2.0 Setup Suggestions

[j_garcia]

53Hz was what they said for in room, however the chart they had on the specs page didn't seem to support that. Yes, I've heard both, but not back to back, and while the bass may have a hint of bloat to it with the X-LS, it doesn't sound bad or muddy. The 170 is very clean, but the bass just isn't as prominent. The 170 had a more articulate midrange, while the X-LS had a wider stage. Either way, they are both very good choices. For me, I'd probably opt for the X-LSs for the cabinets alone

 

[silversurfer]

I guess we read the graph differently.

Anechoic sensitivity is 89dB. 3dB down would be 86dB, which looks pretty close to the 58hz mark, which is the -3dB anechoic spec.

The cabinetry on the X-LSs do look very nice, as do all AV123 product. The cost of cabinets is certainly an advantage Mark has.

Did you hear the encore version of the X-LS and the SE version of the 170?

 

[WmAx]

Cbm-170se

Since the Soundstage NRC measurements are for the original CBM-170, and not the revised SE that uses new drivers(which are claimed to be improved), I will provide the measurements here for the new SE version:

Frequency Response, On-Axis and Waterfall(CSD) (Waterfall graph is adjusted to the same average floor to average signal range and identical time window as used in Stereophile magazine, so that useful comparisons can be made).

Off Axis Response Sets, 0-30 Degrees and 45-90 Degrees:

Total Harmonic Distortion(THD) measured at 85dB, 90dB, 95dB, 100dB and 105dB at 1 Meter. (Note: Soundstage does this at 2 meters. This means that the Soundstage 90dB is closest to my 95dB 1 M measurement, and the 95dB Soundstage measurement is closest to my 100dB 1 M measurement). According to these measurements, the CBM-170SE does use an improved mid-bass motor as claimed by Ascend Acoustics:

Channel Matching and Overall FR(Note: the slight treble rise around 10kHz is because the program used for this single measurement only - has no mic compensation ability to accept the calibration file for my measurement mic - and the mic has a slight lift around 10kHz). Otherwise, the response here is accurate. The slight ripples in the 70-100Hz respnose end are the result of slight room interaction(though this measurement was made with the measurement sete up surrounded by many large absorbers, some minor interference still persists). This is 4 different CBM-170 SE speakers measured to check for QC/consistency:

Note: Though have analyzed cabinet vibrational behavior as measured at various points with an accelerometer and have found the cabinet to be highly resonant(as are most speakers), I have not provided these measurements here because I do not not have a fair way to display them for your relative comparison. The best method would be for me to get a speaker measured in Stereophile, and use it for the reference adjustment of the graph(to match their panel measurement) so that I can provide a graph that you can compare to their database usefully. Until I decide to buy a speaker measured in that magazine for this sole purpose, I will not include such a graph. I may, in special context, in the future, provide graphs with a comparison to other cabinets, made side by side under identical conditions/SPL.


-Chris

 

[silversurfer]

This kind of stuff is really interesting to me.

Can you offer any analysis or comparisons to other speakers you have measured?

 

[j_garcia]

Did you hear the encore version of the X-LS and the SE version of the 170?

Yes, the SE versions for the 170s. For the X-LS, I am commenting on the original, not the Encore. The Encore uses the same midbass and cabinet tuning AFAIK though.

 

[WmAx]

This kind of stuff is really interesting to me.

Can you offer any analysis or comparisons to other speakers you have measured?

Well, the speaker's drivers and crossover are essentially transparent for near field use, in the mid-range to treble band, and for mid/far field use where side wall absorbtion is used. However, the cabinet can be expected to heavily distort timbre/color the sound, as will the cabinets on most speakers.

I am currently modifying the cabinets on several CBM-170SE speakers for someone so that they cabinets produce no or next to no audible output - so that they have a reference quality surround system for a low cost. Of course, in addition to the cabinet revisions, a proper loudspeaker management/xover system and multiple subwoofers are required to properly use these speakers optimally.

-Chris