Aura Junior

Rick Craig · « **on:** 28 Apr 2010, 03:19 pm »

I received a request for a small speaker that could perform well at a low price ($650/pr. including shipping). Here it is...

pslate · « **Reply #1 on:** 28 Apr 2010, 04:13 pm »

Nice looking speaker

I am the guy who just made the inquiry. Kudos to Mr. Craig for a prompt & kind reply. Anyone else here who jumped ship from Ascend to Selah, or considered doing so? This would be an alternative to the Sierra-1.

Have a good afternoon,

Paul

Rick Craig · « **Reply #2 on:** 28 Apr 2010, 04:36 pm »

Quote from: pslate on 28 Apr 2010, 04:13 pm

Nice looking speaker

I am the guy who just made the inquiry. Kudos to Mr. Craig for a prompt & kind reply. Anyone else here who jumped ship from Ascend to Selah, or considered doing so? This would be an alternative to the Sierra-1.

Have a good afternoon,

Paul

Actually this pair just shipped to an Aperion owner.

cstory · « **Reply #3 on:** 28 Apr 2010, 06:58 pm »

Yup, these are going in the bedroom to replace a pair of Aperion bookshelves. One day I showed my wife the picture of the Veritas and she said don't even think about getting another pair of speakers. Then a couple of days after that she put on a CD in the bedroom system that she just bought, and said, well if I ever did think about getting another Selah speaker, we could replace the bedroom ones.

I wanted to get the Aurealities, but we don't listen seriously enough in the bedroom to justify spending that much on replacement speakers.

My pride and joy however are still my Grandeurs.

Chuck

BTW, they are supposed to come tomorrow.

kip_ · « **Reply #4 on:** 28 Apr 2010, 07:12 pm »

How would these compare to my MF7s? I'm guessing a little less output and worse off-axis response.

Rick Craig · « **Reply #5 on:** 28 Apr 2010, 07:40 pm »

Quote from: kip_ on 28 Apr 2010, 07:12 pm

How would these compare to my MF7s? I'm guessing a little less output and worse off-axis response.

Lower output capability with the smaller woofer. Of course the radiation pattern is different and that's the main advantage of the MF7. Tonally I think they would be pretty close.

pslate · « **Reply #6 on:** 28 Apr 2010, 09:00 pm »

Vicino vs. Aura Jr. so hard to decide!! The gloss black curved cabinets would be very cool. Any difference in timbre? Is the Vicino more punchy in the midrange?

kip_ · « **Reply #7 on:** 28 Apr 2010, 09:04 pm »

Quote from: pslate on 28 Apr 2010, 09:00 pm

Vicino vs. Aura Jr. so hard to decide!! The gloss black curved cabinets would be very cool. Any difference in timbre? Is the Vicino more punchy in the midrange?

The Vicino has a bigger woofer and higher sensitivity (guessing based on the Aureality) so survey says yes.

Timbre is going to be slightly different because of different cone materials in the woofer, Rick can probably comment more.

smilach · « **Reply #8 on:** 29 Apr 2010, 12:47 am »

Quote from: pslate on 28 Apr 2010, 09:00 pm

Vicino vs. Aura Jr. so hard to decide!! The gloss black curved cabinets would be very cool. Any difference in timbre? Is the Vicino more punchy in the midrange?

Rick originally developed the Vicino's in response to my request for a nearfield monitor (listening distance < 1.5 meters) and I believe I am the very first owner of those speakers. Like you, I love the curved cabinets that help to control vibration that can really hurt imaging in the nearfield. I'm not certain what you mean by "punchy" midrange. I can tell you am extremely sensitive to midrange/treble glare or hash so the drivers and crossover components were chosen to provide a very relaxed presentation but not dark or murky. I replaced my Von Schweikert VR-1's with the Vicino's. Though the Von Schweikert's have a good reputation for the price I found Rick's speakers to offer better bass extension, tighter bass, more midrange detail without glare, and a sweeter treble.

Rick can offer the best answers to your questions but since I own the Vicino's, I thought I would share my $.02.

-Scott

pslate · « **Reply #9 on:** 29 Apr 2010, 11:09 am »

Thanks Scott

I am putting in my order today for the jr,'s!

cstory · « **Reply #10 on:** 29 Apr 2010, 12:42 pm »

I chose the square cabinets from Madisound for the Jr.'s purely based on dimensions. The curved cabinets were a bit too deep for where I have to set them.

If I didn't have space constraints, I would have gone with the Vicino.

Chuck

cstory · « **Reply #11 on:** 30 Apr 2010, 01:08 pm »

I received the speakers yesterday.

In an e-mail to me Rick said he thought it was a nice and open sound, and I have to concur. I would also add detailed to that description. I was able to listen for a while last night with them connected to my main system in the basement (Marantz AV-8003, Rotel RMB-100 monoblocks, Oppo BDP-83, or Squeezebox Touch), and I was immediately surprised by the amount of hall sound that was noticable. The tweeter seems pretty nice. I like to use the tamborine in Sting's "If you love somebody set them free" as a judge of the tweeter. In less capable tweeters it has a higher frequency component that is missing in real life. To me it almost sounds like an extra swooshing component that is superimposed on the sound. With the Raal tweeter in the Grandeur's, that additional sound is absent, leaving just the sound of the metal bits hitting each other. I guess when people talk about grain, that is what they are talking about. I never quite understood that term until I got the Grandeur's and heard the absence of grain. Anyway, the SB tweeter in the Aura Jr, is not a grain free as the Raal (no big surprise there), but it's better than other tweeter's I've experienced, and a clear step up from the tweeters in my Aperion speakers.

Just a note about the Aperion Speakers. The one's I have are early models that were bought when the company was called Edge Audio, so I am not sure how the models have changed in the last 7 or 8 years.

The midrange on the Aura Jr's is detailed and not harsh. The first track I played was Diana Krall, and her voice surprised me with how present it sounded. The string bass didn't sound too bad either, though there isn't any deep bass, the bass that is there has texture and is tuneful.

All in all, an auspicious debut. I am looking forward to putting some more hours on these this weekend.

Chuck

pslate · « **Reply #12 on:** 30 Apr 2010, 01:16 pm »

Thanks for posting your initial impressions. My order for the jr.'s has been placed

. I am still fairly new to the hobby, so I look forward to any further descriptions you may have.

Paul

cstory · « **Reply #13 on:** 5 May 2010, 05:34 pm »

Paul,

I just wanted to say that after a week, the Aura Jr.'s still impress. The bass is better than expected, and the SB tweeter does seem particularly nice. These speakers are very clear and open, with a good amount of detail, but not harsh or as "thin" sounding as I might have expected.

Which cabinets are you getting with your's? The Madisound cabinets I have are nice and solid, the color in person to me seems to be not quite as red as you see in Rick's picture, but I think they look pretty nice. They should darken a bit as they age.

pslate · « **Reply #14 on:** 5 May 2010, 06:16 pm »

That is good news indeed.

I opted for the curved PE cabinets in gloss black, I have a feeling this will be a fine looking speaker. There is an interesting video showing the excursion of the 3.5" version of the driver http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QybUWAXDz9c . I wonder if even greater amounts of bass will appear after a full break-in of the woofer. But that will be just icing on the cake. What I really want to hear is that openness and mid-range detail you have described!

pslate · « **Reply #15 on:** 18 May 2010, 01:00 pm »

I was able to get in just under 2 hrs. with my new Jr.'s last night

Great speakers from an interior design standpoint, the narrow form factor looks great on my stands. Also the the Dayton nd-140 completes a great black out look. It did not take critical listening to notice that highs and mids were an upgrade from the Ascend CBM-170 SE. My initial impressions was of a very clean and clear presentation with a larger soundstage than I had previously. So things seem really good.

pslate · « **Reply #16 on:** 21 May 2010, 12:55 pm »

The other facet of these speakers that is apparent in my first week of listening is great off axis response. Also the highs and mids feel effortless, music just pours out of these things. Not tons of bass, but that is rectified by crossing at 60 to my sub. You might consider sending these to a reviewer as well Rick since they are a real heavy hitter in this price class

jtwrace · « **Reply #17 on:** 21 May 2010, 01:03 pm »

Interesting. I wonder how they would stack up to the GR Research N2X or N1X?

cstory · « **Reply #18 on:** 21 May 2010, 01:39 pm »

The Aura Jr's definitely work well with a sub. The bass that the Jr's have is very good and holds up quite well untill the point where they roll off. They integrate with the Aperion (Edge Audio 8" version) sub better than the original speakers.

Mine are spaced close together so I am not doing justice to them as far as their imaging abilities, but I love the clarity they have.

Rick Craig · « **Reply #19 on:** 27 May 2010, 01:43 pm »

Quote from: jtwrace on 21 May 2010, 01:03 pm

Interesting. I wonder how they would stack up to the GR Research N2X or N1X?

I haven't heard either one but it would be a good comparison.