[BrandonB]

The economies of DIY evaporate when you hire the various processes out. Building speakers one at a time is never going to be competitive when compared to mass production. I could be one of those build-out guys, but when looked at through the lens of a sustainable, scalable business model it doesn't make sense to me. Cottage manufacturing is a tough go right now when you consider that it's a jump to light speed just to hire a single employee and provide a reasonable benefit package. One has to double or triple sales to come out ahead fiscally when doing such. There is a segment of small industry that's earned the moniker "no-man's land". It refers to small businesses that are attempting to scale but find their profitability actually shrinks as their revenue grows. It's why we see fewer and fewer Mom & Pop businesses able to survive in the lands of giants.

Don't get me wrong, Danny has created a unique cottage industry and survives where many have not, but he has business challenges that are ever increasing while the industry as a whole shrinks.

Yes I agree with everything you have stated.  I think building out kits is great for someone that loves the hobby  and is looking for something supplemental.  I also think that when you get a GR kit and if you have it built out by a good builder.  You know exactly what you are getting.  You know it is going to sound good and you can also customize it however you like which is a huge plus.

[jmimac351]

Once the NRD models have run their course, we may offer them, or similar models, as DIY kits. (Likely with a simplified cabinet and at least one special tech feature left out) But we'll cross that road when we get there.

This is GREAT news, Hobbs.  I have a BIG room and, as much as I'd like to, I just don't need more speakers with a <8" woofer at the tip of the amplifier spear, so to speak.  I am not going to use high pass filters.

However, the statements Danny is making about the magic from these... it makes one real curious, of course. 

Still, I have a pair of 8" Duelund Precision Audio Drivers that can be easily moved from one baffle to another, and I will send them to you and you can keep them as long as it takes to test / play.   

That is the kind of "special and different" stuff I'd like to play with down the road. 

Giving customers the option for a more "exotic" driver may not be a bad idea, if you can do it.  You know, the Scan-Speak 8545 woofer sounds like it might be a GREAT fit for this application.  I have them from the Merlin VSM, of course.  They play lower than the M165NQ, by design, which is what is wanted in this application, right?  They are readily available and have been for a long time, and aren't too pricey either.

If you guys can make money off of special drivers like that here and there for special applications, and give the customers more choices - everybody wins... and you'll sell more speakers too.

[Hobbsmeerkat]

Ron just launched His Video:

https://youtu.be/W-xTXV9T7u8?si=3vhCKoxJ63SAUcnI

Plus, Danny and Ron plan to host a Q&A livestream here in the next couple of days.

[mkrawcz]

As I sit here listening to the LGK 2.1s vocal region. I’m starting to think about the “Aurora” and how those speakers are going to stack up against the NX-Oticas. Those may end up being a new benchmark for what could be the perfect speaker.

[Rocket_Ronny]

Has anyone run that LGK driver open baffle? I imagine boxing them may add some heft and body to the lower mids.

Rocket Ronny

[BrandonB]

Ron just launched His Video:

https://youtu.be/W-xTXV9T7u8?si=3vhCKoxJ63SAUcnI

Plus, Danny and Ron plan to host a Q&A livestream here in the next couple of days.

How do we find out when the livestream will be?

[kwhilden]

Maybe it's me, but I have a hard time with this guy. Lots of big words but almost zero technical details. On anything he reviews. Hans Beekhuyzen he ain't.

The speakers sound interesting though. Did they mention the XO topology?

[AllanS]

Hans Beekhuyzen he ain't.

I’ve not come across anyone like Hans.  One unique thing he brings that I especially I really like is how he’ll go through the topology of whatever he’s reviewing.  Good stuff.

[NoahH]

I like to imagine Hans reviewing other products. He is almost like a Morgan Freeman for imagining funny situations.

"This is a phone book from AT&T. It utilizes a 3 column layout - 6 if you consider the opposing page construction..."

[corndog71]

Maybe it's me, but I have a hard time with this guy. Lots of big words but almost zero technical details. On anything he reviews. Hans Beekhuyzen he ain't.

The speakers sound interesting though. Did they mention the XO topology?

Are you talking about Ron?  He definitely walks his own path.  But he’s a straight shooter like Danny. 

[kwhilden]

Is Ron the New Record Day guy?   I don't know his name.   If so, then yes.   

His style is the opposite of my style.  I like technical details that explain what I am hearing, or what I would hear if I purchased the equipment being reviewed.  His style has almost zero technical details. 

He may have good ears and be a straight shooter, but it doesn't help me personally. That's all I'm saying. 

Part of the fun of this hobby is learning how interpret reviews to match your own tastes, so you can make an informed decision.

I'm very curious about the speakers, but perhaps there's a different way to learn about the design details?  If so, please post it here.

[newzooreview]

It would be great to see more than the X-LS Encore data available via https://www.spinorama.org/

Klippel data reveal aspects of a loudspeaker's performance that meaningfully inform decisions about whether a loudspeaker is suitable for a particular user. They also allow calibration of manufacturer claims across brands.

You can't determine everything about how a loudspeaker will sound from Klippel data, and rear-firing drivers would typically be disconnected for the measurement, but having an external baseline, in addition to the variety of manufacturer-reported data, is highly valuable.

[I.Greyhound Fan]

Is Ron the New Record Day guy?   I don't know his name.   If so, then yes.   

His style is the opposite of my style.  I like technical details that explain what I am hearing, or what I would hear if I purchased the equipment being reviewed.  His style has almost zero technical details. 

He may have good ears and be a straight shooter, but it doesn't help me personally. That's all I'm saying. 

Part of the fun of this hobby is learning how interpret reviews to match your own tastes, so you can make an informed decision.

I'm very curious about the speakers, but perhaps there's a different way to learn about the design details?  If so, please post it here.

I like some specs but I want to know how it sounds in simple terms.  I do not want to have to sort through technical data.  When I have reviewed gear for manufacturers I use descriptive terms that are useful like detail and resolution, tone, texture, depth and width of sound stage, musicality, dynamics, sibilants, air, space between instruments, etc..  Please don't get me wrong, this is just what works for me.

I can't wait to hear the floor standers. I am very sensitive to brightness and sibilants.  I am going to fly down with my son to GR when the speakers are available to give them a listen.

[jmimac351]

I suspect the “measurement that really counts” can only be done experientially with this speaker.  I suspect the measurements are going to be good and “right”, but that won’t tell the whole story.

[toocool4]

kwhilden i can’t remember who made this original quote. “Writing about music is like dancing about architecture”

So mostly same thing here, no one can really tell you about the sound of a speaker. Which is why I only watch this kind of reviews for the entertainment factor, the only thing I have to gain from reviews like this is what the speaker or kit looks like.
I will always go out and listen for myself and preferably in my own listening room with my own kit.

[BrandonB]

Does Ron from NRD ever get on the GR Research forum?

[Hobbsmeerkat]

Does Ron from NRD ever get on the GR Research forum?

On rare occasions, but his account is not obvious though.

How do we find out when the livestream will be?

Current plan is Thursday evening (Jan 30th) on the NewRecordDay YT channel.
https://www.youtube.com/@Newrecordday2013

[PumaCat]

I suspect the “measurement that really counts” can only be done experientially with this speaker.  I suspect the measurements are going to be good and “right”, but that won’t tell the whole story.

"...but that won’t tell the whole story"

Nope, likely not.

That's because measurements are only part of the story, but most certainly they are not the entirety of the story with respect to our perception of music. 

The perception of music is a construct by the human brain, meaning that our brains actively interpret and create the experience of music based on the sounds we hear, utilizing various cognitive processes to analyze elements like pitch, rhythm, and harmony, and ultimately shaping our subjective experience of the music.

This is also why, when taking measurements of a Guarneri violin playing a C-Major and a Stradavarius playing a C-Major, they'll measure the same, but when a person listens to each of them, they sure won't sound the same, because they have different timbre.  The reason we hear these differences in timbre between the two different makes of violins is because of psychoacoustics.

And here's a scientific publication from regarding this from NIH:  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10605363/

[Danny Richie]

I suspect the “measurement that really counts” can only be done experientially with this speaker.  I suspect the measurements are going to be good and “right”, but that won’t tell the whole story.

Jim is right. The measurements show accuracy but really don't tell how a speaker sounds.

[I.Greyhound Fan]

Danny, do you a time frame for the floor standers.  I would like to fly down from Minnesota to audition them and some other speakers.  And eat some Texas BBQ while I am there and possibly eat at Joe T. Garcia's in Fort Worth again.

I want to move on from my Magnepan 1.6's.