The active speakers club

[steve_1979]

An interesting design that uses a similar co-axial midrange/tweeter driver to the 8260.

Good to see you back Alma.

 

[Overdose]

Very interesting speakers. Worth a listen.

 

[emperor's new clothes]

Yay. More living room friendly actives.

+1 This is good to see.

Dynaudio make some very nice sounding actives IME. Their actives have a similar 'house sound' to their passive speakers but tend to be a little bit clearer and go a bit louder before distorting.

Nice feature set, onboard dacs, eq etc.

Not cheap though, expect them to be the best part of £2k for even the smallest model.

Onboard DACs? As with the XEO, they don't have any. There is an AD converter for the analogue input.

 

[davedotco]

Yay. More living room friendly actives.

+1 This is good to see.

Dynaudio make some very nice sounding actives IME. Their actives have a similar 'house sound' to their passive speakers but tend to be a little bit clearer and go a bit louder before distorting.

Nice feature set, onboard dacs, eq etc.

Not cheap though, expect them to be the best part of £2k for even the smallest model.

Onboard DACs? As with the XEO, they don't have any. There is an AD converter for the analogue input.

http://www.enjoythemusic.com/cedia_expo_2014/part2/dynaudio_focus_xd600_rear.jpg

Not according to this photo, spdif in (with link through) plus analog on phono.

 

[emperor's new clothes]

Yay. More living room friendly actives.

+1 This is good to see.

Dynaudio make some very nice sounding actives IME. Their actives have a similar 'house sound' to their passive speakers but tend to be a little bit clearer and go a bit louder before distorting.

Nice feature set, onboard dacs, eq etc.

Not cheap though, expect them to be the best part of £2k for even the smallest model.

Onboard DACs? As with the XEO, they don't have any. There is an AD converter for the analogue input.

http://www.enjoythemusic.com/cedia_expo_2014/part2/dynaudio_focus_xd600_...

Not according to this photo, spdif in (with link through) plus analog on phono.

Yes, but stays digital all the way to the Class D output transistors., so no DAC required.

From Dyns newsletter:

The Focus XD also represents more than just a new high-end loudspeaker; it re-defines the

Hi-fi system itself: Focus XD allows a simplified audio system that merges high-end sound
performance with a new level of convenience, with only a music source needed.
The Focus XD series, comprised of the compact 200 and floor-standing 400 and 600 models,
provides a perfectly thought out solution for music playback: The digital music signal is
transmitted losslessly from the source to the driver and without analogue conversion.

 

[davedotco]

Yay. More living room friendly actives.

+1 This is good to see.

Dynaudio make some very nice sounding actives IME. Their actives have a similar 'house sound' to their passive speakers but tend to be a little bit clearer and go a bit louder before distorting.

Nice feature set, onboard dacs, eq etc.

Not cheap though, expect them to be the best part of £2k for even the smallest model.

Onboard DACs? As with the XEO, they don't have any. There is an AD converter for the analogue input.

http://www.enjoythemusic.com/cedia_expo_2014/part2/dynaudio_focus_xd600_...

Not according to this photo, spdif in (with link through) plus analog on phono.

Yes, but stays digital all the way to the Class D output transistors., so no DAC required.

From Dyns newsletter:

The Focus XD also represents more than just a new high-end loudspeaker; it re-defines the

Hi-fi system itself: Focus XD allows a simplified audio system that merges high-end soundperformance with a new level of convenience, with only a music source needed.The Focus XD series, comprised of the compact 200 and floor-standing 400 and 600 models,provides a perfectly thought out solution for music playback: The digital music signal istransmitted losslessly from the source to the driver and without analogue conversion.

Ah, I understand, they consider digital 'power dacs' as they are sometimes called, not to have a dac, as such.

However digital inputs to analogue (acoustic) output stll requires conversion, however you do it. Call it what you will.

So, digital inputs but no dacs, fair enough.

In that case I raise my estimate of price, no way are you going to get a pair of even the smallest under £2k.

 

[emperor's new clothes]

Agreed. Based on the Focus 160 @ £1800 going to be well north of £2k IMHO. The XEO4 is >£600 more than the Excite X14. Plus hub if needed. Would be interesting to test these actives against the equivalent passives partnered with a smooth Class A or G amp. eg Arcam A39. My money on the latter, but room EQ can certainly be very effective in my experience.

 

[AlmaataKZ]

I am guessing in not so distant future most good mainstream sound systems including tvs, soundbars etc. will be dsp actives with room eq.

 

[ID.]

OK, for some reason I'm a sucker for these kinds of products as I want to listen to headphones as well as run some actives off the DAC/pre. I have to say the Marantz looks gorgeous with the wooden sides, and the build quality looked great when I saw it displayed in-store. My only gripe is that I'd have liked balanced outputs too.

http://www.marantz.co.uk/uk/products/pages/productdetails.aspx?catid=hifi&subcatid=usbdaconverters&productid=hddac1

 

[emperor's new clothes]

I am guessing in not so distant future most good mainstream sound systems including tvs, soundbars etc. will be dsp actives with room eq.

Meridian are celebrating 25 years of actives with DSP and LINN launching their Akurate/Exakt (? Scottish spelling) technology. Neither cheap!

https://www.meridian-audio.com/en/campaigns/anniversary/

 

[gowiththeflow]

....Based on the Focus 160 @ £1800 going to be well north of £2k IMHO.

The XEO4 is >£600 more than the Excite X14........

There has been some speculation about the pricing of the new Focus XD range, over on the AVS Forum; now backed up with some (supposedly official) rrp's quoted on a European based HiFi magazine/news website.

Prices for the Focus XD speakers, are said to be slightly more than double than the prices for the equivellent sized standard Focus models.

The standmount XD200 @ €5000 (approx £4000)

Floorstanding XD400 @ €8000 (approx £6400) and XD600 @ €10,000 (£7950).

If these prices are correct, or close, then these speakers are significantly more expensive than the Excite based Xeo range and will have to be bl**dy good for that sort of money. AFAIK, Dynaudio doesn't seem to have released UK prices (unless I've missed them?).

.

 

[steve_1979]

Just contacted Teufel and they've arranged for a replacement. They said that it's not a known issue so fingers crossed they're right because I'd like to keep it because apart from this issue it's perfect for my needs in every other respect.

That's pretty decent service. Do let us know what happens.

Their customer service is A1. They were always very friendly and helpful on the phone and there were no problems arranging replacements and a refund. They even arranged and paid for all of the couriers, all I had to do was choose the times.

It's a shame that the DecoderStation wasn't suitable as they are such a nice company to deal with.

 

[davedotco]

Just contacted Teufel and they've arranged for a replacement. They said that it's not a known issue so fingers crossed they're right because I'd like to keep it because apart from this issue it's perfect for my needs in every other respect.

That's pretty decent service. Do let us know what happens.

Their customer service is A1. They were always very friendly and helpful on the phone and there were no problems arranging replacements and a refund. They even arranged and paid for all of the couriers, all I had to do was choose the times.

It's a shame that the DecoderStation wasn't suitable as they are such a nice company to deal with.

Was it the same issue as the first unit you tried, or something different?

 

[steve_1979]

Just contacted Teufel and they've arranged for a replacement. They said that it's not a known issue so fingers crossed they're right because I'd like to keep it because apart from this issue it's perfect for my needs in every other respect.

That's pretty decent service. Do let us know what happens.

Their customer service is A1. They were always very friendly and helpful on the phone and there were no problems arranging replacements and a refund. They even arranged and paid for all of the couriers, all I had to do was choose the times.

It's a shame that the DecoderStation wasn't suitable as they are such a nice company to deal with.

Was it the same issue as the first unit you tried, or something different?

The DAC problem was the same as before but I could work around that by using the O2 as a DAC into the AUX inputs on the DecoderStation so that sorted that issue out. I'd have been satisfied if I could at least have used it as a simple 2.1 preamplifier.

However now that I have a subwoofer another issue reared its head! When I set the speakers to 'large' to allow the DM5's to play full range nothing comes out of the subwoofer. It won't let the subwoofer to play at the same time as when the main speakers are set to full range. The subwoofer only receives a signal if the main speakers are set to 'small'.

 

[davedotco]

Just contacted Teufel and they've arranged for a replacement. They said that it's not a known issue so fingers crossed they're right because I'd like to keep it because apart from this issue it's perfect for my needs in every other respect.

That's pretty decent service. Do let us know what happens.

Their customer service is A1. They were always very friendly and helpful on the phone and there were no problems arranging replacements and a refund. They even arranged and paid for all of the couriers, all I had to do was choose the times.

It's a shame that the DecoderStation wasn't suitable as they are such a nice company to deal with.

Was it the same issue as the first unit you tried, or something different?

The DAC problem was the same as before but I could work around that by using the O2 as a DAC into the AUX inputs on the DecoderStation so that sorted that issue out. I'd have been satisfied if I could at least have used it as a simple 2.1 preamplifier.

However now that I have a subwoofer another issue reared its head! When I set the speakers to 'large' to allow the DM5's to play full range nothing comes out of the subwoofer. It won't let the subwoofer to play at the same time as when the main speakers are set to full range. The subwoofer only receives a signal if the main speakers are set to 'small'.

Ah, I see.

When you set the speakers to 'small', what is the lowest frequency that can be set for the bass roll off?

Sorry, just interested.

 

[steve_1979]

Just contacted Teufel and they've arranged for a replacement. They said that it's not a known issue so fingers crossed they're right because I'd like to keep it because apart from this issue it's perfect for my needs in every other respect.

That's pretty decent service. Do let us know what happens.

Their customer service is A1. They were always very friendly and helpful on the phone and there were no problems arranging replacements and a refund. They even arranged and paid for all of the couriers, all I had to do was choose the times.

It's a shame that the DecoderStation wasn't suitable as they are such a nice company to deal with.

Was it the same issue as the first unit you tried, or something different?

The DAC problem was the same as before but I could work around that by using the O2 as a DAC into the AUX inputs on the DecoderStation so that sorted that issue out. I'd have been satisfied if I could at least have used it as a simple 2.1 preamplifier.

However now that I have a subwoofer another issue reared its head! When I set the speakers to 'large' to allow the DM5's to play full range nothing comes out of the subwoofer. It won't let the subwoofer to play at the same time as when the main speakers are set to full range. The subwoofer only receives a signal if the main speakers are set to 'small'.

Ah, I see.

When you set the speakers to 'small', what is the lowest frequency that can be set for the bass roll off?

Sorry, just interested.

80Hz.

The DM5's sound their best when they're running full range though.

 

[davedotco]

Just contacted Teufel and they've arranged for a replacement. They said that it's not a known issue so fingers crossed they're right because I'd like to keep it because apart from this issue it's perfect for my needs in every other respect.

That's pretty decent service. Do let us know what happens.

Their customer service is A1. They were always very friendly and helpful on the phone and there were no problems arranging replacements and a refund. They even arranged and paid for all of the couriers, all I had to do was choose the times.

It's a shame that the DecoderStation wasn't suitable as they are such a nice company to deal with.

Was it the same issue as the first unit you tried, or something different?

The DAC problem was the same as before but I could work around that by using the O2 as a DAC into the AUX inputs on the DecoderStation so that sorted that issue out. I'd have been satisfied if I could at least have used it as a simple 2.1 preamplifier.

However now that I have a subwoofer another issue reared its head! When I set the speakers to 'large' to allow the DM5's to play full range nothing comes out of the subwoofer. It won't let the subwoofer to play at the same time as when the main speakers are set to full range. The subwoofer only receives a signal if the main speakers are set to 'small'.

Ah, I see.

When you set the speakers to 'small', what is the lowest frequency that can be set for the bass roll off?

Sorry, just interested.

80Hz.

The DM5's sound their best when they're running full range though.

That is contrary to my experience though of course not with DM5s. I know that this is AVIs default position, but I find almost all small speakers benefit from low frequency roll off, if bass performance is not compromised.

But then 80hz does seem rather high.

 

[steve_1979]

Just contacted Teufel and they've arranged for a replacement. They said that it's not a known issue so fingers crossed they're right because I'd like to keep it because apart from this issue it's perfect for my needs in every other respect.

That's pretty decent service. Do let us know what happens.

Their customer service is A1. They were always very friendly and helpful on the phone and there were no problems arranging replacements and a refund. They even arranged and paid for all of the couriers, all I had to do was choose the times.

It's a shame that the DecoderStation wasn't suitable as they are such a nice company to deal with.

Was it the same issue as the first unit you tried, or something different?

The DAC problem was the same as before but I could work around that by using the O2 as a DAC into the AUX inputs on the DecoderStation so that sorted that issue out. I'd have been satisfied if I could at least have used it as a simple 2.1 preamplifier.

However now that I have a subwoofer another issue reared its head! When I set the speakers to 'large' to allow the DM5's to play full range nothing comes out of the subwoofer. It won't let the subwoofer to play at the same time as when the main speakers are set to full range. The subwoofer only receives a signal if the main speakers are set to 'small'.

Ah, I see.

When you set the speakers to 'small', what is the lowest frequency that can be set for the bass roll off?

Sorry, just interested.

80Hz.

The DM5's sound their best when they're running full range though.

That is contrary to my experience though of course not with DM5s. I know that this is AVIs default position, but I find almost all small speakers benefit from low frequency roll off, if bass performance is not compromised.

But then 80hz does seem rather high.

Using the Yamaha AVR I've tried using a 60Hz crossover with all the bass going to the subwoofer and this works pretty well too. If ever I want to crank the volume up really loud I'll use this setting to give the DM5's a little extra dynamic headroom. It's not at all necessary from my listening position though (about 1.5 metres away) and the DM5's will go surprisingly loud without distorting.

 

[steve_1979]

The ATC SCM40's have gone active. *dirol*

I always wondered why they hadn't made an active version of them before. Apart from that new style grill these look absolutely stunning. Reasonably priced too.

http://www.whathifi.com/news/ces-2015-atc-to-introduce-scm40a-active-loudspeaker

 

[steve_1979]

Wersi Vocalis

www.dv247.com/studio-equipment/wersi-vocalis-black-pair--214317]www.dv247.com/studio-equipment/wersi-vocalis-black-pair--214317

Certainly a lot of speaker for the price. I'm guessing they must have scrimped on the quality in order to keep the cost so low.

 

[matt49]

C***! [Nor does the swear filter]

Bored? Me? Naaah!

A bored gynaecologist?

I assumed there were three bass drivers, hence only one Xover needed. May be wrong about that.

What struck me as odd was that they didn't look at all like studio monitors. Someone has done some design. Not in a good way though ...

 

[DocG]

I assumed there were three bass drivers, hence only one Xover needed. May be wrong about that.

In my imagination, it would be a tweeter, two mids (in d'Appolito config) and two bass drivers. Three way, five driver design.

Unless we're talking about different models (hard to check as the spam filter won't let me quote...).

[And then the word verification... Done!]

EDIT: [Still no bold text]

[Not gonna try the swear filter again... (I don't know that many English swear words*angel*)]

[Edited my post, hence new word verification... Done!]

EDIT: [now the smileys don't work either...]

[You may have guessed: another word verification... Done!]

 

[DocG]

Wersi Vocalis

[I have to drop the link, cos the spam filter doesn't allow it!]

Certainly a lot of speaker for the price. I'm guessing they must have scrimped on the quality in order to keep the cost so low.

Would they be active? Or powered? The specs state '120 W RMS amp power'. How would that be split between the drivers?

Also intriguing: they look like three-ways, but there's only one XO frequency in the specs...*nea*

[And then the word verification... Done!]

[And the bold text doesn't work...]

EDITED! [Nor does the swear filter - EDITED it myself...]

Bored? Me? Naaah!

 

[steve_1979]

Would they be active? Or powered? The specs state '120 W RMS amp power'. How would that be split between the drivers?

Good point. And I dunno???

 

[gowiththeflow]

The ATC SCM40's have gone active. *dirol*

I always wondered why they hadn't made an active version of them before. Apart from that new style grill these look absolutely stunning. Reasonably priced too.

http://www.whathifi.com/news/ces-2015-atc-to-introduce-scm40a-active-loudspeaker

For me this is quite exciting news. So far I've been unable to try out the regular passive SCM40's and despite already owning a couple of expensive amps, would be very interested in this new active version.

As far as I can tell, ATC's stand-alone amplifcation has a very good reputation, as does the active amplification in their more expensive speakers. Another long cross country journey is in prospect for a demo, once these are in stock.

.