Gradient Helsinki


Hello. Has anyone tried the new Gradient Helsinki speakers? They look fabulous and are produced by a reputable company...it's hard not to be interested. Thanks.
ggavetti
Well - I have decided to pass on the Helsinkis, they are indeed a good design and worths a listen to anyone looking for a well integrated, almost full range and odd-looking speaker.

My reference (Sonus Faber Guarneri) was just a high standard for the Helsinkis, in my room and with my system there were no contest.

Cheers
"Nice speaker - Price perfomance as-of-tofay is 6/10."

Flg2001-

I agree 100%. Based on performance, fit & finish these speakers are way over priced. Glad I sold mine.

Check all the philips head screws/allen head fasteners including those on the bottom of the base.

Everything on my pair was loose.

PS- if you move them to 45 degrees, you need to listen in the nearfield.
I have a pair here loaned from the distributor, I have just had a couple of
hours with them and I will definitely post something more formal later - first
impressions:

- The speaker MUST be toed-in to achieve the best bass response and
integration with the rest of its drivers - the best position was close to 45
degrees (where one can see just a slice of the magnet of the bass driver).

- The Helsinkis have a short height, but the drivers are tilted, so I got very
good scenario height and focus with a very credible soundstage.

- I would rank them 8/10 in tonality (my SF Guarneru are a tad better), with
an 8/10 freq response (better bass than the SF and ery integrated as well).

- Dynamics are fine without being explosive, low coloration (better that my
Avantgarde UNOs in this regard) BUT instrument size and vocals are smaller
than real-life (again, I still need to play around with positioning and more
time to form a base of judgement here).

Nice speaker - Price perfomance as-of-tofay is 6/10.

More later
Paul-

The speakers I heard were correctly set up per Gradient's instructions: toed in at a 45 degree angle.

Measurements by Helsinki 1.5 owners show the speaker rolls off below 50 Hz.

Even TAS reviewer R.E.Greene, who gave the speaker a TAS GEA says the speaker may need subs in some rooms.

You can go on Greene's forum and see measurements at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/regsaudioforum/

Have you taken any measurements? If so, please post them on Greene's forum.

PS- here's tip for you, check the tightness of the fasterners on the woofers and midrange drivers.

PPS- what are those black things you have under the speaker bases?
Just a follow-up regarding the Helsinkis' bass capability. As a very, very discriminating dealer of fine audio, I was very skeptical of the Helsinki's ability to reproduce a coherent, correctly timed frequency response throughout a a full range.

We were enchanted with the sound of the speaker at CES, and even more interested in bringing these in house for use with multiple types of electronics in multiple applications. Based upon our subsequent experience, I must disagree with Kana813's assessment of the Gradient's bass capability. In all likelihood, they were not properly setup. By design, the Helsinki's exposed bass drivers function as dipoles and will cancel out if the speakers are setup with zero toe-in. Further, what little dispersion remains will be 90 degrees to the listener.

These speakers MUST BE toed in. Gradient recommends as much as 45 degrees. The bass response, accordingly, can be absolutely remarkable and clearly well below 50Hz. We have had the luxury of experimenting and tweaking these speakers with fantastic results. Further, the speakers can actually be tuned in many rooms more easily than many conventional speakers via the toe-in process.

It has been joy to watch the stunned response of customers who have had the opportunity to listen along with us. We consistently hear "Where is the bass coming from?"

Trust the designer, he knew what he was doing. As with so many audio products, proper setup and system matching make all the difference. Hope this helps.
Helsinki 1.5s are very neutral sounding, but don't have much
bass below 50hz.

Not many pairs in the US, so I don't think you're going to get much feedback.
I suggest you wander over to Robert E. Greene's site, regonaudio.com. Lots of discussion of the Helsinki and at least one owner.
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