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(Stewart Pinkerton) wrote:

On Fri, 15 Aug 2003 16:43:37 GMT, (Nousaine) wrote:

(Stewart Pinkerton) wrote:

On 15 Aug 2003 01:45:59 GMT, (Nousaine) wrote:

I've not had access to the Ascent but I'ver tested several ML models over
the
years and ALL of them had fairly severe frequency response abberations
compared
to lower priced moving coil models.

Ah, you mean some of them *measure* rather oddly, rather than they
sound bad.......

They basically sounded like they measured. Lifeless and lacking in dynamics
at
all frequencies.

That's absolute garbage. They have *exceptional* dynamics, in terms of
their ability to sound clean and clear at low levels, and pray tell
what is the measure of 'lifelessness'?

The Clarity floorstanders have had a fairly severe depression in the 500 Hz
range with a hump centered at 5 kHz on axis and often radically variant
directivity even over a +/- 30-degree listening window.

IOW they just don't perform very well and the sound varies considerably
dependent on listener position.

They don't go particularly low and surely don't play loudly and cleanly enough
for full orchestra.

The Script was somewhat better below 1 kHz but also suffered from the hump and
output nosedives above 1000 Hz beginning at 15 degrees off axis.

The center, of which I've tested more than once over the past few years is just
a disaster with a huge swayback at 500 Hz, the upper hump and radically severe
off-axis lobing patterns.

I reiterate my comments regarding the Ascent, and I add my distaste
for the dull and lifeless sound of the old bextrene-coned KEF models
such as the 104aB - which *measured* excellently!

I'm not commenting on the Ascent because I've not used it.

Clearly, you're not commenting on the KEFs either............

Can't remember that far back. But I seem to recall being impressed with the 104
series. That was the first real bandpass speaker I ever saw.

Further their hybrid center channel speakers are grossly deficient in
measured
performance and listening evaluation. And for bad sound you get to pay
premium
prices. What a deal.

I wouldn't argue with regard to the centre channel - always going to
be a problem for planar dipoles, without a perf screen.

There's more to it that that. It's a case of bad basic design and a poor
sounding speaker at ANY listening angle when radiating into free space.

You're missing the point - the centre is *not* a large planar dipole,
so it has to make severe sonic compromises to get that required low
and wide shape.

It seems to me that it shares the same problems that the other ML speakers I've
used.

I guess they felt that they had to get into that
market *somehow*, but I suspect that the new 'Infinity-style' drivers
as used in the Mosaic will replace the HT series pretty quickly.
--

Stewart Pinkerton | Music is Art - Audio is Engineering

Seems likely and that it might be a good idea.