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On more charged music like Rachmaninoff 's Symphonic Dances with Eiji Oue leading the Minnesota Orchestra [Reference Recordings, 24/96, B00005QD5Z), the soundstage grew very wide and deep and the Violins were hardly localizable as emissive sources. The sound was completely liquid and the two drivers seemed to merge perfectly. By comparison the K-1 added an even darker background and also more air. Depth however was assuredly first class for both, with a very precise focus on each of the myriad instruments.


On the last Volodos recording Volodos plays Mompou [Sony, B00BAC76MM], the Lawrence were able to reproduce the entire diversity of dynamic scale and the most subtle variations of the Russian maestro’s game. It is a very challenging recording which explores the piano’s full capabilities. The Violins delivered surprisingly good tonal balance for a two-way. Though I really do admire the coherence and naturalness of such speakers, it has been very rare to be rewarded with this type of linear bandwidth. The most linear on my list have been the Sonus faber Guarneri Evolution, Klinger Favre and Magico Mini - all priced in a much higher league. Of course the Violins were not as open, transparent or blessed with such ultimate tone but they delivered the same type of neutrality a sound engineer would praise for exacting monitoring purposes. The rather more obvious limitation in fact seemed to be treble extension which always felt a bit recessed by contrast to my Vivid K-1 or what their B-1 monitor achieves. Though I would not call the Violins rolled off on top, I'd simply describe them as not ultimately illuminated.

 
With Rodrigo & Gabriela’s Live in Japan [Because Music, B0044ZQ8IA], one particular feature of the Violins became obvious - tremendous power handling. Even at insane levels the Taiwanese monitors showed no sign of stress or compressed tone. Once again the focus on both guitars was outstanding. Against the Vivid they simply lacked some upper harmonics for a less splendid saturated midrange.

 
On female voices blended with Javier Limon’s flamenco guitar on Mujeres de Agua [Wrasse Import, B005AEQWZS, the Violins reproduced the breezy voices of the "Amanecer en Estambul" opener with accuracy thanks to great liquidity. Depth was another salient point with extremely good focus. The uppermost harmonics of the guitars were softened but the treble was also calm and devoid of potential fatigue even over the long run despite a slight emphasis in the upper presence band. The greater transparency of my K-1 and their harmonic richness favored more involving tone which had the Violins duller or more hooded by comparison. Yet it was no night'n'day contrast.

 
On Thomas Ornberg’s Blue Five & the Swedish Jazz Kings [Opus 3, SACD 22101], the Violin generated a bit less energy than the Vivid but again focus was nearly as sharp and the bass registers were astonishingly solid. I in fact never had reason to suspect any shyness on that count. The Violin also shifted through dynamic swings with aplomb and got seriously loud during intense trumpet and sax solos though without any hint of stress. I think we can agree how that's not entirely normal behavior for a still within-reach monitor speaker on a stand.


Conclusion. Summing up, the Violins pay back in full for their sticker. You obtain a beautiful whilst singular appearance, a seamless sound, satisfying resolution and scaled-up staging. Beyond these subjective whilst technical considerations, the most striking feature remains their ability to deliver full immersion with neutral sonics due to efficient enclosure and xover design work. That’s not so common when dealing with speakers of such strong-willed shape. They are however far more sensitive to cables than my Vivid Audio speakers to make it mandatory to exercise proper care on choosing the most copasetic wires.


The quality of placement is another decisive point. Once perfectly installed, these do not sound like small speakers. That said, the Violins can be successfully inserted into a small modest system just as they suit very sophisticated contexts. To get their very best I would personally look at EL34 tube amplification or a fine 6550 push-pull variant. For anyone looking for an accomplished monitor at the €6K mark or above, the Violins are a very commendable choice.
Lawrence Audio website