Vanatoo Transparent Zero Speaker Review

[SIY]

The T0 sound excellent on stands, out in the room. One of the two or three best imaging speakers I've ever heard.

BTW, the limiters can be turned off.

 

[daftcombo]

There must be a lot of speaker variation, judging by the different FR Amir and the Noaudiophile guy obtained.

 

[SIY]

There must be a lot of speaker variation, judging by the different FR Amir and the Noaudiophile guy obtained.

Here's my measurements, fwiw.

 

[QMuse]

Here's my measurements, fwiw.

There is some similarity, but your sample measured noticeably better.

 

[QMuse]

Mat I suggest you do that to all speakers? If possible, of course.

IMHO that would make more sense if @amirm would choose to do listening test with those EQ filters, as he did with Pioneer, so that we know if they improve perceived SQ as they improve the preference score.

 

[Yuno]

I think those aren't too bad considering price and size. I think what a lot of people don't realize, is those are meant to be small computer speakers for people who don't want to put big studio monitors or bookshelves on their desk. They shouldn't be compared to jbl lsr305, because if someone has room for jbls, they will just get that.

Now the only missing review is for iloud micro, which also received good review from noaudiophile. Those are a European counterparts of vantoo zero, except made by company with much larger audio portfolio, and specifically made for studio monitoring, either on the go or for people with limited space.

 

[flipflop]

@MZKM, can you please calculate the rating for my filter? I mainly want to know if I have exported it correctly.
EDIT: Updated the file. It should work now.

 

[daftcombo]

Here's my measurements, fwiw.

Once again, no hint of the treble elevation starting at 3 kHz Amir found.

 

[QMuse]

@MZKM, can you please calculate the rating for my filter? I mainly want to know if I have exported it correctly.

That looks like export of original on-axis response.

 

[MZKM]

Here's my measurements, fwiw.

Same 8.5kHz dip that show up in some measurements but not others. Amirs distortion graph does shows a small rise at 8.5kHz though.

I wonder how much it would cost to have tighter tolerances on the tweeters.
I wonder if it’s this $16/pair Peerless tweeter:
https://www.parts-express.com/peerless-by-tymphany-oc25sc65-04-1-textile-dome-tweeter--264-1018

 

[wwenze]

We should probably save our analysis for until when a good sample comes?

 

[MZKM]

We should probably save our analysis for until when a good sample comes?

It may not be good, but it is a random sample so it shows what a consumer can expect, which means (if manufacturing errors are symmetrical) that one can expect the tweeter to be down in level by a similar amount, and of course anywhere in between (assuming this sample is at the edge of the allowed tolerance, which I hope it is).

 

[darmanastartes]

As a T0 owner, I would love to see it measured in flat mode.
It would also be really interesting to have its onboard DAC measured.

 

[wwenze]

It may not be good, but it is a random sample so it shows what a consumer can expect, which means (if manufacturing errors are symmetrical) that one can expect the tweeter to be down in level by a similar amount, and of course anywhere in between (assuming this sample is at the edge of the allowed tolerance, which I hope it is).

If the consumer gets a pair with both tweeters damaged then I agree he might continue using it instead of getting it returned.

 

[MZKM]

If the consumer gets a pair with both tweeters damaged then I agree he might continue using it instead of getting it returned.

These aren’t damaged.

 

[Vintage57]

I’ve had my TO’s since Axpona 2018. They bookend my computer screen on my desk at work, paired up to a 10” down firing sub ($100 used) under my desk. They are great value for playing background music that rarely exceeds a conversation level. For the $300.00 price at the show special and after 2 years of listening I think they’re a bargain. Not to mention that they’re brick solid and have been problem free.
I giver them an A for value.

 

[napilopez]

Honestly, these look pretty great to me(EDIT: IF you don't mind some EQ. But even then, they're not awful). Just need to find out out of the tremble hump is a recurring issue or not.

The big lower treble bump is really weird given it seems like such a simple fix, compounded by the very different measurements from other sources.

However the directivity is well controlled and they seem to be well built so for my purposes they tick a lot of the boxes. For desktop use/not too high SPLs, these look quite nice.

I think those aren't too bad considering price and size. I think what a lot of people don't realize, is those are meant to be small computer speakers for people who don't want to put big studio monitors or bookshelves on their desk. They shouldn't be compared to jbl lsr305, because if someone has room for jbls, they will just get that.

Now the only missing review is for iloud micro, which also received good review from noaudiophile. Those are a European counterparts of vantoo zero, except made by company with much larger audio portfolio, and specifically made for studio monitoring, either on the go or for people with limited space.

I covered those here, if you're curious. Here's the spin:

Directivity is superbly controlled, as good as any monitor costing hundreds more. Of course, it's easier with just a 3-inch woofer.

My measurements were quite different from Noaudiophiles, suggesting either major sample variation or that iLoud retuned them at some point. (Both of my leftt right units measured similarly, so I'm guessing the latter).

The biggest issue is port noise or some kind of cabinet issue. Which is the cause of all of the narrow peaks you see:

Their tuning, however, is substantially neutral and I did not notice these dips and peaks much during regular listening. I used them for my digital piano but didn't feel like there were notes missing.

 

[HooStat]

Better to go for a sealed cabinet and a sub

There don't seem to be many options for a sealed monitor, but that is what I would prefer myself.

 

[Xyrium]

Thanks Amir.
I think you've been very kind giving them a resting panther, given the amount of EQ needed to make them sound right.

Agreed. We're used to having a standard of excellence in engineering on this site, and results will always be proof of that. In this case, I don't see the value, at any cost, when the 305's are still as cheap as they are, and outclass these by a mile. Hiss and all...

 

[MZKM]

Agreed. We're used to having a standard of excellence in engineering on this site, and results will always be proof of that. In this case, I don't see the value, at any cost, when the 305's are still as cheap as they are, and outclass these by a mile. Hiss and all...

The preference score says otherwise (with a sub).

For a refresher, here is the Spinorama of the JBL:

The drop in bass between 200Hz-600Hz ain’t great, neither is the obviously increasing treble response, nor all the resonances.