"whats all this Athena hype they are not any good"

 

New member
Username: T_bomb25

Dayton, Ohio United States

Post Number: 1
Registered: Jun-05
Athena is not agood speaker by any standard and that include price.They sound bright and boxy and there are several speakers that are better they are becoming the new Bose
 

New member
Username: T_bomb25

Dayton, Ohio United States

Post Number: 5
Registered: Jun-05
I see all the owners of these mediocore speakers are afraid to show thier faces.Im not trying to bash anyones speakers but most of these followers must go to Best Buy exclusively to post these untrue claims of these speakers.go to aspeacialty store to here some real speakers.Your ears will be rewarded greatly!
 

Silver Member
Username: Touche6784

Post Number: 426
Registered: Nov-04
great posts!! keep them coming!!
 

Silver Member
Username: Donaldekelly

Washington, DC Usa

Post Number: 161
Registered: Jul-04
This is a minority opinion. Most people on hifi lists respect Athenas - for the price. Most hate Bose, or at least think they are overpriced.

My B1s are not as good as my axioms or Ascends, but I like them and think they are good for the price ($100).

What cheap speakers would you recommend Tawaun?
 

Silver Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 998
Registered: Mar-05
LOL Tawaun,

Would you be so kind as to recommend an alternative to the Athenas within the same price range, possessing significantly better sound quality?

Here are a few price ranges on Athena speakers, from audioadvisor.com:

AS-F2 towers, $500/pr. shipped
AS-B2 bookshelves, $150/pr. shipped
AS-B1 bookshelves, $100/pr. shipped
 

New member
Username: T_bomb25

Dayton, Ohio United States

Post Number: 8
Registered: Jun-05
SDATS are better and anyway the Athenas didnt use to be cheap they had to slash the price and put them in achain store to sell them.
 

Somed00d
Unregistered guest

I have never heard Athena's, but your opinion is the same ive heard many times at Audio Asylum. Samething happened to me after I heard all the hype surrounding the Toshiba SD-3950, everyone said its a giant killer and has awesome sound quality. Well to be blunt, it sucked, the Toshiba had no bass whatsoever, forward midrange and just seemed way to unbalanced. My $100 Kenwood 5 disc cd changer I bought 4 years ago blew it away, way more balanced and listenable, but it didnt have the soundstage or imaging of Toshiba. Overall id rather own the Kenwood anyday. Giant killers ususally dont pan out, and this is the second case where it didnt.
 

Silver Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 1000
Registered: Mar-05
The AS-F2s used to be $400/pr. shipped at audioadvisor, they are now $500/pr. because they are the new F2.2 version.

I've never listed to SDAT speakers, but the only time I ever see anyone recommending those on audio forums is if they are looking at the $150/pr. Sony speakers price range.

Sorry, when I look at pics like this:

http://www.overstock.com/cgi-bin/d2.cgi?page=proframe&prod_id=882588

I am a little skeptical...they look like the kind of big garish cheapo equipment sold at my local Mexican flea market or Fiesta supermarket.
 

Silver Member
Username: Touche6784

Post Number: 427
Registered: Nov-04
haha, edster i couldnt agree more. the sdats look like crap and i honestly cant imagine how garbled the documentation is that comes with the speakers when the website is in jibberish. hopefully the sound engineers weren't as stupid. and tawaun, not that many here thinks that athenas are god's given gift to earth. get a life.
 

Bronze Member
Username: T_bomb25

Dayton, Ohio United States

Post Number: 12
Registered: Jun-05
I dont know ive got some expensive gear but my friends and they were real good kinda shocked me so bought some the ones that have the teater on the top the B&ws those are the one Kenny Li said were the best the sb639d i hpoe they are really good because i want to sell some and make money off of im thinking about getting the whole line selling them so i can get me some superspeakers over 5000.00 a pair
 

Silver Member
Username: Danman

QUEBEC CANADA

Post Number: 207
Registered: Apr-04
Tawaun........How do you like your 9.5's? I don't want to get involved in this argument!
 

Silver Member
Username: Danman

QUEBEC CANADA

Post Number: 208
Registered: Apr-04
By the way, I agree........those SDAT's look pretty bad.
 

Silver Member
Username: Touche6784

Post Number: 428
Registered: Nov-04
tawaun your last post made no sense.
 

Bronze Member
Username: T_bomb25

Dayton, Ohio United States

Post Number: 14
Registered: Jun-05
I like them im sure i could live with them in my main system but i havent spent any time with them in two channel im still listning to MS 908s its hard to stay away from them
 

Silver Member
Username: Twebbz

Ann Arbor, Michigan USA

Post Number: 141
Registered: Apr-04
Tawaun is smokin somthin' and he's trying to start a fight...He must be living without air conditioning and is crabby!

Yea! You hit a nerve, Tawaun. I have both the AS-F2s and AS-F1s and from my posts, everybody thinks I'm a SALESMAN FOR ATHENA on this forum. I like them that much....

BUT, On THIS speaker forum, WE kindly say that we don't care for a particular speaker for some reason or another if that's the way we feel and offer a possible alternative or a constructive idea to the person who has asked the question. Yes, we all have different tastes so don't go slamming speakers just because the RAP you listen to on them "JUST DUNT GIT IT".
 

Bronze Member
Username: T_bomb25

Dayton, Ohio United States

Post Number: 15
Registered: Jun-05
No Danman im not a fan those SDATs looks.they look like a Legacy Whisper copy but i have a few guys that are quite good im getting the sb 639d they look much better and are the better of the two for audiophile listening hey China builds 80 % of the speakers on the market word is that SDAT is one of the premier speaker builders in China and they are the biggest OEM driver company in China not Usher kinda hard to believe cant wait to here the 639s i heard the 404 they incredible for the money much much better than the Athenas and that is their entry level model.
 

Silver Member
Username: Twebbz

Ann Arbor, Michigan USA

Post Number: 152
Registered: Apr-04
Go To "Speaker advice for a Rock n' Roll Fan" and the other recent ATHENA threads. If you have any questions, I have the AS-F2s and AS-F1s and would be happy to give you my truly BIASED opinion.
 

Silver Member
Username: Twebbz

Ann Arbor, Michigan USA

Post Number: 154
Registered: Apr-04
Sorry Fred, not my department.
 

Silver Member
Username: Artk

Albany, Oregon USA

Post Number: 990
Registered: Feb-05
Not everybody blew off Fred. I did my best to answer him. My take on Athena speakers is that they sound pretty good for the money. At their low end they have a very cheap feel even though they are still a bargain in the sound department. As you move up they have a more quality feel. My biggest gripe with them is how light and thin the cabinets feel. They still manage a decent sounding speaker though. Bravo to Athena.
 

Silver Member
Username: Twebbz

Ann Arbor, Michigan USA

Post Number: 158
Registered: Apr-04
The Series one AS-F2 is 51 Lbs. The Series One AS-F1 is 41Lbs.
Light and flimsy, they are not. Contruction is very solid, fit and finish is impeccable.
 

Silver Member
Username: Twebbz

Ann Arbor, Michigan USA

Post Number: 159
Registered: Apr-04
Tawaun Quote: "Athena is not agood speaker by any standard and that include the price."

Tawaun Quote: "...Athenas they are very good for the money."
 

Unregistered guest
Rick, I received my Athena ASF2.2's yesterday and first hooked them up to my Mistubishi M-VR700 receiver and they sounded great. I then hooked them up to my Harman Kardon AVR120 receiver, which is the receiver I intended to use them with, and the power and sound quality seems inferior compared to being hooked up to the M-VR700. I've owned both receivers for a few years and was under the impression that the HK AVR120 was a much higher quality receiver. Any ideas or suggestions? The Mistubishi M-VR700 is hooked up to my Mistubishi big screen and HT system. I specifically needed to use the Athenas with the HK AVR120...
 

Silver Member
Username: Twebbz

Ann Arbor, Michigan USA

Post Number: 165
Registered: Apr-04
Gee, I have NO experience with AV receivers. I've heard that Athena and HK are a good combination. Maybe there is a setting on the HK that needs to be changed. Try a post on the HOME THEATER section of Ecoustics. Sorry.
 

Gold Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 1050
Registered: Mar-05
I know nothing about the Mitsu receiver you have, but I can tell you that generally the bigger the speaker, the more quality power it is going to need to sound its best. The AVR120 is probably rated at around 40wpc by HK, which means probably 90wpc as "rated" by most big-box store brands. I imagine the AVR120 would probably make a small bookshelf sound at least as good as the Mitsu though.

BTW are you using the AVR120 to play 2-channel only on the Athenas, or are you also running other speakers too with it at the same time?
 

Unregistered guest
The AVR120 is rated at 50wpc by HK. I am using the AVR120 to play 2 channel only on the Athenas, no other speakers. They definitely do not sound bad, just not as good as when hooked up to the Mits receiver, which seemed odd based on my understanding that the HK receiver was much better...
How much of a difference does expensive speaker wire make in the sound quality of speakers in this category / price range...?
 

Silver Member
Username: Danman

QUEBEC CANADA

Post Number: 242
Registered: Apr-04
I am not sure it has to do with low price as much as trusting our own instincts! Too many people rely on what others have instead of going out and listening......That is why they get the need to always upgrade. The only reason I did not upgrade to hi end is because I like what I have and figure that at the prices I spend for my gear, I can maintain this level when new models come out like for example a new NAD CD player maybe next year. If I were to buy a NAIM for 3000$++ then I am with this model for many years even though I am sure I could live with it BUT there is just not that much difference anymore since most hi end companies are having trouble making ends meet. I have listened to many different makes over the years to prove this to myself. People have some really good choices at the budget level now that 5 years ago would have been pretty highup!

By the way, I agree with jo, leave Tawaun alone! I like him.........he speaks his mind but is not trying to bash anyone like some are doing here!
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