AudioCircle
Industry Circles => GR Research => Topic started by: electriceye on 13 Jun 2018, 10:54 am
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Anyone offering this up lately? Tried a search that didnt bring up anything too current.
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You might want to talk to Danny about the Carnegie CST-1. They are pretty much the same thing except they are fully assembled and nicely finished. If he still has any left, they are the deal of the century.
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You might want to talk to Danny about the Carnegie CST-1. They are pretty much the same thing except they are fully assembled and nicely finished. If he still has any left, they are the deal of the century.
http://gr-research.com/cst-1.aspx
available
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I would also add it’s worth asking Danny about crossover upgrades and no-res. Depending on what it costs and your budget, you might want to consider having them prepped as such before you take delivery??
Even if you take them as they are, as Danny says, “This is a steal of a deal. You can't even have the cabinets made for this price. Get them now."
These are being blown out for half of retail. And they were already a great value at full retail.
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The N3 kit is $519. The fully assembled CST-1 is $899. That's $380 for a fully assembled AND FINISHED cabinet. That is an absolutely crazy deal.
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The CST-1 looks nice since it doesnt have the silly pedestal things on top and bottom. It looks like a serious bargain.
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Thanks for all the quick replies. I already have n3s and im not super happy with my cabinet work, it was my first go at it. I was looking to convert it to a plain n3 floorstander with a flat pack and do a little cleaner finish work.
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Well, I can tell you that the N3tl flat packs would likly be close to $500 using quality MDF and cnc machined. You'd still need to spend significant time assembling and finishing or paying to have them finished. For less than a $400 difference, you could pick up the CST's in a high gloss black finish, that finish alone would cost more than double the difference !
You'd also have the N3 kit yo u already own you could then sell..... something to think about
Regarding the CSt1's , they do need to have the drivers removed and the poly fill needs to be placed properly as it was installed incorrectly at the factory. this is not a big deal to do.
the CSt's do not use Danny's authentic M130 drivers, they are a knock off that was used to keep costs down and apparently they are very good.
Of course, the usual upgrades of cross over parts tube connectors, and no rez would be benificial but not required.
I had a pair of the N3TL's , fantastic speakers and amazing bass out of that TL :)
jay
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the CSt's do not use Danny's authentic M130 drivers, they are a knock off that was used to keep costs down and apparently they are very good.
But since thye OP already has four M130 drivers, he could swap them with the Vaporcore drivers in the CST-1. Then he'd still have a back up pair of tweeters should he have an accident.
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I have a pair of x-statix that I built. How does this speaker compare? Thanks
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I haven’t heard the X-Statics but the tweeter in the CST-1 is planar magnetic, so my guess is the CST-1 would be the over all better sounding speaker.
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Thanks for the response what about the Pedistale? I am not finding any reviews on this one at all either..
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I doubt they are in the same class as the CST-1, but you could always call Danny to get clarification.
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I haven’t heard the X-Statics but the tweeter in the CST-1 is planar magnetic, so my guess is the CST-1 would be the over all better sounding speaker.
Whether it is better sounding or not is debatable. Different, yes. Better, not so sure about that. I built both the N1X, which uses the Neo3 PDR planner driver and the X-LS Encore, which uses the Peerless driver that's used in the X-Statik.
To keep the comparison as close as possible to apples to apples I built the X-LS Encores crossovers like the N1X (i.e. point to point wiring Sonicap capacitors, Erse XQ inductors, and Mills resistors), used tube connectors on both, used the same flared port in the Encores that the N1X uses, and put No-Rez and AcoustaStuff in both pairs. The only thing I couldn't keep the same was the woofers. The N1X uses the M130X woofer while the X-LS Encore uses the M165 woofer.
There were differences between them for sure. The N1X with the planner magnetic tweeter was more detailed while the X-LS Encore with the Peerless dome tweeter was a little smother.
There was no way I could pick a clear cut favorite. It depended on the type of music. For example, with detailed music like classical I preferred the planner tweeter while with jazz I preferred the dome tweeter. So which tweeter I liked best really boiled down to what mood I was in.
Don't take this to mean I'm saying the planner tweeter was not good with jazz or the Peerless not good with classical. Both are exceptional with any type of music I listened to.
Danny has a floor standing models for both of these tweeters, the N3s for the planner magnetic and the X-MTM Encore for the Peerless. These two models have more differences than just the drivers. The N3s are a smaller transmission line while the X-MTM Encores are larger ported cabinets.
I have built and listened to both of these floor standers side by side. The X-MTM Encores are very good sounding speakers. However, I would choose the N3s any day.
As for what others have said, if you like black cabinets but want the N3s you can get the CST-1s and replace all the components with the N3 kit for less than you can get cabinets built with this level of finish.
Mike
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Mike,
It’s always great to get subjective impressions from a real world audition. Thanks.
Best,
Anand.
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Thanks for the comments guys... If we go by the components alone though and not real listening of course it is difficult. The X-statix are a hybrid vs the more traditional box speaker... so taking THAT out of the equation is tough. The challenge for me is that I have to put them further into the room than I care to to get the full benefits of them... I still want that open airy sound however
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Then you're probably better off sticking with the X-Staticks, because the CST-1 sounds much better and airy if pulled out into the room. BTW, this generally holds true for most, if not all speakers.
I guessing the X-Staticks are lighter and therefore easier to move in and out of position than the CST-1, which have a high gloss piano black mirror finish which you wouldn't want to handle too often, or at least without soft gloves.
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how much of improvement is there putting the N3 components in this speaker?
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Then you're probably better off sticking with the X-Staticks, because the CST-1 sounds much better and airy if pulled out into the room. BTW, this generally holds true for most, if not all speakers.
I guessing the X-Staticks are lighter and therefore easier to move in and out of position than the CST-1, which have a high gloss piano black mirror finish which you wouldn't want to handle too often, or at least without soft gloves.
I wouldn't think a lot, I've heard the M130 knock off that were used are very good.
With regards to the N3 vs x Statik's, I really doubt the Statik's weigh any less. they have a slightly wider cabint, the lower section has more bracing and they have 2 extra woofers (al l 4 are the M165's (6.5" vs 5.25's in the N3's") and if it were me building the X - Statiks. I'd personally use a 1.5" baffle as I did with my OB7's.
With either design, they should be pulled out into the room, I'd say even mnore so with the X-Statiks. If you are going to be moving them back and forth continuously, maybe look at some sliders of some sort to make it easier.
I agree with Mike, both tweeters are exellent but different. I have a few pairs of the Encores in the house ranging from almost stock to fully upgraded and can easily throw any of them in a room and happily lsten for hours.... the same can be said about the N3TL's and OB7's using the deep back Neo3 PDR.
The Neo is a bit more precise and to me detailed but it's open and natural sounding. The Peerless tweeter I'd say is a bit smoother at times, slightly more forgiving.
Now, if you go with a fully open design, I'd go withthe Neo3 without hesitation. After listening to OB for quite some time now I'd find it hard to go back to "boxed speakers" for my main sy
jay
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how do you like the OB7? I have thought about building that and replacing mine with it. It has a ribbon I believe as well and wondering if it would be a better full range speaker..
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But since thye OP already has four M130 drivers, he could swap them with the Vaporcore drivers in the CST-1. Then he'd still have a back up pair of tweeters should he have an accident.
The Carnegie drivers aren't from Vaporcore. And the standard M-130 is the wrong impedance for that speaker. The 16 ohm versions can be used, but the whole crossover would have to change as well.
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I have a pair of x-statix that I built. How does this speaker compare? Thanks
I haven’t heard the X-Statics but the tweeter in the CST-1 is planar magnetic, so my guess is the CST-1 would be the over all better sounding speaker.
They are both really good speakers, but also very different. Some prefer the planar tweeter some prefer the dome. The CST-1's will play down lower, but the X-Statik's that that transparent open baffle sound in the mids.
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Thanks for the response what about the Pedistale? I am not finding any reviews on this one at all either..
They are very smooth and balanced. They sound a lot like our A/V-3. They were also designed for close to the wall placement. So far, everyone that has them has loved them.
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how much of improvement is there putting the N3 components in this speaker?
If you have the CST-1's and want to step them up, or thinking about buying them and stepping them up, then the thing to do is upgrade the caps and one resistor on the circuit board to Sonicaps and a Mills resistor. It's easy to do and takes the resolution up across the board. You can line them with No Rez too.