My basic 2 channel system for a small house. The system started out in 1990/91 as a KSA 250/KSL/Oracle MkIII/Apogee Duetta Signature II system. That was when I lived alone...

My 'better half' is upset about the 'huge' Silverline Audio Sonata speakers. "They're all you can see when you walk into the room".

After a recent afternoon shopping in Beverly Hills, she said, "Have you been to the B&O store? They have these great speakers... they're stainless steel...really cool-looking. They're tall and thin -stunning" Did she listen to them? "No but they look great".

Irony - My first real system was a B&O - it looked great and sounded okay for what it was - designer audio.

Are the Sonatas too big? I suppose that I could get some smaller monitor speakers but, in addition to symphonic and organ works, I like rock and roll. Lack of bass extension just doesn t cut it for me. Also, I tend to listen at what I consider ‘realistic’ levels.

Our house is 1600 sq ft on a hill overlooking the Pacific. We've lived here almost two years and are at the 'tweaking' stage both on the house and the system. Major work is done.

The listening area is an approximately 900 sq ft area comprising living and dining areas and adjoining kitchen. There is a dedicated 20 amp circuit for the audio and another for video/TV. The placement of the system in a corner is not ideal as I prefer the ‘Golden Mean’ method of orienting speakers and listening areas.

The Sonatas have two placements – everyday, pushed back a beside the equipment cabinet. This is acceptable for daily use as the drivers are still well in front of the cabinet.

The second position is well in front of the equipment cabinet, 44 inches out from the walls, 75 inches apart and toed-in so that the tweeters point at my shoulders in the primary seating areas. The natural wood ceiling, floors and slate fireplace are damped somewhat by the upholstered furniture. Overall it’s a good sounding room.

With the right material, the soundstage is wide and deep from the preferred listening areas – left side of the sofa and a couple of bar stools behind the sofa or the arm of my favorite club chair also behind the sofa. It extends on the left, from the middle of the windows to the center of the fireplace on the right and from the front plane of the speakers, beyond the wall behind the plasma TV. Something like Concert center row H-K as opposed to row C or P.

Personally - I think the room looks terrific, huge speakers or not. Besides, when first entering the room, the wall of windows revealing an ocean view is overwhelming.

Originally, the system (KSL, Shanling CD T200 SACD player and various cable tuners, a Sony Receiver and DVD multiplayer) shared an armoire with a 35” Mitsubishi CRT. The armoire was nice but had issues - heat being one and acoustic interaction with the Sonatas another. The KST100 resided behind the armoire because of the heat it generates. The plasma TV required a change. After much discussion, we had a new cabinet made by a nearby designer who makes furniture in Mexico of architectural bits and pieces, doors, windows etc. The cabinet was fairly expensive (more than a nice BelCanto or Sanus rack system which I preferred). My influence in decorating decisions is minimal but has greater weight in engineering and technical matters which is the only reason the Sonatas are still here. The cabinet is open in front and partially open in back so ventilation is not an issue. The cabinet is actually working out very well.

As my first tweak - I'm placing some left over granite underneath the Krell pieces and the SACD player. Our granite guy has them and is finishing the edges. Then, I anticipate trying different spikes and bearings under the amp and preamp.

Currently I do not have space for my analog front end - a modified Linn that I've stored for 5 years.

The KSL and KST100 are good in that they (along with the Sony DVD/CD changer) are easy for my technically less adept mate to operate as an enhancement to the TV or to provide background music for a seemingly endless stream of baby showers. In the not too distant future, I anticipate adding a tube amp (VAC Renaissance 70/70 preferably) and tube preamp (cj/VAC/?) to audition as an alternative to the Krell gear.

The KST100 provides weight, authority and slam to the Sonatas which initially seemed to lack bass extension and power compared to the NHT 2.9s that they replaced. The Sonatas can be driven well by far less powerful amps than the KST100. I now realize that the NHTs (as good as they are) were –larger than life. Better perhaps for home theatre than for effortless, natural music reproduction.

The Sonatas will produce controlled and liquid bass with extension that reflects published specs (25hz) assuming that:

Bass energy exists in the source material

They are very well broken-in (6 months at least)

They are driven by an amp with guts and control.

The Sonatas easily reproduce the opening measures (played on the lower notes of a 32' pedal stop) of Franck's Chorale in B minor (Dorian-Jean Guillou) in an accurate, natural and controlled manner.

Our music ranges from very early music (12th century) to current rock and jazz (Nora Jones, Beck and Alicia Keys being recent plays).

Jordi Savall's reprise of his music for the movie - Touts les Matins du Monde - Dix Ans Apres, consists of diverse pieces by Marais, Lully etal. (early Fr. Baroque - Louis 14th era). This CD exemplifies the system’s uncanny ability to reproduce tiny details like the ridges of a fingerprint sliding across the metal windings of a bass lute string in the midst of the thwack of a mallet against a bass drum, energetic bowing on a gamba and enthusiastic harpsichord playing – (tracks 9 and 10 ‘Charivari’ Marais, and ‘Canarie’, Lully).

(Speaking of Savall – his SACD exploration – “La Folia” is enlightening both in its musicality and sonic purity. For those put-off by the manneredness and sometimes melancholia of the Baroque – I highly recommend La Folia for its edgy, raw and exhuberant Iberian energy.)

The system seems to ‘respect’ the individual space of each instrument and performer. Instruments never seem crowded or inappropriately sized.

Transparency and definition are also very apparent on the new SACD reissues of the Rolling Stones Abko catalog. Mick Taylor's and Keith Richard's guitars on “Get Yer Ya Ya’s Out” have a wonderful steely edge that until this point, I've only heard live. This edge seems to be the attack of the finger, pick or nail on the string. This edge is apparent on other guitar material like Michael Hedges’ CD, Oracle. For instance on the track ‘Ignition’ the late Hedges uses a technique where he aggressively damps the strings with side of his thumb/palm. The resulting low bass whump pressurizes the room.

Voice is reproduced with a warm, liquid presence. Cecilia Bartoli’s voice and piano accompaniment on her recording (SACD) of Vivaldi's "Sposa son disprezzata" produces chills and goosebumps in even less passionate listeners. Similarly, Lorraine Hunt-Lieberson’s Handel Arias (SACD) leaves me on the edge of my seat. The warm presence of this very emotional and cleanly engineered performance does not mask quiet intakes of breath at the head of several tracks. Elvis Costello’s voice and Bill Frissell’s guitar on Deep Dead Blue are clean and hypnotic. I expect that the delicate ease of the higher treble nuances are due to the cloth tweeter that Alan Yun chose for the Sonata.

I've gone on and on about the speakers however the source - the Shanling CD t200 is proving to be a wonderful addition. Overall, my system is more than the sum of its parts - I'm into detail and revealing sound but, not at the expense of naturalness and the emotional experience – to me signified by that time warp that occurs when I start listening to Howlin’ Wolf at 9am and find myself hours later, listening to Mahler -wondering what happened to the better part of a Saturday.

Comments questions (and affirmations that the Sonatas do not distract from the look of the room) welcome!