Horns - Necessary to complete the Audiophile Journey?

[watchnerd]

My interest has gotten the better of me. I've just ordered 2 JBL Eon 615s. My 9th loudspeaker purchase in the past couple months .

Did the EONs arrive yet?

 

[Lbstyling]

I think they are an interesting science experiment.

I am very interested to hear your impressions of the current eon 615.

Will you do a detailed impression/ analysis if/when you buy for us?

Do you have the capacity to measure distortion?

Thanks.

 

[Plcamp]

I thought I found the ultimate horned bass-head, but apparently it is simply a piece of landscape art.

 

[gonefishin]

I thought I found the ultimate horned bass-head, but apparently it is simply a piece of landscape art.View attachment 75849

Is that Tom Danley standing next to it?

 

[MakeMineVinyl]

In one of the old Audio Magazine anthologies, there was an article about a guy who built a horn into one whole wall of his house. The horn itself was external to the house with the mouth of the horn taking up one of his walls. Apparently he did this while his wife was on vacation, so there wasn't much she could do about it when she got back home. That was back in the mono days; who knows what he did when stereo came onto the scene.

 

[mhardy6647]

In one of the old Audio Magazine anthologies, there was an article about a guy who built a horn into one whole wall of his house. The horn itself was external to the house with the mouth of the horn taking up one of his walls. Apparently he did this while his wife was on vacation, so there wasn't much she could do about it when she got back home. That was back in the mono days; who knows what he did when stereo came onto the scene.

https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Audio/Archive-Audio/50s/Audio-1954-July.pdf

 

[watchnerd]

That was back in the mono days; who knows what he did when stereo came onto the scene.

Got divorced?

 

[MakeMineVinyl]

View attachment 75880
https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Audio/Archive-Audio/50s/Audio-1954-July.pdf

Yup, that's it.

 

[richard12511]

Did the EONs arrive yet?

It came in a few days ago. Just got it set up today in my office. I've listened to it for 30 mins or so now in my office. I'll save impressions until I've had more chance to compare it to my 308p. I will say, at 2m distance here in my office, the hiss is horrible. People complain about the hiss on the 308p speakers, but the hiss on this EON is several times louder.

This weekend I'll pull it out into the mainroom and listen at 4m.

Also, the led lights on the back don't work. Not sure if something is wrong, or if there's just something I'm missing.

 

[richard12511]

There it is next to the 308p.

 

[Phorize]

Recommendations?

I was kind of eyeing the Klipsch La Scala, or maybe even the Klipschorns.

You may wish to look at Wayne Parham's designs at pi speakers. The pi 4 is a bass reflex monitor with horn tweeter which appears to measure well if measurements posted on line are anything to go by-its possible that Wayne will be sending a pair to Amir. He does some very interesting corner horns too.

 

[MSTARK]

Not sure if anyone suggested Cornwalls 4 as an option? I think you should give them a listen.
If you have questions about them, let me know.

There are very few (if any) horns in that price range that I would like to own or I would dare to recommend.

 

[Phorize]

You know ... that's just the inverse of exaggerated audiophool babble. Almost no horns sound "bloody horrific", and no horn I ever heard sounded like "scraping nails on a wall". Horns have significant strengths and weaknesses; some listeners like the strengths more than dislike the weaknesses. They're an extremely valid option.

Fully agree. If technical leaders in the field are to be believed, most of the alleged horn traits that people don’t like are down to sub optimal implementation. I’m an engineering layperson and got interested in this when thinking about trying a horn speaker. I ended up buying this and am slowly reading it cover to cover:

https://www.lean-business.co.uk/esh...-bjørn-kolbrek-and-thomas-dunker-p-3317.html

As a borderline ignoramus it seems to me that very few modern horn designers would be likely to have a comprehensive understanding of applied horn theory, unless they specialise in it academically or have access to the sort of technical repository that companies like Klipsch are likely to have. There are plainly smaller endeavours that treat this very seriously and publish the technical assumptions in the designs (such as pi speakers), but I’d assume they are few and far between. I suppose a challenge is one that exists with most speakers, being that the designer has no control over the environment that the speaker is used in, so who knows what listeners are hearing and why.

 

[mhardy6647]

The b

Fully agree. If technical leaders in the field are to be believed, most of the alleged horn traits that people don’t like are down to sub optimal implementation. I’m an engineering layperson and got interested in this when thinking about trying a horn speaker. I ended up buying this and am slowly reading it cover to cover:

https://www.lean-business.co.uk/eshop/high-quality-horn-loudspeaker-systems-by-bjørn-kolbrek-and-thomas-dunker-p-3317.html

As a borderline ignoramus it seems to me that very few modern horn designers would be likely to have a comprehensive understanding of applied horn theory, unless they specialise in it academically or have access to the sort of technical repository that companies like Klipsch are likely to have. There are plainly smaller endeavours that treat this very seriously and publish the technical assumptions in the designs (such as pi speakers), but I’d assume they are few and far between. I suppose a challenge is one that exists with most speakers, being that the designer has no control over the environment that the speaker is used in, so who knows what listeners are hearing and why.

The book is an amazing resource.

 

[MattHooper]

More extreme Horn speakers, one in this thread:

https://www.audionirvana.org/forum/the-audio-vault/loudspeakers/135088-now-this-is-a-loudspeaker

Also would love to have heard this:

http://www.burwenaudio.com/Sound_System.html

 

[MakeMineVinyl]

More extreme Horn speakers, one in this thread:

https://www.audionirvana.org/forum/the-audio-vault/loudspeakers/135088-now-this-is-a-loudspeaker

Also would love to have heard this:

http://www.burwenaudio.com/Sound_System.html

Amazing.

 

[mhardy6647]

ff19g_02 by Holger Barske, on Flickr
ff19g_06 by Holger Barske, on Flickr

 

[MakeMineVinyl]

Looking at systems like that makes me feel extraordinarily conservative in building mine, and I'm absolutely insane my most people's standards.

 

[MattHooper]

Looking at systems like that makes me feel extraordinarily conservative in building mine, and I'm absolutely insane my most people's standards.

Yeah, we all need to bookmark those sites to show our wives should it be necessary ;-)

 

[Ro808]

At least, Klaus Speth's 5-way Goto system is (re)movable.

This bass horn, completed last month in Japan, ain't: