Garland

As for the Theatre 4's, I hope the 3.5 watts is enough; my room is 28X12. My 65 watt receiver gets mighty loud at 9 o'clock. 2 things are very clear, though. 1, in regard to your concerns about bass, there is nothing "overpowering", "artificial" or "augmented" about what these monsters put out. If it's on the recording, you hear it. That brings me to 2., forget about Cardas and nearfield and everything you feel about the illusion speakers present. The Pi's are that different. Not entirely good different, although mainly so. You can't look at a 24X36 plane with a 15" round eyeball in and think they disappear. Wayne says the woof and tweet mix after 3 feet in the nearfield. They have less of a sweet spot than anything I've heard. There's imaging and localization of instruments but it's just... different.
Come visit me in north central Ohio; don't forget to wipe your feet when you leave.

I think I know what you mean by different sounding. I have about had it with the "audiophile" sound of polite and discrete soundstage where you have to transport yourself into a spectator a foot or two tall to get in scale with the music or have to peer from a distant balcony and imagine what the music must sound like if you had the good seats! I guess the Avalons and big Genesis's etc. can get the mojo going but at what price? They sure ought to!

I guess Doc has had a busy last few months with VSAC and his moving and restructuring his business. I've just place an order for a pair of Paramours and hope I'll get them in less time than you've waited.

Garland

Then came AR and little polite speakers that were only rivaled by string quartets playing live out-of-doors. And KLH and Advent and ADC and then Bose and finally the D'Appolito clones. All tonally correct except for the great big hole in the bottom. By now no one but a few have heard real bass; hardly anyone goes to concerts and the final two octaves are MIA. The great irony is that so many want 300 watt solid state to control bass that isn't going to be heard. Except perhaps the unwashed that listen to Cerwin Vega. Maybe they were on to something but loud doesn't equal low.

Now comes Pi. Klipsch and Altec re-visited with 21st Century upgrades. The foundation of the music is back and it's so powerful that even though the mids and treble can't be Revalator pure, it just doesn't matter. Somehow, the complete fabric of all the octaves creates a more complete illusion.

My only beef with Doc Bottlehead is that I'm so impatient to hear my Pi's with 2A3's. And when they arrive, I have to be doubly careful to go slow and not have to post for help with buzz or hum or fried this or that.