mcq]

Glad you enjoy them, Youngren.  They really are exceptional speakers.  What system are you running them with?  My source is the Meridian 808.5 and I drive my Kharmas with a Lavardin IT-15.  Cabling is Nordost Valhalla. I've been very happy with this setup for the last 5 years but I am planning on trying out the Constellation Audio Inspiration Integrated.  Such is the transparency of the Kharmas that I expect to hear the difference quite clearly and very quickly.

[tony]

That slipped very much under the radar 5yrs ago! Belated congrats Paul there must have been a lot of posting going on that year as I completed missed that purchase. That was a big jump from the Spendors. I think I heard those Kharma's with what I believe was Darius's tweaked LP12. Fantastic speakers. What size room are you running them in?