Starting over...

[lindsayt]

Did you fill in a questionnaire at the Linn demo?

The modular active approach with adjustable digital equalisation and driver phase correction does make a lot of sense with PC's, multi-channel DAC's and 2nd hand solid state power amplification all being pleasantly affordable.

 

[insider9]

I have completed the form. Will be interesting to see if they'll go with software only option also.

From the options available at present DDRC-24 seems the best solution for 2-way speakers. And decent value too.

 

[avole]

to make a simple hobby needlessly complex. Can I suggest you go to some live concerts and rediscover what it is really all about?

 

[DocG]

to make a simple hobby needlessly complex. Can I suggest you go to some live concerts and rediscover what it is really all about?

Ah, come on! This is a hifi forum, remember...

 

[luckylion100]

perhaps they do already attend concerts and this is just an aspect of the hobby that they feel appeals and will enhance their enjoyment further? Horses for courses....

 

[Andrewjvt]

to make a simple hobby needlessly complex.  Can I suggest you go to some live concerts and rediscover what it is really all about?

I thought your hobby was trolling?

 

[Electro]

Any reason the speakers you have chosen.iv never heard them before

Both pair of speakers I currently possess are rather rare. QLN Qubic are a small 2-way floorstanders with fair quality Vifa drive units. They go much deeper than the Rosebuds so would provide more extention. They're quite a decent speaker in their own right. They're worth more to me for how they sound than what others would be prepared to pay for such an unkown Swedish brand. Plus if I was to damage the woofers on them I wouldn't really be that upset as it wouldn't be that big of a financial hit.

Plans wise, I reckon advanced transmission line would give me the bass I'm after.

I can confirm that the QLN Qubic 122 are very good speakers even in passive form as I used to have a pair in a second system before I gave them to my brother .

I do also have a pair of QLN HD2 Signature Splitfield standmounts that have separate external passive crossovers so there is no crossover inside the speaker.

They have very expensive high quality Scanspeak drivers and exceptional build quality and finish and would be ideal and relativly easy to activate with electronic crossovers.

If you think they might be of use to you let me know.

http://qln.se/signature-speaker/

 

[Gazzip]

Apologies if it has already been said but it is worth mentioning that not all speakers will react well to being "activated" and they may sound worse than when in passive crossover mode.

 

[insider9]

If you think they might be of use to you let me know.

You Sir have very good taste 🙂 They are gorgeous. I'll bear that in mind, thanks.

Apologies if it has already been said but it is worth mentioning that not all speakers will react well to being "activated" and they may sound worse than when in passive crossover mode.

Good point. I'll take it small steps so any change will be noted. Thanks

 

[lindsayt]

to make a simple hobby needlessly complex. Can I suggest you go to some live concerts and rediscover what it is really all about?

In terms of what the signal goes through, a Linn Exakt software approach does indeed make the signal path more complex. Especially with analogue sources.

If you want to create a custom set of speakers, or DIY some speakers from some drivers that you've bought then this approach makes life simpler. No need to design and solder a passive cross-over. The Exakt software does allow a level of tweaking that is not possible from an adjustable active crossover. If you have a pair of active speakers and can connect a signal directly to each power amp, the Exakt software approach makes it very easy to tweak your system.

What this can't do is turn a sow's ear into a silk purse. If the speaker drivers / cabinet are ordinary, they are not going to be transformed into something World Class. The basic nature of the drivers and cabinet will still remain.

I think that insider9 could be on the path to creating a really good system for his £1000 budget. It'll be interesting to see how he gets on...

 

[insider9]

I think that insider9 could be on the path to creating a really good system for his £1000 budget. It'll be interesting to see how he gets on...

Thanks, Linsayt. I must say I'm excited by the thought myself. So excited that, I took 2 hours out of the day today and drove to IdealAV just outside of Wakefield to pick up Umik-1. Just couldn't wait to start 🙂

Had a very nice chat and a short demo of what can be achieved with Dsp. The most amazing thing was the clarity at low volume levels. Will be interesting to see how it affects my system.

 

[Gazzip]

I think that insider9 could be on the path to creating a really good system for his £1000 budget. It'll be interesting to see how he gets on...

Thanks, Linsayt. I must say I'm excited by the thought myself. So excited that, I took 2 hours out of the day today and drove to IdealAV just outside of Wakefield to pick up Umik-1. Just couldn't wait to start 🙂

Had a very nice chat and a short demo of what can be achieved with Dsp. The most amazing thing was the clarity at low volume levels. Will be interesting to see how it affects my system.

Was that with Allan?

 

[insider9]

It was Allan. Lovely chap, very knowledgeable and friendly. He had a couple of demos lined up but still found the time to talk and show me his setup.

 

[insider9]

What volume should I make room measurements at? At the minute the amp is set at the max volume I'd listen to but usually listen to quieter. With a sweep from 30Hz to 20kHz I'm getting min 63-94.7db. Is that too loud?

 

[drummerman]

I can't see why not every speaker could be converted to having an active Xover if the knowledge and soft/hardware is there in the first place. Perhaps one exception are speakers that have quality drive units purposely made for a specific model to 'naturally' cross over and thus use minimalist crossovers such as some earlier Epos. I believe this is fairly rare these days.

 

[DocG]

What volume should I make room measurements at? At the minute the amp is set at the max volume I'd listen to but usually listen to quieter. With a sweep from 30Hz to 20kHz I'm getting min 63-94.7db. Is that too loud?

I'm sure it's not too loud for the measurements. My DEQX measures best with a +/- 90 dB sweep. For driver correction (which requires the mic close to the speaker -- like 50 cm), the louder the better actually, because you get relatively more direct sound (and less reflected) in the measuring microphone.

The Dirac experts could probably give more specific advice though...

 

[insider9]

What volume should I make room measurements at? At the minute the amp is set at the max volume I'd listen to but usually listen to quieter. With a sweep from 30Hz to 20kHz I'm getting min 63-94.7db. Is that too loud?

I'm sure it's not too loud for the measurements. My DEQX measures best with a +/- 90 dB sweep. For driver correction (which requires the mic close to the speaker -- like 50 cm), the louder the better actually, because you get relatively more direct sound (and less reflected) in the measuring microphone.

The Dirac experts could probably give more specific advice though...

Thanks! Tried also at a lower volume with same results. Got a few hours today to experiment will post some thoughts later.

 

[Al ears]

What volume should I make room measurements at? At the minute the amp is set at the max volume I'd listen to but usually listen to quieter. With a sweep from 30Hz to 20kHz I'm getting min 63-94.7db. Is that too loud?

I'm sure it's not too loud for the measurements. My DEQX measures best with a +/- 90 dB sweep. For driver correction (which requires the mic close to the speaker -- like 50 cm), the louder the better actually, because you get relatively more direct sound (and less reflected) in the measuring microphone.

The Dirac experts could probably give more specific advice though...

Thanks! Tried also at a lower volume with same results. Got a few hours today to experiment will post some thoughts later.

Are those Rosebuds going back on the market again soon then?? 🙂

 

[insider9]

Are those Rosebuds going back on the market again soon then?? 🙂

Difficult to say. Would love to incorporate them in a setup somehow. At the same time they're too remarkable of a pair of speakers to be messed with internally. I wouldn't dare to go anywhere near them with a screwdriver. Who am I to mess with Mark Levinson's design? 🙂 At the same time if I was convinced that's the best way to go then who knows...

At the minute I'm testing what can be achieved with dsp. I have them rolling off at 44Hz and at - 6db at 40Hz and that's without aggressive correction. I think that's amazing considering they're size.

 

[lindsayt]

I can't see why not every speaker could be converted to having an active Xover if the knowledge and soft/hardware is there in the first place. Perhaps one exception are speakers that have quality drive units purposely made for a specific model to 'naturally' cross over and thus use minimalist crossovers such as some earlier Epos. I believe this is fairly rare these days.

For some speakers, such as earlier Linn Isobariks with the XLR connector, it'd be a pain getting inside the cabinet to make direct connections to all the drivers and it's debatable as to whether tweaking and tuning such a mediocre speaker as this would be worth it.

 

[seemorebtts]

I'm reading all the comments and I'm really not sure what's actually happening but it does sound very interesting.i know this might sound a bit mad but can you just recap what's happening.i know you want to make an active speaker but what about your amps and your rosebud sound like they are good speakers so why take them apart.

 

[insider9]

I'm reading all the comments and I'm really not sure what's actually happening but it does sound very interesting.i know this might sound a bit mad but can you just recap what's happening.i know you want to make an active speaker but what about your amps and your rosebud sound like they are good speakers so why take them apart.

What's happening at the minute is I'm testing Dirac Live (room correction) on a two week trial, having bought UMIK-1 measurement mic on Thursday. I'll do a bigger update tomorrow and go into both my findings and why I'm considering doing and what it is I'm leaning towards.

 

[seemorebtts]

I'm reading all the comments and I'm really not sure what's actually happening but it does sound very interesting.i know this might sound a bit mad but can you just recap what's happening.i know you want to make an active speaker but what about your amps and your rosebud sound like they are good speakers so why take them apart.

What's happening at the minute is I'm testing Dirac Live (room correction) on a two week trial, having bought UMIK-1 measurement mic on Thursday. I'll do a bigger update tomorrow and go into both my findings and why I'm considering doing and what it is I'm leaning towards.

oh ok so not extreme yet then.cool

 

[Vladimir]

All this novelty about taking nice hifi speakers appart to cluelessly bodge them into actives needs to stop, seriously.
Buy some cheap kit speakers, behringer active crossover and amps and toy with that first.

 

[drummerman]

All this novelty about taking nice hifi speakers appart to cluelessly bodge them into actives needs to stop, seriously.
Buy some cheap kit speakers, behringer active crossover and amps and toy with that first.

I would tend to agree.