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Arendal 1961 Bookshelf review (by Erin)

audio2920

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But they measure well enough for a speaker that's clearly designed for HT with a sub, no? And they go unusually loud for a passive of their size - which is certainly a desirable quality for an ultra compact home theater speaker I'd say.

I don't dispute they look cheap, but given the measurements, the drivers can't be *complete* garbage.
 

Sancus

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To me they don't look any cheaper than their price, which at $350/ea is pretty damn cheap.

I like that Arendal at least bothered to avoid exposed screws. Even some high end speaker manufacturers think those are OK(I'm looking at you, Revel). They're not.
 

cwatt

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Yup. This is the internet, unfortunately folks can say all kinds of nonsense without having any actual experience with products or understanding. Just put on the ignore the list.
 

JRiggs

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LOL! I have not heard them but it's one of the models I'm considering for my desktop. How do you think they would do in the nearfield?
I am using them for my desktop and they excel. Take up far less space than the LS50 did and sound fantastic for low/mid volume, nearfield listening.
 

Doctors11

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I am using them for my desktop and they excel. Take up far less space than the LS50 did and sound fantastic for low/mid volume, nearfield listening.
That's great to hear, thanks. Are you using a sub?
 

JRiggs

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That's great to hear, thanks. Are you using a sub?
No, not at my desk. I have R3's with dual subs for my main system where I do more critical listening.
 

JRiggs

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I am using a Bluesound PowerNode for powering the Arendal's.
 

audio2920

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Heck with it, I'm gonna get a pair and see what they can do. They're so small I must be able to find a home for them :) (and probably just bump out whatever my worst/least useful speakers are after the inevitable re-shuffle of things)
 
D

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Yup. This is the internet, unfortunately folks can say all kinds of nonsense without having any actual experience with products or understanding. Just put on the ignore the list.
All righty fanboi deluxe,tone it down a notch.What exactly is the "on the ignore the list" anyway:rolleyes:
 

JRiggs

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audio2920

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Just to follow up, I went for 4x 1961 Monitor (the twin bass driver version) to go in as surrounds in a small Atmos room I'm putting together. Bottom line, I'm very happy.

They sound great and feel more premium than I expected at this price point. Cabinet finish looks better in the flesh and the binding posts are nice enough. Even the packaging (shipping) quality is a step up from what I thought it would be, which always gives you a bit of confidence, however misplaced that can be sometimes. And I had good & fast email communication with Arendal throughout. So, well done Arendal.

Anyway, just to start getting a feel for the room's issues, I'd previously thrown up an old pair of Dynaudio M20s in. But, for a laugh this afternoon I thought I'd finally get the 1961s out of their boxes and do a rough and ready in-room A/B measurement of one of them vs the M20. I used the left back surround position as an M20 was still on the bracket, and it's potentially the most troublesome placement since it fires at a computer screen and desk, and is in a corner. For what little it's worth to anyone else, here's the graph:

Orange = Emit M20, Green = 1961 Monitor. No EQ @ 1.5 - 2m. 1/12 smoothing.

M20 vs 1961 Monitor.jpg


Obviously there's the usual mess on the left of this. i.e room issues, SBIR etc... (Might have to see if I can fix a bit more of that...) But anyway, to the right of all that, the 1961 is looking pretty healthy! Another thing to note, that traces are absolute, so sensitivity is very comparable to the Dynaudio. (Not that that's a great reference point, but, I was expecting these to need more power for some reason.)

Just playing with some EQ by ear, it feels like they'll respond well to pretty much anything I need to do. They are *maybe* coming in a hair bright for my liking, but difficult to judge as the subs haven't arrived yet and the room's not really finished.

I'm pleased to say the most remarkable thing about them is the headroom; which is why I thought I'd try them in the first place. They're definitely the most SPL capable speaker of this size I've ever tried - but then they do only go down to around 70Hz, so...! (Most SPL capable while still delivering relative hi-fi, I mean.)

While they're specifically intended to be used with a sub, if you wanted a desktop/nearfield speaker for lower level listening, I reckon you could shelf LF up quite a bit as the speaker rolls off and have something very, very listenable even without sub extension. Within reason of course. I tried pushing a ton of EQ in to them at LF and, at moderate level, they were sounding excellent! Then I did find the limits, and thought I'd better calm down both the positive EQ and level before anything bad happened... :)
 

nigio

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Is there anyone that owns both monitor and bookshelf? I am trying to decide if I should buy 3 x bookshelf or 2 x Monitor + Center as a frontstage.
 

beaRA

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Is there anyone that owns both monitor and bookshelf? I am trying to decide if I should buy 3 x bookshelf or 2 x Monitor + Center as a frontstage.
Sorry I don't have both, but I went with 2 x Monitor + Center for the extra sensitivity in a home theater setting. Do note that the Center is not completely identical to the Monitor with rotated logos, binding posts, and mounts. If you intend to wall mount the center the correct way (vertical) behind a screen, know that the keyhole mounts are oriented for horizontal hanging. Not a problem if you intend to use a shelf, stand, or VESA mount.
 

nigio

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Sorry I don't have both, but I went with 2 x Monitor + Center for the extra sensitivity in a home theater setting. Do note that the Center is not completely identical to the Monitor with rotated logos, binding posts, and mounts. If you intend to wall mount the center the correct way (vertical) behind a screen, know that the keyhole mounts are oriented for horizontal hanging. Not a problem if you intend to use a shelf, stand, or VESA mount.
Are you satisfied with the performance of the center horizontally (Directivity , performance, linearity etc)?
 

beaRA

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Are you satisfied with the performance of the center horizontally (Directivity , performance, linearity etc)?
I mounted my center vertically behind a screen. I intended to share measurements here also with and without absorption panels for SBIR mitigation when I get a minute.
 

Darwin

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My only question is white or black. Black probably emphasizes the small size so will probably do that.
 

flight263

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I used the 1961 monitor and center. The sound is fantastic. But as expected, MTM center is the biggest weakness. Even when I use it alone, it sounds better to turn off the center If I watch a musical movie.
 

nigio

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I used the 1961 monitor and center. The sound is fantastic. But as expected, MTM center is the biggest weakness. Even when I use it alone, it sounds better to turn off the center If I watch a musical movie.
Did you own the bookshelves too? Did you tried to use bookshelf as center or the MTM center vertically? Please elaborate on the negative
 

flight263

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Did you own the bookshelves too? Did you tried to use bookshelf as center or the MTM center vertically? Please elaborate on the negative
I don't have bookshelves. When I use MTM center vertically, It seems to be a little better. But the speaker covers the screen, so it cannot be used for a long time. If I use MTM center horizontally, the soundstage is too narrow.
 
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