Ascend Acoustics Sierra LX Review

[Xcaliber]

Based on measurement alone and not taking subjective preferences into account, It's fascinating to see these Sierra LX rated at #1 under $2500 price point here.

In order to beat the LX, one have to spend $4000 on March Audio Sointuva AWG, they knocked down the LX to 2nd place, even then, the LX remained in 2nd place all the way up to the $9000 bracket While the Sierra 1 V2 is "trailing" right behind the LX the whole way through.

The ELX Ribbon Tower seems to be the next big jump if one were to go for tower/floorstander, it remained in 2nd place all the way up to $25k bracket, which is quite insane, it wasn't that far off at the top $35K bracket either:

 

[robh]

Based on measurement alone and not taking subjective preferences into account, It's fascinating to see these Sierra LX rated at #1 under $2500 price point here.

In order to beat the LX, one have to spend $4000 on March Audio Sointuva AWG, they knocked down the LX to 2nd place, even then, the LX remained in 2nd place all the way up to the $9000 bracket While the Sierra 1 V2 is "trailing" right behind the LX the whole way through.

Accurate is accurate. After you account for measurements, quality of drivers and subjective analysis... the only thing left to beat it is aesthetics and output (tower speakers, for example).

 

[Xcaliber]

I wonder why the 2EXv2 scored that much lower than both the LX and S1v2, I'd expected the 2EXv2 to be much closer to LX if not identical to LX with the addition of a subwoofer to make up for the lower end output, from what i read....those RAAL ribbon tweeters supposed to have better top end and only gave up a bit in the bass region?

 

[goldark]

Based on measurement alone and not taking subjective preferences into account, It's fascinating to see these Sierra LX rated at #1 under $2500 price point here.

In order to beat the LX, one have to spend $4000 on March Audio Sointuva AWG, they knocked down the LX to 2nd place, even then, the LX remained in 2nd place all the way up to the $9000 bracket While the Sierra 1 V2 is "trailing" right behind the LX the whole way through.

The ELX Ribbon Tower seems to be the next big jump if one were to go for tower/floorstander, it remained in 2nd place all the way up to $25k bracket, which is quite insane, it wasn't that far off at the top $35K bracket either:

View attachment 357357

The Blade 1 Meta's substantially higher preference score is aided by the fact that it digs down to 23 Hz. When this advantage is compensated for with a subwoofer, the ELX Tower and all the top KEF's have around the same score.

 

[goldark]

I wonder why the 2EXv2 scored that much lower than both the LX and S1v2, I'd expected the 2EXv2 to be much closer to LX if not identical to LX with the addition of a subwoofer to make up for the lower end output, from what i read....those RAAL ribbon tweeters supposed to have better top end and only gave up a bit in the bass region?

View attachment 357383

I could be mistaken and I hope @AscendDF chimes in, but I recall reading somewhere that the RAAL's dispersion characteristics will make the measurements seem worse than what they audibly sound like. It's easier to create textbook measurements with a dome tweeter is what I thought was implied. I hope Dave corrects me if I'm completely off-base.

 

[Xcaliber]

The Blade 1 Meta's substantially higher preference score is aided by the fact that it digs down to 23 Hz. When this advantage is compensated for with a subwoofer, the ELX Tower and all the top KEF's have around the same score.

It's an eye opener to see these Sierra and ELX compete with speakers that cost significantly more, far more! The diminishing return hit home hard, it looks like Ascend is hitting the sweet spot!!

I could be mistaken and I hope @AscendDF chimes in, but I recall reading somewhere that the RAAL's dispersion characteristics will make the measurements seem worse than what they audibly sound like. It's easier to create textbook measurements with a dome tweeter is what I thought was implied. I hope Dave corrects me if I'm completely off-base.

Yea over there at AVS and ascendacoustics forums, quite a few people actually picked the 2EXv2 over the LX just to have that RAAL tweeters. If I were to use the speakers solely for 2.1 music listening and nothing else, I would be tempted to go for the 2EXv2 instead, regardless of what the measurement says.

But I'm using them for everything, music, movies, and gaming, so the LX seems to fit multiple roles much better and be more versatile.

 

[goldark]

It's an eye opener to see these Sierra and ELX compete with speakers that cost significantly more, far more! The diminishing return hit home hard, it looks like Ascend is hitting the sweet spot!!



Yea over there at AVS and ascendacoustics forums, quite a few people actually picked the 2EXv2 over the LX just to have that RAAL tweeters. If I were to use the speakers solely for 2.1 music listening and nothing else, I would be tempted to go for the 2EXv2 instead, regardless of what the measurement says.

But I'm using them for everything, music, movies, and gaming, so the LX seems to fit multiple roles much better and be more versatile.

I own the Sierra 2EXv2 and am considering "side-grading" to the LX after reading the almost over-the-top rave reviews but then started reading about the ELX towers and I may consider doing that instead. Sigh, this isn't good for my wallet.

 

[CleanSound]

Sigh, this isn't good for my wallet.

No, not one bit. But great for you listening enjoyment.

 

[AscendDF]

I wonder why the 2EXv2 scored that much lower than both the LX and S1v2, I'd expected the 2EXv2 to be much closer to LX if not identical to LX with the addition of a subwoofer to make up for the lower end output, from what i read....those RAAL ribbon tweeters supposed to have better top end and only gave up a bit in the bass region?

View attachment 357383

There are 2 reasons for this. First one is because of the extremely wide dispersion of the small RAAL (64-10x). The dispersion does not narrow above 8kHz and this results in a flattening of the estimated in-room response at higher frequencies so the EIR does not have the ideal downward slope needed to generate a higher preference score. Second, the Sierra-2EXv2 does not dig down as deep as the LX. Our EX woofer has about 1/2 the moving mass in comparison to the LX woofer, it is why the Sierra-2EXv2 has higher sensitivity.

We have customers who prefer the LX over the Sierra-2EXv2 and also those who prefer the Sierra-2EXv2 over the LX. It comes down to usage and what music genres one listens to the most.

In addition, there is very little difference between a score of 8.6 without a sub, and 8.0 without a sub.

Hope this makes sense.

 

[CleanSound]

Based on measurement alone and not taking subjective preferences into account, It's fascinating to see these Sierra LX rated at #1 under $2500 price point here.

In order to beat the LX, one have to spend $4000 on March Audio Sointuva AWG, they knocked down the LX to 2nd place, even then, the LX remained in 2nd place all the way up to the $9000 bracket While the Sierra 1 V2 is "trailing" right behind the LX the whole way through.

The ELX Ribbon Tower seems to be the next big jump if one were to go for tower/floorstander, it remained in 2nd place all the way up to $25k bracket, which is quite insane, it wasn't that far off at the top $35K bracket either:

View attachment 357357

You need to stop right now. You still have 2 more weeks to wait until your speakers come in, keep this up, you will suffer from sleepless nights until your speakers comes in.

 

[ta240]

I've got a Sierra LX that I use on its side as a center channel. Before putting it on center duty I listened to music through it for a little bit and I was really shocked at the bass it could reproduce.
Now when we watch movies I don't even notice it, all I notice is the movie.

 

[Xcaliber]

There are 2 reasons for this. First one is because of the extremely wide dispersion of the small RAAL (64-10x). The dispersion does not narrow above 8kHz and this results in a flattening of the estimated in-room response at higher frequencies so the EIR does not have the ideal slope needed to generate a higher preference score. Second, the Sierra-2EXv2 does not dig down as deep as the LX. Our EX woofer has about 1/2 the moving mass in comparison to the LX woofer, it is why the Sierra-2EXv2 has higher sensitivity.

We have customers who prefer the LX over the Sierra-2EXv2 and also those who prefer the Sierra-2EXv2 over the LX. It comes down to usage and what music genres one listens to the most.

In addition, there is very little difference between a score of 8.6 without a sub, and 8.0 without a sub.

Hope this makes sense.

It makes perfect sense.

With that said, I'm curious....is there any correlation between the dispersion pattern and the precision of imaging? And is it safe to presume most RAAL tweeters tend to be more "diffusive"? for the lack of better term.

I own the Sierra 2EXv2 and am considering "side-grading" to the LX after reading the almost over-the-top rave reviews but then started reading about the ELX towers and I may consider doing that instead. Sigh, this isn't good for my wallet.

The "sidegrade" to LX probably would give you quite a different experience, better vertical dispersion and midbass, with more pronounce and heavier kick and slam that you can actually feel, but in the mean time....if you already have a 10" or 12" sub, you probably could get away sticking with 2EXv2 for now and save up for the ELX.

Personally, if I were coming from LX or 2EXv2, the next logical and more substantial upgrade have to be the ELX towers since the ELX have the best of both worlds, the airier and more detailed high from the RAAL70-20xram , PLUS a hell lot more slam in mid and down low than LX The ELX should stop all the speaker upgrade-itch permanently, or however long they would last, as far as upgrade path goes...the ELX seems to be the end game, hence, your wallet is going to thank you in the long run, since you're skipping all the detours and going straight for the finish line. Assuming you have the space for them that is.

You need to stop right now. You still have 2 more weeks to wait until your speakers come in, keep this up, you will suffer from sleepless nights until your speakers comes in.

Shopping and waiting are part of the fun in this hobby right? lol Getting all excited and doing all the reading to find out more about them, gave me a fuzzy warm feeling. If the LX live up to its reputation, rest assure I will continue to run them in my office and save up for the ELX so i could replace my living room's 10 year old cheap floor standers. Too hard to ignore how well these ELX is competing with other $35K speakers. lol

The Blade 1 Meta's substantially higher preference score is aided by the fact that it digs down to 23 Hz. When this advantage is compensated for with a subwoofer, the ELX Tower and all the top KEF's have around the same score.

Once the subwoofer steps in, all of a sudden those Kef Blade 1 and 2 Meta aren't looking so impressive anymore, almost seems like snake oil.

 

[CleanSound]

If the LX live up to its reputation, rest assure I will continue to run them in my office and save up for the ELX so i could replace my living room's 10 year old cheap floor standers.

I think I may sell these LX end of this year or early next, so I can buy the ELX. Life is too short to not indulge in even better sooner, within financial reason of course.

 

[Xcaliber]

I think I may sell these LX end of this year or early next, so I can buy the ELX. Life is too short to not indulge in even better sooner, within financial reason of course.

Think of the ELX as something you deserved and have earned, which I'm sure you would get plenty of joy and fun out of, for years to come, it's an investment toward your happiness and long term well-being.

What we spent invested now can always be earned back in the future, but the lost of precious time can not be reversed or reset.

Are you going to run into wall gain/reflection problem with tower speakers in the same spot as those LX? or would they go to different room? I think you'll be gaining a hell lot more bass against the wall if that's the goal, which can be a good thing since you may not need a sub to go with them.

 

[CleanSound]

Think of the ELX as something you deserved and have earned, which I'm sure you would get plenty of joy and fun out of, for years to come, it's an investment toward your happiness and long term well-being.

What we spent invested now can always be earned back in the future, but the lost of precious time can not be reversed or reset.

Are you going to run into wall gain/reflection problem with tower speakers in the same spot as those LX? or would they go to different room? I think you'll be gaining a hell lot more bass against the wall if that's the goal, which can be a good thing since you may not need a sub to go with them.

Amen. I think I might rearrange the room a bit, but first I have to get some room measurements with REW to better understand what kind of beast I'm dealing with. If it's just some high frequency reverbs, I can tame that with decorative absorption panels. If I have room mode that is essentially uncorrectable with panels unless they are ultra thick. I just have to see. But as it stands today, while I notice it, it's really not that bad.

 

[muad]

Once the subwoofer steps in, all of a sudden those Kef Blade 1 and 2 Meta aren't looking so impressive anymore, almost seems like snake oil.

Erin just got a pair of blade metas in, and his initial impression is interesting. He almost seems mindblown. Not sure I would call concentric full range, with a perfect radiation pattern snake oil. The PS weighing doesn't account for everything, look at the D&D 8c, another mindblowing experience.

Anywho, I was one of the first few people to listen to the LX, great speaker, but I found an upper mid emphasis that didn't work well with some albums (I'm sensitive to off axis flaring seen with traditional speaker design). Grabbed the R3 meta and found my end game (after a looong list of speakers). It has a lower PS score but to my ears it's one of the best I've come across. I've listened to many speakers with high PS scores, they all sound different from each other. No snake oil

 

[Xcaliber]

Amen. I think I might rearrange the room a bit, but first I have to get some room measurements with REW to better understand what kind of beast I'm dealing with. If it's just some high frequency reverbs, I can tame that with decorative absorption panels. If I have room mode that is essentially uncorrectable with panels unless they are ultra thick. I just have to see. But as it stands today, while I notice it, it's really not that bad.

Most definitely measure them with REW to see what's going on but can REW display reverb? I've only started using REW recently, other than the standard FR, SPL, etc. I haven't play with any other features from it yet.

 

[CleanSound]

Most definitely measure them with REW to see what's going on but can REW display reverb? I've only started using REW recently, other than the standard FR, SPL, etc. I haven't play with any other features from it yet.

REW is not for the faint of hearts. My understanding is it does show reverbs, I'm still working on one one, it's a learning experience and I'm haven't mastered it enough to feel confident in my measurements and interpretation.

 

[Xcaliber]

Erin just got a pair of blade metas in, and his initial impression is interesting. He almost seems mindblown. Not sure I would call concentric full range, with a perfect radiation pattern snake oil. The PS weighing doesn't account for everything, look at the D&D 8c, another mindblowing experience.

Anywho, I was one of the first few people to listen to the LX, great speaker, but I found an upper mid emphasis that didn't work well with some albums (I'm sensitive to off axis flaring seen with traditional speaker design). Grabbed the R3 meta and found my end game (after a looong list of speakers). It has a lower PS score but to my ears it's one of the best I've come across. I've listened to many speakers with high PS scores, they all sound different from each other. No snake oil

Yea everybody have subjective taste and preference for sure, what worked for one person may not work for others regardless of the measurement . Like the R200, I think Erin didn't like it and rated it quite lowly, but personally i like mine and don't have any issues with it in my office.

Did the upper mid emphasis caused by reflection or room gain? the FR of these LX seems kinda flat except a small rise in the area circled below?

 

[CleanSound]

Erin just got a pair of blade metas in, and his initial impression is interesting. He almost seems mindblown. Not sure I would call concentric full range, with a perfect radiation pattern snake oil. The PS weighing doesn't account for everything, look at the D&D 8c, another mindblowing experience.

Anywho, I was one of the first few people to listen to the LX, great speaker, but I found an upper mid emphasis that didn't work well with some albums (I'm sensitive to off axis flaring seen with traditional speaker design). Grabbed the R3 meta and found my end game (after a looong list of speakers). It has a lower PS score but to my ears it's one of the best I've come across. I've listened to many speakers with high PS scores, they all sound different from each other. No snake oil

So I feel that Erin has a bias for concentric speakers, and he talked about buying these speakers before he even heard them, now that he heard them he is raving, can it be confirmation bias? I don't know, but I'm about to go to the dealer this weekend to listen to these Blade 2 meta for myself.