[DaveWin88]

Guys I received the crossovers today. Spatial boxed them so beautifully! I asked them if they would mirror the binding posts so it would match the back of the amplifier, and they were kind enough to do so. As much as I want to use them right away! I'm going listen to the originals tonight and turn the amp off, switch them out and listen to the new ones tomorrow. I'm not a fan of direct A&B testing! I know it has it's place.

[Charles Xavier]

Guys I received the crossovers today. Spatial boxed them so beautifully! I asked them if they would mirror the binding posts so it would match the back of the amplifier, and they were kind enough to do so. As much as I want to use them right away! I'm going listen to the originals tonight and turn the amp off, switch them out and listen to the new ones tomorrow. I'm not a fan of direct A&B testing! I know it has it's place.

Sweet

[DaveWin88]

Charles I'm excited. They're quite a bit bigger and heavier I'll let you guys know tomorrow evening. Spatial said they had burned them in So it should be plug and play. I do realize they will still need time!

[DaveWin88]

Gentleman. I wanted to chime in on my quick impressions. It's really too early to assess the new crossover! The parts are so physically large, and it's a lot of material for the signal to pass through! It's going to take sometime to form/break in! I have about 12 hours on them and they're still quite closed off. The first album I listened to (Renaissance Brass) I had a huge smile on my face! The tweeter dominance has been addressed! We can finally put it too rest Thank the Lord! Right out of the gate it's much, much better balanced. The two Beyma drivers have come to life I'm so happy to add that the overall presentation does not come forwards of the plane of the speaker baffles. That's a huge deal for myself. I was actually disappointed listening to the original crossovers after a month of not listening. It's already a huge plus, and it has nowhere to go but up! Here's a very amateur evaluation of the original setup.


 

[Cloud.sessions]

Yayyy! That’s great to hear Dave. I hope you enjoy the refinements, Sam is a big stickler on coherency so I would expect nothing less then a significantly better balanced speaker. Keep us updated on your thoughts 

I’m going to ask David to make a new post specifically about the M-series upgrades for people to find and reference. Sam just finished up the final touches on the M3 and says it’s his favorite of the 3! I definitely think there are some customers out there that would love this upgrade to their M-series. 

[Charles Xavier]

Yayyy! That’s great to hear Dave. I hope you enjoy the refinements, Sam is a big stickler on coherency so I would expect nothing less then a significantly better balanced speaker. Keep us updated on your thoughts 

I’m going to ask David to make a new post specifically about the M-series upgrades for people to find and reference. Sam just finished up the final touches on the M3 and says it’s his favorite of the 3! I definitely think there are some customers out there that would love this upgrade to their M-series. 

I am waiting to hear back from him. Not to rush but last I heard from him was last Thursday

[DaveWin88]

Guys I wanted to add one more thing. I've been pumping a lot of Symphonies through my system thinking it's the most information I do love Symphonies as a whole. The dynamics are literally night and day! compared to the original crossovers. It brings a whole other level! of realism/enjoyment! It's not just high and low, but everything so beautifully in between!


   

[theclipper]

What is the install process like for these new crossovers? I'm really interested in hearing what these could do for my M3 Sapphires. Also, is there anything that you lose from the original sound?

[Cloud.sessions]

I am waiting to hear back from him. Not to rush but last I heard from him was last Thursday

I let David know Charles, he should be getting with you.

[Charles Xavier]

I let David know Charles, he should be getting with you.

Done. Thanks

[theclipper]

I let David know Charles, he should be getting with you.

I'm also in the same boat, whenever he gets a chance - no rush.

[Spatial Audio]

Yayyy! That’s great to hear Dave. I hope you enjoy the refinements, Sam is a big stickler on coherency so I would expect nothing less then a significantly better balanced speaker. Keep us updated on your thoughts 

I’m going to ask David to make a new post specifically about the M-series upgrades for people to find and reference. Sam just finished up the final touches on the M3 and says it’s his favorite of the 3! I definitely think there are some customers out there that would love this upgrade to their M-series.

A little more detail on the M3 progress... there are a couple of versions of the M3. The one we have is not the same as the one Charles has. So, our progress does not translate to having a crossover ready to ship for everyone. We do have access to another version of the M3 and will tackle that one in short order. Between these two versions, we estimate we can cover 80% of the M3s in the wild. Once we have determined component values that give the desired frequency response, tuning the sound with different brands is an iterative process to land on the combination that we think sounds the best. There will be a page on our website just for crossover upgrades and guidance on determining which version someone has as well as what they can expect by replacing their original crossover.

[theclipper]

A little more detail on the M3 progress... there are a couple of versions of the M3. The one we have is not the same as the one Charles has. So, our progress does not translate to having a crossover ready to ship for everyone. We do have access to another version of the M3 and will tackle that one in short order. Between these two versions, we estimate we can cover 80% of the M3s in the wild. Once we have determined component values that give the desired frequency response, tuning the sound with different brands is an iterative process to land on the combination that we think sounds the best. There will be a page on our website just for crossover upgrades and guidance on determining which version someone has as well as what they can expect by replacing their original crossover.

Awesome, really looking forward to this!

[DaveWin88]

Hello Guys. I wanted give an update. I have about 25 hours on the crossovers now and the top end has started to open up! I always break in components in real time. It's fun to hear the changes as they happen. So I noticed the top really changing! It was pretty flat and just like that! (A couple hour period)  So I played some very familiar recordings, George Winston, Eastman Brass Quintet. I going to make some bold statements here!  You guys haven't heard anything yet! The reason why it's so dynamic and even more so now, is that the noise floor is so low, the second a note stops playing and the decay of the note ends, it just immediately gets quiet! The notes are coming out of black space! It's so dynamic that brass instruments have a range of subtle changes in volume/db that it gives it a 3D-ness like you've NEVER heard before. Even the surface of the record is significantly quieter! Individual musicians stand out in their own space. Quite stunning.
Guys this is a huge deal. This puts what we've been hearing to shame!
Thank you Spatial      

[Cloud.sessions]

  Totally agree Dave! It’s actually stunning the performance that was pulled out of the M-series. Like you said the micro dynamics are crazy they give individual instruments such a contrasting nature in the mix. I told Sam it’s the closest thing I’ve heard to a horn without having all the issues of a horn  . The best part about it is you get massive performance leaps in soundstage, detail, dynamics but at the same time it’s more refined and easier to listen to! You can truly have your cake and eat it too. If someone is looking for a leap up in performance from their M-series or looking to fix some issues about their M-series, I couldn’t recommend the upgrade high enough. Obviously I work for spatial as a tube tech so I’m not strictly unbiased but I say this as an owner of the M4 for many years. And I know this from many of you I’ve talked to over the years, many have similar opinions to Dave or myself on the sapphires. There are things the original M-series do that were “oh bleep” moments, but there are also a few areas that needed refining. This upgrade gives you those refinements and then gives you another 5 things that you go “OH BLEEP” about  .

A+ upgrade, I couldn’t recommend it enough.

[Jprod]

To be more specific, changing out the crossover on the X4 is easy. X3 and X5 not so much. Sam said that we can evaluate and provide an upgrade recommendation on X3 and X5 if we have a pair (or at least a single) for testing. We will be limited due to space within the existing baffle or maybe we come up with an external crossover that works and is visually acceptable.

Also, there were some variants with the drivers depending on when the speakers were manufactured. Anything that we develop for one model isn't guaranteed to work with every other. (There will be questions) For example, the set of M3s we have uses different woofers than the set that Ryan has. Since we have access to both, we can look for ways to improve both of these
As we do more of these upgrades, we will put them on the website. Over time and with the assistance of passionate customers, we should be able to develop a standardized replacement for a number of models with specifics to ensure compatibility.

Id be ok with an external box crossover if one becomes available

[Spatial Audio]

Hello Guys. I wanted give an update. I have about 25 hours on the crossovers now and the top end has started to open up! I always break in components in real time. It's fun to hear the changes as they happen. So I noticed the top really changing! It was pretty flat and just like that! (A couple hour period)  So I played some very familiar recordings, George Winston, Eastman Brass Quintet. I going to make some bold statements here!  You guys haven't heard anything yet! The reason why it's so dynamic and even more so now, is that the noise floor is so low, the second a note stops playing and the decay of the note ends, it just immediately gets quiet! The notes are coming out of black space! It's so dynamic that brass instruments have a range of subtle changes in volume/db that it gives it a 3D-ness like you've NEVER heard before. Even the surface of the record is significantly quieter! Individual musicians stand out in their own space. Quite stunning.
Guys this is a huge deal. This puts what we've been hearing to shame!
Thank you Spatial      

So glad to hear these exceed your expectations. I admit I was nervous sending them out without having heard a pair in stereo. Sam spent a couple of days measuring and experimenting with your baffle to get that sound. I'm sure that all the time he has spent with the sapphire tweeter and multiple M4 revisions over the past 2 years helped get them dialed in. Thanks for sharing your experience with everyone!

[DaveWin88]

You're welcome. It was late and I was probably over excited I should have waiting till today!

I almost can't put it into words without it sounding like an exaggeration. I have some good electronics behind the M6's and the image I'm getting is Stunning! You're hearing so much more around the instruments that you even thought was possible. The performers are so individually well defined!  The noise floor reduction is why this is possible. What took me by surprise was the fact that the surface noise on vinyl is so dramatically reduced! People will be backing me up on this down the road!  Get the top option guys. With time they'll just get more beautiful,refined!

[DaveWin88]

Totally agree Dave! It’s actually stunning the performance that was pulled out of the M-series. Like you said the micro dynamics are crazy they give individual instruments such a contrasting nature in the mix. I told Sam it’s the closest thing I’ve heard to a horn without having all the issues of a horn  . The best part about it is you get massive performance leaps in soundstage, detail, dynamics but at the same time it’s more refined and easier to listen to! You can truly have your cake and eat it too. If someone is looking for a leap up in performance from their M-series or looking to fix some issues about their M-series, I couldn’t recommend the upgrade high enough. Obviously I work for spatial as a tube tech so I’m not strictly unbiased but I say this as an owner of the M4 for many years. And I know this from many of you I’ve talked to over the years, many have similar opinions to Dave or myself on the sapphires. There are things the original M-series do that were “oh bleep” moments, but there are also a few areas that needed refining. This upgrade gives you those refinements and then gives you another 5 things that you go “OH BLEEP” about  .

A+ upgrade, I couldn’t recommend it enough.

You said the magic word Cloud (Micro dynamics) We often think our systems are pretty quiet, but in reality there's always a noise floor in gear and even more ambient noise (surroundings)! Little do we know, it can get significantly quieter! (Hardware) DECWARE has some excellent articles on the subject. Here's an article on listening in the middle of the night when the noise floor can be 20db lower! I do this on Friday and Saturday night's. Listen at 1/2 in the morning.

The level of detail coming out of the M series is phenomenal Talk about 3 friggen D
 https://www.decwareproducts.com/papers/paper027

[DaveWin88]

Update!