[cheva]

As the topic says , who is the best (gr with sonic cap )
What i want is the most accurate sound with nice soundstage...

I accept all answers , good or bad =)

Best regards

[Danny Richie]

I have not listened to, measured, or tested the other two mentioned.

The Ascend looks like it uses good quality drivers and I have had it's little brother compared to our A/V-1 by quite a few people.

I think you'll find the guts of those speakers to be entree level or budget quality parts. By comparison the A/V-2 with Sonicaps uses the highest quality parts costing about $220. This adds up to a considerable performance difference that certainly will give it an edge over the others.

You might also consider our A/V-3. It has been one of my long time favorites. It is basically the same as the A/V-2 but is an 8 ohm speaker (easier drive load). You don't need to purchase stands for it, and the transmission line loading gives it better bottom end control and more extension with a -3db down point of 40Hz.

By building a kit you may come out ahead on total dollars spent as well.

[Danny Richie]

Danny,

Have you actually seen the interior of the Ascend CMT-340SE and examined the crossover parts?

Raj

Do you mean these parts?



Looks like a bunch of sand caste resistors, electrolytic caps, one cap that is either polyester or polypropylene, and possibly recycled Copper inductors. If imported form China I am guessing about $12 worth of parts there, maybe $15 worth.

They put this info on their web site for all to see. So no mysteries here. 

[Danny Richie]

Hmmm, It looks like Raj's post disappeared just as I responded to it. Change your mind on your question?

[rajacat]

Hmmm, It looks like Raj's post disappeared just as I responded to it. Change your mind on your question?

No, but since you have never actually heard the Ascends it might have been better to leave judgments on sound quality to those who have especially since Ascend is a direct competitor.  I removed it (the question) on second thought, because it's Sunday morning and it  might be interpreted as overly aggressive.

[Danny Richie]

I didn't make any judgements regarding sound quality, I just pointed out something rather obvious regarding the parts quality. It can however be a pretty big clue as to just how good a speaker can sound.

I removed it (the question) on second thought, because it's Sunday morning and it  might be interpreted as overly aggressive.

I thought it was a good question.

[rajacat]

What do you think of Ascends latest effort, the Sierra-1? Hmm...I guess I shouldn't ask considering my previous comments. I did own the 340's; my first pair of speakers since I got back into audio and I thought they were good for the money but their tone was a little boxy compared to my present speakers.

Raj

[Danny Richie]

What do you think of Ascends latest effort, the Sierra-1?

It's probably a pretty nice speaker.

At least the capacitors used in the crossover have been stepped up from electrolytic and polyester types to polypropylene. Even an inexpensive imported poly cap is better than what was used in previous models. 



It is still a long way from the A/V-2 network that is point to point wired and uses Sonicaps, foil inductors, and not a single resistor in the signal path.

I guess I shouldn't ask considering my previous comments.

You can ask whatever you like.

I did own the 340's; my first pair of speakers since I got back into audio and I thought they were good for the money

All things considered I am sure they are pretty good for the money.

Maybe they'll send a pair to the small speaker shoot out seen here on the StereoMojo web site.

http://www.stereomojo.com/

[World Leader Pretend]

I've always had a soft spot for Ascend, since they are run by a friendly, down to earth guy.  When I was browsing around he helped me a ton in my search for the right equipment. 

That said Ascend relies more on high quality drivers than the crossover networks.  I would guess the cost split is around 70% drivers, 30% crossover.  This can work pretty well for budget designs and what Ascend offers. 

However, after building my AV-3s I realized how much Danny puts into the networks.  I would guess about a 50/50  cost split.  The flatwire inductors (or whatever they are) were the size of a baseball, and the sonocaps were also quite impressive.  The wire used was about 14 gauge copper, which is much thicker than any commercial speakers I've seen.  By the same token however I wasn't blown away with the drivers, but they sound great. 

Basically you just have to choose based on what sounds better to you. 

[JLM]

I've enjoyed my CBM-170's (now doing HT duty with a CBM-200 center channel).  Their sound is very musical, with excellent imaging, and plenty of guts to do HT.  The cabinets aren't much to look at, but they and the recessed tweeter are perfectly suitable in rough environments (rec rooms, dorms).

BTW the 170's are a league ahead of the 200.