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Are measurements the end all, be all?

Good morning friends.

I was doing some light reading and research yesterday regarding the Volti Razz, speakers that if all goes according to plan, will grace my home in early 2023. As most of you her know, the press, as well as the comments found on the Razz are very positive. Much of what I've read here on AG has brought me to the doorstep of Volti and Mr. Roberts. (who BTW is a very nice gentleman, full of knowledge and the willingness to share). I am counting the days until the Florida show, when I hope to get some listening sessions. 

I stumbled on an unnamed site forum and was really taken aback. My two takeaways were, 1. some members outright trashed the Razz based simply on the measurement data, never even having heard the speakers. 2. when a couple of members who actually owned a pair pushed back and provided first hand accounts, they were heaped upon and thumped by long winded sermons citing only measurements and specifications. (while I have read plenty of passionate debates here on AG, I've never witnessed what I would describe as mob assault). 

It did get me thinking however. 

For me specifications do matter to me. I am interested in a speakers sensitivity and impedance characteristic, the frequency range as well as the guts. (cabinet design, drivers, crossover components etc... However what I most important to me is how the speakers sound and how to they make me feel when I listen to my favored music. Does the music fill my cup?

I recall when I was working at the only audio shop that mattered in my midsize town. The Tannoy Six's series came out and we stocked them. I fell in love with the dual concentric stand mount. To me they were the bees knees. The wife of my boss, thought they were simply awful. To each his or her own right?

One of the major reasons I love this world so much is the hunt and all that goes with it. The idea that grows to a dream then a goal to own. The time spent listening, reading and researching. The debate here on AG !!

That reminds me, I want to express my gratitude for this site and everyone here who is passionate about audio..

I'm interested to hear from my brothers and sisters out there. How do you discern? What is your process? 

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Showing 1 response by erik_squires

erik_squires
15,870 posts
 

Wow, those measurements are awful.

Measurements are not the end all but I think I can correlate what I like and don’t like with measurements, and sometimes why some might like speakers I do not.

Here’s what I would say though, these are speakers designed for low volume listening. The comb filtering in the high frequencies is atrocious, but for some it may make the speakers stand out as "revealing" because they will repeatedly emphasize sounds other, smoother speakers would not.

I can’t imagine I could listen to these speakers for very long, but for some, at low volumes they might be heavenly.

If I was playing Mariachi music all day long I think these could very well be my dream speakers. These speakers are "jump factories."

It’s worth pointing out a couple of other speakers with markedly non-neutral tuning that have better, smoother HF responses. Dynaudio often has a U or W shaped curve. Dali specifically shelves up the tweeter a few decibels.

They each have their followings and in some situations I can see them as exceptional performers. Not for me though.

Lastly, there is a lot that goes into building a piece of equipment but frequency response anomalies are perhaps the one class of issues that is the easiest for humans to perceive.  It is not by any means the end-all measurement, as distortion, dynamic range and dispersion all matter, among others, but I know how these speakers would sound to me... << shudder >> and again, think that they could be suitable for some situations.

I'll take a Klipsch Heresy long before I let these in my door.

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