Favourite speakers under INR 20k

[thevortex]

Thevo wats ur opinion abt the MA's have you heard them how do they fare against the Epos & PSB

did you listen to the ELS or the Epos 12.2

The MA BR2 speakers are good. But they dont outshine the competition in this case. I can see some people preferring it over the Epos ELS8. It is also very good looking if you are inclined that way.

Sound wise - the EPOS speakers have a smoothness and naturalness that is actually very hard to describe. This translates to stress free hearing - even at pretty high volumes.

I have listened extensively to the EPOS M12.2 and have them at home. They are a few cuts apart from the speakers under discussion. The ELS too I have heard even if for a few minutes and I liked what I heard. It is a capable little speaker for those who prefer laidback and warm sound. It is by no means a forward-biased speaker (that may be an advantage or a disadvantage depending on your tastes). I can see it working out as a very capable rock music speaker.

Personally though if I were looking at speakers at this range, I would just stretch a little bit and look at the PSB Image B25s. It is outstanding value for money and you would practically not miss a subwoofer at all. It has amazing bass response for a bookshelf. Not just in quality but also in quantity which is not an easy thing for a speaker of that size to do. The only bookshelf I have heard that compares in terms of bass response is the Dynaudio Audience 52. Thats not bad company to keep for a speaker costing 25K!

 

[thevortex]

they would be a pair of bass modules, one for each speaker, essentially it'll transform the bookshel S520s into floorstanders. Of course this hasn't been officially released and there are no reviews available, but considering it's coming from Usher, the general expectation is that it will rock.

Psycho - how is the bass module different from say a dedicated subwoofer? Any specifications? Also is the arrangement supposed to be done as in the picture? If so, the speaker would be placed a touch too high for the normal listening position.

 

[gobble]

Whoa! A monster woofer 4 feet tall atleast!! Looks expensive and out of consideration for most middle class space cramped folks who got the Ushers due to budget constraints ...

Regards

 

[psychotropic]

To illustrate the difference from a typical subwoofer i'll quote Usher themselves:

"The SW-520 bass module prototypes arrived last Friday. We're excited because they take the S-520s to a whole new level by adding fantastic bass response to the S-520's already extraordinary mids and highs. The bass module connects directly to the amplifier and passes through only mids and highs to the 520s. This arrangement greatly enhances the S-520's power handling capacity. Soundstage is much larger and low end frequency response is pushed down to the 30's. Price to be determined. Available late fourth quarter 2008"

As you can see it is running behind schedule. The key difference would be that this bass module is passive, connects straight to the amp, and would presumably have a built in cross-over or filter or whatever it's called, to pass through the mids and highs to the S520. There are no more specs and details available and no idea of pricing. I am hoping they will sell it around the cost of the S520s themselves. I do agree the cabinet is on the larger side (but not as large as it looks, read below), but that doesn't automatically mean that the price would be high.

If you look at the picture carefully you'll notice that the whole thing is set on a pedestal, making it look significantly higher than it actually is. If you compare it to the size of he speaker, the height of the module is about 2 1/2 times, the speaker is 1 foot tall, so the module would be 2 1/2 feet tall, which is probably the perfect height.

Psycho - how is the bass module different from say a dedicated subwoofer? Any specifications? Also is the arrangement supposed to be done as in the picture? If so, the speaker would be placed a touch too high for the normal listening position.

 

[thevortex]

The price could make or break this offering. The S520s are budget speakers. Logically speaking any upgrade path offered by the same company should also be at budget prices.

Plus this must have some merit over the existing subwoofer that Usher offers with the S520. Maybe after you have heard it you could tell us what is so different with this bass module as compared to a dedicated subwoofer.

Forget about the height for now. You would have a pair of speakers and you would need stands. So, this bass module should stand by itself in a corner probably.

 

[psychotropic]

totally agree about the price making or breaking it. But Usher has been known for their superb pricing, so I don't imagine they'll mess it up with this one. My guess is that it would be in the 500-600 USD range (in the same region as the S520,. 479 USD....yes the Indian price is the same as the US price or slightly better).

From what I understand the idea of the bass module is to do away with the typical problems of a discrete subwoofer, and to make it a more integrated and sonically unified offering, as some say the bass to be "cut from the same cloth" as the rest of the sound. I think this is similar to the philosophy that Jacob used when putting in a bass module in the Rethm Saadhna, although the Lowther full range is the main driver, he added a peerless driver to it as part of a passive bass module. Of course the sonic differences with Usher's own sub we can ascertain only when it releases, but I have enough faith in Usher to know that they must have some really good reasons for doing this. (or maybe it turned out it was not such a good idea, and maybe that's why it hasn't released yet )

They've designed it so that the speakers sit on the modules. One module for each speaker, so putting them in the corner of the room is probably not a good idea, also, as you can see there is a rear port for the module, so again, putting it in a corner would, i presume, cause booming. Since the height is that of a typical speaker stand, i suppose you're expected to buy this module and use it when you have the space for floorstanders, and at that time you can throw away (or sell off) your stands. So they'd operate like floorstanders, is my guess.

The price could make or break this offering. The S520s are budget speakers. Logically speaking any upgrade path offered by the same company should also be at budget prices.

Plus this must have some merit over the existing subwoofer that Usher offers with the S520. Maybe after you have heard it you could tell us what is so different with this bass module as compared to a dedicated subwoofer.

Forget about the height for now. You would have a pair of speakers and you would need stands. So, this bass module should stand by itself in a corner probably.

 

[Asit]

The bass modules look huge and expensive. They are also rear ported, so one has to keep them at considerable distance from the wall. Can anybody explain how would you hook them up to an amp, just in the similar way you have speakers bi-wired ?

Regards.

 

[Rem]

have a look at the bass module for the S520 to be introduced by Usher.

Gallery

Here's one more point in favour of the Ushers, an upgrade path, i wonder if there are any other bookshelves in the world that can claim this!

Sorry I jumped the gun and hence I had to del it of. The S520 with that addition looks like the Wilson Benesch Alexandria speakers

 

[Rem]

The speaker shown there also looks a little bigger than the S520 that I have seen

 

[psychotropic]

@Asit, If you look at the images you'll see two sets of binding poss on the module. The lower one ( i am guessing) will accept amplifier level signals from the amplifier and internally the filter or the crossover or whatever will send the mids and highs out through the upper set of binding posts, which would need to be connected to the binding posts on the S520. There are two sets everywhere i guess so that bi-amping and bi-wiring is possible through the chain.

@Rem, yes the SW520 is the model number of the bass module to go with the S520.

The bass modules look huge and expensive. They are also rear ported, so one has to keep them at considerable distance from the wall. Can anybody explain how would you hook them up to an amp, just in the similar way you have speakers bi-wired ?

Regards.

 

[psychotropic]

haan they also look like the Wilson Puppy, so i take back my earlier statement, but definitely nothing in this price-category!

Sorry I jumped the gun and hence I had to del it of. The S520 with that addition looks like the Wilson Benesch Alexandria speakers

 

[psychotropic]

the whole thing looks larger because of the pedestal, this is the S520, don't worry. Like I said the whole thing is actually only about 3 - 3.5 feet tall, although it looks much taller because of the pedestal. Usher also does not have any speaker that looks even remotely like this, so the changes of it being a "slightly different" speaker are non-existent, IMO.

The speaker shown there also looks a little bigger than the S520 that I have seen

 

[Rem]

The MA BR2 speakers are good. But they dont outshine the competition in this case. I can see some people preferring it over the Epos ELS8. It is also very good looking if you are inclined that way.

Sound wise - the EPOS speakers have a smoothness and naturalness that is actually very hard to describe. This translates to stress free hearing - even at pretty high volumes.

I have listened extensively to the EPOS M12.2 and have them at home. They are a few cuts apart from the speakers under discussion. The ELS too I have heard even if for a few minutes and I liked what I heard. It is a capable little speaker for those who prefer laidback and warm sound. It is by no means a forward-biased speaker (that may be an advantage or a disadvantage depending on your tastes). I can see it working out as a very capable rock music speaker.

Personally though if I were looking at speakers at this range, I would just stretch a little bit and look at the PSB Image B25s. It is outstanding value for money and you would practically not miss a subwoofer at all. It has amazing bass response for a bookshelf. Not just in quality but also in quantity which is not an easy thing for a speaker of that size to do. The only bookshelf I have heard that compares in terms of bass response is the Dynaudio Audience 52. Thats not bad company to keep for a speaker costing 25K!

Thanks for that Thevo I have always thought that when someday I am gonna buy the system the Epos 12.2 or the 12.i would be the speakers I would be having I have not even heard it till now just by hearing peoples opinions.

I have heard it has fantastic mids and it brings out the singers voice like no other speaker in that range. I am not a bass guy nor High freq guy mids are what I look for in a speaker

what have you paired it with which cdp & amp.

 

[Rem]

the whole thing looks larger because of the pedestal, this is the S520, don't worry. Like I said the whole thing is actually only about 3 - 3.5 feet tall, although it looks much taller because of the pedestal. Usher also does not have any speaker that looks even remotely like this, so the changes of it being a "slightly different" speaker are non-existent, IMO.

Hmm I guess you are right Psycho hope it turns out well and is priced right. Usher S520 had enuf bass for my liking anyway

 

[psychotropic]

he he, i cannot even consider this bass module till i move to a bigger flat, so that's at least a couple of years away. In my small 10' by 10' room even the Audioengine 2s give me bass I am happy with, so the Usher S520 (or for that matter the BR2 and the ELS3) should by themselves give me more than enough.

Hmm I guess you are right Psycho hope it turns out well and is priced right. Usher S520 had enuf bass for my liking anyway

 

[Yogesh]

Hi Psycho,

I suggest, in one post u list all speakers u listenend with ur score/10 and price.

 

[psychotropic]

I've just not had time to listen to any other than the PSB Alpha B1 and the Epos ELS8. I've been going crazy fixing up some things. This weekend there is the shootout and on sunday i am going to hyderabad to pick up the NAD C320BEE. Two 12 hour bus journeys on consecutive nights My attempts to find someone to lug it for me from Hyderabad failed

And the coming weekend I'll be going to Bangalore to listen to the Ushers and to attend a friend's wedding.

Hi Psycho,

I suggest, in one post u list all speakers u listenend with ur score/10 and price.

 

[Rem]

I've just not had time to listen to any other than the PSB Alpha B1 and the Epos ELS8. I've been going crazy fixing up some things. This weekend there is the shootout and on sunday i am going to hyderabad to pick up the NAD C320BEE. Two 12 hour bus journeys on consecutive nights My attempts to find someone to lug it for me from Hyderabad failed

And the coming weekend I'll be going to Bangalore to listen to the Ushers and to attend a friend's wedding.

Hei when you are here you might as well listen to the MA BR2 & Dali Lektor with the same partnering equipments that you here the Usher with and if possible bring ur NAD amp as well to audition these.

 

[gobble]

Psycho

Why dont to use Pafex land shipping? It is meant for heavy objects. Only catch is it may take a week to arrive.

Regards

 

[psychotropic]

issue is that owner has gone off to the US, leaving amp with father. Father i suppose can't be expected to pack it carefully and hand it over to the shipping guys, and again, i'd rather handle the amp myself than leave it in the hands of shippers....maybe i am being a bit stupid

Psycho

Why dont to use Pafex land shipping? It is meant for heavy objects. Only catch is it may take a week to arrive.

Regards