Infinity P163 vs NHT SuperOne 2.1

[JRT3]

It must seem like heresy to compare the mere Primus line with the much heralded NHT SuperOne 2.1... but I am doing it! First, the conditions: Onkyo TX-8020 50 Wpc stereo receiver fed by an Onkyo C-7030 CD player, both residing in my fairly square extra bedroom turned office. Four speaker leads ten feet long from the same roll of #14 stranded pure copper speaker wire with receiver end to gold plated banana plugs and speaker ends twisted. The speakers both have a 6.5" LF driver; the NHT being a sealed box - aka acoustic suspension, while the Infinity is a front ported bass reflex. The HF driver is a 3/4" dome in a waveguide in the Infinity and a 1" dome in the NHT. The speakers were on the same level shelves 10-11 ft apart with the NHT's to the left side of the Infinity's, which sat on dark foam isolation pads.

Physically, the NHT's exude quality with their glossy black piano-like finish, while the Infinity's are pedestrian. Efficiency-wise, the Infinity's are, as predicted by their design and spec's, more efficient - probably 3-4 db - than the NHT's. With clean power at 25 Wpc, that may be important. The high end was louder - perhaps slightly harsh - and the midrange more pronounced - on the Infinity's. Their bass went lower, too - and had 'hangover', which the foam pads helped reduce. The NHT had more defined bass - and stopped - abruptly - before the Infinity's. I suppose that the NHT's are flatter in their response, from my initial listening comparison. The music I A-B'ed them on included the following CD's; Jazz Samba by Getz & Byrd (Verve), Marc Cohn by Marc Cohn (Atlantic), Baka by Outback (DRD), and It's Good to be Live by Pablo Cruise (RRR).

The listening differences were minimal - except for anything including a piano - they were best on the NHT's. I could be content with either set. Why did I order the NHT's, as my original Infinity's were over a year old - and I liked them? The Infinity seem to be consumer grade - and the hype on the NHT is pretty thick - I thought they would sound better. They have only been used for a couple of hours, I should give them time. I have another pair of P163's upstairs in my 'hobby' room - and enjoy them. I have five P363's as my 5.1 HT system - and turned off the 12" sub (I'll keep it for real disaster movies!). I've been happy with the Infinity Primus line - but I bought all of mine 'cheap'!

I guess I want to know what others think of the NHT SuperOne 2.1's? Thanks!

John

 

[zieglj01]

Interesting review - you say the Infinity seems slightly harsh sounding, and the bass
over-hangs and they have a more pronounced midrange with louder highs/treble. Yet,
you say the differences are small between them and NHT?

I would give the NHT more time - and see if they grow on you more.

Since the price is good on Amazon, I am thinking about buying them and giving them
a shake-down. However not against Infinity Primus, since I fired them twice. Still, I do
expect them to fall short of the NHT Classic Two speakers.

Continue to enjoy your audio adventure!

 

[JRT3]

I'm 66 with a pronounced dip in my hearing from 3-4 kHz, which made the audiologist who measured it point out to my wife that I had a reason for ignoring her at times - and playing Clapton a bit loud, too. My 20+ year old Polk Monitors were retired from my office stereo in favor of the P163's, which had been purchased for the HT - and replaced there by P363's. The 20+ year old Klipsch KV-2 center was also retired more recently by a third P363 in the front. Add four P143's, one on each short wave receiver, and you'd think I liked Infinity's Primus line. My last such purchase, a single P153, was the first defective speaker received here (Voice coil stuck off-center.). I bought them right: P143 - $35; P153 - $45; P163 - $60; & P363 - $100 - all shipped 2 days included. They were never meant to sell so cheaply! Their newest variants are higher priced now than these were originally. They did cut corners , at least on my examples - sparse acoustically padded internally (None in the P153!) - no side bracing (Bass 'hangover' may be internal resonances - it was lessened by putting them on some grey/black packing foam then on the bookshelves.). I considered adapting one pair of P163's by gluing & screwing some dissimilar cross braces via the LF driver hole - then filling it with acoustic fiber, I could A-B the modified with the stock for any changes. Finding the SuperOne 2.1's for <$210/pr Monday shipped 2 days postponed that when they made it here Christmas Eve! It's 7 AM - my wife is at work - just me and the cats - back to the NHT's.

I added my old Sony 10" sub - barely on at <80 Hz - that may be too much. The NHT's sound reminds me of my Koss Pro-4AA 'phones, except for the 'phones' extended bass. I bought that first set, long lost, some forty years back, replacing them a few years back when I found out that Koss was making them again. I also bought more earpads for my Sony MDR V6's - and tried them directly from the CD player's headphone jack. OT - That's how I found out that my Yamaha previous a/v receiver was distorted - playing a 'good' CD through my new CD player, where it was crystal clear, vs the 12+ year old a/v receiver (HTR-5640) - where the highs are fuzzy. I replaced it with a basic but decent Onkyo TX-8020. Now you cannot detect a difference - it was the older a/v receiver! Oddly, my oldest a/v rcvr, a Yamaha RX-V480, is still 'clean' - after 20+ yr and drives the spare P163's in my upstairs hobby room. That fuzzy high end made me replace speakers, see an audiologist, and get another receiver, which is how I found the fault. I save too much - even if it's just some bad caps, that one needs to go.

I think the NHT's have a home here...

 

[JRT3]

I can't edit - sorry! I wanted to add re the bass - it improved immensely by just placing the speaker on some foam. I used the NHT's white shaped shipping foam as a test. They deserve better - a la the grossly overpriced grey/black softer shipping foam I bought with the 'Adam Hall' sticker on them and currently have under the Infinity P163's. Literally, some packing foam from a G-scale metal train box did as well. Also, I left the room for a bit returned and decided to turn the sub off... it was already off - it had been off all morning! The bass is quite decent - and now the 'slight hangover', a sounding board effect with the book shelf and bookcases back involved, has been resolved. I need to put those foam inserts back in the box so I can put the boxes in the attic - the NHT's have a home!