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Tone, Tone, Tone !


I was reminded again today, as I often am, about my priorities for any speaker that I will own.

I was reminded by listening to a pair of $20,000 speakers, almost full range. They did imaging. They did dynamics.They did detail.

But I sat there unmoved.

Came home and played a number of the same tracks on a pair of speakers I currently have set up in my main system - a tiny lil’ Chihuahua-sized pair of Spendor S 3/5s.


And I was in heaven.

I just couldn’t tear myself away from listening.

Why?

Tone.

The Spendors satisfy my ears (MY ears!) in reproducing music with a gorgeous, organic tone that sounds so "right.". It’s like a tonal massage directly o my auditory system. Strings are silky and illuminated, saxes so warm and reedy, snares have that papery "pop," cymbals that brassy overtone, acoustic guitars have that just-right sparkle and warmth. Voices sound fleshy and human.

In no way do I mean to say the Spendors are objectively "correct" or that anyone else should, or would, share the opinion I had between those two speakers. I’m just saying it’s often experiences like this that re-enforce how deeply important "the right tone/timbral quality" is for me. It’s job one that any speaker has to pass. I’ll listen to music on any speaker as background. But to get me to sit down and listen...gotta have that seductive tone.


Of course that’s only one characteristic I value. Others near the top of the list is "palpability/density," texture, dynamics.

But I’d take those teeny little Spendors over those big expensive speakers every day of the week, due to my own priorities.

Which brings me to throwing out the question to others: What are YOUR priorities in a speaker, especially if you had to pick the one that makes-or-brakes your desire to own the speaker?

Do you have any modest "giant killers" that at least to your way of thinking satisfy you much more than any number of really expensive speakers?



prof
mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,152 posts
 
bdp24, Siegfried was quite the character and I quite agree with him on the subject of dipole speakers however he took it a bit too far with the subwoofers. I have not bought a subwoofer since 1987-88. I make my own as commercial subwoofers have too many compromises. I have made every type of subwoofer using dynamic drivers except horn and infinite baffle. Yes, I certainly did make dipole subwoofers using 4 12 inch drivers per side. Not only did I build them but I also have the ability to impulse test them and have my computer graph their frequency response. After playing around with them for a year I built 8 enclosed subs sold 4 of them and kept the other 4 which I currently use. I was using the Dipole subs just before I sold my Apogee Divas so that would have been mid 90's or so. The dipoles only saving grace was that being right next to the Divas they did not drive the ribbons nuts as the Divas were right in their null zone. The best analogy for their response below 100 Hz would be the venetian blind. After playing around with the enclosed subs I now use for a couple of years I wandered into the configuration I now use. I can still do better. I have the design of a new sub in my head that I will use in the current configuration. I hope to build them next Winter after my right arm recovers. 
As for Doug Sax, the studio world is in another galaxy. Doug probably uses near field monitoring and ESLs are just too big for that environment. I would bet that he never even tried them. Doug does not do recording. He is a mastering engineer (and trumpet player) He takes the tapes and mixes them down to 2 channels. IMHO the best job he ever did was Tower of Power Direct. Great record. I think he did most if not all of the Sheffield Lab records. 
Interesting comment about Mr Pearson. So much for audio philosophy.

Mike
mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,152 posts
 
Oh as for plump subwoofers, I think most subwoofers sound "plump." This is probably due to cabinet resonance which is one problem dipole subs should not have. My current system sounds anything but plump dipoles and all. So I guess you have to watch it with the generalizations.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
9,394 posts
 
Actually, though most of Doug Sax's work was as a mastering engineer, he DID do some recording, including the Sheffield Direct-To-Disk albums. On those he was recording AND mastering engineer, mastering of course as the recording was taking place.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
9,394 posts
 

@mijostyn, what were the dimensions of your OB/Dipole sub frames? Were they H-frames, or W-frames? Linkwitz chose to go with the W, Danny Richie with the H (though he provides plans for both on his GR Research website).

Did you incorporate the mandatory shelving circuit (6dB/octave boost below 100Hz) to compensate for the endemic dipole cancellation? The OB/Dipole version of the Rythmik plate amp does, and the sub absolutely reproduces the bottom octave. Honest! ;-)

Siegfried Linkwitz was nothing if not a methodical scientist, measuring everything. He published all the test results of his measurements on the LX521 loudspeaker, including those of its’ OB/Dipole woofer. That woofer too reproduces the bottom octave, and the LX521's electronics include the OB/Dipole-mandated shelving circuit. That shelving circuit is NOT optional in an OB/Dipole sub, it is mandatory.

mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,152 posts
 
Correct. It all had to done at the same time. Tower of Power Direct is an amazing disc. Lee Ritenour also had some great direct to disc albums on JVC records. Lee also has a new album available in high def on HD Tracks which is killer. It sits you right in front of the band and the cymbals are tight to the drums like they are supposed to be. 95 db puts you right there.
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