Well fair bit happening in the last few weeks!

Last hifi show weekend was massive, and l thought that the show was one of the best years ever, with a really great, happy vibe. 😊 

 

So many well setup rooms too, one of these being the Dacman room that @Hulgich Audio shared with Stav.

 

After speaking with Nick, we arranged for him and Anthony Holton,  of  @Aussieamps to visit my home on the Monday immediately after the  show for lunch.

 

 

 

 

They brought along their respective wares, straight from the hifi show demonstration rooms!

Nick's extraordinary Hulgich Duke Floor stander speakers, and Anthony brought his just released Gambit Monoblock amplifiers, for a first time ever together listening session!

And they sounded absolutely fantastic, couldn't have been more impressed. 🙂

 

Hard to top having two of the top guys in Australian Audio, coming and testing their gear in your own home system. 😁

The Hulgich Duke's are staying on for now, until Nick comes back - which could be sooner than l want! 😉

 

After some fine tuning placement wise, they are sounding absolutely spectacular! 

Wall of sound good, in fact. 😍

 

Obviously l will need to get some of the regulars over soon, for an appraisal of their considerable attributes! 

Edited September 6, 2025Sep 6 by evil c

28 minutes ago, evil c said:

Well fair bit happening in the last few weeks!

Last hifi show weekend was massive, and l thought that the show was one of the best years ever, with a really great, happy vibe. 😊 

 

So many well setup rooms too, one of these being the Dacman room that @Hulgich Audio shared with Stav.

 

After speaking with Nick, we arranged for him and Anthony Holton,  of  @Aussieamps to visit my home on the Monday immediately after the  show for lunch.

 

 

 

 

They brought along their respective wares, straight from the hifi show demonstration rooms!

Nick's extraordinary Hulgich Duke Floor stander speakers, and Anthony brought his just released Gambit Monoblock amplifiers, for a first time ever together listening session!

And they sounded absolutely fantastic, couldn't have been more impressed. 🙂

 

Hard to top having two of the top guys in Australian Audio, coming and testing their gear in your own home system. 😁

The Hulgich Duke's are staying on for now, until Nick comes back - which could be sooner than l want! 😉

 

After some fine tuning placement wise, they are sounding absolutely spectacular! 

Wall of sound good, in fact. 😍

 

Obviously l will need to get some of the regulars over soon, for an appraisal of their considerable attributes! 

 

Lucky you! 😍

 

What's the difference between the Dukes and you Astors?

1 minute ago, dcathro said:

 

Lucky you! 😍

 

What's the difference between the Dukes and you Astors?

Thanks mate, indeed and two of the nicest guys too! 

 

Very good question, the Duke's being the evolution from the Astor's. 

They are both incredible speakers, with the Duke's extracting even more - probably best that Nick explains it much better than l can! 🙂

You there mate? 

5 minutes ago, evil c said:

Thanks mate, indeed and two of the nicest guys too! 

 

Very good question, the Duke's being the evolution from the Astor's. 

They are both incredible speakers, with the Duke's extracting even more - probably best that Nick explains it much better than l can! 🙂

You there mate? 

I’ll get back to you with a response after I finish making a couple of homemade pizzas for the family. Your wine gift is also waiting to be enjoyed.
Afterwards comes the much-anticipated rugby match between Argentina and the Wallabies—a win-win situation for me since I’m cheering for both teams!

I hope you guys can understand the delay in my response, but after preparing for the show for a month, my family is now requiring some of my attention.
I'll be back at around 4 or 5 pm this afternoon.
Cheers
Nick
HULGICHAUDIO

"The Hulgich Duke's are staying on for now, until Nick comes back - which could be sooner than l want!"

 

Change the locks 😛

59 minutes ago, Darryl said:

"The Hulgich Duke's are staying on for now, until Nick comes back - which could be sooner than l want!"

 

Change the locks 😛

I believe that crowd funding is again, a viable option to ensure their permanent place!

My tastes, have always surpassed my permissable expenditure ! 😉

 

Edited September 6, 2025Sep 6 by evil c

2 hours ago, evil c said:

Thanks mate, indeed and two of the nicest guys too! 

 

Very good question, the Duke's being the evolution from the Astor's. 

They are both incredible speakers, with the Duke's extracting even more - probably best that Nick explains it much better than l can! 🙂

You there mate? 

 

I thought the Dukes were producing the best sound at the show!

7 minutes ago, dcathro said:

 

I thought the Dukes were producing the best sound at the show!

They did sound excellent agreed, but l know that there were challenges, to eliminate issues in the  hifi show room, before they were at what you heard.

 

They are now performing at a whole new level, after some judicious tweaks in my system !

Imaging and tonality, bass, dynamics, etc.

🙂

What a rugby match between Argentina and the Wallabies, decided in 6 minutes of extra time! At first, I thought it would be an easy win for Los Pumas, but Australia came back strong in the second half, determined to take the victory. They finally beat Argentina 28 to 24.
It was an incredible match.
They’ll be playing again next week, but I can’t imagine who will be on the field, as it was a hard-fought battle.

And the moral of the story is:

Never ask an Argentinean about anything, other than Rugby or soccer when it's playing !! 😂

Edited September 6, 2025Sep 6 by evil c

2 hours ago, evil c said:

My tastes, have always surpassed my permissable expenditure !

I think that you're speaking for everyone on SNA.

18 minutes ago, evil c said:

And the moral of the story is:

Never ask an Argentinean about anything, other than Rugby or soccer when it's playing !! 😂

So true 😂 😂 😂

1 minute ago, Hulgich Audio said:

So true 😂 😂 😂

I blame myself Nick, you already mentioned that you were about to enjoy my wine! 😉

I can attempt to answer for both of us, on the differences if you like? 🤔

Coming back to the differences between the Astors and the Dukes:

Both speakers are three-way designs with similar characteristics, but we spent an entire year working hard to test new drivers because we weren’t completely satisfied with the consistency of the peerless midwoofer and the Scanspeak tweeter used in the Astors, even though they sound very good.

 

After testing many high-end drivers, we found that the distortion levels of the Satori line from SB Acoustics were fantastic, so we decided to try them to see if we liked the sound.

The first version of the Dukes was excellent, producing a cleaner and more open sound.

 

While we liked the Scanspeak soft dome tweeter in the Astors, I personally preferred the neutrality of the Satori ring radiator tweeter. The Satori midrange was simply outstanding, as was the Satori woofer.

 

Another advantage of the Satori drivers is their ability to produce a nice extended frequency range with minimal distortion, making driver integration much easier.

 

For the Dukes, we also aimed to create a wider and taller frequency response with a very smooth off-axis response. To achieve this, the speaker’s front baffle was designed in its present shape.

 

Finding the right balance was tricky and took us a long time.

 

Measurements alone don’t tell the full story of a loudspeaker’s sound. Elements such as transparency, micro-detail retrieval, bass speed and character, overall musicality, and emotion are equally important.

 

To give you an example: While measurements are indispensable for the technical foundation of loudspeaker design, the final judgment—and true magic—lies in the art of voicing and the subjective experience of listening. The best loudspeakers result from a perfect synergy between science and art.

Sound is ultimately a matter of personal preference, but for us, the sound produced by the Dukes is noticeably more detailed, open, and refined compared to the Astors. We believe this contributes to the listening experience in a meaningful way, though, of course, every listener's taste is unique.

15 minutes ago, Hulgich Audio said:

Coming back to the differences between the Astors and the Dukes:

Both speakers are three-way designs with similar characteristics, but we spent an entire year working hard to test new drivers because we weren’t completely satisfied with the consistency of the peerless midwoofer and the Scanspeak tweeter used in the Astors, even though they sound very good.

 

After testing many high-end drivers, we found that the distortion levels of the Satori line from SB Acoustics were fantastic, so we decided to try them to see if we liked the sound.

The first version of the Dukes was excellent, producing a cleaner and more open sound.

 

While we liked the Scanspeak soft dome tweeter in the Astors, I personally preferred the neutrality of the Satori ring radiator tweeter. The Satori midrange was simply outstanding, as was the Satori woofer.

 

Another advantage of the Satori drivers is their ability to produce a nice extended frequency range with minimal distortion, making driver integration much easier.

 

For the Dukes, we also aimed to create a wider and taller frequency response with a very smooth off-axis response. To achieve this, the speaker’s front baffle was designed in its present shape.

 

Finding the right balance was tricky and took us a long time

Sound is ultimately a matter of personal preference, but for us, the sound produced by the Dukes is noticeably more detailed, open, and refined compared to the Astors. We believe this contributes to the listening experience in a meaningful way, though, of course, every listener's taste is unique.

 

Thanks for your insight, Nick!

I will probably never be able to offload my Astor's, after that breakdown of its inadequacies in comparison! 😬

Plan was to  forever hold onto them, anyway.

 

Oh well, l still think they're remarkable reference speakers!  "Horses for courses" 😉

Edited September 6, 2025Sep 6 by evil c

12 minutes ago, evil c said:

 

Thanks for your insight, Nick!

I will probably never be able to offload my Astor's, after that breakdown of its inadequacies in comparison! 😬

Plan was to  forever hold onto them, anyway.

 

Oh well, l still think they're remarkable reference speakers!  "Horses for courses" 😉

I still think the Astors are fantastic and I’ve never heard them sing as beautifully as they do in your and Marc’s place.

 

But, as always, getting the best out of any speakers depends largely on the synergy with the rest of the audio system. The right combination of amplifier, source, and room acoustics can truly unlock the potential of your speakers and bring out the music’s full expression.

3 minutes ago, Hulgich Audio said:

I still think the Astors are fantastic and I’ve never heard them sing as beautifully as they do in your and Marc’s place.

 

But, as always, getting the best out of any speakers depends largely on the synergy with the rest of the audio system. The right combination of amplifier, source, and room acoustics can truly unlock the potential of your speakers and bring out the music’s full expression.

As l am now discovering with the Duke's!

It is wonderful, having such a premium product to work with -  and exploring the possibilities !

 

After 5 days, l have only scratched the surface, but achieved more than l anticipated was possible. 

🙂

Clive, how good is that Clase Azul Reposado Tequila 🌵🌵

Ole~ 😉

3 minutes ago, Mendes said:

Clive, how good is that Clase Azul Reposado Tequila 🌵🌵

Ole~ 😉

You drunks sure have a good eye, for your quality poisons !😉

Priorities and all.😂

1 minute ago, evil c said:

You drunks sure have a good eye, for your quality poisons !😉

Priorities and all.😂

Hah hah, you know me Clive.

Spending the night here inSingapore as we transit tomorrow.

Sadly nothing fancy here tonight 🍷🍺🤔😬✌️🛫

7 minutes ago, Mendes said:

Hah hah, you know me Clive.

Spending the night here inSingapore as we transit tomorrow.

Sadly nothing fancy here tonight 🍷🍺🤔😬✌️🛫

Travel, booze, hifi and music is indeed good for the soul !

Plus Sport, l think we've covered a lot today. 😆

 

Enjoy yourselves, Amigo ! 

Dukes are imo probably the best money i have ever spent on speakers - aint cheap but they aint going nowhere

1 hour ago, genkifd said:

Dukes are imo probably the best money i have ever spent on speakers - aint cheap but they aint going nowhere

Appreciate hearing from you, couldn't agree more on Nick's speakers! 🙂

On 06/09/2025 at 3:27 PM, dcathro said:

 

I thought the Dukes were producing the best sound at the show!

I would love to know what you were comparing them to and why you thought they were producing the best sounding? What was the source and amplification?

44 minutes ago, stand said:

I would love to know what you were comparing them to and why you thought they were producing the best sounding? What was the source and amplification?

That's ok, he wasn't the only one to think they were!

I heard much more expensive speakers, and still preferred the Duke's- but I'm not going to put down individual brands, on this thread. 🙂

 

I see you are in Victoria, most welcome to hear the Duke's in my home system and you can make up your mind on level of performance.  😉