from the review
When I first spoke with Pat McGinty in the middle of March, idle opinions were definitely not part of the conversation! Pat has very clear ideas about the loudspeaker designs he brings to market. He spoke very earnestly about the Kestrel2 design and about his reasons for moving his entire company from California to New York state.
The original Kestrel was the speaker that built Meadowlark Audio. It was a clever design with time-aligned drivers, first order crossovers, and transmission line bass. I never got a chance to hear the originals but the reviews at the time suggested that they offered a very natural presentation and a lot of excitement for just under $1,000/pair. The speaker was so successful that Pat McGinty eventually released a "Hot Rod" version that included premium parts and connectors.
I asked Pat if the new K2s were going to be "hot-rodded" like the snazzier version of the originals. Pat explained, very politely, that he doesn't want to create custom versions of his new designs, by offering an original version followed by a super-duper iteration. He's got a solid design with the new Kestrel (hey, he apparently had a good one with the original!) and already's used the most expensive parts its retail price can justify. So he's not interested in new & improved. The 2-designation took plenty care of that. It's very unlikely then that he's going to tag a bunch of surnames to the Kestrel all over again.
he Kestrel2s have traditional transmission line (TL) enclosures. One could be tempted to call them "original formula" or "classic" if one drank a lot of soda. A traditional TL uses a long chamber behind the driver to damp its rear wave by absorption. Since most people don't have the space for a tremendously large speaker cabinet to house such elongated tunnels, the "pipe" can be folded and tapered like a labyrinth. This type of complex MDF chassis is obviously far more challenging to design and manufacture than a more conventional vented or sealed box and thus has but a few rare adherents. [PMC, Buggtussel, Fried and the small Chapman Sound Company of Vashon Island in the Puget Sound are among those. Eli Gershman, in one of his designs, employs something called a "regulation line" which points at a shorter but still bent-pipe form of hybrid bass loading. As a lively Internet thread focused on recently, Von Schweikert too refers to his designs as transmission-line based, but distinguishes them from classic labyrinth approaches with a statement on his site. Instead of a folded tunnel created from extensive cross-bracing, he uses sub-chambers whose walls are defined by stapled stuffing blankets rather than MDF. This might signal a broadening or re-definition of what the term transmission line used to signify in the past. Editor's note.] As the cutaway picture below shows, Meadowlark's adoption of the term adheres to more traditional conventions as made popular especially by Bud Fried's IMF speakers.
As you can tell, I listened to a lot of music through the Kestrel2s and even brought them downstairs for my family and company to enjoy. The presentation was always very clear and natural. The midrange didn't feel forward and slightly pushy as with my own two-way loudspeakers, something I attribute to the Kestrel2s flatter, more extended response. What the Kestrel2s offered was a chance to take off the heavy overcoat my recordings had been wearing and get closer to the truth underneath.
https://6moons.com/audioreviews/mead...estrel2_2.html
ou might slip, you might slide, you might
Stumble and fall by the road side
But don't you ever let nobody drag your spirit down
Remember you're walking up to heaven
Don't let nobody turn you around
… Walk with the rich, walk with the poor
Learn from everyone, that's what life is for
And don't you let nobody drag your spirit down
Eric Bibb