Indian Hi-fi Equipment/Accessories comparable with best in class international products

[mannukiddo]

Got a little nostalgic reading this thread and one brand of speakers made in India that I owned as a satellite - passive sub system as my first HT in early 90s was called Pandam after the owners name, Prashant Damle , who had a little show/demo room near Hinduja hospital in the Sitladevi temple bylane. Wonder if they are still around. Most of his stuff was a rip off of Bose designs which were a rage then and I remember and also saw his speakers at a lot of commercial establishments.

 

[Deleted member 15865]

My 2-ch listening started over 15-17 years ago with a desktop connected to these lovely small active speakers made by a local company called Artis. My hardware partner has suggested them to me and if I remember well, they weren’t too costly - probably under Rs 3k. I used to listen to the inimitable programming of Worldspace receiver through these speakers as I worked and it used to be a sublime musical experience. They had good scale for their size and decent SQ.

I lost those speakers while moving houses. Now when I looked up the Artis website, they don’t seem to make those old styled speakers anymore. They are into IEMs and modern (well-styled) Bluetooth and USB speakers now, again very affordable (between Rs 500 and 3000). I don’t know if they are audiophile quality, but if they sound anything like those old speakers of mine, they could be an option for your third system, while also being the first speakers for a teenager/youngster getting into the hobby. I might try getting one of these just for fun.


A three decade old Mumbai-based company, Arts is also into IT peripherals and power backups. Their website is attractively made:

Artis India Electronics | Bluetooth Speakers, Earphones & Accessories

Shop for the best range of electronics & audio products like Bluetooth speakers, earphones, headphones that offer a rich & powerful sound. Also, explore gaming accessories from the online shop at Artis.

www.artis.in

 

[rikhav]

They will be very happy to read this.
Will surely make them read this
The owners are my neighbor's of many years

 

[Deleted member 15865]

They will be very happy to read this.
Will surely make them read this
The owners are my neighbor's of many years

Oh, is it? I hope they venture into more audiophile offerings too.

 

[rikhav]

Oh, is it? I hope they venture into more audiophile offerings too.

Have told them many times but unfortunately their business model is very high quantity, low margins and that does not work for audiophile products.
And they are happy in their space , but you never know when things change.

 

[DB1989]

Good to hear this. Do explain

Both Thomas (Thomas & Stereo) and Jay (the Next Best Thing Studio) have reviewed quite a few chi fi products.

 

[PCA]

Have told them many times but unfortunately their business model is very high quantity, low margins and that does not work for audiophile products.
And they are happy in their space , but you never know when things change.

Any idea whether their audio products are manufactured in India?

 

[DB1989]

Any idea whether their audio products are manufactured in India?

Why does it matter? I don't mean to be offensive in the slightest and my apologies in advance if it seems so (since this seems to be a touchy topic on this forum) but I believe it's not relevant in this day and age (subject to certain caveats)

 

[oldmonk]

Jobs

 

[girishtd8262]

After reading these feel like trying with indiqaudio aachal 3 way speakers for stereo music with rega Brio amp.any comments from users of aachal

 

[Deleted member 15865]

Why does it matter? I don't mean to be offensive in the slightest and my apologies in advance if it seems so (since this seems to be a touchy topic on this forum) but I believe it's not relevant in this day and age (subject to certain caveats)

Guess it does matter in the context of this thread. When I posted about Artis, I assumed they still manufacture (some, if not all of their products). If they only rebrand and sell, I’d not consider that worthy to be included in this thread.

 

[rikhav]

Any idea whether their audio products are manufactured in India?

Not sure about other products but the speakers are manufactured in China.

They have their reasons to make them in China but that discussion is not for this thread

 

[DB1989]

Guess it does matter in the context of this thread. When I posted about Artis, I assumed they still manufacture (some, if not all of their products). If they only rebrand and sell, I’d not consider that worthy to be included in this thread.

If they are only rebranding, i agree that it matters. What i meant to say was in a global value chain, a product may be developed in one country and manufactured in another. Most audio equipment manufacturers (for that matter, most industries) are manufacturing their products in China. I believe that wouldn't make them any less of a manufacturer from their own respective countries though

 

[PCA]

Why does it matter? I don't mean to be offensive in the slightest and my apologies in advance if it seems so (since this seems to be a touchy topic on this forum) but I believe it's not relevant in this day and age (subject to certain caveats)

No offence taken. The question was not based on my political convictions. As @SachinChavan stated subsequently, it question was purely in the context of this particular thread. I checked Artis website and from the look and variety of products, suspected they were re-branding imported products.

If Artis is designing these products themselves, they might still be relevant for this thread.

 

[Prodigy]

After reading these feel like trying with indiqaudio aachal 3 way speakers for stereo music with rega Brio amp.any comments from users of aachal

Hey! I have been using Achal’s for quite some time now and it’s keeping me very happy. It’s crisp sounding with clean imaging and the bass is tight and fast. Actually the recording that you may have seen does not really justify the actual sound coz they were recorded on the phone but then in reality they are a compliment to your ears.
From my experience, the drivers need a bit of a burn in (about 80 to 100 hrs) for them to really shine and show it’s true potential. They are not power hungry at all and I know some FM’s who are driving it with a very tiny amp and getting the beat out of them.
They come with 30hrs of burn in while it’s delivered and may be in a weeks time you will have them work to it’s full potential.
@Dharam` and @shekharmenon can definitely share their experience with Denon 3500 and Vista Spark.

You can talk to Amit from IndiqAudio. He is a great person and can understand ones needs and very passionate about what he does and I think it’s worth your time auditioning it.

Regards,
Som

 

[girishtd8262]

Hey! I have been using Achal’s for quite some time now and it’s keeping me very happy. It’s crisp sounding with clean imaging and the bass is tight and fast. Actually the recording that you may have seen does not really justify the actual sound coz they were recorded on the phone but then in reality they are a compliment to your ears.
From my experience, the drivers need a bit of a burn in (about 80 to 100 hrs) for them to really shine and show it’s true potential. They are not power hungry at all and I know some FM’s who are driving it with a very tiny amp and getting the beat out of them.
They come with 30hrs of burn in while it’s delivered and may be in a weeks time you will have them work to it’s full potential.
@Dharam` and @shekharmenon can definitely share their experience with Denon 3500 and Vista Spark.

You can talk to Amit from IndiqAudio. He is a great person and can understand ones needs and very passionate about what he does and I think it’s worth your time auditioning it.

Regards,
Som

Thanks for the reply. Will plan for it shortly.

 

[mekr]

On reading through this article,it has impressed me that Indian designed & made products are competing with imported audio products.,I was looking to buy a home theatre speakers & receiver ,can any esteemed forum members suggest a Indian manufacturer making top end speakers.,otherwise I had arendale or ascend in mind ,as I wanted a open,detailed sounding loudspeakers ,which are not sterile or bright . Thanks

 

[Prodigy]

On reading through this article,it has impressed me that Indian designed & made products are competing with imported audio products.,I was looking to buy a home theatre speakers & receiver ,can any esteemed forum members suggest a Indian manufacturer making top end speakers.,otherwise I had arendale or ascend in mind ,as I wanted a open,detailed sounding loudspeakers ,which are not sterile or bright . Thanks

Hi Mekr,

If budget is not a concern, you may look at the top of the line towers and a matching Center from IndiqAudio Platinum Series. Infact I recently learnt that they have 2 towers in their platinum line up out of which there is one that’s tagged as a Cinema Achal. When asked Amit, I was being told that’s the offering they have for dedicated HT builds where the towers themselves can go upto 28hz with authority but it’s rated at 4ohms and they recommend it to be driven by their 2 / 4Ch dual mono power amps to extract the best out of it.
If you are someone who wants to set up the HT in your living room or not fond of adding a power amp to your chain to start off you can look at their regular platinum series towers with is rated at 8ohms and has a sensitivity > 95db. I personally own this tower and have tried them with the Denon 2600 and Marantz 1509 (which I picked up for my dad) and both the receivers could drive these with ease and the SQ is something that’s like an Icing on the cake. Clean, Great Mids and Low end and gives you that wonderful fatigue free listening experience. You can listen to them all day long and you will never feel tired. (Thats from my experience)

To top it all, they have excellent customer service, 15 day no questions asked return policy, good upgrade policy, custom finish on the cabinet (Laminate colour of our choice) and if someone is interested to get the towers finished in teak/walnut vineer they can also do that and may be they charge a slight premium for a vineer finish


Regards,
Som

 

[mekr]

Hi Mekr,

If budget is not a concern, you may look at the top of the line towers and a matching Center from IndiqAudio Platinum Series. Infact I recently learnt that they have 2 towers in their platinum line up out of which there is one that’s tagged as a Cinema Achal. When asked Amit, I was being told that’s the offering they have for dedicated HT builds where the towers themselves can go upto 28hz with authority but it’s rated at 4ohms and they recommend it to be driven by their 2 / 4Ch dual mono power amps to extract the best out of it.
If you are someone who wants to set up the HT in your living room or not fond of adding a power amp to your chain to start off you can look at their regular platinum series towers with is rated at 8ohms and has a sensitivity > 95db. I personally own this tower and have tried them with the Denon 2600 and Marantz 1509 (which I picked up for my dad) and both the receivers could drive these with ease and the SQ is something that’s like an Icing on the cake. Clean, Great Mids and Low end and gives you that wonderful fatigue free listening experience. You can listen to them all day long and you will never feel tired. (Thats from my experience)

To top it all, they have excellent customer service, 15 day no questions asked return policy, good upgrade policy, custom finish on the cabinet (Laminate colour of our choice) and if someone is interested to get the towers finished in teak/walnut vineer they can also do that and may be they charge a slight premium for a vineer finish


Regards,
Som

Hi som,
It was very nice to have your reply,I will be putting my setup in my living room,where I am having floor standing speakers with tube amp ,so I was planning for 4 bookshelf & centre channel with receiver,& currently I will be spending around ₹1 Lac ,if I buy a good package,I can consider going piecemeal,1st buying 2 bookshelves with centre channel ,&than later on after sometime can go for subwoofers,,thanks again Som

 

[Prodigy]

Hi som,
It was very nice to have your reply,I will be putting my setup in my living room,where I am having floor standing speakers with tube amp ,so I was planning for 4 bookshelf & centre channel with receiver,& currently I will be spending around ₹1 Lac ,if I buy a good package,I can consider going piecemeal,1st buying 2 bookshelves with centre channel ,&than later on after sometime can go for subwoofers,,thanks again Som

Very nice! Which tube amp are you using?? Recently I happened to try a small tube pre amp with my set up and was very impressed with it and currently I am too in the lookout for a tube buffer. Tube is really addictive eh!
And by the way, recently FM @SiddharthY and @musiz_craze got themselves a custom LCR from IndiqAudio and they were very happy with the set up. I think Mr Siddharth also had his friends bring their speakers and have a done A/B/C comparison and were impressed with the kind of performance they could get out of those. If you dig through the forum you may find that thread.
I have just heard the custom speaker once for a short while and I liked it but then they both have a long term experience with it. May be you can get in touch with them to see if it matches to your liking.

All the best!

Regards,
Som