Shootout between JBL M2 and Revel Salon 2

[RayDunzl]

Of course they are better. Keith carries them, does he not?

Actually, we shouldn't be too hard on him, I'm thinking.

There are worse things he could be recommending (and trying to sell to the locals).

 

[FrantzM]

Speechless ...
WOW!
The most remarkable is that people bought that thing.

 

[Thomas savage]

It is rather a shame that US speaker manufacturers are technically rather lacking, perhaps a stern talking to is in order?
Keith

Don't worry, when their country is overcrowded and they are all living in tiny houses ( like we do) they will develop a obsession with bookshelf speakers too..

A few more years Keith, a few more years...

 

[Wayne]

There are worse things he could be recommending (and trying to sell to the locals).

Unbelievable..... only $13,500 (includes shipping)

 

[watchnerd]

How do Vandersteen speakers compare to those commonly discussed on this forum, ie Kii, JBL, etc? Are they worlds apart or similar in sound quality?
Thanks

The Vandersteen 2CE is a classic in that it has sold for decades in a form that is mostly the same as the original.

Personally, I find Vandersteen speakers to be very pleasant to listen to, but also a bit boring. The kind of smooth everything out.

It's like a luxury car with a fat cushy suspension.

 

[watchnerd]

Don't worry, when their country is overcrowded and they are all living in tiny houses ( like we do) they will develop a obsession with bookshelf speakers too..

A few more years Keith, a few more years...

You're both wrong, even bookshelf speakers are a declining breed.

Mono wireless speakers are the future and its already here (Sonos, Amazon Echo, etc.).

Even Brit maker NAIM is getting into the act with their Mu-So QB.

The forthcoming Apple HomePod will probably sell more $$$ than the entire high end audio industry (Sonos certainly has already).

 

[Wayne]

The Vandersteen 2CE is a classic in that it has sold for decades in a form that is mostly the same as the original.

@ watchnerd
I presently have a pair of JBL LSR 4328P speakers. Would you expect the Vandersteen 2CE be of comparable quality as the JBL pair I have, that is will they take the "abuse" and keep on ticking, while providing similar sound quality? The only experience I have is with these JBLs (which have given me good service) so I have to use them as a base line. I would like to avoid getting a system that is finicky or gives problems -(I don't need another wife... )

 

[watchnerd]

@ watchnerd
I presently have a pair of JBL LSR 4328P speakers. Would you expect the Vandersteen 2CE be of comparable quality as the JBL pair I have, that is will they take the "abuse" and keep on ticking, while providing similar sound quality? The only experience I have is with these JBLs (which have given me good service) so I have to use them as a base line. I would like to avoid getting a system that is finicky or gives problems -(I don't need another wife... )

Short answer -- no, they won't take abuse like JBLs.

As for similar sound quality -- no, they're very different. The Vandy's are the opposite of studio monitors, usually described as to easy to listen to "music lover" speakers, with time alignment.

Which you prefer is totally subjective, but they're definitely not in the same "ride hard and put away wet" category as the JBLs, although almost certainly much more durable than @Thomas savage 's fragile delicacies.

 

[Sal1950]

There are worse things he could be recommending (and trying to sell to the locals).

Unbelievable..... only $13,500 (includes shipping)

But, but, they're Italian marble, with gold spec's, it's gorgeous to look at, it's expensive.

When he mentioned his AVM MA8 amps drew "enormous" amounts of current from the wall I was curious. (being the green type of guy I am LOL).
Not so bad after all says JA,
"I certainly liked the fact that, for a 4 ohm load, at idle, each MA8.2 draws about 20W. That's many hundreds of watts less—and much less heat—than my class-A Pass XA200.8s"
Read more at https://www.stereophile.com/content/avm-ovation-ma82-monoblock-power-amplifier#RjLjBSSJUv8SAbg1.99

I could cut up on the rest of his video but the first posted comment said it all.
"This is proof positive there is absolutely no relationship between your level of intelligence and how much money is in your bank account."

Mono wireless speakers are the future and its already here

Like I told P W Klipsch back in the day, stereo is just a fad anyway, all they really need is one good corner.

 

[watchnerd]

Like I told P W Klipsch back in the day, stereo is just a fad anyway, all they really need is one good corner.

You might be old Sal, but you're not *that* old....

 

[Jakob1863]

I was still wondering about the remark, that the extension of the terms like "controlled directivity" or "directivity control" to the bass region would be contrary to the use of the terms in the last 40 years inside the AES, as it would confirm that even my beloved society would misuse the term. I couldn´t remember having seen that since i started to be an AES member back in the 1980s, but of course could have missed it.

The best way to figure out would of course be to scan every publication, but to make things a bit easier i was only searching what Earl Geddes (serving the AES in many different roles including as reviewers) might have said about the directivity control.
To my relief, both he had published a whitepaper:

Earl Geddes:
http://www.gedlee.com/Papers/directivity.pdf

 

[Thomas savage]

Short answer -- no, they won't take abuse like JBLs.

As for similar sound quality -- no, they're very different. The Vandy's are the opposite of studio monitors, usually described as to easy to listen to "music lover" speakers, with time alignment.

Which you prefer is totally subjective, but they're definitely not in the same "ride hard and put away wet" category as the JBLs, although almost certainly much more durable than @Thomas savage 's fragile delicacies.

Fair, you want to abuse speakers stick to brands with a studio heritage.

 

[Thomas savage]

You're both wrong, even bookshelf speakers are a declining breed.

Mono wireless speakers are the future and its already here (Sonos, Amazon Echo, etc.).

Even Brit maker NAIM is getting into the act with their Mu-So QB.

The forthcoming Apple HomePod will probably sell more $$$ than the entire high end audio industry (Sonos certainly has already).

Hey @Purité Audio , you hear this guy!?

Apparently we are both wrong, what a cheeky bastard .

 

[NorthSky]

Actually, we shouldn't be too hard on him, I'm thinking.

There are worse things he could be recommending (and trying to sell to the locals).

How much does it cost Ray? It is truly gorgeous. I have one of those bars, but mine was on sale for $29.99 (local high end audio dealer). Regular was $229.99
Of course it's made from hard aluminum, and it's not as gorgeous looking and solid (44 pounds) as the one from the video above.

 

[NorthSky]

Unbelievable..... only $13,500 (includes shipping)

Ah, here's the price. It must sound awesome!

 

[Sal1950]

You're both wrong, even bookshelf speakers are a declining breed.

Mono wireless speakers are the future and its already here (Sonos, Amazon Echo, etc.).

Even Brit maker NAIM is getting into the act with their Mu-So QB.

The forthcoming Apple HomePod will probably sell more $$$ than the entire high end audio industry (Sonos certainly has already).

Hey @Purité Audio , you hear this guy!?

Apparently we are both wrong, what a cheeky bastard .

But tis a fact that "stereo" has been a waste of money, space, and time for 99% of the population. Even back in the hey-day of HiFi when the first thing everyone got after the TV (maybe even before a TV) was a component rig, not 1 in 100 set them up to image. One speaker get placed over in a corner while the other was next to the listening chair for a coffee table. It was only the nerds like us that read the HiFi magazines like Audio and Stereo Review that even knew the WHY of stereo, all the rest knew was how cool it was for the drums to come out of one speaker and guitar the other..

 

[Frank Dernie]

Hey they stole my design ideas for the cabinet anyway. I had this in mind a generation ago. Aluminum isn't so heavy after considering poured in place reinforced concrete. They make boats out of it so why not speaker cabinets.

I have had speakers with ally enclosures for 20 years.

 

[Blumlein 88]

I have had speakers with ally enclosures for 20 years.

It wasn't just the aluminum. It is how they fit them together.

 

[Frank Dernie]

It wasn't just the aluminum. It is how they fit them together.

Ahh.
Mine are complex, with flat 10mm plate, tapped blind holes and "O" ring grooves, held together with loads of machine cap screws through drilled metal batons and with tension bars tensioning on the internal walls with turnbuckles. I think the baseplate may be brass too, for some reason.
Pre free availability of NC machines this was probably the best way to make them in small batches.
Nowadays and for bigger volume production it would be lunacy!

 

[Blumlein 88]

Ahh.
Mine are complex, with flat 10mm plate, tapped blind holes and "O" ring grooves, held together with loads of machine cap screws through drilled metal batons and with tension bars tensioning on the internal walls with turnbuckles. I think the baseplate may be brass too, for some reason.
Pre free availability of NC machines this was probably the best way to make them in small batches.
Nowadays and for bigger volume production it would be lunacy!

Sounds like a good way to make speaker boxes. Labor intensive of course. And as you mention with CNC something like that is a piece of cake once someone has the files for it.