Review: Salk Sound SoundScape 8 Speaker
Thank you for the erudite review. I've contemplated Salk's for years but never felt it was the time to pull the trigger-maybe now is the time. I was interested in the SS 8 since seeing it on Jim's site. Always seems no one reviews any of his speakers but since he's an independent, its not hard to understand why. I had seen one review of the HT2TL and was interested in it, but the SS 8 seems to be the answer I was looking for and yours is the only review so far. I usually visit the AC page from the Salk site to see if any speakers are offered at a good price. Thanks again for the excellent review! |
Interesting review, but it took me a couple of readings for me to tell that he liked the speakers. I just had trouble translating his terms of “American Sound”, “Force Speaker” and “Impressionistic” into things I could relate too. Since I happen to have SoundScape 10s it probably made it easier for me to figure out. Good luck folks! LOL Bob |
Bugredmachine..I was in the process of buying the Aerial Acoustics 7T speakers costing $10K. Now I'm in a dilemma. The Salk SS8's cost $2K less. I have loved Aerial's for years and their custom driver designs. Are you familiar with the Aerial sound and do you consider the Salk SS8's to be a much better performer that the 7T's? |
Hey Audiozen - I did own 10T's for some time and while I cannot say how the 7T's sound, having never heard them, Salk anything is a breath of fresh air compared to the 10T's. The 10T's are very smooth and well integrated, but do not have the engagement level of a Salk speaker. The midrange is more alive and integrated with the Salks and the bass is tighter - and I'm talking about the Songtowers, which replaced the 10T's in the HT. Now quadruple that performance and you get a sense for how good the SS8's perform. You pay less for the SS8's due to the direct sales. You will get custom service, Jim answers the phone, he doesn't upsell you, select a veneer you need/want, and get a very easy to drive 8 ohm speaker that is a very well kept secret in the audio world. |
Hi Bugredmachine. I was wondering how you feel about the Soundscape 8s at this point. I am about to purchase a pair of them. Your review was very well done, very descriptive. Especially concerning the bass being tighter than you thought it would. I am assuming it is because of using 8" woofers. If you are able to reply, does the bass still seem that way to you? Thanks. |
While we are waiting for Bugredmachine to respond, I will chime in. I have SoundScape 10s. The bass cabinet has one and a half inch walls and is braced like a son of a bitch. It has opposing passive woofers which keep vibrations canceled between them. Using passives removes the normal port noise. It also has an Acoustic Elegance woofer based on TC Sounds designs. All these work together to give very tight, clean and low bass. The bass will play low frequencies at high SPLs. The SoundScape 8 seems to have a very similar design philosophy. Jim Salk has a write up on the SoundScape’s bass design in a blog at his website. Salk blog on the SoundScape's bass design Bob |
Hi Bob. I really appreciate your info. My sights are set on the Soundscapes. I read, on Dagogo review of the 10s, that you are able to adjust the tightness of the passives. Have you tried playing with that function? I am very curious about how you like, or love, the Raals. I have been looking for a speaker design that uses the 'best' ribbon tweeter today. Also, how is the the overall depth of what you are able to hear in the mids and highs. Thanks in advance, Dale. |
Thanks for the kind comments Dale. I haven’t tried adjusting the weights of the passives. Jim Salk did that and I haven’t had any reason to want to change that. I am in love with the Raals. The sound from them is so clear and smooth. I am 65 and probably can’t hear much over 13 kHz. Still, I sometimes feel like a bat. Sometimes I can hear the recording stage light up with from the sound of bells and symbols. It can be very spooky. My previous speakers had Arum Cantus ribbon tweeters, but they couldn’t hold a candle to the Raals in clarity and smoothness. I can’t tell a limit to how far back the depth can be. It seems to be unlimited like it is in real life. Singers and instruments seem to be of natural size also. Bob |
Thank you Rsimms and BRM for the fantastic info. I am so excited to hear that the Raals are as advertised. I have read every piece of info on the net concerning them. That was the first thing that got my attention about the Soundscapes. I am assuming that being able to 'see' more info will make my perception of the soundstage all the more 3D. The fantastic bass will really pull me deeper into the experience. I am really looking forward to hearing the 8s. I have never been to an Audio Show before. I am going to the RMAF this year where Jim Salk is showing the 8s. That should seal the deal for me. Thanks again:) |
Bugredmachine, I'm about to pull the trigger on a pair of SS8's. How do you feel about them now that you've had awhile to live with them? Probably going to go with the c apacitor upgrade to Mundorf Silver in oil. I just want to be sure that they dont come across as too clinical and on the cool side of neutral. Thanks for any advice you can provide. The rest of my system is a Belles 350 amp (solid state 250 w/ch), Joule Electra LA 150 Mk.2 preamp (tubes), Fosgate Signature phono preamp (tubes), TW Akustic Raven One turntable with Dynavector cartridge on Stillpoints feet, Wadia 830 CD player -wired up with Purist Audio interconnects and Acoustic Zen Satori bi-wire speaker cables.Thanks! |
Your system will be fine. I am a long time Salk owner so I am quite familiar with their sound. I personally dislike dome tweeters and have had the G2 and LCY ribbon tweeters prior to the RAAL. I was quite satisfied with both but I must say the RAAL is so smooth that I can continue to listen for hours on end. I'm not a huge fan of the Belles. It will drive them easily but may be a little dry. I had 150A's in mono once and they had wallop but were not as musical as I wanted. I do not believe you will hear much difference with the cap upgrade. I've been in the factory so many times hearing stock and modded speakers that the stock just seem to hold their own. But if you can and really want to..... The SS8 is just about the best speaker I have heard and the tight bass response is a real bonus for those of use with smaller rooms. I am confident that you will love these speakers. October 18, 2012 My career has developed from a start in a metallurgical lab testing materials, to designing and manufacturing small electronic devices, to leading a prototype build shop of 7 highly skilled artisans for sophisticated aerospace electronics, designing electronics hardware for aerospace applications and automotive high volume safety applications, to electro-mechanical equipment build and installations, restructuring and re-allocating resources for a corporate 250 person R&D organization, to technology development and leadership of a 100 person R&D organization, to developing and implementing innovation techniques marrying market drivers with leading edge technology enablers in a global organization. I have explored markets ranging from hybrid vehicles to “digital” hydraulic valves to nanotechnology coatings. I have gained extensive experience leading technical groups to higher levels of performance, be it efficiency and productivity or portfolio growth. I have worked with my head down as an engineer with many hours on the manufacturing floor. I have over 15 years of direct experience in product development; 2 years in assembly line equipment design, and an additional 10 years of experience in technology development for market-leading products consisting of mechanical, electrical, and machine code elements. I have experience designing and re-engineering new product development and technology development processes, as well as implementing them into organizations. I most recently led a cross-sector corporate team in 2011 to revise the corporate NPD process with a more proactive front end set of activities and related measures to ensure projects were initiated more soundly. As the sole champion of innovation processes and organic growth for my most recent employer I built upon my design engineering experiences and management roles in product design, technology development, and innovative thinking. I displayed a high level of critical thinking in cross-functional process analyses and problem resolution for new product ideas. In this role I coordinated and built strong working relations with various internal organizations including Engineering, R&D, Sales, Marketing, Product Development, Service, and Operations. With a past history leading the 100-person corporate innovation organization, I am innately aware of the challenges and the needed methodologies to succeed when technology becomes the essential enabler to make an opportunity a reality. Of the 50 global teams I have coached, we have identified well over $700M in market potential with differentiated, high value proposition offerings. Also, my ideation sessions in 2011 generated over 100 IP Disclosures for the corporation. I have extensive experience with industrial manufacturers of assembly equipment or fabricated products for incorporation into larger complex systems requiring job shop techniques or high volume manufacturing efficiencies. Stamped sheet metal, die casting, welding, wave soldering, vapor phase soldering, plastic injection molding, and spring coiling are just some of the processes I have experience incorporating into global customer solutions. Voice of the Market, customer interviewing, business case development, project management, technology development, product development, process improvements, process creation, metrics, quality systems, reward and recognition, IP protection, accountability, can-do culture, portfolio management, road-mapping, innovation methodologies, facilitation, re-engineering, restructuring, and a high level of people skills are all part of my tool kit. I have experience in multimillion dollar enterprises and multibillion dollar enterprises, private and public, electronics and mechanical equipment and devices. I am a problem solver and good communicator who rapidly builds rapport with my peers and customers and can facilitate open discussions to develop sound product and process solutions. Pete Dzwonkas |
Bugredmachine, I don't understand why you felt that you had to post your resume. Was that supposed to give your opinion of these speakers credibility in a forum that is largely based on subjective evaluation? Even if there was a reasonable purppose, you went three paragraphs too far. It's also a little hard not to be suspect of your motivation when you must be well aware that most of us reading it have little if any idea of what all the titles and processes you mention mean, other than that they sound extremely impressive. |
Bugredmachine, First, nice resume. Second, what's that thing on the side of the speaker? Looks like something my cats would like a go at. Are these sealed or ported? And if I may ask, what made you pick blue? Really made the wood grain jump out which is nice. BTW: I've known Jim since the late 60's when we went college together but have never heard any of his speakers. Can you tell me anything about the HT2-TLs? |
The round grill? There are passive woofers on each side of the speaker. So essentially they are sealed but use the passive to go deep. My room was blue, my electronics were blue, and when we sampled different dyes we went bold and blue versus safe with brown or black dye over the Tamo Ash. The HT2 is a marvelous speaker with deep bass and a great midrange with the Seas woofers. It can be purchased with the Raal tweeter these days which takes it up a notch. But by the time you add this cost you are over $5k and nearing the SS8 price. All of Jim's speakers are known for perfect midrange and imaging. |
I just ordered a pair of SS-8's from Jim. The finish will be curly cherry in high gloss with black plinths and spikes. The only option I ordered were two Duelund VSF Copper capacitors, one for each crossover in the tweeter position. Very excited about this as I have researched both the speakers and capacitors for a long time now. Thanks to all of you for your input, this is what I love about the 'Gon! |
Well, my SS'8s have been playing music for about three weeks now and I think theyre incredible. Wondering how much better these will get after a good break-in period. I've put around 100 hours of music through them now, and the treble has improved tremendously, they are very dynamic sounding, the bass has a ton of impact, and voices are more realistic. Bob, vinyl sounds terrific through them. I've always preferred vinyl to CD, as I think the timbre of instruments and voice, and the approximation of the venue are much better. I have 1872 LP's and about 500 CD's. My system is a bit, but only just, more towards the forgiving side, which is as I prefer, rather than adhering to some "perfect" neutrality. I've listened to a lot of systems at dealers and friends' homes, and the systems which I would classify as more modern in sound, i.e. "neutral", give me listener fatigue after about an hour. I don't profess to have a "better" system than anyone else, just a system that lets me enjoy music tremendously. As some may know, my music background includes private lessons on clarinet and saxophone from ages 7 to 14, school marching band and symphony, self-taught on guitar and bass guitar and playing in local and college rock bands from 15 to 22, so I do have some idea what acoustic and electric music sounds like.I've thanked Jim Salk and his crew for giving me a speaker that lets me enjoy and have fun with music in my house, and looks so good my wife actually likes their appearance. I would say in the $8,000 to %15,000 range they are as good as speakers I've listened to from Vandersteen, Rockport, Marten, Thiel, Dali, among others. I've never been a fan of British speakers ad I've found them to be too polite, warm, muddled: you choose the appropriate phrase. As I said, my system is just slightly to the forgiving side of neutrality, which does NOT mean flabby indistinct bass, muted dynamics, and loss of resolution. I'd recommend anyone out there looking for a speaker in the price range I mentioned to give the Salk's a listen. |
"Hey, I ain't old (not mentally anyways, ) LMAO!!!" OOPS! My bad. I didn't intend to refer to you. I just phrased it badly. The "too"(as in also) was just was referring to adding another comment and not referencing any other person. I just added that sentence to put my previous comments in context. I am glad you are enjoying your new speakers. It took me a couple of months of active fiddling with my setup to feel that I was getting close to the potential of my SoundScapes. I hadn't had an open back speaker before so I was in new territory. Bob |
Same here Bob, the open-back was new to me and it took awhile to decide I liked the unstuffed back. Had to move the speakers further into the room as then everything snapped into place, with both a wider and deeper soundstage> The instrument or voice imaging may not have been as sharp but that was a trade-off I was willing to make. I really like the ribbon tweeters and it's anything but harsh or shrill-maybe tubes in my phono-preamp (Fosgate Signature) and tubes in my preamp (Joule Electra LA150 Mk. 2) make that happen, as well as Acoustic Zen cables. |
Mitch, Dennis Murphy designed the crossover and came up with the open midrange chamber concept. He plays Viola with the Washington Philharmonic. He says that in real live he doesn’t hear the crystal clear image that many people try to create in their systems. I love the RAAL tweeters too. FWIW - Tubes rule! Bob |
Great write up, thank you. Those look gorgeous, but only with the grill on (said my wife). She immediately told me following: why the tweeter is off center, why is the mid range base square and the speaker itself round, why is the bass black and other drivers gray... :-) Few questions: Are these Japanese tamo ash? How much extra did you have to pay? Have you modified anything else, Sonic Platinum caps for example? What material are side and front grills made of? Thanks!!! |
