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Buchardt S400 Speaker Review

napilopez

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Mads Buchardt said on another post that Buchardt has competencies and equipment in sophisticated scanning-based analysis. I wonder if these were deployed in trying to rationalise the enclosure design, and get it to be as cost-effective as possible below hearing thresholds, especially since much has been said about the cost of designing the waveguide.

I believe in that post Mads was referring to the fact that the waveguide was designed using the same Klippel NFS scanner(which Amir didn't have at the time). So not sure how much that speaks to designing the cabinet itself, but I do find it a bit hard to believe the cabinet bracing would've been omitted without some careful consideration.

Which is possibly why yours look closer to Buchardt's own measurements than Amir's ?
It's a possibility but hard to imagine a 2-degree tilt could cause such a contrast in the crossover region though! Though I suppose that compounded with using a different reference axis it might be something, but it certainly wouldn't explain the resonance (which I still consider to be a minor issue).
 

thewas

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I can't help but wonder if, at least a portion of, his discontentment with the Buchardt is due to the flat bass while the Elac has a lifted bass response like the Revel M16 he also likes
The Elac has not really much more bass than the S400, here are their PIR from @edechamps great Loudspeaker Explorer and I added also a 1dB per octave falling target curve which is liked by many:

1587802907712.png


Their biggest differences are that the Elac has a wide presence dip and that S400 gets brighter above 3kHz with a kind of constant directivity pattern, which I think was also the reason I also didn't like at as much as the S300 (unfortunately couldn't compare them directly), would be interesting to see the PIR of the S300 and if Amir would like it more.
 

daftcombo

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So, what pair of speakers should one buy, since the S400 are eliminated from the list?
 

Koeitje

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VintageFlanker

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So, what pair of speakers should one buy, since the S400 are eliminated from the list?
Strangely, the S400 is not eliminated in my book...:cool:

I have the data to judge, and the FR seems pretty good to me.

I mean, @amirm didn't like it, Ok... He didn't appreciate the R3 as well, while it objectively measured great, with also a very good preference score.
 

Absolute

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The Elac has not really much more bass than the S400, here are their PIR from @edechamps great Loudspeaker Explorer and I added also a 1dB per octave falling target curve which is liked by many:

View attachment 60295

Their biggest differences are that the Elac has a wide presence dip and that S400 gets brighter above 3kHz with a kind of constant directivity pattern, which I think was also the reason I also didn't like at as much as the S300 (unfortunately couldn't compare them directly), would be interesting to see the PIR of the S300 and if Amir would like it more.
I checked this concept with other speakers to look into my theory that Amir is positively reacting to the around 4 dB rise from 300 to roughly 100 hz in the Revels and JBLs, but didn't manage to off-set this graph to check it.

For the bass to stand out, you need to align the 1 khz and above more with the Buchardt. Then it becomes a question whether the Buchardt is bass-shy or too bright tonally, which is probably the same thing.
 

maty

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anmpr1

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Have you given them some break-in time before measuring? Buchardt recommends 100 hours minimum...
The company gives you a 30 day money back trial. If the speakers take 100 hours to 'break in' before they sound best then you'd have to listen over three hours a day, each day, before you will be able to tell. But then, your trial is over. How ridiculous is that?
 

VintageFlanker

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The company gives you a 30 day money back trial. If the speakers take 100 hours to 'break in' before they sound best then you'd have to listen over three hours a day, each day, before you will be able to tell. But then, your trial is over. How ridiculous is that?
That's the all point of burn-in for just about every speakers manufacturers. If you don't like it: wait until it breaks in... Once you're done, it's too late for going back but no worries: your brain just got used to your speakers!;)
 

Bear123

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Hmmm, this leaves me with two speakers I really want to see tested. The ELAC B6.2 as it relates very closely in design and driver/crossover compliment to the DBR-62 but cost approx 1/2 and the Revel M106. That Performa3 M106 speaker really needs to be observed here. Revels best monitor under 2k. How does that compare with the Burchardt and the KEF R3?
I am thinking about buying a pair of the ELAC B6.2's specifically to test here. (Right now the M106 is out of budget due to affected income for myself and my GF that may last quite awhile & the M106 only comes in glossy finishes which I think look cheap and somewhat outdated. If I am spending nearly 2k I do want them to look good to my tastes. I would take the silver color in the M126be though.)
Don't forget with Revel that you can save quite a bit from the right dealer. I'd say you can get M106 for $1500 or less.
 

Bear123

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Do you have any idea where to get a pair of the dcm tp 160 bookshelves? Any friends selling theirs? I see the floor stand version of the tp 160 is still available, do you know if your resistor mod would be correct for the floorstander?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/6-5-2-Way-...eater-Audio-DCM-TP160-CH-2-Pack-/183952338190

Holy crap $150 for a pair of towers?

Black for $50 more:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/DCM-MTX-Au...ker-TP160-B-/174260115543?hash=item2892b65857

I got a pair of the bookshelves for $80 for my workout room. Happy with them for that purpose. I don't have them matched up with a sub yet but I expect they will sound quite good once I do. Having listened to speakers with dual subs for many years now, its pretty much impossible for a pair of bookshelves without subs to sound really good to me now. But they seem to have a lot of potential. I'll be pairing them with a single JBL550P once my subs come in for my main system.
 
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MZKM

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gfx_1

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I wonder what does "passive" on the woofer sticker mean
They do have an active speaker on the website with a slightly different woofer, maybe just a label to distinguish them in the factory.
 

maxxevv

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https://www.ebay.com/itm/6-5-2-Way-...eater-Audio-DCM-TP160-CH-2-Pack-/183952338190

Holy crap $150 for a pair of towers?

Black for $50 more:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/DCM-MTX-Au...ker-TP160-B-/174260115543?hash=item2892b65857

I got a pair of the bookshelves for $80 for my workout room. Happy with them for that purpose. I don't have them matched up with a sub yet but I expect they will sound quite good once I do. Having listened to speakers with dual subs for many years now, its pretty much impossible for a pair of bookshelves without subs to sound really good to me now. But they seem to have a lot of potential. I'll be pairing them with a single JBL550P once my subs come in for my main system.

You can have black for even cheaper and more drivers from Dayton Audio !! lol ...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dayton-Aud...d=Dayton+Audio&_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851
 

wwenze

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As insistant as I am, I must remind some people that you can get this
index.php

in a coaxial 3-way for 1400~1600€ (found them at 1450€ here). That little HF emphasis isn't even here in the listening window.

But does it sound too bright based on estimated in-room response?

index.php
 

MZKM

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https://www.ebay.com/itm/6-5-2-Way-...eater-Audio-DCM-TP160-CH-2-Pack-/183952338190

Holy crap $150 for a pair of towers?

Black for $50 more:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/DCM-MTX-Au...ker-TP160-B-/174260115543?hash=item2892b65857

I got a pair of the bookshelves for $80 for my workout room. Happy with them for that purpose. I don't have them matched up with a sub yet but I expect they will sound quite good once I do. Having listened to speakers with dual subs for many years now, its pretty much impossible for a pair of bookshelves without subs to sound really good to me now. But they seem to have a lot of potential. I'll be pairing them with a single JBL550P once my subs come in for my main system.
Including shipping. I don’t see how anything but a handle of dollars can be made.
 
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