AudioCircle
Industry Circles => Spatial Audio => Topic started by: Vedder323 on 12 Jun 2022, 02:21 pm
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I don’t know what else to say other than Spatial stepped up to the plate, called their shot and knocked it out of the park! I’m really impressed! Check out the video!
https://youtu.be/IHATkt0mbUw (https://youtu.be/IHATkt0mbUw)
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Thanks for pointing the video out.
Personally, I like that the X4 is passive. I wonder though if the price difference between it and the X5, with its self-powered woofer, is too small. That would be a shame if it didn't get sales traction.
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I would think that much of the praise for the X4s would apply to the X5s as they use the same AMT tweeter and similar size mid and LF drivers. I don't know if the X4s updated mid and low frequency drivers are significantly better. The X5s go a bit lower to 25Hz, have 8 ohm impedance and 97 db efficiency vs the X4s' 32Hz depth, 4 ohm impedance and 93 db efficiency rating.
I hope Ron sometime is able to get to the X5s or even the X3s. Before this video, I had the impression from previous videos that he didn't like the X5s' AMT tweeter but now I can see it was just his bias versus his listening experience.
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Not sure if the X4 is a mythical horse with a horn sticking out of its head but it is one hell of a speaker. I am super impressed with my pair and cant even think of any speaker that I would prefer.
The intentional stepping in dog crap part of the review is spot on. Bass on most (not all) speakers is so broken that I cant listen to it. Its always warm, wooly, sluggish as to not offend and try to sound deep but as a result most box speakers sound like box resonance with no bass definition. To come clean I have owned many before the X4 but once you hear real bass you cannot unhear it. The soundstage depth on the X4 is insane as well.
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Sure happy my X3 is in the same family! First time in my long audio life I ever heard good bass in a room. And the tweeter.....OMG!!!
:thumb: :thumb: :thumb:
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Correction please if incorrect but, from conversations with Spatial, my understanding is the X4 and M4 share the same bass section. I don't know what differences there may be in implementation, but I took this to mean the X4 and M4 share the same 12" drivers.
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Correction please if incorrect but, from conversations with Spatial, my understanding is the X4 and M4 share the same bass section. I don't know what differences there may be in implementation, but I took this to mean the X4 and M4 share the same 12" drivers.
Detailed driver info on the Sapphire line seems thin on Spatial's website but the photos over at Darko's site look different from what i remember of the M4s. The baskets look the same or similar. I own the X5s so I can't look/verify.
https://darko.audio/2022/04/axpona-2022-spatial-x4-w-lta-z40-holo-may/#&gid=1&pid=1
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I wouldn’t get too jazzed. Next year something new will come out and NRD will hype it too. That’s business.
From a happy M5 owner who thinks wondering about the effect of the very sheer grill on sound quality is a sign of serious audio OCD, :popcorn:
Sock pit
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Also, there is a video of alumni Danny at GR research talking to Clayton about the X4's. It was refreshing to see two friends that can talk about their love of open baffle and not let any egos get in the way. Mutual respect and admiration is a rare thing these days.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL91UyiAAh0
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As an X3 owner, yeah the X series really is that good. Reference level speakers.
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Also, there is a video of alumni Danny at GR research talking to Clayton about the X4's. It was refreshing to see two friends that can talk about their love of open baffle and not let any egos get in the way. Mutual respect and admiration is a rare thing these days.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL91UyiAAh0
Wow, thanks for sharing this video. That was nice of Danny to invite Clayton over and showcase his X4s on his YouTube channel. I don’t think we’ll ever see Magico showcasing Wilson Audio speakers on YouTube or in a hifi magazine. Lol…
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Can you comment if x4 bass section has more punch (palpable) than the x5?
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Always good reviews on Spatial Audio speakers across the line. Ron's video was good but one thing that makes his comparison to M3's hard, was his gear the same, the room the same, cables the same, and power cords, if not it would be hard to say if the X4 was a better speaker if everything that drives the speakers has been updated or changed from the 1st M3 sapphires reviews. The only way to say would be a/b them within the same system and room in the present setup.
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Ron's a used car salesman :) In other words haha. Hey if it wasn't for Ron I wouldn't be here. I'm sure the X4 is a better speaker? in some regards, but that comes at a price.
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Can you comment if x4 bass section has more punch (palpable) than the x5?
That would all depend on the amp that was used to drive the X4 and the front-end gear having a good reproduction of the bass and mid-bass. Look at a system as a whole working together.
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I would think that much of the praise for the X4s would apply to the X5s as they use the same AMT tweeter and similar size mid and LF drivers. I don't know if the X4s updated mid and low frequency drivers are significantly better. The X5s go a bit lower to 25Hz, have 8 ohm impedance and 97 db efficiency vs the X4s' 32Hz depth, 4 ohm impedance and 93 db efficiency rating.
I hope Ron sometime is able to get to the X5s or even the X3s. Before this video, I had the impression from previous videos that he didn't like the X5s' AMT tweeter but now I can see it was just his bias versus his listening experience.
In-room speaker response is the key, specs are another. Your room acoustics have a big part on how any speaker is going to reproduce music in our rooms.
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Ron's a used car salesman :) In other words haha. Hey if it wasn't for Ron I wouldn't be here...
Boy. Online reviews are tricky. I am talking about YouTube, where it is pretty obvious that the reviewer makes money from the traffic, and also the big review sites like 6Moons or Darko where it is a true business. Online reviewers are pressed to always keep hits up for advertising so they are always boosting "The Next Big Thing". I tend to look for a lot of consensus on forums like this one.
I bought my X5s because I noticed that LTA and Spatial are often paired up at shows. Also LTA uses Spatial speakers in their showroom factory where I bought my amp.
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That would all depend on the amp that was used to drive the X4 and the front-end gear having a good reproduction of the bass and mid-bass. Look at a system as a whole working together.
That's obvious, differences in gear makes different sound.
I am asking about difference in the woofers of x4 vs x5. When I had DIY open baffle different drivers made significant difference in the "punch" for example beta eminence had way more palpable than neo-woofers.
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I bought my X5s because I noticed that LTA and Spatial are often paired up at shows. Also LTA uses Spatial speakers in their showroom factory where I bought my amp.
That would be a good thread. Why did you buy Spatial Audio Speakers?
I had tried the Magnepan LRS speakers and really liked them but then moved to the .7s and noticed I got more but still things were missing. I continued to research and saw some references to open baffle speakers but a lot of them were European and I didn't think I had a chance to buy/hear them. I saw some references to Spatial Audio Lab stuff and then found a YouTuber (not a reviewer) named Brent LeVasseur who just posted videos of his X5s playing. Even over YouTube, it sounded great. He's posted a bunch more videos since I first found him involving different equipment. I get obsessive about reviews and forums so I read as much as I could and there were several posters (I don't think I found AudioCircle until after I bought the speakers) who raved about them.
I was considering moving to Magnepan 1.7is but saw an ad on a site where someone was selling his X5s which were only less than a year old in the Phoenix area (about 3 hour drive) for a really great price. I went there and he was happy to demonstrate them for me and I was immediately hooked. I bought them on the spot and brought them home.
It has also led me to switch from SS to tubes which I had no experience with and also adding and upgrading DACs and now the amplifier as well all with the X5s as the centerpiece. I knew I had my endgame speakers and despite everything else I'm tweaking, I still feel the same way.
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Always good reviews on Spatial Audio speakers across the line. Ron's video was good but one thing that makes his comparison to M3's hard, was his gear the same, the room the same, cables the same, and power cords, if not it would be hard to say if the X4 was a better speaker if everything that drives the speakers has been updated or changed from the 1st M3 sapphires reviews. The only way to say would be a/b them within the same system and room in the present setup.
He said he plans to post "sound clips with commentary." In the past he has done that to compare different speakers in the same setup (and did it with the M3 Sapphires and X5s more than a year ago). So, it's possible there will be a direct comparison between his M3 Sapphires and the X4s in his current setup/room. It would be unusual (and disappointing) to post a first impressions video making initial comparisons to the Sapphires and then failing to follow that up.
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I’m sure Ron will come through. Anxiously awaiting the sound comparisons and full-up X4 review. 8)
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Maybe.
He posted "first impressions" and "maybe unicorn" comments on another speaker (Buchardt S400 Mark II) on May 18th. It's approaching two months now without a full review.
He's had Benchmark equipment for going on a year now. Now Burson amps are in the mix.
I donated to the cost of getting the binaural microphone for NRD, and it has seen sparing use since then.
I find the A/B comparisons of speakers somewhat informative. It is possible to hear relative qualities even if the actual in-room sound will never be captured between microphone, digitizing, and subsequent compression. Soundstage is essentially impossible to hear, even with binaural recordings.
Maybe NRD will get around to A/B binaural recordings with the Sapphires and X4. Maybe not.
It's hard to tolerate the slick willie patter of the used car sales spiel in the video scripts to mine nuggets of useful information. Calling people who literally gave him money "polly prissypants," or whatever hipster nonsense, is grating. Channels like Goldensound seem to have a lot more respect for their viewers and supporters. NRD started this thread for self promotion and then ran away.
The binaural recordings of the Sapphires compared to other speakers were helpful in nudging me towards buying them. Fortunately, I was able to listen to the Sapphires locally to ground truth things.
The direct sales model is, all said and done, a benefit to customers. I have the highest regard for Clayton and the team at Spatial Audio Labs. They are willing to develop and sell an assembled speaker that they stand behind (unlike DIY outfits that ship you the parts and leave you to the Fates.)
But I wish there were a better means of gauging speaker characteristics rather than the hit or miss availability of local auditions (mostly "miss") or coverage by Youtube folks with murky motives.
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Maybe.
He posted "first impressions" and "maybe unicorn" comments on another speaker (Buchardt S400 Mark II) on May 18th. It's approaching two months now without a full review.
He's had Benchmark equipment for going on a year now. Now Burson amps are in the mix.
I donated to the cost of getting the binaural microphone for NRD, which has seen sparing use since then.
I find the A/B comparisons of speakers somewhat informative. It is possible to hear relative qualities even if the actual in-room sound will never be captured between microphone, digitizing, and subsequent compression. Soundstage is essentially impossible to hear, even with binaural recordings.
Maybe NRD will get around to A/B binaural recordings with the Sapphires and X4. Maybe not.
It's hard to tolerate the slick willie patter of the used car sales spiel in the video scripts to mine nuggets of useful information. Calling people who literally gave him money "polly prissypants," or whatever hipster nonsense, is grating. Channels like Goldensound seem to have a lot more respect for their viewers and supporters. NRD started this thread for self promotion and then ran away.
The binaural recordings of the Sapphires compared to other speakers were helpful in nudging me towards buying them. Fortunately, I was able to listen to the Sapphires locally to ground truth things.
The direct sales model is, all said and done, a benefit to customers. I have the highest regard for Clayton and the team at Spatial Audio Labs. They are willing to develop and sell an assembled speaker that they stand behind (unlike DIY outfits that ship you the parts and leave you to the Fates.)
But I wish there were a better means of gauging speaker characteristics rather than the hit or miss availability of local auditions (mostly "miss") or coverage by Youtube folks with murky motives.
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I got turned off for good when NRD attacked other reviewers and claimed to be self-righteous. But hey it's Youtube anyone can have a channel with little experience and like they say everyone has an opinion. Audiophiliac is a good site, Robinson site is good lots of years of experience, and a few others, but the rest are almost laughable. OCD guy is funny at least.
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New Record Day posted the binaural sound clips of the X4. I am glad I was wrong about the potential for the video not to materialize.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZccwhEJ5Fvs
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It's hard to judge the X4s in comparison to the Sapphires or X5s using the sound clips since the previous Sapphire and X5 sound clips were in a different room and with a different amp (a Hegel in the earlier video). The room being used in the X4 video definitely has echo and hollowness that was not present in the previous room.
With those limitations, it does sound as if the X4s do have a very cohesive sound as NRD concludes. The articulate, natural punch to the bass also comes through. It sounds as if it adds realism and perhaps texture to the already excellent bass from the Sapphires.
The new sound clips seem to back up his statement that the upper midrange on the X4s is less energetic in a natural way that still conveys excellent detail. He says that the Sapphires have more "excitement" than the X4s in the 1500 Hz and up frequencies, but in the "first impressions" video he noted the better "sparkle" in the X4s. Hmm.
It's enjoyable to at least hear a facsimile of the X4s in a better recording than some of the show tour videos.
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You are correct. New room, and different gear will always equal different sounds in some areas and overall presentation. All this video or review can tell you is how a speaker sounds in this room with this gear the past is just that the past and you could never make a statement about how one speaker is better than the one you reviewed in a whole new location, room, and gear. But the X4 sounded good though not as dynamic in someway than the X series or the M3 Sapphires for sure.