HSU HB-1 MK2 Review (Horn Speaker)

[raindance]

It's not my job. It's the designer's job.
A given speaker is design to sound right at a specific position.
A horn loaded speaker, is design to sound right with the help of the side and back walls (mostly a corner, as the famous Klipsch Horn does).
When it is placed at that specific spot, all bands (low, mid and high) sound right.

You are talking about a completely different type of horn enclosure where horn loading is used at low frequencies.

 

[Alegretti]

@amirm, seemingly that the villain of distortions really is the third harmonic, which is relatively low in this sample.

 

[BN1]

Not surprised that this speaker sounds good as Hsu seems to know his stuff on design. BUT, I don't know why they have to market their sensitivity numbers differently than everyone else (except Klipsch ...). Also, overstate the impedance parameter (so do a lot of others ...).

 

[KA7NIQ]

Not surprised that this speaker sounds good as Hsu seems to know his stuff on design. BUT, I don't know why they have to market their sensitivity numbers differently than everyone else (except Klipsch ...). Also, overstate the impedance parameter (so do a lot of others ...).

I was not all that impressed with this speaker, or the BIC Speakers either With all due respect, perhaps Mr HSU should stick to making subwoofers ?

 

[Godataloss]

Hmm I hope the CCB-8 gets measured, it looks interesting as a point source 2-way with a giant 8 inch woofer. I wonder if that solution is better than a 3-way like the upcoming ELAC UBR62.

I've had a pair for a couple years and love them. Not sure they would do well in the Kipple test as they require exaggerated toe-in to image properly. Once dialed in, they absolutely disappear in the room. I've been playing a lot of the new Far Cry in my home theater and it has some of the best spatial effects I've ever heard in a video game. Even seated off center in the room, the imaging effects are spooky. I was considering getting another pair in rosewood this Christmas. If I do, perhaps @amirm would give them a spin.

 

[NORTH]

My experience with HB1 MK2 has been good. Thanks for the review, I had not given the tweeter height enough attention. The stands i use them on place the tweeter a few inches above my ear level. Not being in the mood to purchase another set of stands i thought, maybe ill just flip them upside down Haha, boom! problem solved. Also the upward facing speaker terminals now face down so there is no bend in the cables (kind of bothered me).

I have powered these with a few different integrated amps, mid and low frequencies will noticeably suffer if amplification is not up to the task.

 

[CT007]

I absolutely love my HB-1's(Emotiva A-100 amp). Very smooth & non-fatiguing. I ordered 4 other speakers to shootout test them against, and they sounded best to me, but are quite big for desktop use!

Very curious about FR graphs for HB-1, HC-1, and CCB-8. Upgrading from HB-1 to CCB-8 would seem the best option, by gaining 10dB bass range(60Hz HB/HC vs 50Hz CCB). I am not a fan of subwoofers(way, way overkill for small rooms IMO), and the bass of HB-1 is quite pleasant and satisfying to me, so that gain of 10dB should be a very noticeable difference, still keeping the system sub-less.

Not sure if any other <$1K speakers out there are worth messing around with(SVS Ultra?), so I would probably try LS50 as the next serious upgrade.

I am curious about HSU's HC-1 claim, "Can also be used vertically as a more powerful HB-1 MK2". Since HB-1 and HC-1 both only do 60Hz(and have the same tweeter), would "more powerful" simply mean the mid/upper bass has more impact, and sub-bass, mids & treble are identical? This is why I want to see a comparison FR graph between HB-1 and HC-1.

 

[NBO]

I've owned and used these as my daily mains in a small living room for at least 5 years. I realize these aren't sold anymore and this post is years after Amir's review, but perhaps someone who comes across these in the used market could benefit from this trivial post from someone who has lots of experience with them. Here is the dreaded "left-handed" compliment. "For the price", these are really good small speakers. I stick to that though I can hear the brightness - that gets almost harsh at times. I'm an enthusiastic listener. I don't haver "audiophile" ears whatever that means, and I'm certainly not a trained audio listener, so if I can detect this with 68 year-old ears, it's likely really prominent. The brightness of these speakers is not only a boosted high, but the midrange is weak IMO. Listen to Eva Cassidy vocals in her rendition of "Over the Rainbow", or Ennio Morricone's "Gabriel's Oboe". The problems with these speakers become immediately evident. The HB-1s Mk2 also don't have much bass at all and what's there lacks definition or "personality", but I don't think these speakers were designed for 2.0 applications. These also tend to be more uni directional speakers which Amir's data support if I'm reading them correctly. The enclosures are absolutely beautiful for the price point.. For $400 or thereabouts a pair (I don't think these are sold anymore), they are really good IMO but any music enthusiast ears' will likely detect the deficiencies in these speakers. It's obvious, but these speakers MUST be augmented with a subwoofer, and as Amir shows, you'll need to EQ these speakers to really make them reach their potential. For a 2 or 2.1 system, scrap the equalizer and just move up a notch for another $300 per pair (ELAC debut reference for ex, but there are so many) and you'll be rewarded with a noticeably more balanced and pleasing sound.