Shinjitsu Audio

Setting the record straight on Shinjitsu Audio Speakers:

The name SHINJITSU:

Derived from the Japanese word for “truth”. The design is based on a Japanese designed back loaded horn that we transformed from a flat panel cabinet into our own proprietary laminated design. The prototype sounded great, so we moved forward into production.

Why we changed the tweeters:

Original design called for ESS Heil tweeters. We could no longer reliably source them as needed from ESS. For a while there (months) they were completely unavailable. Orders were coming in and we needed an alternative tweeter. Tested were Raven tweeters, “folded diaphragm” tweeters (Heil imitations), planars and lastly compression horns. Compression horns won out. Why horns? They provided good directivity especially in smaller rooms, great dynamics, and an extended frequency response down to below 800 Hz. This allowed us to crossover first order around 2K. Horns are used on 5 figure speakers systems to great effect. They are not cheap nor inferior. Avanteguarde speakers use a compression driver for a tweeter:

From Criterion Audio website: https://criterionaudio.com/product/avantgarde-acoustic-duo-xd/

34,000 Euros

TWEETER HORN DRIVER - Membrane diameter – 25 mm – Membrane material – Mylar – Magnet material Ferrite

A single 4-inch driver cannot produce bass:

In the back loaded horn cabinet a 4-inch driver delivers a 6-decibel low frequency boost due to the back loaded horn effect. It is measured down to < 40 Hz. Why a 4-inch driver and not (2) 8-inch drivers? In a two-way system an 8-inch driver beams like crazy at the crossover frequency of 2K. It is too heavy of a cone to accurately reproduce critical midrange and lower treble dynamics. We chose a smaller driver and sacrificed low bass to ensure great midrange performance. As to sound out the rear of the horn mouth “smearing the sound, that’s simply not how the back loaded horn cabinet operates. The rear wave is captured by the horn, acoustically amplified, routed to the mouth at the rear and exits in phase with the front wave. The horn compression chamber acts as a low pass filter and cuts off the midrange and highs at 200Hz. If you desire room shaking bass and are willing to sacrifice midrange detail, go with giant woofers…or get a sub.

Useless test programs:

We do initially test with REW. It’s used to align the crossover. We do listen and record the differing crossover and horn configurations to decide how to voice the speakers. You will find audio 24/96 files on our website of the final choices. I invite you to listen to them.

Manufacturing:

CNC and woodwork done at Heather and Fred Studios, Tempe Arizona USA.

Final assembly and testing at our listening lab in Mesa Arizona USA

Crossover components and drivers: USA Speakers, Mark Audio, Madisound, Parts Express

Miscellaneous parts including binding posts, cast acrylic, brackets, fasteners from various places based in the USA

China? not ordered from directly - all USA based parts companies. Why not China? reliability, quality control, and parts on time issues. No Ali-Express.

Thank you for the well thought out reply. We chose the dual horn combination as it actually has been done in the past with front loaded horns. Due to the smaller cabinet size we need to employ a backloaded (quarter wave) design.

Audio shows require a significant cash outlay. From our experience at local audio shows we get a lot of tire kickers but little purchases. We are a small company and not geared towards 5 figure outlays.

Youtube auditions...now that’s a crazy subject that we avoided for several years due to the inherent limitations as mentioned above. After being asked multiple times to "Post a video... that’s how I buy my components" we started to make videos with the best recording equipment we could afford. Yes, it’s a flawed concept, yes it’s all we can do to provide a comparison between our models. It is not designed for critical evaluation although there is a website that reviews mics that way, as does a major audio retailer selling speakers.

Internet influencers can be bought at fiverr.com for under $100 a pop to review any product with a custom designed glowing review. Totally invalid way to get an objective assessment of a product.

Our affiliate program is only designed to get the products in local homes or shops so you may hear them.

Our business model includes reviews from actual buyers.

Our marketing model employs word of mouth and organic referrals for Google placement. Research has shown that word of mouth is 65% more effective than advertising regarding sales: from semrush.com -

General Word-of-Mouth Statistics

1. 23% of people talk about their favorite products with friends and family every day.
2. Furthermore, 78% of people rave about their favorite recent experiences to people they know at least once per week.
3. 90% of people are much more likely to trust a recommended brand (even from strangers).
4. 88% of people had the highest level of trust in a brand when a friend or family member recommended it.
5. Out of the top five popular ways to recommend a business, word-of-mouth comes first, followed by Facebook, Google, and Twitter.
6. 26% of people will completely avoid a brand if their friend or family tells a negative story about their experience.
7. 21% of people will lose trust in a brand, whether they’ve been a customer or not, because of bad word-of-mouth.

FYI the Little Hiros are not back loaded horn speakers. They are a ported design with a compression driver. Also the Horn Shoppe Great Horned Heils are far larger.

A better comparison would be the the Hiros or Super Hiros as they are back loaded horns. I can arrange a dealer discount for you if desired.

Happy Holidays!

Morris

Thank you for the clarity. Please let me know if you have any questions. The top resistors behind the horns can be adjusted to tune the horn output and crossover to your desired sound profile.

Enjoy!

Morris

Hello garyalex,

As we are a small company sending the speakers to a large event is not in our budget yet. The 20Hz spec is a measured response documented via REW software in our website and also in our audiogon ad for the Hiro 6.5. The Mark Audio CHR120 documentation for the design of our size speaker cabinet which is a vented design is: Fb@34Hz. The measured in room response in our listening room is flat to 30Hz and with room gain is measurable to 21Hz. Response in your room may differ. 

Its a great speaker and the one I listen to most often. I use tube amplifiers at 30 watts and its increased sensitivity allows me to have more headroom. I find the larger horn provides a very large soundstage yet does not create a narrow sweet spot. Tonally its a bit warmer in the upper bass than our smaller speakers. The larger woofer presents the midrange in great detail and does not suffer from beaming. We were lucky to locate a supplier for the 10 inch wide black limba front panel as 8 inches is the size most suppliers carry. The CHR 120 Mark Audio main driver is unique as it does not need baffle step compensation due to a 3 dB rise below 100 Hz.

From Mark Audio: Latest-model Aerospace-grade magnesium-alloy Wide dispersion multiform cone concept Optimized for use in larger enclosures Product details Markaudio CHR-120 6.5" Gold Full Range Magnesium Woofer The CHR-120 is a brand-new 6.5-inch high fidelity multi-purpose high-volume driver design from Markaudio. This new driver has been purpose developed to provide significant bass extension beyond what many similar-sized midbass units can deliver, combined with full-range frequency output.

I think it will be enjoyable. Please make sure the top resistors are in place or the horns will not play. The resistors can be changed to a lower value for decreased horn volume or a higher value for increased horn volume. They function as the ground leg of an L pad with the series resistor fixed inside the cabinet. Our larger speakers have the L pad series resistor on the rear panel so you can alter both values and get many changes in volume and crossover frequencies.

Your speakers have a transferrable warranty as well and you can upgrade within one year for a full credit towards a larger pair.

Hello Ray,

Thank you for the astute observations of our Little Hiros. The larger speakers present a larger soundstage with a more refined upper midrange and lower treble due to the more advanced compression drivers and larger horns. The bass extends deeper as well due to the backloaded horn design of the full-size Hiros and the much larger Mark Audio main driver on the Hiro 6.5. We have a new Hiro 8 in the works that are a 3-way design: Compression/horn combo from 2K up plus a 4-inch Mark Audio main driver bolstered by an 8-inch powered subwoofer in a stackable cabinet design. It will be similar to our discontinued model BosuHiro but more refined.