Nuance is a scam brand. They won't even show pictures of their products on their website, and they follow the formula of a similar scam that's run within the U.S. borders: the dreaded White Van speakers. The business model: two guys drive up to you in a white van and ask you if you want a sweet deal on a set of speakers or some such. They quote them as originally costing some exorbitant amount like $3000 and offer to let you have them at a seemingly huge discount (say, $1000) when the speakers themselves use second-rate drivers, practically no crossover network, and a thin cabinet. Sometimes they put speaker drivers in there that aren't even connected, just for looks! Nuance is similar. They are sold at some of the more seedy electronics retialers in Canada (I heard the name International Stereo in conversations about these), and the salesmen are very pushy. They will pull you in, play a heavily-doctored test disc at high sound levels, and then when your hair is blown backwards by the boomy, disproportionate bass and harsh, sibilant treble, they say that they usually sell them for something like $4000 but they will offer you a special deal that's "just for you" (because you're such a nice guy) and then if you turn them down, suddenly you're not their friend anymore, and many customers have described situations in which the salesmen made them feel very unwelcome in the store after such an experience. Stay away from Nuance at all costs. Three canadian brands you can't really go wrong with are Energy, Mirage, and Athena. Nuance is crap on the same order (and possibly worse) than Bose. At least Bose has some clever engineering for their sonic tricks. Just ask at any home theater website and they will tell you to stay away from Nuance speakers. At least, that's the way they do business today. How much did you pay for yours? Perhaps you got had and didn't know it.
Here is an excerpt from their website:
Experience the Difference. Ask for a Demonstration.
If you haven't experienced a Nuance Demonstration, it's an event you'll long remember. Here's what to expect. You'll be escorted into a soundroom to hear music in a new way. That's right. You'll hear commonplace activities in a way that will convince you you're in a far different place. You'll wonder how it's done. It's called SpatialSound? Technology. And, it's from Nuance.
(TW: This is in reference to the special doctored test disc. In this case, they get you away from the rest of the speaker models so you can't demo them by listening to one and then the other and hearing the huge difference in sound. They play this doctored test disc at levels that have been described as insanely loud and the "commonplace actions" include the famous "wood chopping" where you can "hear the wood chips falling".)
Here's how it works.
When we listen to music in a room, less than 10% of what we hear comes originally from the speakers, while over 90% is delayed and emanates from the surrounding furniture, ceiling, floor and walls. Our designs take this into account by producing sound in a pattern of acoustic distribution that has similar sonic signatures throughout the listening area.
(TW: This is dangerously close to what Bose speakers claim to be doing when they are reflecting sound off the back walls. At least Bose is actually doing as advertised with the angled drivers that fire every which-way. The Nuance speakers are just ordinary speakers with a digitally-doctored source.)
While this sounds simple, the execution is a little more complex. And the results are pure magic. You'll experience a sense of realism unlike anything you've heard before. Nuance SpatialSound? Technology redefines the stereo experience.
And if you're considering buying speakers for home theatre applications, every Nuance series features a full complement of models necessary-from powered subwoofers to satellites, center channels to front monitors-to produce the most exciting home theatre system for every budget.
(TW: Every budget, as long as your budget happens to be "paying too much". There is no "execution", just mediocre components and cabinets, turned up loud, and again with a doctored test disc that uses psychoacoustics to make you think you're hearing something you're not.)
With all the money you pay, I should HOPE they replaced the drivers for you! Sory if I have offended, but dishonest business practices make me very annoyed. There are some very nice Canadian manufacturers of speakers, but Nuance is not one of them. Quest isn't, either (I don't think).
My parents picked up a Bose system (who's name I can't remember) about five years ago. They bought it because they had never heard any real speaker system before, and the Bose name was plastered all over everything at the store. (Well duh, it was a Bose outlet store). At the time, I knew squat about speaker systems as well so I really couldn't help. With the system set up it sounds alright, certainly much better than television speakers, but it does sound "empty." There isn't a lot of punch to the sound, and it sounds like everything is coming out muffled. There is definitely something crappy.
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