#61

Intriguing idea. Give me a day or two to absorb that one…

1 Like
#62

Yeah, ok, I’ve given it some thought and, I have no idea what these metamaterial speakers would look like. :smiley:

#63

I’m imagining that one or more flat panels of varying perforated material could take the place of the horn, providing loading over a range of frequencies. Maybe the back of the speaker has the perforations, or maybe all the sides of the box except front and back, so you can hang it on a wall. It’s a fun idea but I could be missing something basic—maybe this needs to be even bigger than the horn in order to work.

#64

Isn’t this basically what a planar speaker is all about? The most popular one being these: http://www.magnepan.com/

#65

Not sure whether it’s really the same idea?

Magnepans are lovely though. Although they do suffer from room sensitivity issues and some say they have a weak low end. But I find them to be clear and I like their look as well. Kind of pricey.

#66

A different idea. This is about replacing a horn (or ported enclosure) with a flatter enclosure having many, tiny holes. Magnepans have no counterpart to a horn as I understand them.

#67

Here’s a good explanation of how magneplanars work:
http://www.magnepan.com/magneplanar_technology

#68

Ah, I see. I think I misunderstood the original theory here.

#69

New full range driver. Check out the horn they attached it to at 0:49.

3 Likes
#70

This I have never heard before. Maybe I’ll seek some out at the next namm. I was always interested about those wooden headphones with flat cones and magnetic drivers. I forget their brand…

#71

There are a few different manufacturers of planar magnetic headphones.

#72

I’m beginning to look seriously into new monitors. I’m noticing something strange… or maybe not so strange to some folks.

The Adam A7Xs are right at the top of my list and budget and I’m noticing that the prices are a lot more favorable in the UK than they are here in the states. I realize these are German made, but this seems to be the case for other brands as well (Focal comes to mind). Is there any reason I shouldn’t purchase a pair overseas and pay to have them shipped here? The Adams have a voltage switch on the back and take standard IEC power cables. This seems like a no-brainer?

The Focal Alpha 65s are also on my list at a significantly lower price-point… I’ve seen some chatter on this thread already about these but any other insight is appreciated.

My room is treated minimally - a large baffle behind the desk and I’m installing some DIY bass traps this weekend. Will be playing mostly electronic music but also acoustic and electric guitar.

1 Like
#73

The only thing to watch for when buying from the U.K. is import duties and taxes. It can be quite a lot and hard to predict. :slight_smile:

#74

I recently upgraded from LSR305s to Genelec M040s and I am so in love with the Genelecs. I have moved around a bunch and I loved my 305s when I had a treated room in my old apartment and got them sounding super good and flat - but that can’t be the case now. Apparently the M040s are essentially 8040s but they cut costs on the enclosure (plastic now) and designed them to be more for the “project” studio vs a professionally treated space. There are switches on the back that cut frequencies based on where you position the speakers: against a wall, tabletop, corner. I’ve been recording a bunch of modular stuff on them as well as mixed my band’s most recent album on them and it was actually a pleasure. No more days of bouncing a mix and then listening in the car to something horrifyingly different.

6 Likes
#75

Just bought a second hand pair of Genelec 8030s. Very very happy so far.

5 Likes
#76

8030s were my first ever set of monitors probably 10-12 years ago and I’ve never felt the need to change to anything else.

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#77

This is interesting… I’ve bought a few things from overseas before and not experienced this. Any thoughts on what may trigger something like that?

#78

Technically any sale of goods is subject to duties and taxes. But when buying from a private individual it’s not unlikely that they’ll label it as a gift for shipping purposes (sidestepping the resale rules). Probably not legal, in the strictest sense.

#79

To add to @jasonw22’s reply – When buying large items from a retail seller they will often use insured shipping or a courier service (UPS, FedEx, DHL, etc). Those services have customs brokers and will always charge tax and/or duties depending on the item. Sometimes they even calculate them up front.

Some good are exempt from duties based on free trade agreements, but you’ll usually get charged sales tax based on your location.

Smaller items, or person-to-person transaction, often skip customs because of their size, value, or declarations (i.e. gift), but not always.

In my experience it’s hit and miss… but greatly depends on the courier service they use for shipping. Some businesses are really fussy about declared values for insurance and their own records.

It might still be a better price after shipping, taxes, etc. But it’s best to do a little digging first.

1 Like
#80

I’m quite looking forward to getting a pair of Monkey Banana Turbo 4:

What I like about them is their frequency response of 60 Hz - 30 kHz, and overall user reviews seem to be very positive. To me at this point they look like the best choice: even if rear port is not something that I would normally prefer, so far I don’t think I know a pair of similar quality portable speakers (maybe Genelec, but price :monkey:). Currently I own KRK KNS-6400 (which are headphones), and a large 2 х 0.15 kW soundsystem, with frequency range I was quite blown away with when I discovered, @ 35Hz - 45.5 kHz.

Speaking about some other models, if you don’t mind high-frequency amplifer noise, I had a chance to audiition a pair of Tannoy Reveal 502, and sonic quality-wise they are well impressive, my music sounded exactly like I would imagine it should on them. Pretty crisp highs, adequate low end, no distortion throughout the whole frequency range, and response was really flat. Plus, while these are professional studio monitors, they do not sound any dry, and you can enjoy them for casual music listening, which is nice. And Tannoys in fact are probably the first brand I discovered, going up there to ultrasonic frequencies, even with a smaller 402 going as high as 48 kHz (& starting at 56 Hz).

Still, with them being a nice pair of speakers, constant hiss is too much a show-stopper to me, and I can’t quite see an excuse for it being present in a professional pair of studio speakers. It’s like this little surprise you never expect, and then you come to your friend’s, & be like “what the?” :speaking_head:

So, as much as I was chasing after a pair of Tannoys, at this point I came to conclusion that going Bananas is probably a more reasonable decision in the long run :upside_down: