A lot of things are brewing over at Audio Image in Section 19, Petaling Jaya. There is a generational change going on with the father Adrian Wong passing over the operations to his son, Joseph Wong.
And they have designed a range of speakers using full-range drivers from Markaudio. The entry-level speaker is the AIME (which stands for Audio Image Musical Experience) Seven, a desktop speaker measuring 11″ (h) X 7″ (w) X 11.75″ (d).
This uses the Markaudio Pluvia 7.2 HD full-range driver. Markaudio’s drivers are unlike other full-range drivers as they do not have whizzer cones.
According to Markaudio, how low the bass goes to depends on the cabinet design. Joseph Wong said they built numerous versions of the cabinets before they got it right.
The AIME Seven speakers are a bass-reflex design with slots as bass reflex ports.
The AIME Seven speakers come with matching footers which feel like they are made from silicon-based compounds. These are 3D printed in-house.
These footers feature ridges and there is a slight difference in sound depending on how they are aligned. If they are aligned horizontally, the sound becomes bassier while aligning them vertically results in better transparency but with a tonal balance tilted to the treble. In the end I had the two footers in front aligned vertically with the one at the back aligned horizontally to get the best of both worlds. These footers come free with the special introductory package.
I connected the AIME Seven speakers to The Affordable System (TAS) comprising a WiiM Pro Plus (retail price: RM1,199), a Fosi Audio V3 Integrated Amplifier (RM569), a pair of Kanto ST28 28″ Speaker Stands (RM513), 3-metre DALI 16 AWG Speaker Cables with Copper Colour Rhodium Banana Plugs (RM214) and a 1-metre pair of WireWorld Stream RCA interconnects (RM240). The AIME Seven speakers retail at RM2,000 and the total cost of the system is RM4,735. I also used an iFi LAN iSilencer which retails at RM519, bringing the total cost to RM5,254, which is still affordable for Millennials and Gen Zers.
How did it sound? The AIME Seven speakers are not as bassy as the Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 speakers featured in the previous review, but they offer more clarity, better image definition, great layering and a deeper soundstage. In comparison the Wharfedale smears the details while the AIME Seven reveals them.
Thus the AIME Seven sounds more analytical but not in an unpleasant way.
As for the bass, there is a limit to the amount and extension of the bass generated. The magnesium alloy cone of the Markaudio full-range driver is only four inches in diameter, so there is only so much bass it can produce even though the cabinet design may be optimum.
But the bass produced is lively and rhythmic and Every Breath You Take by the Police sounded quite convincing, but the bass drum on The Ferry by Tsai Ching did not sound full, deep and impactful enough. However, you may not notice it until you compare how it sounds with speakers with larger woofers.
On the whole the AIME Seven speakers were quite impressive and it is likely that they would sound much better with higher-level amplifiers — the Fosi Audio V3 Integrated Amplifier, retailing at RM569, is definitely entry level.
AIME Seven speakers retail at RM2,000. The footers are free as part of the introductory package. There are higher-level speakers using the same cabinets called the AIME Studio which use the more expensive Markaudio MAOP 7 drivers. These feature cones that are made from a chemical conversion whereby the cone material is converted into its crystalline oxide. The AIME Studio speakers cost RM3,300.
AIME Seven speakers are available at Audio Image, No. 7, Jalan 19/29, Section 19, Petaling Jaya. Call Joseph Wong at 010-2688052 for more details.
The WiiM Pro Plus, Fosi Audio V3 Integrated Amplifier, Kanto ST28 28″ Speaker Stands , 3-metre DALI 16 AWG Speaker Cables with Copper Colour Rhodium Banana Plugs and WireWorld Stream RCA interconnects are available at TechX Home Audio & Hi-Fi. Contact Thiban at 014-2511062 for more details.
