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News and Information
Of Inchworms and Marigolds
The new B2 Rhapsody
Come and hear Beauhorns
Map and B&B List A New Experience - truly
We have long maintained that it takes single driver horn speakers to get the most out of high quality but low power amplifiers, but until we demonstrated the B2 Rhapsody at the London Sound and Vision Show in September, I for one had not really appreciated the extent to which only transconductance ampliers (current amplifiers) allow single driver horns to show what they are really capable of. But, the partnership of the new Pure Music TC amp with our B2s was a magical, almost a religious experience. We are so confident that this is the way forward for discerning music lovers that we are co-operating with Pure Music to offer, for a limited period, a discount of £400 to those who buy a pair of B2s with the Pure Music TC amp.
As yet, very few people have even heard of TC amplifiers, let alone heard them in conjunction with SD horns. An audition removes any doubts one may have.
Virtuoso V3 and B2.3 speakers - customers write: To define the latest versions they are designated the Virtuoso V3 and the B2.3, respectively.
We have no independent reviewer's assessment so far, and so we can only quote what customers have told us: unsolicited feedback
Beauhorn lowered prices for 2006
Website visitor feedback: lack of specifications But, to compromise just a little, both the Virtuosos and the B2.2s stand on a footprint measuring 13x26 in (336x672 mm) approximately. Their heights are 41 and 47 in (1045 and 1200 mm), respectively. Our correspondent also suggested that a gallery of pictures showing the different finishes would be helpful. Although such images are on the site somewhere, the idea has merit and when we get our heads around how and where to do it, we will.
Our latest: the B2.2 Revelation The sound is so open and natural, it is a genuine 'in-the-room-with-you' experience (see what reviewers have had to say, below). From the 40x20x12 ft conference room in which we launched them to the smaller of our listening rooms (just 10x15x8 ft), the image is solid and credible. Breathing real life into recorded music, these are the speakers to make stereo listening as exciting as an original performance.
I wonder how many of you will remember the popular song of, I think, the early '60s: "Inchworm, inchworm, measuring the marigolds, how I wonder if you see how beautiful they are?"
We have often put forward in these pages the notion that, while everyone has his/her own reason for owning a stereo system, they fall broadly into two camps. There are those who want to enjoy the subleties of texture and musical performance and those who look for measured performance as close to the ideal as possible, needing charts and diagrams to give them confidence in their selections.
For some 15 years Beauhorn has been satisfying the needs of the first group and continues to do so, and so the plaudits from satisfied customers continue to roll in. For example, this just in:
Hello Eric, I just installed the DX4 and they make sweet music. You've done a great job! My quest for loudspeakers is done; these babies are here for good. ... and God bless you and your family. Thanks a lot, A happy customer, Y.H.
And this:
I am very pleased with the speakers & am enjoying playing around with the toe in & positioning in my limited space. I co incidentally had a few friends from the north visiting on Monday evening & all were blown away by both the sound & appearance of the beasts. Kind regards & thanks. A.H.
So, we would urge you not to be inchworms. Listen to Beauhorns and let your ears be your guide. As we've said before, to hell with specifications!
OTHER NEWS
Information on the new B2 Rhapsody is given on the B2 page - click the button on the left.
INFORMATION
Horn loudspeakers are the province of music lovers who demand realism in the replay of recordings and who know what live music does sound like. A niche market. Retailers, needing rapid stock turn, are therefore reluctant to stock them, while a small company like Beauhorn cannot afford to lend demonstration models out, in the way that bigger companies do. We offer overseas customers, brave enough to purchase unheard, a 28 day money back guarantee and make sales that way - without problem, so far.
UK customers, reasonably, expect to hear what they are about to purchase and so they have the options of coming to Hastings or paying a nominal charge of 150 pounds for a home demonstration (refunded on purchase).
To make visiting Beauhorn easier, you can click on the link below, where you will find information (kindly provided by BedandBreakfast.co.uk) to help find Beauhorn and to locate the many hotels and B&Bs within easy reach:
map and B&B list
High End Audio - online source
Visit: Decibel Garden for "the finest High End A/V electronics for home, mobile & marine entertainment" - where sound is in full bloom they say!
Aid to Soul Searching
Our customers have very wide tastes in music: Soul lovers might find the following of interest: John Manship Records www.raresoulman.co.uk
They tell us: "Since 1968 John Manship Records have been supplying rare vinyl and collectables worldwide. We now have over 500,000 quality selected 45s and LPs on hand. This web site receives new titles daily, 100s per week are added. We are continually buying new collectable stock and constantly processing and adding to this site"
ARCHIVE
"Today, I got religion!" Many years ago, in another existence even, I was a technical PR consultant. I still remember my consternation on reading a fax from one client's sales manager which started with these words. Today, I cannot recall the cause of his over exuberance, but at least I now understand it.
We recently evolved a method of enhancing the performance of the drive units we use in both the B2.2 and the Virtuoso speakers. Transient response is faster, giving greater sense of transparency, openness and dynamic attack. Bass extension is also slightly inceased. The effect is markedly audible and totally delightfull.
In January, Beauhorn UK prices were reduced by about 15 per cent. This brought Beauhorn speakers within the reach of many more aspiring music lovers than they were before. Acknowledged already by most pundits to be quite outstanding as the most natural sounding loudspeakers available at any price, this reduction means that they represent the most remarkable value to true audiophiles.
For a list of the new prices just use the information request form: Information Request Form, telephone or write to us.
B2.2 Revelation: a 'Choice' selection now
In the recent special 'Selection' edition of Hi-Fi Choice magazine - "in-depth reviews of the worlds finest Hi-Fi", it says on the cover - Beauhorn's B2.2 Revelation was chosen to take its place in this truly ultimate collection of high-end gear.
Although modestly priced in this company (which reaches up to £50,000 worth of speakers) the B2.2 Revelation, it says, "might not play it by regular hi-fi rules, but what it unfailingly delivers is an immensely detailed and involving musical experience - one that simply drags you into each and every performance and goads you into searching out old and familiar discs for fresh, new insights"
..."thanks to the astonishing sense of realism that comes courtesy of tight midband time-coherence alongside dynamic contrasts that simply sound more 'right' and 'real' than those produced by more conventional speakers. Small combo jazz, blues or classical material is particularly well served, as is any recording which heavily features the human voice, though bass limitations do become more obvious with heavier rock and dance tracks."
We were taken to task recently for the lack of specifications on this website, thus: " your website doesn't give much information other than a lot of testimonials. That's all well and good, but more specifics would be nice".
We don't publish the sort of statistics that appear on some websites because we feel strongly that, while measurements have their value in explaining what we might hear, they have very little value as predictors of performance. For this, we think the opinions of established independent reviewers give a much better idea. If these read like testimonials, so much the better!
Introduced in autumn 2002, our B2 was very well received by reviewers, as you can read on our product page. It delivers a large proportion of the performance produced by much more expensive speakers. To further our aim of matching such expensive speakers at a more affordable price, we have continued its development and have recently introduced the B2.2 Revelation. This is a package comprising the hugely uprated B2.2 and the very effective VibraPlinths at a UK retail price of just £3984, including VAT.
Using a new 5 in drive unit, built in Italy, with an astounding speed of transient response, the B2.2 Revelation delivers transparency, image focus and dynamic range which is unrivalled, we think. Listeners enjoy the full range of instrumental textures and the full weight of uncompressed orchestral climaxes.
Old News of Reviews
Ken Kessler hated them: Hi-Fi News review of the B2.2 Revelation, November 2003
Well, he certainly didn't like the styling! While KK, world famous
horn-o-phobe, could accomodate the fact that the cabinets failed the 'knuckle-rap' test - but didn't seem to suffer for it - and that the VibraPlinths defy the 'fix-'em-rigid' orthodoxy - but don't seem to suffer for it - we must admit that he could not come to terms with the convention-challenging shape, at all. (The B2 shape is the epitome of the 'form-follows-function' school of design and arose from our wish to produce a world-class speaker at a price that more people could afford).
We would rather not list the derogatory epithets KK used to describe our pride-and-joys (the only one we can think of that he missed out was 'outstandingly ugly') but he went on to say:
"However much taste, conditioning, intelligence or - yes - paranoia might want you to recoil from the Beauhorn B2.2, it is simply irresistable."
"Voices have a naturalness that I've only heard bettered by the L3/5a and the original Quads, and there isn't even a hint of sibilance. Ella, Aretha, Eva Cassidy and Peggy Lee, each had all the correct textures, the sounds of breathing, and presented in a clearly defined space - chilling veracity."
His conclusion?
"It breaks my heart that the Beauhorn is so goddam hideous because, at just under £4000 with the stands, it deserves a huge audience. It is so enjoyable a speaker that you forget all about the flaws."
Fortunately, many people are really turned on by the ground breaking styling of the B2.2s which offer something fresh and original for the eye as well as the truly outstandingly natural and transparent sound. So, don't let your preconceptions deter you, make the effort to hear them.
Hi-Fi +, August/September 2003: B2.2 Revelation in context of high value speakers
Since the Hi-Fi Choice review of our new speaker-plus-plinths package quoted below and on the B2 page, Paul Messenger talks about them in his speakers column in the current (August/September) issue of HiFi+. Recently having reviewed the JMLabs Grand Utopia Be, the B&O Beolab 5, the Beauhorn B2.2 Revelation and the Leema Acoustic Xen, he describes his experiences with these very different approaches to loudspeaker design.
His final summary: "These four speakers all do various things in very different ways, and beautifully illustrate the broad range of options that co-exist on the loudspeaker scene. There's no one 'right' approach - merely a collection of compromises which the enthusiast would do well to bear in mind when choosing his/her speakers. Which would I choose? Probably, and perhaps surprisingly, the Beauhorns, but these are all class acts in their different ways, and I could probably live happily enough with any of them."
Why "and perhaps surprisingly"? Could it be that the Grand Utopia Bes cost £45,000, the Beolab 5s £10,000 and the B2.2 Revelations just £4000? And only of the Beauhorns does he say "I loved [them] and missed them when they went away".
Hi-Fi Choice, August 2003
Hi-Fi Choice issue 244, had the Beauhorn B2.2 dominating the front cover. Page 48 saw the start of a three page review by Paul Messenger.
In it he says: "...But it's also one of the most effective and convincing music speakers you're ever likely to hear. It doesn't take long to forget about the hi-fi and simply get deeply involved in the musical content, thanks to the astonishing sense of realism that comes courtesy of tight midband time-coherence alongside dynamic contrasts that simply sound more 'right' and 'real' than those heard with more conventional speakers." More of his comments appear on the B2 page.
As some of you will already know, sounding 'right' and 'real' is our prime objective and it is good to have our success in this aim endorsed by such a respected reviewer.
FAQ abt Lowther drivers
We get a steady trickle of requests for advice, mainly from DIY enthusiasts but also from owners of branded speakers which employ Lowther drivers. The problem is usually the onset of audible distortion or rumbling noises, often intermittent, but enough to spoil their enjoyment. While they are mostly aware of the availability of Lowther's exchange service they often seek our help before adopting that course.
While we are happy to try and help them, be they our customers or not, it can be a very time consuming business and so we have posted what we hope will be helpful notes to this website. If you think that this advice might help you, click here: rehabilitating a Lowther driver
Information request form
To improve further the flow of information to you we have added a request form to our site. If there is any information that you require
that is not given within the pages of the site simply click the link below
and fill in the request form stating the additional
information required. This link is also a feature on the "UK
contacts" page.
Just click on:
Information
Request Form
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