The following testimonial means a lot to me. It’s a privilege to help customers grow with their systems over the years. Tyler’s 20-year arc with us says it better than I ever could.
Jim Lee
I began my Nuts About Hi-Fi journey 20 years before I knew I would. At the original location, I went in to build an audio system for my car. One of the days I was waiting around for my install, a gentleman named Jim took me downstairs and showed me home speakers that were beyond my wildest dreams. He didn’t care that I couldn’t afford them at the time, or likely ever. He was passionate about music and wanted to show off something cool.
Fast forward 20 years, and Jim is now the owner. I went in originally wanting a TV calibration, and the staff brought me back to the showroom where I immediately recognized Focal and JL Audio, two brands I was very familiar with, at least in the car-audio world. As I have run both Focal and JL Audio equipment in my cars for years, and even sold the original JL Fathom subs when they first came out, I was intrigued by what they had accomplished in the last 20 years.
One of the things that was important to me in this process was selecting equipment from manufacturers that primarily focus on the type of equipment I was shopping for. Many electronics companies also make speakers. Focal, however, has always been regarded as a speaker manufacturer first, before anything else. I had an idea of what Focal was capable of, sound-wise, but was even more impressed by the craftsmanship and the story. Focal manufactures all of their speakers and components in-house in France—ethical labor, classy designs, automotive-grade paint finishes. Their products not only sound excellent, but the aesthetics make a statement in your room. No corners are cut, even on their entry-level gear: zero exposed hardware, and magnetic grilles finish them off.
As much as the Scala Utopias impressed, and the Sopras captured my heart with classic European automotive finishes like Nogaro Blue, the reality was they were well beyond my budget and space constraints. So, instead, I spent hours at Nuts listening to the brand-new (at the time) Aria Evo X No. 2 loudspeakers. These are an evolution of the popular Aria line of speakers after a 10-year run: a brand-new tweeter design paired with an update of Focal’s patented Flax woofers. These speakers have a full sound, even with 6-inch mid-bass drivers. I have a relatively small room, and even at a listening distance of only about eight feet, the imaging is perfect. After several months of stopping in and listening, I finally pulled the trigger.
Keeping with the theme, I went with JL Audio Dominion d110 subs. JL Audio has been a leader, if not the leader, in subwoofer technology for the last 30 years. Not only that, their equipment is designed and built in the USA. With as little space as I had, the Dominions allowed me to run a symmetrical pair versus just a single unit. In the large music room off to the side, the Dominion may not blow you away, but when we went into the theater room, which is similar in size and shape to my room, any reservations I had were put to rest. These subs will shake your pictures off the wall if you want them to, but they’re also incredibly musical.
Finally, I needed surrounds, as I use this room not only for music but for movies and gaming. I was previously running bookshelves for surrounds, so the Aria Evo X No. 1 speakers seemed to be the obvious next move. However, I was remodeling my room and had the opportunity to run brand-new wire for in-wall surrounds. Focal’s 300 IW6 in-wall speakers solved multiple problems at once. Because they don’t have cabinets, you save a significant portion of the cost, not to mention no stands needed and zero floor space surrendered. I’ve never been happier with this room.
While all of this was a huge undertaking for me, both financially and as a project, Nuts was there for me the whole way. If something went wrong, they made it right. They respected my budget and provided remote assistance on my install, which was above and beyond what was expected. I went from a kid in a fantasy land to an adult with an audio system I am proud of. To think it may never have happened, at least not this way, without my experience from 20 years prior. Thank you, Jim and the Nuts About Hi-Fi team, for making this all a reality!
Cheers,
Tyler
