Devore Orangutan 0/93 & Zu Druid V - similar?

Looking to purchase a new pair of speakers and these two have my interest, Devore Orangutan 0/93 and the Zu Druid Mk V. Problem is no one carries the 0/93 that is closer than a 2 plus hour drive into NYC, which I do not want to do and the Druid I can listen to at home but if not happy must send back, which seems like a big hassle and I believe the shipping back is on me.

I am interested in opinions; are these two speakers comparable as I believe, or close. Based on cost one would be led to believe the Devore is the better speaker but cost is certainly not a good criteria to base sound of a speaker on. If however you believe one is a much stronger contender then why? Are either forgiving on the high frequency end when the recording is poor / compressed / brick walled?

Right now I have a pair of studio nearfield monitors that give me fantastic sound staging, air, detail, and punch. The sound is very "live" sounding as though you could reach out and touch the musicians. This type of sound I love, however being nearfield monitors makes them sensitive to poor recordings and if the recording is compressed and brick walled then they can become fatiguing in the high end range. I want a detailed sounding speaker with similar features but one that is more forgiving in the high end. From reviews I have read I believe the Devore is like this but I am not sure that the Zu is.

Opinions on an individual speaker will be helpful to me, however I really would love a comparison between the two speakers since if the Druid V is comparable then there is a good savings I would be able to take advantage of, a little over $8K for the Devore vs. a little over $5K for the Zu. The Devore in the Fiddleback Mahogany finish is a wonder to the eye. The Zu has some great paint finishes which I would be very satisfied with, but that Mahogany is to die for but not worth $3K more if the Zu sounds very close to the Devore.

 

If your looking to invest $5-8K on a pair of speakers, why wouldn't you spend half a day to actually listen to them first?

 

Have you tried Stereo Trading Outlet in Jenkintown? They're a Devore dealer.

 

I will if I am some what confident they are what I hope they are, based on feedback here. I however am not prepared to take a train to NYC or drive up with having only read reviews. If there isn't anyone who is familiar then I will just cross them off my list since there are so many speaker choices and look elsewhere but these two have caught my eye.

 

Great idea and yes, they are a dealer which isn't listed on the Devore web site, just found this out. Michael Leshner does not stock this model. I do plan to go there this coming weekend to discuss the speaker with him and hopefully he may have sold a pair locally and can connect me with that person for an audition.

Thanks for the suggestion.

 

"speaker love is in the ear of the beholder"

 

I own a set of Zu's. A couple thoughts... first, Zu pays return shipping if you decide to return. You only pay shipping one way. With that said, I'm not sure the Druids are for you with their 101db efficiency. Zu generally does not make claims to mask deficiencies of bad recordings, in fact they usually say the opposite. However, I'd encourage you to give them a call.

 

To understand you completely here are you saying that there's no bass compression problem, like booming and sounding hard, artificial and fatiguing at loud volumes, and you'll drop 5-8K on a new set of speakers due to a compressed/fatiguing sounding mastering or poor recording?

It seems like a broad paint brush stroke with new speakers to mask a software/source problem that can not honestly be undone with that particular software pressing.

 

What I am saying is that I am exploring new speakers to determine if my speakers can be surpassed due to the fact that I am not 100% satisfied with their sound all of the time. Maybe as I believe you are trying to point out to me that I have unrealistic expectations, bad recordings are bad and "all" speakers will show these flaws off. This will be proved by listening to speakers and making that determination. I have come across speakers that are not as affected by poor recordings as other, but then these speakers aren't detailed enough for my taste. I am trying to balance something that is hard to balance, but believe can be balanced if I look and investigate hard enough.

Yes I do love my speakers however I believe one of the qualities I love which is how revealing and detailed they are may be too extreme due to the fact that they bring out the flaws in poorer recordings too strongly and maybe there are other more current speakers that can still be revealing and detailed but not to the same level as mine which will let me enjoy more music. With that in mind through my research I came across these two speakers that have perked my interest and are in my price range, one at the bottom and the other at the top. I may find that I am searching for something I will not find, since I have already eliminated Joseph Audio's Pulsar (not enough bass) and Harbeth's Super 5HL Plus (a little too musical) as not as enjoyable to listen to as my speakers, both being excellent speakers in their own right and great sounding. I may be wrong but it seems there is a scale that good speakers slide along in there design philosophy which goes from one end as "musical" and the other extreme end as "revealing". Too musical and the music becomes great background music and too revealing and the music becomes a tool to examine music with. I am trying to determine if my speaker are too far down toward the revealing end of this scale. I also may have a very naive view that there is an almost "perfect" speaker that sounds great 99% of the time, and can be both revealing and musical, all at the same time. This speaker would fall between the mid point and maybe 3/4 of the way toward revealing. Maybe none of this makes sense.

As some one posted that they felt the Druid might be also too revealing, like my speakers, is something that I have always thought might be true. This is why I want to give them a listen because they might be just a tad further toward the mid point of my scale and end up being the perfect balance between revealing and musical. The same goes for the Devore. Where my speakers bother me the most is the upper end on bad recordings. The high frequencies on brick walled music just is way too bothersome and unfortunately too many recordings are coming mastered this way and I want to be able to listen to them at some level of volume. Please don't say listen to vinyl, thanks. Maybe my post is misleading, I should just have said describe the highend frequencies on the Zu and Devore and how forgiving are they on brick walled CDs. Again my search may be unrealistic, but I am having fun listening to speakers on the way.

 

I'm looking for the same thing as you, I believe...though I'm less concerned about lower quality recordings. Have you considered adding Audio Note AN-E's or AN-J's to your list? I'd also keep an eye out locally for an old pair of Snell A or J's. They could be a nice stopgap or backup pair and give you a taste of what you're looking for.

 

To me, the two speakers mentioned are quite different in sound. The Zu is more dynamic and impactful, while the Devore goes for a smoother, more relaxed sound. The Zu can sound a bit rough and would probably be not as forgiving of bad material, while the Devore might sound a bit too polite and lacking in kick with some material. Like everything in audio, there are tradeoffs. If you require a visceral punch to your bass, then the Zu would be the choice. I think James offered a good suggestion that you also add Audio Note speakers to your audition list, although the bass response is on the full, but not tight and punchy, side. I would add Harbeth and ProAc as other candidates.

 

Thank you, this is what I am looking for, opinions and recommendation based on experience with these speakers.

I am going to a Devore dealer this weekend to hopefully locate an owner in my area willing to let me audition this speaker and I found locally someone interested in selling the Zu Druis mk4. This should be close enough to the mk5 to determine if I like the Zu sound.

 

I would say DeVore's of the Gibbon line are smoother in their presentation. The Orangutans are a whole different beast. They are quite dynamic and have good snap, all while retaining the nice smooth high frequencies. I've owned Gibbon 8's, The Nines, 3XL's and now the O/93s. The 93s are definitely my favorite. If you're really considering them, a two hour drive to NY is not that big of deal, considering you'd be plopping down $8,400 to buy them. You'd also be able to hear some other DeVore models while you're there.

 

I own the O/96 and have listened to the 93's extensively. They are extremely impactful with some of the best low end out there, going low and tuneful. Drums are insane on these. The 96's go just a smidgen lower than the 93's. These are speakers that would never be thought to lack dynamics. Just my opinion of course. Good luck with your search.

 

Weird. Seems like there are two different views of the O's in this thread. I was surprised hearing the 96's...they had way less low end impact than my little Vienna Acoustics floorstanders. Not totally fair though, I heard the O96's in a much bigger room with a much smaller amp than I had at home.

 

The Orangutans are very good all-around speakers. They are pretty good at dynamics at lower volume levels (they don't sound dead, like a lot of modern speakers sound when played at modest levels), although not in the same league as the better horn-based systems. I like the tunefulness of the bass; you hear subtle differences in tone and attack of the note vs. other speakers that deliver more punch, but have a sameness to the sound of certain instruments, such as drums. They work well with low-powered tube gear, so they must be easy to drive. I have only heard them at dealers and at shows, but, they have always sounded good, so I am guessing that they are not very fussy about setup.

The Zu I have heard only at shows, but, I have heard them in a lot of different setups. For some reason, most of the exhibitors have used them with solid state gear. They deliver more of the WOW factor, right off the bat than the Orangutan, but, I do wonder how that sound would wear in the long run. I think one should audition the speakers over a fairly long time to determine if its obvious strength--dynamics, speed, and clarity--do not become tiresome in the long run. I wish I heard them with familiar tube gear.

 

I was under the impression the o/93 was a very dynamic speaker so I'm glad to hear this confirmed in a couple of posts. I would never buy anything at this price point without a hands on experience but wanted some feedback from people who have had real "in their home" experience with them prior to going into NYC. I am also hoping to hear them locally first also. I believe there must be a real difference between the Druid sound and the O/93's sound to make justification for the price difference, more than the exotic looking veneers available. I am beginning to believe the Devore is a bit more refined in its sound.

 

Couldn't agree more with these posts. I also have owned DeVore speakers and have listened to them all. The 0/93 and 0/96 have outstanding dynamic slam. Very live and real sounding. More so than any other speakers that I have heard at anywhere near their price.

 

If you are looking for smoothness in the high end, note that the mkV's have the Radian tweeter, whereas the mkIV's will not.

 

I had the opportunity to listen to the O/96s at my house and was really impressed. That being said, my impression was that they didn't necessarily suit a really live room. In every circumstance (changing components), I preferred my Audio Note AN-E SPE HEs, but you may feel differently.

If the Audio Note speakers weren't available to me, I would definitely be leaning towards the DeVores. Probably O/93s for my room size.

 

The AN-E vs. the Orangutan 093 would be an interesting comparison. Both strike me has being extremely enjoyable speakers that do a great job of immersing the listener in the musical experience. When you first listen to them, particularly the AN-E, it sounds like the bass is too big and indistinct and not up to audiophile standards. But, the more one listens the more"right" they sound. They can both pull off the difficult trick of sounding both dynamic and relaxed at the same time (they are plenty fast, but don't impart an artificial edginess to the initial attack of the note). To fully appreciate both speakers, one needs to audition them for a fairly long session, they might not have the kind of hyper detailed sound that catches ones attention, but, that kind of sound could grow tiresome very quickly; the merits of both speakers are best appreciated in long sessions.

 

The responses to this thread I started have been extremely helpful to me. What I just realized is that my system is fine the way it is. I have had unrealistic expectations, bright poorly recorded music is just that and my speakers being as good as they are highlight this, so I need to accept it or just avoid those CDs I am bothered by and not blame my system. Yes there are better components I could purchase however I must live within my means and I have come to that point that what I've pulled together in components are nicely marched, play beautifully, are highly musical and the best that I can afford and that's fine. I've got to learn how to appreciate what I own and I thank those who posted with suggestions or comments that inferred I was being unreasonable with my expectations. This has been enlightening for me.

 

It's always a good thing to appreciate what you have. The task now is to relax and enjoy your system! The only thing that I would keep in mind is that there are sources out there that have high resolution, but don't necessarily punish you for listening to a poor recording or mastering. You know that it is poorly recorded, but you can still enjoy music through it. Perhaps one day try bringing home such a source component and see what you think. I used to have a couple of different DACs that had quite good resolution, but one was much better than the other at keeping the enjoyment of music. My recently updated turntable is much better yet at that.

Happy listening : )

 

There's absolutely no substitute for an audition. Even the most forthright dealer wants to make a buck

I heard the O/96 in NYC last year. Not blown away.

I recently heard a highly vaunted $14,000 pair of speakers. Ehh

 

Do the 93's have grills like the 96's do?