RBH Sound Owner's Thread

[trane251]

"Only bad thing is for customers who already own the SX-series and were planning on buying more of the SX speakers to match aesthetic. This is definitely one bad thing about building your system one-at-a-time. I guess it may be okay if you begin your first purchase at the release of the new series because that may give you 5 or 6 years."

This is definitely a drag. Wish it wasn't six months out.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

This is definitely a drag. Wish it wasn't six months out.

The waiting is a hardest part for sure. Definitely a quandary if you are ready to buy soon and you have to wait another 6 months.

Only positive note here is if you still want to buy the same thing after 6 whole months, then you know it was a carefully planned purchase, not an impulse purchase.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I don't know if I've mentioned this. But for anyone thinking of upgrading their 6.5" midrange drivers, the Beryllium/Aluminum midrange upgrade is the same Be/Al midrange driver used in the $50K Status Acoustics tower. MSRP is $400 per Be/Al midrange.

You cannot upgrade the tweeter to the Beryllium tweeter.

 

[gene]

I don't know if I've mentioned this. But for anyone thinking of upgrading their 6.5" midrange drivers, the Beryllium/Aluminum midrange upgrade is the same Be/Al midrange driver used in the $50K Status Acoustics tower. MSRP is $400 per Be/Al midrange.

You cannot upgrade the tweeter to the Beryllium tweeter.

This doesn't sound right. You mean $400 for the upgrade for the pair of speakers? No way RBH can charge $400 per 6" driver per speaker

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

This doesn't sound right. You mean $400 for the upgrade for the pair of speakers? No way RBH can charge $400 per 6" driver per speaker

The $400 MSRP is for each Be/Al 6" midrange driver. Dealer cost is a lot less.

So for the SX-8300 which has 2 midrange drivers per speaker, the MSRP is $800 per 1 speaker or $1600 per Pair.

 

[trane251]

This doesn't sound right. You mean $400 for the upgrade for the pair of speakers? No way RBH can charge $400 per 6" driver per speaker

It does seem rather high especially when you consider there is probably about 2% of actually BE in the alloy.

 

[slipperybidness]

It does seem rather high especially when you consider there is probably about 2% of actually BE in the alloy.

It's not the Be material that is expensive. It's the special processing and handling of Be that is expensive.

 

[trane251]

It's not the Be material that is expensive. It's the special processing and handling of Be that is expensive.

I completely understand that… but if you're going from the already upgraded drivers of the /R version it seems like the price difference should be less compared to coming from the standard SX version. Also, since these drivers have different material and respond differently shouldn't the crossover be adjusted too? Or is there not that much of a difference overall?

 

[gene]

I completely understand that… but if you're going from the already upgraded drivers of the /R version it seems like the price difference should be less compared to coming from the standard SX version. Also, since these drivers have different material and respond differently shouldn't the crossover be adjusted too? Or is there not that much of a difference overall?

I agree I think the upgrade cost is a lot less if you are coming from an /R version. The crossover is still very similar. There is a slight difference in energy decay between the AL and Be composite driver but not enough change in response to warrant a diff crossover as far as I know. The Be drivers are nice but if you're already Rockin /R versions, then you'd be better off investing the $400/driver upgrade into other areas of your system or room acoustics IMO. I say this from experience as I have RBH speakers with AL and Be composite woofers in them. The Be driver definitely has some advantages but the Al phase plug driver is already so damn good as is.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I also think the Be-Al midrange upgrade is probably too overkill especially if you already have the awesome reference Al midrange. MSRP is $400 per Be-Al driver, but dealer cost is $200 each. I'm sure any nice dealer would get you the $200/driver price. But still overkill. I personally wouldn't do it.

The ScanSpeak 9500 Tweeter upgrade (going from Standard to Reference) is $125 each MSRP or $90 each dealer cost. This will require a change in crossover. The upgrade Crossover for the ScanSpeak 9500 costs $100 MSRP each or $50 each dealer cost.

 

[trane251]

SX 8300's are up and running. Nothing like a big honking tower! Haven't ran room correction through the receiver yet, but at least the break in has started. I still have the sub hooked up, but will disconnect it once I get an amp for the towers. I'll probably do it before then, because I'm not always patient just to see how they sound out of the box with no low range help. They're heavy and beautiful!

Any more updates? Pics? Still liking them?

 

[jalesi]

Any more updates? Pics? Still liking them?

No pics yet, I've been down with my back so I haven't gotten the feet on them yet. I am still enjoying them, however. The only thing is, I need to take a week off from work to really enjoy them! I did watch the 2 Star Treks (newer ones) and didn't miss the external sub that really enjoyed for big sound movies. That is great, as I'll gain some floor space in one room, and lose some in another. While I'm disappointed with the discontinuation of the series, I'm not surprised. That happens with a lot of things I like and have (shoes, cars, etc.).

When I'm ready for the rears, I'll get whatever is available, or I'll get a whole new set and use these for music. Either way, I'm comfortable with them, and don't anticipate ever having to replace them.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

No pics yet, I've been down with my back so I haven't gotten the feet on them yet. I am still enjoying them, however. The only thing is, I need to take a week off from work to really enjoy them! I did watch the 2 Star Treks (newer ones) and didn't miss the external sub that really enjoyed for big sound movies. That is great, as I'll gain some floor space in one room, and lose some in another. While I'm disappointed with the discontinuation of the series, I'm not surprised. That happens with a lot of things I like and have (shoes, cars, etc.).

When I'm ready for the rears, I'll get whatever is available, or I'll get a whole new set and use these for music. Either way, I'm comfortable with them, and don't anticipate ever having to replace them.

I hope your back is okay!

Did these 8300 towers contribute to hurting your back ?

As great as the bass is passively amped, just wait (after convalescing) until you actively bi-amp the bass with external amp!

 

[jalesi]

I hope your back is okay!

Did these 8300 towers contribute to hurting your back ?

As great as the bass is passively amped, just wait (after convalescing) until you actively bi-amp the bass with external amp!

No, the old back is ok, just a small handful of ruptured discs, to no fault of the speakers! I am looking forward to bi-amping them, I did breakdown and purchased an emotiva amp. not my first choice, but after hearing about the discontinuation of the SX 8300s, I wanted to skimp here in hopes of possibly being able to save for another set of 8300s.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

No, the old back is ok, just a small handful of ruptured discs, to no fault of the speakers! I am looking forward to bi-amping them, I did breakdown and purchased an emotiva amp. not my first choice, but after hearing about the discontinuation of the SX 8300s, I wanted to skimp here in hopes of possibly being able to save for another set of 8300s.

Power is power to me.

There are 2 reasons I don't own Emotiva - aesthetic and brand name.

I wanted amps with big front handles like Bryston, Vincent, and ATI. If Emotiva amps look like any of these, I might be owning Emotiva because there is no doubt Emotiva is very cost effective.

I also wanted brand name for the brand prestige.

But other than these 2 reasons, I really have no doubt that Emotiva amps will sound as good as any amps out there.

 

[jnboone]

Attaching 661/r's to stands? I was very surprised these didn't come pre-drilled to attach to speaker stands. Any suggestions?

 

[jalesi]

Power is power to me.

There are 2 reasons I don't own Emotiva - aesthetic and brand name.

I wanted amps with big front handles like Bryston, Vincent, and ATI. If Emotiva amps look like any of these, I might be owning Emotiva because there is no doubt Emotiva is very cost effective.

I also wanted brand name for the brand prestige.

But other than these 2 reasons, I really have no doubt that Emotiva amps will sound as good as any amps out there.

I don't love their aesthetic either, and I really wanted ATI or the Outlaw version as I try to buy American made whenever possible. That wasn't in the cards right now. However, it's easy to do what I've done in the past. When I get the ability to update/upgrade, I move the old equipment to another room, or a family member. I just got my dad into an entry level stereo system, so now he's wanting a sub. Long story short, it won't go to waste either way!

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I don't love their aesthetic either, and I really wanted ATI or the Outlaw version as I try to buy American made whenever possible. That wasn't in the cards right now. However, it's easy to do what I've done in the past. When I get the ability to update/upgrade, I move the old equipment to another room, or a family member. I just got my dad into an entry level stereo system, so now he's wanting a sub. Long story short, it won't go to waste either way!

That's what I do in the past too - pass components down to family, which is never a waste!

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Attaching 661/r's to stands? I was very surprised these didn't come pre-drilled to attach to speaker stands. Any suggestions?

Let me ask RBH and see what they say.

 

[jnboone]

Thank you!!!