Sonus Faber Olympica Nova 3 replacing Focal Kanta 2

Today a new pair of Sonus Faber Olympica Nova 3 was delivered. They are in Wengé colour and will be used with my set 252/SuperCapDr/300Dr/NDX2/555Dr. The Sonus Faber replace my Focal Kanta 2 which I enjoyed for 2 years.

Reason for buying is that I was looking for a speaker with more silky-soft high and a more relaxed sound; The Kanta’s are fantastic and I’d recommend them without doubt. There character is very direct and « in-the-face ». Something I really appreciated initially, but over time a feeling of looking into something more polite, built up with me.

They are running in so difficult to really judge so far, but I’ll drop some observations in a week or so

Iver

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They sure are pretty that’s for sure.

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Very nice speakers. Love my Cremona M and curious of the differences with the new generation.

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Cremona’s are lovely as well … their looks …pffff :slight_smile:

One of things that Sonus Faber changed with the Nova in comparison to the Cremonia and the previous Olympica’s, is that there is no tilt anymore. Not sure what the reasoning was. The speakers are now just « straight standing » like the vast majority of speakers.

Still running in. I haven’t applied any toe-in yet but might be in a week or so. What I can hear already is a very holographic sound stage. Music completely gets « loose of the speakers « (hope that is correct English; I try to say that the music does not seem to come from the speakers, but is just there)

Iver

Iver, they look lovely. It’s such a nice design. The words you are looking for are ‘free of the speakers’. Mine also do exactly as you describe, like the speakers aren’t there and the sound inhabits the room. A lot of systems don’t seem to do this and it is very satisfying when they do.

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Hey @anon4489532, thanks for helping me out. “Free of speakers” was indeed the wording I was looking for. It’s just not always easy describing if you are not natively English.

I know the SL2’s have that ability as well. They are stunning, but unfortunately I cannot have it all.

Iver

Lovely looking speaker, too many speakers have veneers that look like plastic these days…so well done Sonus faber.

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What I heard (from reviews) is that first gen. Olympica are « straights » compared to Cremona M, loosing the light coloration in mid range - medium.

Also heard Serafino in a shop in Paris. Very high level speakers, much better than Cremona. At that time, price was about 16 k€, now at 20 k€…

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I auditioned the Serafino’s against the Nova 3. Both very good to my opinion, yet I didn’t notice a huge difference in sound so thought the Serafino’s were not worth the uplift. They both have a very similar sound in terms of coloring, imaging and timbre (silky soft).

What is quite different is that the looks and build of the Serafino is yet in another league. They are gorgeous, but that comes of course with a price:-)

Wow Iver, you have made some serious upgrades since the last time we spoke many moons ago here on the old Forum. If memory serves, at that time we had systems more alike??? You must correct me if I am wrong.

Those speakers look really amazing, would love to hear Bach’s Cello Suites whilst holding a glass of Port In that room. Congrats.

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Ah, Bach’s Cello Suites. I wonder if you have heard this, transcribed for violin and quite wonderful. Free of the speakers!

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Not heard this one HH. I have Paul Tortelier and Rostropovich and Glenn Gould. I prefer Tortelier so far.

Thanks for the tip.

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Hey @JOF, thanks for your note. I hope all is well in Norway and you are still enjoying the Harbeths.

Yes, quite a journey indeed but you know; I need to work ridiculously hard and the music-hobby is just for me the way to relax a little bit. I have been enjoying 5-series and SuperNait/HiCap/NDX systems (with Allae’s) for many, many years and both are superb. The more advanced ranges bring some extra, but let’s be honest, it is also not night and day. I just love the hobby and am happy that I can still focus on the music and not too much the system. Also learnt that the system I have today is probably the level that I will stick with, and that’s perfectly fine with me. Going up is not for my wallet and I think the differences are rather small. I might change a cable here and there and maybe look into power-handling (seriously considering listening to IsoTek Titan or AudioQuest Niagara), but that’s it.

The recent streaming services like Tidal and Qobuz, combined with Roon, all did it for me: the wealth of music accessible in such a super-quality is a game-changer. I can’t stop exploring and that probably explains my attention to the system as well :slight_smile:

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The tweeter on the Cremona was out of phase compared to the mid / bass drivers so if mounted vertically the treble would reach your ears before the bass.
The tilt was part of the design to time align the drivers and I’ve found the rake angle to be quite important when setting up the speakers.
No idea about the new Olympics but perhaps the tweeters and bass drivers are now in phase.

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Yes all is good here Iver…summer seems to have delivered this holiday weekend.

I’ve, not had the urge to upgrade very much, the fewer high end systems I have had the pleasure of listening to have tapped me on the shoulder to remind me that there is room to grow. But then children came along and the financial commitments to HiFi were given less importance.

However, I am always appreciative of other members systems. I think it’s important that people who have worked hard to buy pieces of kit to improve their system are given congratulations for that.

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Hi Iver,

Congratulations on the new speakers, they look fantastic. I run Sonus Faber Olympica 1’s with my Naim system and they are just a stunning combination. I understand that the Olympica and Olympica Nova are less warm than past Sonus Faber offerings but they balance digging out a huge amount of information whilst managing to sound so organic. Their clarity can also be spellbinding.

After much trial and error, I found that mine sound best toed in directly towards the listening position. This focuses voices and just seems ‘right’. Do try that once they’ve settled in and see how you get on. A friend of mine had Sonus Faber Futura Amati and they too were positioned toed in toward the listener.

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Hey @Jason, that’s what I read as well. The guy from the dealer who installed them yesterday recommended to first run-in, and then start playing with the exact positioning. For the moment they have no toe-in and are exactly on the same position as my previous loudspeakers (which I marked on the floor :slight_smile:)

Iver

The Olympicas must be great because I’ve heard the Kantas and they are fabulous

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Hey @Boratri,

Both the Kanta’s and Nova’s are superb loudspeakers.

The Kanta’s are way more direct and “in the face” whereas the Nova’s have a more laid-back signature. It’s just a matter of preference I believe. For me the Nova’s are the preferred ones. The trebles are more silky and what stands out is that the music is full free from the speakers. Never experienced that so intense.

Iver

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