Ascend Acoustics Owners' Lounge

[Toni71]

I’ll soon be the owner of a new ELX Horizon RAAL center, sometime in the coming months, depending on supply, all the way here in the Netherlands. Now I’ll have to see if my wife notices the change in the center speaker. I’m somewhat glad we have a (small) all black theater room in the attic.

“Sure, honey, we don’t need any more or other speakers or electronic boxes for the time being.”

 

[Toni71]

All the way from the USA to the Netherlands. It is bigger then I thought it would be.

Thank you Dave and Dina for the kind and informative communication throughout the process. Patience was rewarded.

 

[Mark609]

All the way from the USA to the Netherlands. It is bigger then I thought it would be.

Thank you Dave and Dina for the kind and informative communication throughout the process. Patience was rewarded.

Congrats! Dave is a fine engineer/designer.

Is that the ELX center @Toni71 ? Never heard of the Sierra Tower Center.

Don't know what you migrated from but trust me, you WILL notice the difference in the dialogue clarity, dynamics, bass punch, horizontal dispersion, etc. I have his Horizon V2 and the quality is incredible. I came from a DIY MTM center of high quality drivers, Focal and Accuton, and it sucks in comparison.

 

[Toni71]

Thank you. Yes, the ELX Horizon RAAL.

At first, I was somewhat hesitant about buying a center speaker from a different brand. Back in the good old days, in a galaxy far away when prices were cheaper, I saved, bought, saved again, bought again, and eventually put together a 9.2.6 speaker setup, with most of the speakers coming from the XTZ 99 series (Atmos different).

My front speakers are the XTZ 99.38 MK2 three-way speakers(Only shortly on the market, probably because of costs), paired with the XTZ 99.26 MK2 2-way center speaker. I really enjoy this setup with its sweet ribbon sound, but I wanted more from the center channel.

To stay on the ribbon adventure, I was looking for a true ribbon tweeter, not an AMT, that could complement the SEAS drivers and the Fountek ribbon in my speakers (better now, I guess). The problem is that there isn't much available in Europe, so there weren't many options. Fortunately, the ELX is a good centerspeaker.

There is an option on the back of my XTZ speakers to change the tweeter curve with more or less dB treble. We will see, I am not a purist.

It's nice to read that you're happy with your center speaker. That's exactly the explanation I need in the center. Positive user reviews and the measurements ensure a good purchase.

Seeing and reading about the DIY center, I've always wondered what the Accuton tweeter brings to the table. There's even an upgrade available for my XTZ speakers that replaces the ribbon with an Accuton tweeter, but aside from the costs, I'm perfectly happy with the ribbon sound.

Toni

 

[Mark609]

Nice setup. Your ELX center should play nice with what you have. I have mine tilted slightly up at the bottom of a 110" projector screen.

Focal described the Accuton C212 as "sweet", and it is but Joe D'Apollito's designs are old timey especially in lieu of the fact that Dave has his Klippel toys to play with. The driver config on his Horizon and ELX centers are the way to go IMO.

Have fun!

 

[Donovan]

I own the ELX towers and Horizon center with RAAL tweeters. They are powered by an Anthem MRX 720 receiver which says it is 140 W at 8 ohm. Any thoughts if adding a VTV amp with Purify at 230 W at 8 ohm (not sure if the measurements are at the same tolerance) would be beneficial in sound quality? I’m happy with the current sound, but always curious if any tweaks can squeeze out any gains.

 

[Mark609]

I own the ELX towers and Horizon center with RAAL tweeters. They are powered by an Anthem MRX 720 receiver which says it is 140 W at 8 ohm. Any thoughts if adding a VTV amp with Purify at 230 W at 8 ohm (not sure if the measurements are at the same tolerance) would be beneficial in sound quality? I’m happy with the current sound, but always curious if any tweaks can squeeze out any gains.

I have the exact same speakers. Had the MRX720 and am now using the MRX1140, letting the internal amps drive side and back surrounds and 4 Atmos heights. Crossing over at 80 Hz on the LCR, it sounds great with demanding audio sources such as Dune. NO distortion, open, reference volume.

After MUCH research and emails with Buckeye owner Dylan I just ordered this yesterday. https://www.buckeyeamp.com/shop/amplifiers/hypex/ncx500/3_channel Amir reviews - https://www.audiosciencereview.com/.../hypex-ncx500-class-d-amplifier-review.41007/

I looked at VTV and other brands. Buckeye is your best bang for the buck and Dylan's service is unreal.

Dylan (being consumer focused), also recommended the Hypex NC502MP 4-Channel for my LCR, having a spare channel as aside. Last correspondence of "what's best type stuff" he said this about the Hypex NCx500 3-Channel:: "On measurements and engineering, performance is better all around (power, distortion, noise floor, etc). But except for the most critical listening, there is almost no audible difference so unless someone simply wants the best because it is the best, the NCxxxMP modules are great choices."

Got money to burn so what the hell and it's only $400 more. I have 2 outboard amps I'll be taking out of commission with the introduction of the new Hypex NCx500 3-Channel. An old Soundcraftsman PCR800 driving the L/R and a Speakerpower standalone amp driving the Horizon V2 center, an Icepower module. Using those was a sonic improvement over the A/B amps in the MRX1140.

Good luck!

 

[Donovan]

I have the exact same speakers. Had the MRX720 and am now using the MRX1140, letting the internal amps drive side and back surrounds and 4 Atmos heights. Crossing over at 80 Hz on the LCR, it sounds great with demanding audio sources such as Dune. NO distortion, open, reference volume.

After MUCH research and emails with Buckeye owner Dylan I just ordered this yesterday. https://www.buckeyeamp.com/shop/amplifiers/hypex/ncx500/3_channel Amir reviews - https://www.audiosciencereview.com/.../hypex-ncx500-class-d-amplifier-review.41007/

I looked at VTV and other brands. Buckeye is your best bang for the buck and Dylan's service is unreal.

Dylan (being consumer focused), also recommended the Hypex NC502MP 4-Channel for my LCR, having a spare channel as aside. Last correspondence of "what's best type stuff" he said this about the Hypex NCx500 3-Channel:: "On measurements and engineering, performance is better all around (power, distortion, noise floor, etc). But except for the most critical listening, there is almost no audible difference so unless someone simply wants the best because it is the best, the NCxxxMP modules are great choices."

Got money to burn so what the hell and it's only $400 more. I have 2 outboard amps I'll be taking out of commission with the introduction of the new Hypex NCx500 3-Channel. An old Soundcraftsman PCR800 driving the L/R and a Speakerpower standalone amp driving the Horizon V2 center, an Icepower module. Using those was a sonic improvement over the A/B amps in the MRX1140.

Good luck!

Great, you are the perfect reference! I’m really looking forward to hearing your review of the Buckeye amp. So, the comment on almost no audible difference is in reference between the Hypex over Purify. I’d be happy to use Buckeye over VTV. Did you get the Buckeye or Hypex gain stage option? Why did you get the 4 channel vs the 3 channel if it’s just for the LCR?

By the way, did you experience any sonic upgrade from the MRX 720 to the 1140? I tried a new Marantz AV30 with a new Marantz multi channel amp and didn’t like the sound as much as my old Anthem. So, I think I will stick with the Anthem brand. Curious if I could hear a sonic difference from the Anthem AVM 70 with external amps for all 9 channels vs a MRX 1140 with a 3 channel amp for the LCR and internal amps for the other 6 channels. Big price difference between these two paths. Any reports of a new Anthem series coming?

 

[Mark609]

I gave a link of what I bought. Hypex only. Buckeye gain settings. Better value than Purify.

Yes, there was a noticeable sonic upgrade moving from the 720 to the 1140. The MRX 740/1140 pre-amps rival or beat the AVM 70-90's. No need for the AVM. See Audioholic's review. Best pre-amp stage in the biz. https://www.audioholics.com/av-receiver-reviews/anthem-mrx-740-1140-receivers

No new series coming according to their tech I asked few weeks ago. Go for it.

They'll be offering their yearly deep discount later, probably at the end of the year.