Simple 2-way small floorstander

Dedicated to those large boxes at one end of the room
Max N
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#16 Re: Simple 2-way small floorstander

Post by Max N »

Just had a closer look at the veneer, and how you have 'book matched' them - is that the right term?
Anyway, having attempted some veneering myself many years ago (not very successfully), I can appreciate the very high level of craftsmanship.
Last edited by Max N on Sun Jun 04, 2017 7:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Paul Barker
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#17 Re: Simple 2-way small floorstander

Post by Paul Barker »

beautiful
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Toppsy
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#18 Re: Simple 2-way small floorstander

Post by Toppsy »

Just finished the grilles before I wrap them up in protective bubble-wrap ready for AndrewL to take them to the Owston meet. Phil has very kindly offered to act as intermediary courier and take them home with him on Sunday for the new owner to collect from Phil's place next week.

Though the prime reason for the speakers being at the Owston meet is for Phil to collect as said, I do not mind if anyone wants to listen to them. However, Phil has said he would not want to re-wrap them in the protective bubble-wrap so all I ask is that whom ever unwraps them for hook up to any system, please re-wrap them before they leave and pass them back to Phil. Thanks.

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Mike H
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#19 Re: Simple 2-way small floorstander

Post by Mike H »

They is stunning with the grilles on. Proper looking, like.
 
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ahgee2
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#20 Re: Simple 2-way small floorstander

Post by ahgee2 »

As the very happy new owner of these beautiful speakers, I thought I'd say hello and post my impressions on the forum. Before receiving these, I had been listening to the same pair of Ruark Icons for more than 25 years! For their price and size, the Icons excelled at clarity, midrange and treble, but left the listener to imagine quite a lot of the bass. I asked Colin and Scott whether they could come up with something that would add an octave of bass, within a tight budget and small footprint. They had to fit into a small Victorian terrace living room, work well stuck in a corner by the fireplace, and look gorgeous if they were to pass the WAF test.
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As you can see from the photo of them in their new home, they look great in situ and have actually won us a little floor space compared with the clunky stands the Icons used to sit on. Sonically, they are everything I hoped for, though it did take a change of amplifier to bring out their best. The little T-amp I was using worked miracles with the Icons, but couldn't seem to get a grip of the floorstanders at low/moderate listening volumes, where there was some mudiness. I knew from Colin, Scott and Chris's postings that I must be missing something, so snapped up a serviced and recapped NAD 130 on Ebay. This is a lovely little amp for the price, and has lifted the veil from the speakers, which now convey intricate detail at low volumes. And, of course, there's that extra octave of bass, which has been a revelation.

It has been a pleasure working with Colin and Scott, whose talents must be well known to everyone on this forum. I am in awe of their knowledge, skill, patience and willingness to indulge the naive questions of an audio newbie. Thanks too to Chris for helping tune the speakers while they were at Colin's place, and to Phil for kindly bringing them down south after the Owston meet-up. I can't help feeling that Colin and Scott are onto a winner with these speakers, they mix excellent sound quality with stunning looks and a tiny footprint. Colin mentioned a plan to offer them in three variants, these ones would be the budget model with Monacor drivers. I can't wait to see what they come up with for the mid and high-end versions.
Andrew
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Toppsy
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#21 Re: Simple 2-way small floorstander

Post by Toppsy »

Andrew,
It is pleasing for us that these speakers have more than met your expectations and they have got your wife's seal of approval.
I have to admit that they have bettered my initial expectations but this is down to Scott's design expertise and Chris's much appreciated feedback and fine tuning modifications. No matter how accurate a new design models and how enthusiastic one becomes when firing up a new design for the first time and you get that euphoric moment that these are bloody good as is and you cannot find fault. I get this with every speaker I have ever built until one invites others (with better attuned hearing then me) and give you a negative response to what they are hearing. Some take this as a rebuff and cannot handle the criticism but not for me. This is the only way you can advance your speaker building skills and where I value the honest feedback from Chris, NickG (our host) and AndrewL amongst others who tell me where things are not quite right with the speakers. Chris is particularly good with this respect and the result is the speakers you are now enjoying.
Colin mentioned a plan to offer them in three variants, these ones would be the budget model with Monacor drivers. I can't wait to see what they come up with for the mid and high-end versions.
These builds are progressing well. We have swapped out the Monacor RBT-95SQ pseudo ribbon in the budget version for a relative new soft dome Monacor tweeter mainly as Monacor have stopped selling the ribbon and the replacement version (RBT-95SR) though will handle more power requires a slightly higher XO point whereas the soft dome can be crossed over at a lower frequency and should help integrate better with the mid-bass unit. The other two speakers will have all SEAS drivers and the high-end version will have SB Acoustics all Satori drivers. I'll send you a personal invite to come over to Topps Towers for a stay-over and listen when they are completed, should you be interested?
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DSJR
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#22 Re: Simple 2-way small floorstander

Post by DSJR »

The Satori tweeters are reported to be really something, better than the SB tweeter which was better than a well respected large-dome Scan which was better than everything else - well, you get the idea, and probably the mouthpiece where these statements came from :D
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Ali Tait
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#23 Re: Simple 2-way small floorstander

Post by Ali Tait »

SB tweeter?

The Sartori is made by SB Acoustics.
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