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

[DasguteOhr]

The Hyperion horn

Elysio Hornspeaker | World`s finest horn speaker, build with passion and knowledge

elysio.eu

 

[Atmasphere]

Another big horn loudspeaker system up against the front wall. WHY???



(Photo courtesy of Matej Isek)

Because you can without any problem at all.

The cabinets are deep enough that the woofer is outside the room boundary effect. Due to the directivity of the horns, there's no problem with the mids and highs so the speaker should cast a nice sound stage without tonal problems.

IOW you can back a speaker like this up to the wall with no problems. The Classic Audio Loudspeakers are able to do this too for the same reason. No problem getting plenty of depth and no problem getting the bass right. In smaller rooms this is really an advantage since otherwise (at least in the case of the CALs) the speaker is very fast, very revealing, at the same level or better than the best ESLs.

 

[Argonaut]

Ok found the Contendo Mk2 , an AC design , masterpiece looking speakers for sure..!

Uses a Raal tweeter it seems ...!

These might provide an impression of scale :

 

[wil]

First of all, it will depend on the directivity of the speaker. If it's sufficiently narrow and broadband uniform there are no audible reflections from nearby boundaries. Typical commerical horns don't meet these requirements though.

However, even with a large horn with the right dispersion pattern, you loose the "visual" depth with placement up agains walls. Which is what you see what your eyes. When we see a great distance behind the speakers, our brain pereceives it as depth and adds it. And it's also gone when you close your eyes.

This is true for me. Closing my eyes can help with focus, but usually at the cost of a more constricted spatial perception.

 

[wil]

If you are suggesting that the sonic sensation and presentation that the sound-stage develops wholly behind the plane of the speakers is a visually-induced delusion, than I strongly disagree. It doesn't go away when I close my eyes. In fact, sometimes I close my eyes to hear it more clearly without the interference of the visual sense.

I believe all our senses are working together. For instance, if I tilt my head up a bit, I become more aware of the vertical dimension of the the sound field. This occurs also with live acoustic music. This may be partially an eye/ear/brain interaction. Or it may also be partly the physical reorientation on the ear. I think it’s probably both.

 

[jeff1225]

These might provide an impression of scale :

View attachment 127602
View attachment 127603

I love mini-monitors.

 

[cjfrbw]

What happens when the Contendos fire up and crash through the back wall and fly away?

Just kidding. They are magnificent. I think 'voted off the island Carlos' needs a set.

I like the form factor and the appearance of the Elysio horns. They look like they might even avoid a certain level of WAF revenge.

 

[Audiohertz2]

Because you can without any problem at all.

The cabinets are deep enough that the woofer is outside the room boundary effect. Due to the directivity of the horns, there's no problem with the mids and highs so the speaker should cast a nice sound stage without tonal problems.

IOW you can back a speaker like this up to the wall with no problems. The Classic Audio Loudspeakers are able to do this too for the same reason. No problem getting plenty of depth and no problem getting the bass right. In smaller rooms this is really an advantage since otherwise (at least in the case of the CALs) the speaker is very fast, very revealing, at the same level or better than the best ESLs.

But it doesn't , coloration for days , really woody bass and so much directivity it sounds like a PA system or high Fi ..!

Best ones are off the wall for sure ...!

 

[Audiohertz2]

I believe all our senses are working together. For instance, if I tilt my head up a bit, I become more aware of the vertical dimension of the the sound field. This occurs also with live acoustic music. This may be partially an eye/ear/brain interaction. Or it may also be partly the physical reorientation on the ear. I think it’s probably both.

Spinal cord kink losing data ...

 

[Argonaut]

I love mini-monitors.

Indeed , and that’s just the tweeter

 

[Republicoftexas69]

if that’s your thing I guess.

 

[Atmasphere]

But it doesn't , coloration for days , really woody bass and so much directivity it sounds like a PA system or high Fi ..!

Best ones are off the wall for sure ...!

I guess that depends on what you use for reference.

I use recordings I recorded and in some cases, also mastered (to LP). So I know what they sound like- I was there.

I also use pink noise since my speakers have adjustable mid and tweeter levels. This was important since I had gone from a triode zero feedback class A OTL with a fairly high output impedance to a class D amp with an output impedance of only a few milliohms. So the Voltage response was quite different from the OTL. Being able to adjust for the Voltage response of the amp is what those controls on the back of the speaker are for. At any rate- no coloration at all.

I don't doubt that with some horn speakers this would be a problem. But in the case of the CALs and also the ones in Ron's post just recently, no, its not. The CALs are one of the least colored speakers I've heard to date. They have been at the top of the heap for a very long time.

 

[Audiohertz2]

I guess that depends on what you use for reference.

I use recordings I recorded and in some cases, also mastered (to LP). So I know what they sound like- I was there.

I also use pink noise since my speakers have adjustable mid and tweeter levels. This was important since I had gone from a triode zero feedback class A OTL with a fairly high output impedance to a class D amp with an output impedance of only a few milliohms. So the Voltage response was quite different from the OTL. Being able to adjust for the Voltage response of the amp is what those controls on the back of the speaker are for. At any rate- no coloration at all.

I don't doubt that with some horn speakers this would be a problem. But in the case of the CALs and also the ones in Ron's post just recently, no, its not. The CALs are one of the least colored speakers I've heard to date. They have been at the top of the heap for a very long time.

Ok ,

Master acetates - check
Master tapes ,own recording - check
Pink Noise - Check
Gated measurements - check
MLS sweeps with smoothing - Check
Anechoic sweeps vs room compare- check
Calibrated ears from decades of testing -check ..
Impulse response - Check
Transfer function - check

Did i miss something ..?

Now pull them off the wall and test again..

BTW just for a reference , would you say your Fl show demo room , is colored or the least colored you have heard with your OTL amps ..?


Regards

 

[godofwealth]

Looks are of course a subjective thing, but most of these systems look downright ghastly to me. I wouldn’t want one of these monstrosities in my listening room! I like my La Scalas. They look elegant, fit into my living room decor and unlike these hideous looking horn systems, don’t look like speakers at all, but rather like end tables.

In choosing speakers, I tend to be conservative. I go with companies that have been around for 60-70 years (Klipsch for horns, Quads for electrostatics).

 

[jeff1225]

Looks are of course a subjective thing, but most of these systems look downright ghastly to me. I wouldn’t want one of these monstrosities in my listening room! I like my La Scalas. They look elegant, fit into my living room decor and unlike these hideous looking horn systems, don’t look like speakers at all, but rather like end tables.

In choosing speakers, I tend to be conservative. I go with companies that have been around for 60-70 years (Klipsch for horns, Quads for electrostatics).

There are trade off's. One of the reasons I went for the JBL Hartsfields for my dedicated room is that the midcentry vibe of the speakers matches my furniture in the house.

 

[Atmasphere]

Ok ,

Master acetates - check
Master tapes ,own recording - check
Pink Noise - Check
Gated measurements - check
MLS sweeps with smoothing - Check
Anechoic sweeps vs room compare- check
Calibrated ears from decades of testing -check ..
Impulse response - Check
Transfer function - check

Did i miss something ..?

Now pull them off the wall and test again..

BTW just for a reference , would you say your Fl show demo room , is colored or the least colored you have heard with your OTL amps ..?


Regards

Been there. No difference except that against the wall its eerily similar to like there's more room in the room.

But you don't have the same speakers as I do so we're probably talking apples and oranges.

 

[Willgolf]

Just hooked up my Aries Cerat Aurora. Yes, they are in a corner against the wall in my family room. This is our main living area so that is where they have to go. In my case, I am missing absolutely nothing in SQ by having them there. I am happy and that is all that matters.

 

[Rob181]

Just hooked up my Aries Cerat Aurora. Yes, they are in a corner against the wall in my family room. This is our main living area so that is where they have to go. In my case, I am missing absolutely nothing in SQ by having them there. I am happy and that is all that matters.

Looking forward to your thoughts on these - love the theory behind the build.

 

[Robh3606]

Ok, got that wrong. I guess they made it corner friendly for other reasons.

You didn't get it wrong. It is a corner horn. Built to compete with the Klipshorn, Just because it has side panels doesn't change that. JBL stopped manufacturing them in 1964 because of the success of stereo. Most people could not accommodate a pair with two unused corners.

Rob

https://www.lansingheritage.org/html/jbl/specs/home-speakers/1954-hartsfield.htm

HARTSFIELD

www.audioheritage.org

 

[Phantom-Audio]

Because you can without any problem at all.

The cabinets are deep enough that the woofer is outside the room boundary effect. Due to the directivity of the horns, there's no problem with the mids and highs so the speaker should cast a nice sound stage without tonal problems.

IOW you can back a speaker like this up to the wall with no problems. The Classic Audio Loudspeakers are able to do this too for the same reason. No problem getting plenty of depth and no problem getting the bass right. In smaller rooms this is really an advantage since otherwise (at least in the case of the CALs) the speaker is very fast, very revealing, at the same level or better than the best ESLs.

I have both Classic Audio T3.4 and the T1.5 models. Both speakers can be corner-loaded without any overshadowing in the bass region, resulting in a spacious, room-filling soundstage. I wholeheartedly agree on this point; these speakers are exceptionally revealing in their sound reproduction. In some rooms they sound better corner loaded.