What are the Top Horn Speakers in the World Today? Vox Olympian vs Avantgarde Trio vs ???

[morricab]

Yes, of course.
There’s no reason for me to hide my identity. What would be the point? The issue is that the user Audiohertz2 likes to write, but seems to have no interest in checking whether their points have already been addressed or countered. This has happened three times in just the last 10 pages, and to be honest, it’s frustrating. That’s why I’ve decided to only respond if someone directly asks me a question.


Best regards,


S.

Hi Swen,
I have a question about your mini-masterpiece speaker. Is this also full active? What do you use for the digital crossover?
Cheers

 

[morricab]

German horn speakers have the greatest influence on the horn speaker market, just like the impact of German composers— from Bach to Beethoven. Now, it’s all about Avantgarde, Odeon, Cessaro, Pnoe, Sadurni, and Hornsolutions bringing the symphony to life!

Indeed, I have owned three pairs of Odeons and still own the fully horn loaded La Boheme. Living in Switzerland I get regular exposure to German horns…as well as others from around Europe. Several friends own horns as well.

 

[Hornsolutions Swen]

Hi Swen,
I have a question about your mini-masterpiece speaker. Is this also full active? What do you use for the digital crossover?
Cheers

Dear Morricab, the Masterpiece Mini Edition, like the other models, is available in three versions:

1. Passive: This version features a passive crossover per speaker, known as the Cubus Network. Just like the crossovers in the Masterpiece Standard and Reference models, it’s designed without compromise, using only 3 qmm air-core inductors and four resistors. The name “Cubus” comes from the crossover housing design, a sleek black cube measuring 60 x 60 x 60 cm. Each x-over case weighs 78 kg per side.
2. With DSP: In this configuration, we use the DEQX Pre-8 as our OEM partner’s digital signal processor. In my opinion, it’s the best DSP available on the market—and I believe I’ve tried nearly every audio and pro Audio DSP out there.
3. With DSP and Amplifiers: This version builds on the second configuration but adds three Hornsolutions XES Class A amplifiers for an even more refined audio experience, what makes it a full activ Design.

Personally, I generally prefer DSPs, not just for these speakers but for others as well. However, the choice is entirely up to the individual. Of course, you can also pair the DSP with three tube amplifiers if desired.


Best regards,
S.

 

[Robh3606]

If the sub is placed so the driver is at a 45 degree angle to the wall, forcing the sound wave to bounce at that angle like a cue ball, a pair set in that fashion might work quite well.

Hello

I meant 4 pairs of stereo subs. Why stereo? It should not matter as it it's typically summed mono.

Rob

 

[Kozak170]

Personally, I generally prefer DSPs, not just for these speakers but for others as well. However, the choice is entirely up to the individual. Of course, you can also pair the DSP with three tube amplifiers if desired.


Best regards,
S.

Certainly, DSP provides the most precise time alignment. However, I’m curious about how time alignment is corrected in the passive crossover version. Specifically, do you use any methods like filler or all-pass filters for this?

 

[Hornsolutions Swen]

Certainly, DSP provides the most precise time alignment. However, I’m curious about how time alignment is corrected in the passive crossover version. Specifically, do you use any methods like filler or all-pass filters for this?

This is relatively straightforward to explain. We forgo any time delay correction and simply align the phase by adjusting the appropriate physical distances between the individual voice coils. Accordingly, on-site measurements are taken using an Earthworks microphone and REW software, and based on those results, the tweeter is positioned in phase-correct alignment via the triangular suspension mount. For the transition from bass to midrange horn, the phase is already inherently correct by design.


Temporal correction is simply not feasible with horns spanning 2.5–4.4 meters in length. Otherwise, the tweeter would end up positioned 2.5–4.3 meters behind the midrange horn, which is impractical


Implementing bucket-chain (or cascaded) filters introduces far more issues than it resolves. These multi-stage filter chains, often used in crossovers for phase or frequency equalization, can accumulate phase shifts across stages, exacerbating group delay and transient smearing—especially in horn systems where acoustic paths are already long and sensitive. Impedance mismatches arise as each filter stage loads the previous one, causing erratic driver impedance curves that stress amplifiers (e.g., peaks dipping below 4 ohms, risking clipping or overheating). Tuning such cascades is notoriously complex, requiring precise component matching to avoid ripple in the passband or unwanted resonances; even small tolerances in capacitors or inductors can lead to instability or uneven power distribution between drivers. In analog implementations common for high-end horns, this often demands custom DSP or active circuitry, ballooning costs and complicating field adjustments without measurable benefits over simple physical alignment.


Best regards,
S.

 

[morricab]

Dear Morricab, the Masterpiece Mini Edition, like the other models, is available in three versions:

1. Passive: This version features a passive crossover per speaker, known as the Cubus Network. Just like the crossovers in the Masterpiece Standard and Reference models, it’s designed without compromise, using only 3 qmm air-core inductors and four resistors. The name “Cubus” comes from the crossover housing design, a sleek black cube measuring 60 x 60 x 60 cm. Each x-over case weighs 78 kg per side.
2. With DSP: In this configuration, we use the DEQX Pre-8 as our OEM partner’s digital signal processor. In my opinion, it’s the best DSP available on the market—and I believe I’ve tried nearly every audio and pro Audio DSP out there.
3. With DSP and Amplifiers: This version builds on the second configuration but adds three Hornsolutions XES Class A amplifiers for an even more refined audio experience, what makes it a full activ Design.

Personally, I generally prefer DSPs, not just for these speakers but for others as well. However, the choice is entirely up to the individual. Of course, you can also pair the DSP with three tube amplifiers if desired.


Best regards,
S.

Nice Aries Cerat gear in the website photos...

 

[Kingrex]

.

I’m still curious about how you determined the sound from all of those systems with the horns sounded thin because of the horn speakers themselves. I thought that was an interesting claim you made.

I don't think horns sound like box speakers. If they did, I would buy a box speaker as think a box speaker fits into the decor of my home better.

I don't think of, or perceive the horns I have heard, which are not the 2 in the title of this thread as preaenting with a rich, full bodied sound. They are more dynamic with loads of inner detail.

If I could effectively use subs to fill in a little of the heft a d weight I do enjoy from a box speaker, without detracting from what the horn does, would be very happy.

 

[bonzo75]

I don't think horns sound like box speakers.

Horns which do not have a horn loaded midbass often do in that region, if they are closed box.

 

[Kingrex]

Touche ‘

By forum rules you have to state so in your signature so forgive me for mentioning this before a ban …!

Go-ahead and Ignore at your leisure …!

If you go into his name, then hit his name again and go into About, he clearly ststes he is a business.

Sometimes I have issues getting what I think is the signature everyone can see and detail about myself that you have to open to see confused. There is a little bit of confusion on the back end figuring this out.

 

[bonzo75]

Sometimes I have issues getting what I think is the signature everyone can see and detail about myself that you have to open to see confused. There is a little bit of confusion on the back end figuring this out.

Signatures can be viewed below post on laptop. On mobile you can view in landscape mode, not in portrait.

 

[Atmasphere]

Hello

I meant 4 pairs of stereo subs. Why stereo? It should not matter as it it's typically summed mono.

Rob

If your goal is to kill standing waves you don't need the subs to have a stereo signal, since at the frequencies that are of interest, the signal (by the time your ears can figure out what the bass notes are) is 100% reverberant. So 4 subs driven by a mono signal will do nicely.

You need weight in that range (and punch where applicable, e.g., on rock).

Also in classical.

My friend told me that I’ve returned to the sound I had before, say a month or two ago with the loser thread tension, but the presentation improved further given the quality of the new cartridge. So I did not say that and you imagined something.

Thanks for this clarification; it is easy to see how @Kingrex came to his conclusion.

However, its absence rarely causes the sound to feel "thin."

It can if there is a rolloff that causes phase shift. The ear perceives phase shift on that account in exactly that manner.

also no Industry expert

FWIW the website assigns this bit; its earned.

 

[Kingrex]

Horns which do not have a horn loaded midbass often do in that region, if they are closed box.

Agree. As is my speaker. Although my speaker does not sound like a box speaker either as the middriver is open baffle. I am slowly moving towards an all horn system. Or, at least a horn high frequency and midrange.

I already have 1 horn bass driver. I thought that was my sub. But I am more seeing my BB10 as an excellent horn bass. And a DBA as the true sub. The BB10 is doing an excellent job adding bass foundation to my system. I could not be without it. But a swarm would be a better solution for most systems.

 

[Kingrex]

FWIW, this is my first pass. Needs a lot of help. Mid is too far from the horn.
Need to dial back the energy to the horn now that its so much larger.

The level of detail is exceptionally higher. I hear things in classical I never heard before.

 

[PeterA]

Thanks for this clarification; it is easy to see how @Kingrex came to his conclusion.

Ralph, I shared the recent experience I had with vinyl set up to illustrate an example for Rex that a thin sounding system might not have anything to do with the horn speakers in the system. Of course it might, but Rex has not explained how he was able to determine that it was the speaker’s fault for the thin sound. If one simply makes that assumption and adds subwoofers without finding the actual cause, it may take him down a path that may ultimately not be satisfying.

I could easily imagine scenarios where the amplification or the wiring or the power delivery or the source is the culprit for the thin sound. It could also be set up. In my opinion, it’s often very difficult to determine the source of an issue during casual, listening to unfamiliar systems in unfamiliar settings. Rex did not go into details about the auditions, but he did reach some specific conclusions and I’m just curious as to how he did that.

 

[Atmasphere]

Of course it might, but Ralph has not explained how he was able to determine that it was the speaker’s fault

Got it. I suspect you meant 'Rex'.

 

[Kingrex]

Rex did not go into details about the auditions, but he did reach some specific conclusions and I’m just curious as to how he did that.

See 1568

 

[PeterA]

See 1568

You simply repeated your claim that horns sound thin and added the qualification that they are the horns you have heard without explaining how you reached your conclusion.

 

[Atmasphere]

You simply repeated your claim that horns sound thin and added the qualification that they are the horns you have heard without explaining how you reached your conclusion.

FWIW Dept.: I've heard many systems sound 'thin'; that isn't a quality I'd ascribe to any particular speaker technology at this point.

 

[Duke LeJeune]

Is there any source that thoroughly explains the technical aspects and proves the effectiveness of this?

Here is a video by Matthew Poes explaining the rationale behind a distributed multi-sub system:

If I interpret your short response correctly, this is NOT about a Double Bass Array?

I believe the term "swarm", when referring to a distributed multiple-sub system, comes from a product I introduced in 2006, called the "Swarm" (credit to Earl Geddes; the Swarm is based on an early version of his thinking about distributed multi-sub systems). The Swarm consists of four small (usually 10") subwoofers which are intended to be distributed asymmetrically along the walls of the listening room. I guess the word has caught on, because as you can see, it is sometimes used to refer to distributed multi-sub systems in general.

Personally I don't use the term "Distributed Bass Array", abbreviated "DBA", because it has the same abbreviation as "Double Bass Array".

Furthermore, I don’t remotely understand what this has to do with the best horn loudspeakers. Especially the “best in the world” should be able to manage without a subwoofer, right?

Sometimes a "best in the world" speaker system still has to be placed in a room that is not itself "best in the world".

And the smaller the room, the worse the room-induced peaks and dips in the bass region. Smoothing out those room-induced peaks and dips is the primary benefit of a distributed multi-sub system. So a distributed multi-sub system is more beneficial in small to medium-sized rooms than in large or very large rooms. It can make a small or medium-sized room behave like a much larger room in the bass region.