12-ft shielded ICs to run from the pre on the shelf to the powered monitors on the desk. The builder even took the time to designate the ground end of the shield. Does ALO do that? I think not. SuckItALO!
I reckon they probably did. Whatever you think about CA in general, they do a good job of picking their spots in the market and I suspect they wouldn't have bothered with balanced output unless they were seriously looking to take some customers away from Benchmark et al.
Took the standard Cooper test again and was pleased to find it now pegs my physical fitness level at comfortably above the 50th percentile for my age group. When I started dragging my fat ass to the gym in April, it was around the 20th percentile -- so that's something. Pizza for everybody!
Yeah, I once dated this one American girl years ago who was a real bitch to me, man, so now whenever I meet any American girls anywhere I punch them right in the goddamn face!
Speaking of which, another good option on the Internet-direct side might be the Ascend Sierra-1. Strong low end for a monitor speaker and those guys take their stats seriously!
You could certainly do worse than a pair of Aperion 6Bs for $700. I have a bunch of their stuff in my HT and it's very good for the money.
Plus they have the best return policy in the business. You can listen to the speakers in your own room for 30 days and if you don't like them in the end it won't cost you a dime. They'll give you a full refund and pay shipping both ways.