I was curious about Nihon Onkyo Acoustic Groove System not many didn't talk much of. I had seen my Philippino audio enthusiasts using them years ago but they didn't arouse my interest. Just another diffuser, nothing much to shout about, I thought. I, myself am no stranger to diffusers. QRD diffusers, yuk! I chucked them away for they introduce smearing.
Not taking my foot off the gas, my room is quiet. I'm proud of it. Not dead and not too alive, just right. Room acoustics in my book, is the key to sonic utopia, the rest are the jigsaw puzzles. This is hornet's nest in the audio community. It's not over the top that I voice my system with room acoustics. Somehow, I wanted to try the pricey AGS. Before jumping the gun, I made a prototype to test the waters. To my astonishment, the result was beyond anything I could imagine. Searching high and low for a carpenter to do small custom woodwork. Then, I bumped into a guy in the Facebook. After weeks of anxiety, many excuses with too many broken promises, I realized I'm a victim of a scam. It was too easy. Fund transferred, no work is done. Feeling dejected will not help, I just have to accept it and move on. A setback, nevertheless, banking on luck, I determined going another shot.
Knowing the working principal of diffuser, breaking the intermodulation, I sketched my version of AGS. Now, long story short, life is too short for boring stories. I have got two pieces of wooden diffusers on my floor and two on side walls. I came to these spots that give an optimal result.
Beating the odds, these AGS are simply phenomenal, I scratched my head to this transformation. It was better than my prototype if you wanted to know. The sound responds positively to them. My bass definition ups, cleaner and with no cheesy strings attached if you know what I mean. The mud plague from the midbass has been effectively dealt with. You see, the current offerings attenuate the midbass for the sake of midrange clarity, leading to clipped midbass. On delicate vocals, my big standmount speakers behave like a lifelike imaged monitor, not liken to the razor sharp miniaturized and ultra refined images of 5-incher bookshelf speakers. The latter sounds unrealistic.
I dare you listen to Celine Dione's The Power of Love from The Colour of My Love, this is not an audiophile album but real music. In my system, you can't miss the brawny midbass as it ought to be, to heighten the drama. Since when pops' bass is giving its way to vocal? Only One Road, phew....! Her powerful delivery makes her an undisputed diva, relentless energy.
Second trait, the clarity across the whole band is a delight. No change in tonal colour and there's an illusion of spatiality. Soundstage grows in depth and width. It's big enough to transport me to a private mini concert, singing right in front just for me.
Thirdly, the sustain. Imagine the weight of Steinway grand concert piano and extended sustain. Raising hairs moment. The in-between notes are separated and defined. I must admit that 12 incher driver helps. Nothing overly defined here which is not realistic.
These traits alone worth gold. I should be receiving my fifth and sixth AGS tomorrow if nothing goes wrong, it will complete my sonic puzzle sheet. I can see myself crossing the finishing line already a passion I started more than 3 decades ago. Now, the time span is irrelevant, but the depth of audio study and the right course of direction make the world of difference. I'm sure many have been in this passion longer than me.
Lastly, it may seem that I'm all talk no substance. I apologize that blogspot doesn't allow me to post images to substantiate my words.
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