Greetings,
Like many, I spent several months reading reviews of speakers both in magazine and online. When I found something I was interested in, I would go to that company’s website to try to find someone in my area that sold them. (I live in West Texas, which is great if you are interested in finding prairie dogs but not so wonderful if you want any A/V equipment other than what the major chains sell…)
I made 700-mile trips to the Dallas/Fort Worth area, 1000-mile trips to Houston, and 700-mile trips to San Antonio in search of the perfect system. While I found many nice speakers, and visited several stores, none of the speakers were ones I had originally sought. I also found that they invariably tried to sell me more expensive equipment than I had told them I was interested in. I discovered that most of the speakers reviewed in the price range that I was looking for (3-5 thousand dollar range) were available only through custom installers. One store in Fort Worth used to carry Revels but had given them up, as they did not sell well - no brand recognition. None of the custom installers had any type of showroom where you could listen to them. One place, in Houston, had some Kef IQ9’s they were willing to set up - but were unable to set them up as part of a surround system, which was also important to me. Even so, I would have gone to listen to them but they returned my telephone calls the morning I was going back to the airport.
Finally, I was in Seattle and called the places listed on the websites of a couple of different manufacturers. The one store that had Kef’s in stock was the other side of the state, but had a website with prices somewhat higher than other online dealers had. I had about given up, but since I was there, I started calling every company listed in the phone book. I expected nothing, as I had exhausted the online links.
It was late in the afternoon, and much to my surprise when I explained to James Vaughan of Sound Waves Hifi what I was looking for, he invited me to his home to listen to some Kef IQ’s, which he was personally using. (Mr. Vaughan is a custom installer). We went. He had a set of IQ9’s as the fronts, some IQ3’s as the rear surrounds, an IQ6 as the center, and a couple of subwoofers that provided excellent bass. These were all running through an Emotiva DMC-1 preamp and LMC-1 amplifier.
I was very pleased with the way the speakers sounded, and really liked the looks and features of the DMC-1. At that time, I was not familiar with Emotiva. I listened to various types of music, and watched part of a movie. The sound was clear at any volume I tried. All this, remember, in his home. I felt that he really went out of his way to demonstrate the speakers.
Even though this was halfway across the country, I decided then and there to buy them from him. I understand that he had to check with the distributor before he could sell me the speakers, as they are sold by territory and I was certainly not in his regular area.
Mr. Vaughan was very friendly and knowledgeable about the equipment, and told me that if I had any questions hooking things up to call him and he would walk me through it. (Normally I understand he hooks everything up, but most of his customers live closer than the 1,800 miles that separates us.) We discussed various combinations and I finally decided which speakers I wanted. I had planned on getting the IQ8’s but decided to go with the IQ3’s for the back speakers since the room I was putting them in has one wall that is longer than the other side.
The system I wound up with is Kef IQ9’s as the front main speakers, an IQ6 as the center, IQ3’s as the rear surrounds and for another room, a Velodyne subwoofer to help provide bass, Kef Ci500s for the patio, and a Harmony remote to control it all. All the indoor speakers are in dark apple. He had to order these and was going to ship them via truck line. He also furnished the needed cables and such.
After returning home, I decided I really like the DMC-1/LMC-1 setup, and bought these from Sound Waves Hifi as well. During the time it took to order them, Mr. Vaughan sent me regular emails and made telephone calls to keep me updated. When they were shipped, he sent me pictures of them being packed on the pallet.
We have been in contact several times since, as I did have a few questions about the installation. He has been unfailingly friendly and helpful. I expect I will do more business with him in the future.
I wanted a few months to let the speakers ‘break in’ (Yes, it does make a difference.) and to live with the new system awhile. I am very pleased with both the appearance and sound of the system. With a Niles speaker switch, I can run multiple rooms, or only the main. The clarity and tone of this system are far above what I used to have (Marantz 7300 and Cambridge Soundworks speakers). Both my wife and I like the appearance of the speakers (The IQ series have curved enclosures, rather than the normal square box.) The apple finish is very attractive.
If you are looking for a place that will really listen to you, that understands what customer service is all about, and that can obtain many different types of A/V equipment, that know how to optimize the set up, you can’t go wrong with this company.
Sincerely,
Jeff P.
Midland, TX
For home audio sales, Seattle theater wiring, or Tacoma theater instalations, please contact us.
Sound Waves Hifi
425-637-1729
Tags: Testimonials by James
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