[Nuance]

...Right now I'm leaning towards Jim's upcoming HT1-TL....

 
anybody else catch this??? 
(not to derail this thread, or anything but I couldn't let this just slip by.) 
must be the "best less than $3k speaker" that I have heard some talk about.

Interested to see how this HT1-TL develops...

Guess the cat is out of the bag.  At least I didn't make the slip up. 

It's not a blind test, but I'll be taking my SongTower RT's over to TJHUB's house to compare them to his HT2 TL's.  Obviously his HT2's will take the cake in the bass department, but I don't think the difference in midrange resolution and HF's will be very drastic.  I guess we'll find out once we get together.

Any idea when that is happening, I'd like some impressions from a live A/B.

Well, we've had to cancel once already, but we're trying to find a weekend in June that will work.  We'll keep those who are interested posted. 

[Vulcan00]

I am stuck! Its between the HT2-TL and the SongTower TL. So I am very interested in any
A/B of thoses. Nuance Please hurry lol. I will also be moving soon and will have a dedicated Home theater room.  I would like to use my existing 7.1 set ?up for movies and have a pair of Salk speakers for music listening.  I do enjoy listening to DVD-A.  I am wondering how the HT2-TL would mix with surrounds?

Please if you have listened to SongTower TL and the HT2-TL let me know your impressions. One small request if you would please be complete when you mention the speaker model. I am new here and I get confused ( not unusual) sometimes for example when HT2 is referred to. Is it HT2 or HT2-TL,   SongTowerQW or SongTower TL and so on. Thanks

[mchuckp]

I am stuck! Its between the HT2-TL and the SongTower TL. So I am very interested in any
A/B of thoses. Nuance Please hurry lol. I will also be moving soon and will have a dedicated Home theater room.  I would like to use my existing 7.1 set ?up for movies and have a pair of Salk speakers for music listening.  I do enjoy listening to DVD-A.  I am wondering how the HT2-TL would mix with surrounds?

Please if you have listened to SongTower TL and the HT2-TL let me know your impressions. One small request if you would please be complete when you mention the speaker model. I am new here and I get confused ( not unusual) sometimes for example when HT2 is referred to. Is it HT2 or HT2-TL,   SongTowerQW or SongTower TL and so on. Thanks

FYI: All SongTowers are "TL" or "Transmission Line".  If someone mentions ST, I would assume it is a TL.  You will sometimes see STRT and that is an ST with a Ribbon Tweeter.

I had a chance to hear the ST, STRT, and HT2-TL at AK Fest recently.  I personally found the HT2-TL a much better speaker and it was pretty apparent (at least in that room).  I'm moving as well months down the road and struggling to figure out what will be best for me.  Although I love the HT2-TL, I'd really like to have a speaker with a smaller footprint and not sure if I care about the added bass extension.  I'm still contemplating that.  That is a big reason I'm curious to Jim's upcoming HT1-TL as it will be a smaller footprint but still have the Veracity series driver and ribbon tweeter that I fell in love with. 

As to choosing between the ST and HT2-TL, it has been said by many in this forum that the HT2-TL is NOT twice the speaker as the ST.  It is up to each individual to decide if twice the cost is worth the improvement for them.  If I never heard any other speaker but the ST, I'm positive I'd been floored when it showed up on my doorstep.  But I'm having a hard time ignoring the sound difference I heard.  Would I feel the same in a different room with different gear?  No idea.  But for now, I feel confident that no matter which speaker I choose will be in the Veracity series based on the demos that I heard.

I hope my opinion doesn't sound like I'm putting the ST down.  My previous speakers were a $1000/pr Aperion 633T towers and I thought that were pretty damn good.  After hearing the STs, they are not even remotely close and glad I sold them already.  Not knocking Aperion, but the extra $800 for STs is a no brainer.  If you are worried about the added costs of the HT2-TL, you can't go wrong with the ST.

Good luck.

[Bear]

Anyone selling their H2-TL's?

[Nuance]

In my opinion (and a friends, who may voice his own opinion or may not...he's been busy), the HT2 TL's are a more solidly constructed speaker, thus probably less resonant.  I am not saying the ST's have audible resonance, but I can safely say the HT2 TL's minimize it as much as possible, probably to the point that it plays no role in the sound you hear.  I'd like to think the ST's do the same, but I won't know for sure until we have the comparo.  I love my ST RT's, and I hear no resonance, but who knows. 

As far as the differences in sound go, we both felt the HT2 TL's major difference is in the bass department, while maybe having a slightly better midrange (detail and resolution).  We're talking maybe 5% here.  Under blind conditions I'd bet hardy anyone would pick up on the differences, especially if the speakers were level matched and set up in the same position (we need one of those Harman speaker shufflers ). 

Would I take the ST RT's over the HT2 TL's?  No.  But if I had a subwoofer or two (which I do), it might be a different story.  I will say that the HT2 TL's fill a large room easier than the ST RT's.  And the bass - WOW!  In my buddy's room I'd swear they go flat to 25Hz or so, which is enough to not need a subwoofer for music.  So for strictly 2-channel purists, it's a no-brainer; HT2 TL's all the way!  Period.

Hope that helps.  I am waiting on TJHUB to find out when we can have the comparo.  He's been busy, but hopefully it will be in June.  And hopefully the others will be able to attend as well.

[earthbound]

Anyone selling their H2-TL's?

[Vulcan00]

Thanks Guys!
 So?. Nuance, only 5% difference in midrange, hmm. So are you saying that if you had a good sub to fill in, the ST-RT?s would make a exceptional value deal?
I don?t believe I have ever seen someone comment on the HT2-TL as a Front L&R in 5.1 system. Is the HT2-TL designed for 2 channel stereo first or only for use with matching veracity surrounds? In other words would they need same quality surround speakers and center?

Mchuckp thanks for the TL& RT clarification. I think your comment on the Veracity line is where I am having a hard time deciding. It?s the W18-EX versus ST woofer that?s got me tangled up. That upgrade in woofer seems to make a lot of difference. I guess it?s not possible to put a w18 in a SongTower cabinet?

[DMurphy]

That upgrade in woofer seems to make a lot of difference. I guess it?s not possible to put a w18 in a SongTower cabinet?

Hi  The HT2 TL  is just a ST RT but with W18's instead of CA15's.  So clearly you need a larger cabinet, both because the larger woofer only performs optimally in a larger cabinet, and because you couldn't find room on the front of the ST to screw in the W18's even if it made sense otherwise.  In theory, the W18's have more midrange detail because of their lighter, tighter cone material (that's the story, anyhow), and in reality the CA15's have better dispersion (because they're smaller--that's just physics).  Put that all together and it's anybody's guess as to which midrange you would prefer. 

[Rocket]

Hi,

If you wanted to save some money why not consider the ht2 in standard form.  It is about $3600us for the full blown version and the bass goes down to 38hz.

I have a pair and the bass is very nice and it brings it closer to the songtower rt in price.

Btw I think that the songtower with the hiquphon tweeter is fantastic value.  With the lcy tweeter it brings it closer in price to the standard ht2 and it really then depends on your priorities.

Regards

Rod

[Nuance]

Thanks Guys!
 So?. Nuance, only 5% difference in midrange, hmm. So are you saying that if you had a good sub to fill in, the ST-RT?s would make a exceptional value deal?
I don?t believe I have ever seen someone comment on the HT2-TL as a Front L&R in 5.1 system. Is the HT2-TL designed for 2 channel stereo first or only for use with matching veracity surrounds? In other words would they need same quality surround speakers and center?

Mchuckp thanks for the TL& RT clarification. I think your comment on the Veracity line is where I am having a hard time deciding. It?s the W18-EX versus ST woofer that?s got me tangled up. That upgrade in woofer seems to make a lot of difference. I guess it?s not possible to put a w18 in a SongTower cabinet?

If you have subs/plan to use subs anyway, then yes, the ST RT is a superb value.  I use subwoofers even when I listen to music, so it's a no brainer for me.  The best spot in your room for imaging and sound stage width will not likely be the best spot for bass response, so subs are a must for me.  Of course, if someone wanted to trade me a pair of HT2 TL's for my ST RT's I'd do it, but mainly for bragging rights.