Palmer ORBIT 11 Cardioid Coaxial 3-way studio monitor (MSRP 799€/899$)

[staticV3]

Absurd question but can the digital out from the monitors go to a dac->active subwoofers?

Yes, for sure!

 

[goat76]

I ordered them to compare with my current speakers. I can just return them within 30 days. So... why not?

I’m looking forward to your subjective listening report and hopefully some measurements.

 

[berjine]

Non fridge sized speakers usually have the bass as the limits , possibly some two way with low xover can have the low treble hitting the limiters first

Yes but with cardioid speakers sometimes there is a penality in distortion otfer than in the bass, a good example is the D&D 8C around 100 Hz because the midwoofer is not loaded due to the resistive enclosure

Here it doesn't seem to be a problem because the xover is higher

 

[williamr]

Just ordered a pair, might take a few weeks before they arrive in Canada.

Can't wait for someone to take measurements of the infamous ring so we can cover it with car vinyl wrap or 3D print something to put orange gate to rest once and for all. I don't want to void that garantee!

I also hope they sound great but yeah... the ring.

As a fellow Canadian, please report back and also tell us about the purchase experience (duty, shipping costs, shipping time, etc). TIA.

 

[cptboogy]

As a fellow Canadian, please report back and also tell us about the purchase experience (duty, shipping costs, shipping time, etc). TIA.

It can be ordered through musicredone in Canada.

 

[Tell]

If They weren't cardiod they would have had more SPL?
Not sure the sacrifice is worth it

They probably would since the slots on the sides do cancel out sound that would otherwise go sideways and backwards (depending on the frequency etc) and sooner or later bounce back to your ears, but according to specs this should still play plenty loud, and because it's cardioid the direct sound will be clearer. Though it's only cardioid down to a certain frequency, so the bass will still be omni directional and get some nice boost because of boundary gain which is a good thing imo since it's just free gain which in turn will give you more volume/less distortion for the same output with no real downsides.

 

[Purité Audio]

If They weren't cardiod they would have had more SPL?
Not sure the sacrifice is worth it

AsciLab answered this very question,
Quote
‘That range (under 100Hz) is not cardioid range. The main reason of the distortion is based on Xmax like as other speakers.

If I make the beam width more tight and control deeper range then the distortion might be higher. More deep and tight directivity needs more cancel.

In this case C8C doesn’t lose much SPL due to optimal driver placement and proper electrical delay. So only 1 or 2dB is lost around 100Hz. Therefore, the rising distortion is not related with cardioid feature.

But the passive cardioid design is different.
Usually there are a lot of odd harmonics of passive cardioid design. The main reason of odd harmonics of passive cardioid is related with hysteresis distortion through the cardioid hole. The sound pressure through the hole has much of distortion and it is added to total distortion.

You can see similar distortion effect in D&D 8C and Shivaudyo Point Zero. (Sorry for mentioning specific models, it’s for examples)

Good cardioid pattern is made by proper physical delay and electrical delay. More leaning on electrical delay, there will lose more SPL, more leaning on physical delay, there will be a lot of lobbing. All is about compromising.’
Keith

 

[Liftro]

You know, at the end of the day I only care about how they sound compared to my existing speakers. Messurements are nice, but in the end it's subjective and I wouldn't buy a speaker just because it messures great but still I don't enjoy listening to it. I don't produce music but listen to it for joy only.

I don't understand how you can dislike a speaker that measures flat on the axis. My goal is to hear the vision of the artist, mixing engineer, and final mastering engineer. I don't want to hear something that isn't in the recording. If the speaker measures well but you don't like how it sounds, it's either the music quality, the room, the equipment position, etc.

 

[Moonhead]

What a time to buy a proper setup, maybe we Will we see something similiar with external Amps like Genelec & D&D soon!

 

[amper42]

I don't understand how you can dislike a speaker that measures flat on the axis. My goal is to hear the vision of the artist, mixing engineer, and final mastering engineer. I don't want to hear something that isn't in the recording. If the speaker measures well but you don't like how it sounds, it's either the music quality, the room, the equipment position, etc.

I think you are both right. I look for a well measuring speaker, but it still might not be my favorite.

As an example, the Revel M105 got great reviews on ASR, so I wanted to try it. Once my ears heard how weak the sound was from the 5" woofer and the significant bass distortion under 90Hz, it was not something I would use for anything but a height speaker.

When I directly compared the M105 to my BMR Monitors it was a world of difference. Not even a competition. Meanwhile, the ratings on ASR don't reflect this huge gap. You have to find that out on your own. My ears will always be the final decision device. If you can't tell a difference, go with the better measuring speaker.

 

[kharan]

If They weren't cardiod they would have had more SPL?
Not sure the sacrifice is worth it

We have a clean sine sweep at 104 dB. What more could you ask for speakers of this size?

 

[Bwaslo]

I'd still like to see an IM measurement, 2 tones at maybe 250Hz (where the midrange will have max excursion) and maybe 2kHz (where the midrange, acting as a waveguide, would probably be most enhancing sensitivity of the tweeter - but while in motion). Not that it would rule out the speaker still being possibly great, but just as a situation that might represent its worst case at reasonable volumes.

 

[goat76]

So, there will be more reviews only shortly. (Maybe a studio-focused one will be up today)

Is the studio-focused review published yet?

 

[delta76]

I ordered them to compare with my current speakers. I can just return them within 30 days. So... why not?

you're lucky.
Most of us don't have time to receive, unpack, test, pack, return the speakers (even if it is free return), not to mention WAF.
a few times are fine. Many times are not

 

[LeSud]

I do notice a significant distortion below 70Hz.

 

[Bwaslo]

I do notice a significant distortion below 70Hz.

True, but that's at 104dBSPL

 

[JoeDiMEG]

I ordered them to compare with my current speakers. I can just return them within 30 days. So... why not?

Most of us don't have time to receive, unpack, test, pack, return the speakers (...)

OT:

Guess whom of both wrote here 5 messages in 9 months and who writes 500 messages per year!

;-)

KR

 

[kemmler3D]

I don't understand how you can dislike a speaker that measures flat on the axis.

Well. Flat on axis is a big part of it. But If it doesn't measure similarly off axis then who knows? DSP can famously produce a speaker that resembles this meme:

The Orbit 11 seems to have good enough directivity based on their measurements that this will not be the case, but it never hurts to check...

 

[mupersan82]

you're lucky.
Most of us don't have time to receive, unpack, test, pack, return the speakers (even if it is free return), not to mention WAF.
a few times are fine. Many times are not

I have a full time job, a wife and 2 small kids, and a house, so I don't have oceans of time. But it's also the first speakers that possibly provide enough value to replace my Lyd 48s. We shall see.

 

[Pearljam5000]

It looks pretty cool in white