[Aether Audio]

Everybody,

Our long awaited "affordable" product line is ready for shipment!  You guys on AC heard it here first.  We don't even have the pics posted on our website yet.  We're calling it the "AV Concert Series."  It offers an unparalled level of value and is ONLY available via factory-direct.

Along with it, we are re-introducing the 30-day "No Risk Deal."  That's right, we're so confident you will appreciate the level of performance that it offers that we not only cover shipping to you in the price, but also return shipping should you choose to return it.  This offer has no restrictions regarding finish options OR equipment/power requirements.

The available finishes at the $995.00 level are Silver and Black "Wilsonart" Laminates.  You can also have your choice of any other Wilsonart Laminate for the mere cost of a small "upcharge" dependent on the cost of the laminate.  

http://www.wilsonart.com/laminate/consumer/index.asp

For $1,295.00 you can have your choice of our special "leather-look" Studio Black, texture finish (shown below) or your choice of the following veneers in "natural finish (i.e., no stains):

Ash
Birch
Cherry
Hickory
Mahogany
Maple
Oak - Red
Oak - White
Pine
Pine - Knotty
Walnut

Image samples of these veneers can be seen at:

http://www.oakwoodveneer.com/samples.html

Pictured below is the "Essence AV-1"  Grills are included in the price and they are Bi-Wireable /Passive Bi-Ampable.

Specs follow below.

Studio Finish=$1,295.00	Silver Laminate=$995.00

SPECIFICATIONS:

Frequency Response - +/- 2dB 50hz - 19kHz [-3dB @ 45Hz & 22kHz]

Sensitivity - 90dB @2.83 Volts

Impedance - 8-Ohms

Power Handling - 100 Watts RMS

Crossover Frequency- 1,000Hz

Crossover Type - Fourth Order, Linkwitz-Riley Acoustic

Dispersion - 90 degrees Horizontal, 60 degrees Vertical

Enclosure Type - Sealed

Subjectively:  How do they sound?

Well, they offer the speed and dynamics that we are known for but with a midrange "warmth" entirely reminiscent of the "tube type."  Even on a solid state amp they imparted an almost "tube" sound - but without the "clutter" and "fuzziness" that a lot of speakers exhibit with higher crossover frequencies.  These babies have the magic balance of warmth in the lower midrange with clarity, detail and speed from 1kHz on up.  Even moderately priced, low power receivers sound quite acceptable on them.  Feed them some clean tube power and get ready for sonic nirvana!  Oh, 50 watts will do fine.  But don't take my word for it - you be the judge.  It won't cost you a dime if you don't like them.  Just send them back - no questions asked.

Are they the Millennial Reference Series?

NO!  Although we are using the original tweeter that the MRS started out with, they cannot compete with the absolute accuracy, speed and the dynamics of the MRS.  But then they cost 1/3rd the price of the Timepiece 2.1.

OPTIONS:  

They can be ordered from the factory with the low frequency response limited to 60Hz, exhibiting a 12dB/oct roll-off below that, for the express purpose of combining them with our upcoming Powered 300 Watt, matching SUBWOOFER!  Individually the subwoofer price is $995.00 - $1,295.00 in the Laminate or veneer finishes, respectively.

In a stereo subwoofer setup, the subwoofer will double as a stand placing the Essence AV-1's tweeter at about 48 inches above the floor.  A complete stereo sub and Essence AV-1 system would normally cost $2,985.00 in the Laminate finishes, but if purchased together the total system cost is $2,750.00!!!  You may be able to find a better sounding system with 600 Watts of subwoofer power, but we think you'll really have your work cut out for you in order to do so.

So...come on all you guys that have been waiting to get into our performance zone but couldn't/wouldn't make the financial stretch.  These little puppies will blow you away and make an ideal Home Theater/ Music playback combo system.  Now you don't have to "break the bank" to get legendary performance OR suffer with mediocre music reproduction from your Home-Theater speakers.  

Ironically, our Waveguide Technology was developed to extract the most performance possible for music reproduction.  As a secondary side effect, it offers better perfomance for home theater apps than most products designed specifically for home theater.  The controlled dispersion provided by the waveguide is exactly what Tomlinson Holman was thinking of when he invented the THX spec.

Enjoy,
-Bob

[Bill Baker]

Many have recently noticed these latest threads regarding SP's new AV Series speakers. Well, Response Audio has been aware of this for some time now and keeping a close eye on development while communicating with Bob..

The reasoning for this is that Response Audio has teamed up with Bob at SP Technology. We will be releasing a version of these speakers as a finished product. Working with Bob, I will personally be responsible for the design and assembly of our crossover to be utilized within these speakers within the compounds of our new facility.
Changes will not only be made to the crossover but also the overall internal arrangements of the system. Obvioulsy, the cabinet design and driver selection must be 100% credited to Bob and his team.
There will be a few options in finishes available but don't worry, it will be limited as not to overwhelm interested parties. I am also working on a new powder coat finish for them as well.

The R&D is already in the works with a target goal of having the first pair available for audition in about 6 weeks.

 I am considering have a pair available to be used as a traveling audition pair.

These speakers will be offered only via Response Audio and its affiliate Jam'n Audio and not available in kit form. All warranty on these speakers will also be dealt with through us.

Further information will be brought forth as this process develops. STAY TUNED!

[dwk]

I was very impressed with Timepieces at RMAF last year, and these look like a great effort to bring the design down to a lower price point. I don't see your name on the RMAF exhibitor list this year which is too bad - I'd love to hear them.

[reefrus]

I don't see your name on the RMAF exhibitor list this year which is too bad - I'd love to hear them.

SP didn't sign up to appear at the RMAF this year but  Mike from TweekGeek will have the Continuum 2.5 (I think) there to show.  

I'm here in Denver and am a representative for SP Tech.  I have a pair of Timepiece 2.0 and Revelation MR-1 II.  I will be hosting a listening session sometime before the show and maybe during the show at my home for any out of towners.  I'll post the date and times so we can connect.  Since you are here in town, feel free to call or pm me and we can arrange a private listening session.

[brj]

First, congrats on the new design, Bob!

The pics of this speaker in another thread reminded me of a question I never got around to asking....

Aren't there baffle diffraction issues with the raised lip around the front edge of the speakers?  I know that many speakers have some degree of baffle step compensation in the crossover network, but that looks like a rather substantial lip to try and account for.

Thanks!

[Bill Baker]

Hello brj,
  I don't know how long it will take for Bob to respond as he is extremely busy with the Rocky show preperation so I will try to give my points here.

 The lip found on the Concert speaker is to make the cabinet more "rigid".  While removing it will not effect the structual integrity of the cabinet, Bob want to retain a very rigid cabinet.

 On the Bella units, I will be removing this lip on the pieces shown in another thread but making up for it internally. I will give my impressions after some testing is complete. I do not think that this lip will cause any major difraction problems and I want to remove it more for cosmetic reasons. If it helps sonically, better yet.

 Bob..... if I am off base here, please fill in the gaps when you have time to respond.

[Aether Audio]

Hey Guys,

You caught me in a rare moment here.  After jumping through a bunch of hoops to get brochures printed at the very last minute in time for RMAF, I forgot one very important printing task - BUSINESS CARDS!  Argrrgghhh!!!  So here I am at 11:30PM CST, waiting for my son Jason to update the logo file and insert it into the cards, then waiting forever for them to print.  I only have to get to Chicago Midway by noon tomorrow in order to catch my flight.  And I still have packing to do.  Duh...I must be some kind of glutton for punishment or...just STUPID!!!

So...while I wait for my dinosaur printer to spit out cards, I might as well try to answer brj's question.

OK, what's with that stupid lip?  The stupid grill frame - that's what.  Of all the darn things that are a pain to make, you wouldn't believe what a pain in the neck a stupid little grill cover can be.  We had to include one in this series as seeing that it's targeted as a more affordable product, more younger families are likely to purchase them.  Young families have little kids.  Enough said...gotta have a grill.

Didn't want to include the cost of building one out of individual sticks - easier to program the CNC and make one out of 1/8 inch hardboard.  Cover it with 3/16 inch acoustic foam and you have a frame.  Problem is...the edge of the hardboard would show if it's not recessed.  Hence, the recess.  And NO, I'm not going to stretch cloth around them - too much fuss at this price-point.

BLASPHEMY!!!  What about all that nasty edge diffraction?  What edge diffraction?  We ain't got no stink'n edge diffraction - at least not at any wavelengths that little recess will affect.  That's the beauty of the waveguide.  By the time the wavefront reaches the mouth, it's total surface area is large compared to the dimensions of the recess.  I could get more technical and talk about how the acoustic impedance of the wavefront is lower and therefore more immune to boudary effects, but I think you get the point.

Essentially, the waveguide allows the wave to "launch" away from the front panel without ever really "seeing" the edges of the enclosure.  One evidence of that is the controlled beam-width.  If the dispersion of the tweeter was wider, as in a conventional baffle mount, then the wavefront would see the dicontinuity at the enclosure edge and diffract off of it.  The increased directivity of the off-axis response pretty much proves there's no energy reaching the enclosure edges.  The enclosures outer edges reside outside the "window" being illuminated by the waveguide.

Of course if the wavefront did reach the enclosure edges, then you'd have all the nasty little ripples in the magnitude response and also a correspondingly smeared envelope response in the time-domain.  You know, the same problem almost everybody else has.

Now, at longer wavelengths there is some baffle step/diffraction effects, but the wavelengths are so long that that getting rid of that little recess will have virtually no effect in eliminating them.  That's where compensation in the crossover comes in.  Do our systems have zero diffraction?  No, but it's as low as theoretically possible in enclosures the size most people are willing to accept in their homes.

In fact, that's why the Timepiece 2.1 and all the other products in the Millennial Reference Series are basically boring rectangular boxes.  A simple box such as that is the easiest/least expensive to build - it offers the most bang for the buck though.  But it also produces just about the worst possible level of diffraction if it's used with a conventional baffle.  We can get away with it though because of the waveguide and pass the savings on to the customer.  Well, the waveguide adds cost, but at least you're paying for an optimal solution, not a half-a**ed one.

But there again, that's why you see so many companies rounding the edges of their enclosure or making pyramid shapes, using felt rings or foam around the tweeters, and even more exotic forms.  They're all desperately trying to reduce diffraction effects.  Besides - they look cool - right?  

Don't kid yourself though, you're paying for all that artistic balogna, and if it was an optimal solution, I guess it wouldn't be so bad.  But all that stuff is little more than a Band-Aid on a severed artery.  None of those methods fully correct for the problem over the entire bandwidth of the tweeter.  Don't get me wrong, those methods do have a positive effect at some range of frequencies, but they don't have the ability to "get them all."

Think about it, if some other method to eliminate edge diffraction was actually superior to a properly designed waveguide, then our waveguide or any other for that matter, would be fundamentally inferior.  They're too darn hard to make to be inferior right out of the gate.  Basically, our speakers might be good, but they would forever be flawed in their very concept.  That's no way to start a small company when your up against established giants.  

And then there's the history factor.  The first Edison cylinder had a horn on it.  Engineers have known that Horn Theory offers superior performance for over a century.  It's just that early on they over-engineered the things to get the most efficiency/sensitivity in order to make up for their lack of available amplifier power.  We don't have that problem anymore these days so we can back off on the high compression ratios to avoid the air non-linearities that otherwise result, and capitalize on all the other benefits that Horn Theory offers.

So why do we roud-over the front panel edges in the Millennial Reference Series then?  Well, because it looks cooler.  They already look boxy enough for cripe's sake.  That, and otherwise we'd have to edge-band the side panels.  It's actually less work to round-over the front panel and cover up the edges of the side panels with it.  That little roud-over does virtually nothing to reduce edge diffraction.  And when other companies tell you that's why they do it - take it with a grain of salt.  Well, I guess it does helps when the wavelengths are pretty short to begin with.  

Most companies cross-over somewhere around 3kHz, so they might reduce diffraction effects a bit by using a round-over.  Even then, it will only effect frequencies about 1/2 octave above and below that frequency.  Higher than that, the tweeter starts beaming anyway so the wavefront never really reaches the enclosure edges to begin with - at least not much energy from a percentage standpont.

I'll back up and say that all of the above is highly dependant on the individual design, and the results of any technique can vary considerably but...the fact remains that no other method can compete with a properly designed waveguide with regards to the diffraction issue.  Then when you throw in all the other benefits of reduced driver excursion and controlled directivity, well...let's just put it this way.  You'll never see SP Technology produce a product that is intended to offer superior performance that doesn't use a waveguide of some kind.  I mean, there's no point.  The world already has plenty of cookie-cutter boxes out there.  I just have this egotistic need to be different.

So there's my little dissertation on the subject.  I hope all this makes sense and doesn't sound too much like marketing hype.  Printing seems to be about done now and it's only 12:30AM.  Maybe I should go home and get some sleep.  I have a party at Steve's in Denver to attend tonight so that might be a wise thing to do.  Hope to see a lot of you guys this weekend.  Have a good night.

-Bob

[Bill Baker]

Just wanted to add some information for those interested in Bob's Concert Series.

 Spending the past several days with these speakers (in Bella form), I wanted to let all you tube guys, including SET enthusiest that you will have no problem driving the Concerts with low power tube amps.
 While prototyping the Bellas, I personally found my 8 watt SET to provide the best sound of all the 6 amps I auditioned. Granted, this was one of our Musica Bella prototypes but 8 watts is still 8 watts.

 Do not be intimidated by the 90 dB effeciency of these speakers. As little as 8 watts will give you dynamic, emotional experience. Unless, of course, you are trying to rattle the windows.

 With Bob offering 30 days and free shipping, my opinion is Bob is giving these speakers away. Give em' a shot, I think you will be pleasantly surprised on what you are getting for the money.

[brj]

Oops - apparently, I missed a few replies!  Bill and Bob, thanks for the explanations!

I admit, I forgot to account for the effects of the waveguide.  That "little recess" doesn't look that little, but I agree that it appears so in proportion to the radius of the waveguide.  I guess it didn't register because you obviously went to the effort to round over the outer edge of the waveguide itself.

As for the acoustic impedance of the wavefront being lower and thus immune to boundary effects, feel free to explain away!

[Christof]

The size of this lip looks larger due to the lighting/shadow when these speakers were photographed.  If I remember correctly the lip on the pairs I saw was about 1/8-1/4"

[Bill Baker]

No, actually the lip is almost a half inch. If it is causing any advers eeffects, I can't imagine how it would sound without it. In all honesty, I would not worry about it or even give it a second thougt. (read Bobs book above ). If you are in an area where to can hear a pair of these speakers, I do not think you will regret the experience.

 I will be removing the lip on my prototype pair strickly for cosmetic reasons and just to "play" with different finishing techniques.

[Aether Audio]

Folks,

Per the request of several customers, we are removing the "lip" arond the front of all AV Concert Series products.  I have to admit, I like the new look better myself.  Also, a number have expressed that they wouldn't be interested in the grills, so we are making them optional as well.  If you are wanting them with the grills, please advise us at the time you place your order.  We will be posting pictures of the Essences both with and without the grills in short order.

If you have no need for the grills then we will not insert the grill support sockets - unless you specifically ask for them.  The front panel looks much cleaner without them and it would be a shame to install them if you will not be using the grills.  We believe this new "smoother" finish will be more to the liking of most.

As a side note, I've had further time to refine the crossover network.  The new alignment is a simpler, second order (12dB/octave) Linkwitz-Riley alignment.  This new alignment has allowed a slightly smoother response (+/- 2dB "worst case") and has had a significant effect on the overall presentation.

In fact, I am quite amazed at the Essence's performance now.  If you subtract from the original Timepiece 2.0 about 1/2 octave of the bass extension, some of the power handling (the Timepiece has a ton), the slightly annoying "forwardness" and "edginess" and add 5dB of increased sensitivity,  you have the equivalent of the original Timepiece.  In fact, I suspect once the word gets out we won't be selling as many of the Timepiece 2.1's except to those that have higher powered amplifiers.

Raising the crossover to about 1.1kHz seems to have had a tremendous effect on that tweeter.  Although that's only an increase of 150Hz, that little bit seems to have moved that tweeter out of a range that it was a bit unhappy in.  

To be honest, I never expected this level of performance from the AV Concert series.  We knew we had to use the original tweeter to get the troughput and keep the machining costs down.  Since it comes from Vifa with the throat attached, that eliminates a significant amount of work and makes it possible to keep the cost down.  Well, that's true as long as we're not attempting the piano laquer finish on the front panels as we did on the original Timepiece/Millenial Reference Series products.  That was (still is) a killer from a time standpoint.

Anyway, I was expecting the same issues with that tweeter as we had in the original MRS product, so my expectations weren't really all that high.  I would have never guessed that raising the crossover frequency just that little bit could make that much difference.  Funny thing is, this product line was really intended to be a killer AV product and not necessarily be the high-end performer that it has turned out to be.  That's both good and bad because the high-end crowd will end up labeling it as a high-end product.  Of course we won't be complaining per se but it may cause folks interested in an AV product to think they're too "tweaky" or not robust enough and/or not well suited for film soundtracks - WHICH IS NOT TRUE.  The main problem with that from a business standpoint is that the AV market is a multitude of times larger than two channel audio these days.  Oh well, I guess you take what you can get.

-Bob

[bhobba]

First congratulations on what looks like an excellent product - I am sorely tempted to get a pair myself.

If you have no need for the grills then we will not insert the grill support sockets - unless you specifically ask for them. The front panel looks much cleaner without them and it would be a shame to install them if you will not be using the grills. We believe this new "smoother" finish will be more to the liking of most.

Just a thought.  I notice some manufactures these days put magnets behind the front panels to attach the grills which seems like a very neat solution with no deleterious appearance issues.  Any reason for not going that route?

Thanks
Bill

[Danny Richie]

Raising the crossover to about 1.1kHz seems to have had a tremendous effect on that tweeter. Although that's only an increase of 150Hz, that little bit seems to have moved that tweeter out of a range that it was a bit unhappy in.

Hmmm, who would have thought that?

Your new model sure looks good and is a great bargain. I hope you do well with these.

[Aether Audio]

Danny,

OK wise guy, you know I couldn't go any higher using those aluminum woofers - they didn't have the H.F. bandwidth. Even though that tweeter wasn't optimal in that design, you have to admit, I squeezed it until it screamed.  Live and learn.  I knew back then I was pushing the envelope.  But yes, once again you were right.  Thanks for the vote!


bhobba,

Thanks!  Not just to be "tooting my own horn" but these little puppies turned out really sweet.  I've been to RMAF and heard some of the speakers most of you guys like, such as the Zu stuff, the Dadaelus and recently, Danny Richie's new array(really nice!).  Those are all great speakers and if you like any of those I'm sure you'll really like the Concert Series too.  

To be honest, I actually think these new Essences have a more pleasant and musical overall presentation than the original Timepiece 2.0 had - a LOT more.  OK, they don't hit 30Hz like the Timepiece 2.0 did, but who cares?  If you REALLY want bass a guy can add a PAIR of our matching powered subwoofers and have more bass than the Timepieces could ever provide.  At our present pricing that whole system (2 subs & a pair of Essences) is the same price as a pair of the present Timepiece 2.1's alone!

Even without the subs the bass is still nice and tight because of the sealed box and the Essence is -3db at 43Hz (Since the original posting I've tweaked the stuffing).  But never mind the bass...the midrange is MUCH sweeter than the original Timepiece 2.0's.  That annoying edginess is completely gone that the 2.0's had and that has made a world of difference.  Are they as good as the new Timepiece 2.1 with the new tweeter in that regard?  Well, technically I'd have to say no - not quite.  And they don't have quite the resolution or detail either.  But man, they're scary close.

I think the Nomex fiber cone has something to do with the "warmth" in the midrange reproduction too.  I've always liked the sound of a good paper cone but sometimes they get a little too "lively."  This Nomex unit seems to have that same "warm" quality but it also seems to have tamed (actually - damped) that certain "bite" that a paper cone often has.

Yak, yak, yak, this is all a bunch of talk coming from the guy that's trying to sell them.  Don't take my word for it.  Bill Baker at response Audio is selling his Bella version like hotcakes.  After setting them up in his store he sold the first 5 pairs in less than two weeks!  Granted, he's tweaked them to the nth degree with his mods, but the core is still the Essence design.  

Depending on your finances, I can't see how a guy could go wrong either way.  If you want a pair with every last drop of performance squeezed out of them, get the Bellas.  If you're on a tighter budget but still want a wonderful sounding speaker, give the Essence (or upcoming Presence)a try.  Remember: we're offering the NO Risk Deal on these guys.  We'll pay round trip shipping if you don't want to keep them.

Just a thought. I notice some manufactures these days put magnets behind the front panels to attach the grills which seems like a very neat solution with no deleterious appearance issues. Any reason for not going that route?

Well, we're looking into it.  I'm a little concerned about vibration resulting from that and have to do some more tests.  But yes, we're definitely looking into it.  So far nobody has even wanted the grills so it hasn't been much of an issue.  Probably by the time someone asks for them we'll have that worked out.  Thanks for asking though - it definitely appears to be a better solution - if it doesn't cause any problems.

Take care,
-Bob

[Danny Richie]

But yes, once again you were right. Thanks for the vote!  

And once again I think you have a great product. I can't wait to hear this new model.

Congratulations.