I have lived with these AUDES Blues speakers now for about six weeks of almost daily listening. If anything, my initial enthusiasm for them has increased as I get to know them better. First, they are beautiful to look at. The ones I purchased are all black. In retrospect, I would have preferred them with one of the available natural wood finishes. The build quality is extremely high. For the asking price, I would rate them as extraordinarily good value. This probably reflects the lower labor costs in Estonia and the market realities of being a relatively unknown company. The consumer definitely benefits from this! The speakers are a three-way design with a 1" soft cone tweeter, two 4.5" midrange cones, and an 8" side-firing woofer. The speakers are rear-ported. I think the tweeters are an AUDES original design. I have not looked at the woofers. The Blues are relatively efficient (90 dB), but with a 4 Ohm nominal impedance, you better have something juicy to drive them with, especially if you like to listen loud. I have been using a NAD S100 preamp and S200 amp. Plenty of clean power there! Also highly recommended. To my taste these Blues sound wonderful. They are very open and transparent. I would describe their sound as 'accurate' and 'immediate.' They throw a huge soundstage with good source material. The imaging is also very good, which speaks for their phase coherence. And yet, the speakers have a slightly warm or 'musical' sound. They seem to pull this off without giving up any accuracy. Play the first cut of Sonny Rollins 'Way Out West' on SACD. Turn it up. Man, you are THERE with these Blues! You hear every nuance of that sax. But the sound is not so analytical to be exhausting. I can play music at high levels for hours on end without complaints from my wife, providing I play stuff she likes. The sound is so natural that the speakers tend to disappear. The impulse response of these Blues is excellent. You really feel the attacks of percussion. The sound is very well integrated from high to low end. AUDES obviously knows something about crossover networks. The bass is surprisingly tight, although the speakers only go down to 45 Hz. They are wonderful for reproducing female voice, strings, and piano. But they also kick-ass with rock and roll. I read a review of another speaker with a side-firing woofer where reviewer felt they sounded better with the woofers firing outward instead of inward. I tried it like this with the Blues. The bass became smeary and less defined. Also, the imaging was much less distinct. In my listening room, the Blues sounded much better with the woofers firing inward.
Strengths:Transparency of the high and midrange. Very immediate without being 'in your face' or tiring. Great transient response. Great phase coherency. Wonderful soundstage and good imaging. OUTSTANDING value.
Weaknesses:Speakers are heavy. Most people have never heard of AUDES (if that is a disadvantage).
These are a new addition to my system, they replace my nine year old Klipsch Forte II loudspeakers. They are a big departure from the Forte's but are a different class/style of speaker, much more musical and definitely a more discerning loudspeaker. The Forte's were perfect for their use, an efficient loudspeaker that rocked hard. But I'm passed those days now and am into a more faithful reproduction of music. Heralding all the way from Estonia, the Audes Blues fit the bill.
I first listened to the Audes Blues at Symphony Sound in Chicago in June of 2003. I was extremely impressed by the quality design and beautiful sound coming from a pair of $2000 speakers. I definitely expected less.
I knew that one day I'd want to buy a pair of these to replace my Forte's and build a system that would occupy a room in a future home.
Well, that day came sooner than anticipated and by November of 2003 I was the proud owner of a brand new pair of Audes Blues.
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Summary:One of the best values in audio today. Not romantic, but more of the neutral variety. Sounds is more akin to speakers costing much more. Not as sweet as the Proac 2.5, but better in some respects. More refined in every way than the similarly priced Soliloquy 5.3. Very good timbral accuracy. Bass is tight and articulate. Imaging is more than acceptable. Good soundstage. Good depth. Immensely listenable. Never found them fatiguing. Look at the drivers. The Blues are essentially a mini-monitor with a side firing sub. It's a fast speaker. Reminds me in some ways of planars. Build quality is top notch. Easy to drive and easy to match with outher components. Works well even with mid-fi receivers. Easy to place. Had them in both big and small rooms with success. Not much competition when compared in terms of overall performance. A best buy, recommended without reservations.
Weaknesses:they are large and heavy. if you had to criticize, the bass could be a little better integrated. Not the best in any one area, but easily competes with $4000 speakers.
Similar Products Used:Proac, Soliloquy, Spendor, Dahlquist, Celestion, Totem, Magnepan.
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Summary:I had become pretty disenchanted in my search for new speakers. Most everything I listened to in my price range was either on the lean and very bright side or came finished in the increasingly popular VINYL wrap. I had pretty much given up on finding anything affordable that would give me a nice balanced sound with anything other than an average at best build quality. Until, that is, I auditioned the the AUDES Blues. All I can say about their appearance is....WOW! They are simply drop dead gorgeous! In NO WAY do the web site pictures depict their true beauty. Their cabinet craftsmen obviously take pride in their work. From fit to the beautiful Cherry stained Mahogany finish on the side panels and bases, not a flaw could be found anywhere. Their sound?.....To start with, they throw a HUGE sound stage. The high end is beautifully detailed without being harsh or bright in any way. Full rich mid range without being overly "warm." Again, detailed and just plain accurate are what come to mind. Bass, while not extremely deep, is full and rich when called for but equally fast with plenty of punch when needed. No boom or bloated mush here at all. Overall a very detailed "musical" speaker that is equally at home with a four piece chamber ensemble, a jazz pianist or Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody. I originally had them hooked up to a DENON AVR-3802 receiver and they sounded great. When I had final rack, RPTV and speaker placement finalized, I hooked them up to the much more robust ADCOM GFA-5503 (350 wpc @ 4 ohms) amp. They opened up even more beautifully. Now, they don't even break a sweat playing complex material, be it music or movie sound tracks, at reference levels. If you looking for a speaker that does double duty playing Mozart violin concertos and Saving Private Ryan, all in the same room, do yourself a favor and give these BLUES a listen. You most certainly won't be dissapointed.
Strengths:Stunning beauty and exquisit build quality. Ability to handle ALL types of music and sound tracks well. Balanced and acurate sound. No hyped over extended and harsh highs or mids, very detailed and accurate bass with no boom or bloat. An absolutely HUGE room filling sound stage. Not overly picky about their room placement. Easy to drive at 90 db efficiency, so equally at home with low powered tube equipment, modest receivers or high powered solid state amps.
Weaknesses:Not being sheilded could be a problem for some rooms, but not for mine.
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Summary:Im the kind of person who is not easily satisfied. For the last year I have changed speakers 4 times. From Paradigm Refernce 100, B&W N804, Energy Veritas, and now this Audes Blues. I havent heard any audes speakers before. I just read reviews of what this speakers can do and and I like the slim design. I just took a gamble when I saw an ad in audiogon for almost new and the price is within in my reach at that time. When it arrives from my doorstep they do look like coffins. When I opened it I saw a speaker that is well built and the wood is well crafted. Considering their slim size, this speakers are heavy, binding post are gold plated are huge, good thing I have speaker cable with banan plug, otherwise you have to reterminate your cable. I first used my Proceed HPA with Zu cable Varial ic and Ibis speaker cable. I love R&B music so I pop my Boyz 2 Men, using my Ah! Njoe Tjoeb CD player whis is heavily modified and started my listening session. Oh man.....This speakers are excellent. Highs are very open and mids are detailed and non fatigueging. You can hear all the instruments that you havent heard before. Bass is tight and not boomy considering its only 8". If you love jazz this is the perfect speaker for you. Bi-amping this speakers are far exceeded my expectation.(used Proceed amp2 for bi-amping)
Strengths:everything
Weaknesses:weakness? you gotta be kidding.....NONE !!
Similar Products Used:Paradigm Reference 100 B&W N804 Energy Veritas Proceed HPA Proceed amp2(For bi-amping the speakers you gotta try this setup) Ah! Njoe Tjoeb Zu Cable Varial i/c Zu Cable Ibis Monster Power HTS
Summary:Natural and musical. After wasting months searching mass market junk at $1,000 to $1,500 per pair, and then getting totally intimidated at $3,000 and up I had just about given up on finding real music I could afford. I took a listen and decided they sounded natural and understated and went with my "gut" that these would only get better with time. Unfortunately like many out there I'm dealing with only mid-fi mass market surround sound receiver as my current amp. Not everyone can jump to a $5K system over a weekend. I've been pleasantly surprised and at times shocked at how much I can get out of them with my lowly Onkyo. You need to have some decent power to drive them in a large room, but this is a speaker that can be very intimate, I listen to jazz vocal and piano and continue to be impressed with it's detail. The bass needs time to break in but be patient, it's worth the wait. Home Theater can be amazing with these guys. If you're looking for a cornerstone to start building a serious system around and are tired of the mass market hype, find a pair and audition them carefully. You may be pleasantly surprised.
Strengths:Construction quality, Connections are industrial, wow Drivers are well made Design has some curves to it to break up the "Box" look most speakers have.
Weaknesses:Heavy No magnetic shielding watch out if you want to place near TV.
Similar Products Used:Klipsch B&W
Summary:For reference...My system consists of a Shanling CDT-100 CD player. A Conrad Johnson PV-14 Tube Preamp, C-J Premiere 11A Tube Amp(70Watts a side) and a VPI Mk 3 Turntable. All Wiring is Kimber with Audioquest biwiring the bass from an NT SA_2. I've broken this speaker in about 6 months now with a total of about 200 Hrs on them. The Audes Blues is a very refined loudspeaker. Starting at the high end- the highs are open, fast and very delicate. Mids are very natural, accurate sounding and soulful with a bit of warmth. They are not as warm as say my KEF 104/2 but warmer than a pair of NHT 2.9's I recently owned which has a very accurate midrange. Overall I would say although very natural, the Blues has a midrange balance that leans toward the upper mids(like other high end detailed speaker such as the Meadowlark Shearwater or the B&W N804). But not as lean and uptight sounding as a Totem or Audio Physic Virgo. I would say the closest speaker I've heard to it is the Sterophile A rated Triangle Celius in the mids and highs. Although the mids and highs of the Blues speaker are definetely more natural than the analytical. Their is a great amount of detail and speed in the mids and highs especially with the Kimber 4tc speaker cable. Imaging and sounstaging are very good. Instruments are well placed with accurate size with the right amount of air. I would say holographic at times. This speaker is much more open in the soundstaging than my Kef's and the NHT 2.9's. The imaging is not limited to the inside of the speakers. Bass was detailed and surpisingly strong. They did nnot go as low and rich as the NHT 2.9's but the bass on the Blues was much better than the KEF's and the Triangle. The Blues did not get congested when turned up like the Triangle. This made the Blues more appropriate for R&B and more dynamic music with intense bass. Overall I have been quite pleased with this speaker. Although the balance is a bit on the lean side of the midrange compared to my KEFS, these will be my choice for overall listening to jazz and r&b. If you are in the market for a speaker that can compare to the Triangle Celius in it's refinement of the open and fast highs and natural mids, yet you want a little more " BEEF" in the bass and the ability to play loud yet still fast and detailed, please do yourself a favor and listen to these speakers. They are a stea
Strengths:Open Fast, detailed highs and mids. Strong bass for a thin speaker.; Transparent presentation. Open holographic imaging. Tremendous value for the money.
Weaknesses:None
Similar Products Used:NHT 2.9 B&W Nautilus 804 Meadowlark Shearwater Hotrod Kef 104/4 Audio Physic Virgo Energy Veritas 2.4
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Summary:Once in a while something will come along to re-define our view of price vs performance. Well Audes certainly did for me. Glad I gave the speakers from Estonia a chance. Never regretted ever since.
Strengths:Great soundstaging, and incredible punchy bass.
Weaknesses:Probably the resale value given the lack of brand recognition.
Similar Products Used:Legacy classic, Reference 3A MM DE Capo
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Summary:My home theater speaker setup includes the Blues for my mains, Audes Studio Monitors for surrounds, the Audes Central for the center and a Monitor Audio ASW110 sub. Great matchup. The Audes Blues simply look great and sound great - just as the first reviewer here said. The product is very well made - nice wood, heavy connectors, no visible seams. I am told that these Audes speakers were designed by engineers that used to design parts for the Mig fighter - I don't know if that is true but a fine Estonian engineering effort went into this speaker. I noticed its clear vocals and its ability to reproduce strings the very first time I heard them. Its bass, which is plentiful for a slim line speaker, comes from a sidefiring 8" woofer in a cabinet that weighs in at over 70 lbs.I was sold on the Monitor Silver 9s until these speakers hit my local shop. The salesman made a special call to me to audition them - for the same price point a much better overall product. For a while, the Blues resided in the high end room at that audio shop where speakers are usually much more expensive. A must audition.
Strengths:Beautiful Craftsmanship, Great Vocals and Strings, Check out the massive rear connectors.
