Obtaininium.
If someone asked you for the sonic differences, how would you describe them?
"By sheer measurements from basic to Up4, all are identical in frequency response and impedance plot. What you actually hear is totally different, however." There's a fat black eye for the 'if it measures the same it sounds the same' brigades.
"With my lack of experience and vocabulary describing sonic character, you'll have to make do with my best if shorter effort. For the basic version, we consider it the minimum standard for proper sound quality in this league. With the Up1 and 2 versions we get cleaner more transparent control over the tweeter due to the higher-grade capacitor I use on the Raal ribbon. The midrange acquires a more intimate pleasant texture from the foil coil and we also enjoy better bass impact which reaches farther down.
"With the Up3 version we get the same benefits but now with Duelund's signature sound. The midrange gets more intense and the high treble truly silky smooth.
"With the Up4 version we get still more body, better control, clarity and separation because of all the cast filter parts and the externalized crossover so that the filter parts aren't affected by the vibrations caused by the mid/woofer.
"I've attached photos of the bracing and a drawing.
"The port is only on one side and the cabinets are mirror-imaged in that regard. I did that basically for studio purposes where space is often limited and setup very close to the front wall. For actual studio applications I have an active version. The passive version is more intended for home use.
Tested drivers and 10th Anniversary crossovers.
"The short story behind this project is that a friend in the music industry was very impressed when he auditioned the 10th Anniversary prototype whose sound is very honest, transparent and accurate.
"So he requested that I make a new model based on the Anniversary concept that would be specifically targeted at studio applications. I was planning to soon ship you the Up3 version given that I placed my parts order with Duelund in June. I was just informed that they will ship it somewhere between October and December."
Gryphon-style slightly concave baffle, with sealed filter compartment on the other end.
On build/parts quality, Vermöuth now breached the stronghold of speaker houses like Mårten or Vimberg. Clearly Hendry wasn't sipping mai tais on Kuta Beach getting a tan. He was hard at work to further elevate his brand's standing. He already enjoyed a very happy reputation for his quality cables.
How far would the Studio Monitor Up3 push that? A new audio rack was in the wings. So was a reference power distributor. Vermöuth were upwardly mobile, building out their catalogue and collecting reviews to inform the world. I was pleased that we could play our part. A growing network of distributors would do theirs. In countries without representation, customers could still deal direct and my samples would ship straight from Bali. Sunshine in a crate?
SET and transistors to insure benign load behavior into various amplifiers.
By late December, Hendry's Duelund parts still hadn't arrived. Now they were provisionally scheduled for January. Other speaker boutiques I know shun these premium parts for that very reason. They admit to their excellence but can neither afford to buy deep stock nor endless lead times to make actual sales. With his multi-tiered Studio Monitor scheme, Hendry can sell two versions even with zero Duelund inventory. Those who want his very best must simply accept longer wait times unless their order happens to coincide with the presence of all necessary parts in Denpasar. The same is true for limited-edition cars, custom-tailored shoes/suits and other exotica which are made to order. We might say that this period of anticipation is hardwired to the bespoke concept. If so, the rarer the product becomes, the longer the wait should be.
Outboard xover for the Up4 version.
In 20 years on the beat, I'd never yet heard a full Duelund crossover. Within that picture, another month or two would scarcely factor.
