Has anybody heard the Usher BE-718?

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Usher Audio > Dancer Series Loudspeaker > Be-718

This speaker seems to be the magic bullet for top notch sound in a small room.
They have won a number of reviews across the world.

Points that I like about the BE-718:
1) No rear bass port, can be placed near a rear wall
2) Very compact for a premium speaker, ideal for Indian rooms.

Has anybody heard them or own them and can offer firsthand experience?
 
There are many owners of the said usher's on this forum and one of them is also modding them :)

But as far as what i have read from others, it does require a decent breathing space to perform well

Maybe sridhar, bobby, roc, cranky can talk about it more then me
 
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Usher Audio > Dancer Series Loudspeaker > Be-718

This speaker seems to be the magic bullet for top notch sound in a small room.
They have won a number of reviews across the world.

Points that I like about the BE-718:
1) No rear bass port, can be placed near a rear wall
2) Very compact for a premium speaker, ideal for Indian rooms.

Has anybody heard them or own them and can offer firsthand experience?

Do a search on the forum and you will get a fair bit of feedback on these. Are you looking at the x-series or the Tiny Dancers?
 
There are many owners of the said usher's on this forum and one of them is also modding them :)

But as far as what i have read from others, it does require a decent breathing space to perform well

Maybe sridhar, bobby, roc, cranky can talk about it more then me

How much?

Do a search on the forum and you will get a fair bit of feedback on these. Are you looking at the x-series or the Tiny Dancers?

Tiny dancers... BE-718 :D
 
Sridhar... a few questions for you :D

Hi
Please do a search for the Be-718 on the forum. You will find a few threads which already have much of the information that you may be looking for.

thanks
[email protected]

Thanks Sridhar!

I have a couple of listening setups at home and I wish to upgrade over the next few ears.

Current Home Stereo: Cambridge Azur 640A V2 amp-->Wharfedale Diamond 9.1

Current Headphone setup: (See signature, AKG K701)

Just asking out of curiosity, have you heard high end headphones, driven by headphone amplifiers and compared their sound with expensive speakers?
(Headphones like AKG K701/2, Sennheiser HD800, Sennheiser HD600 etc etc)


I love the way my K701 sounds.... Just wondering what kind of amplifier and room placement(distance from walls) the BE-718 would need to outclass a high end headphone across the board.

A beefy pre-amp/power amp combo? Or an integrated amp would do?

I will send you a photo of my room and state the dimensions, so that you can help me out if I go for the BE-718 in the future.

I hate loose, boomy bass, I hope that the BE-718 will suit my room.. (I shall send you a mail soon)

Thanks in advance!
 
Hi
Yes, pls send me a mail and I can reply in more detail. I have heard the AKGs (cant remember the model) with the Leben 300x. (caution- I am not well versed with headphones) - this was a great combo. The AKG headphones as I understand it are terriffic, the Leben has a highly regarded headphone out and the two went really well together. With regards to the Be-718 - pls send me a mail and I can take it offline. As with most speakers, you dont need a very beefy amp, just a well designed one - even a low power one is sufficient for most listening.

cheers
[email protected]
 
Hi
Yes, pls send me a mail and I can reply in more detail. I have heard the AKGs (cant remember the model) with the Leben 300x. (caution- I am not well versed with headphones) - this was a great combo. The AKG headphones as I understand it are terriffic, the Leben has a highly regarded headphone out and the two went really well together. With regards to the Be-718 - pls send me a mail and I can take it offline. As with most speakers, you dont need a very beefy amp, just a well designed one - even a low power one is sufficient for most listening.

cheers
[email protected]


Thanks, Sridhar!

I shall send a mail shortly!

Just a passing thought.... I love the work that you are doing for the cause of high end audio!

:clapping:

Yes... Indians need to hear what good audio means and step out of the confines of BOSE systems and 50000,000 W PMPO Sony Hi-fi!

I am an IT professional working with TCS, a die-hard music and high-end audio buff; one day I wish to enter the the audio industry and spread the message of good sound across the corners of India! :D
 
You're welcome to come and listen to my setup, but I don't have the Tiny Dancers but their (slightly) bigger brother. I don't know who is modding the BE-718, but I have rewired my Mini Dancers.

What I can tell you is that cans and speakers will sound very different from each other. Tonal presentation apart, the coupling of the driver to your ear is unmatchable by speakers, so in a sense headphones will win that war. On the other hand, speakers move much more air and the presentation can be much more impactful and tactile than 'phones.

I had the BE-718 (with associated stands) for about two months before the Minis became available. Those speakers sound a bit different. I was driving them through a chipamp, and my impression is that the BE-718 is tonally a touch softer and gentler than the Mini Dancers. The amount of detail is staggering without being overwhelming (which the Dynaudios, my other option, tended to do). They are fairly revealing of the source and the chain, and will reveal differences, sometimes to your chagrin as it will not end with just buying speakers.

The bass is the special part of the speaker, it generates copious amounts of low end detail and impact, though it reaches only 42Hz it sounds like a lot more.

As for power, I was using a 60 watt/ch chipamp. Apart from the occasional headbanging session, the amp was enough to drive those speakers without issue, and I had tricked out the amp so it performed much better than its modest origins would seem to indicate. However the BE-718 was fairly honest about the fact that it needed a wee bit more transparency, and helped me tune the amp to the point where it was satisfactory. I would say 50 good watts are enough for that speaker in a medium to small room.

And finally, placement, I had the speakers about 7 feet apart, toed directly into the listening position. I was right up against the back wall with my couch, and the speakers were about 3.5-4 feet from the front wall, one speaker was in the middle of the room and the other was about 4 feet from the side wall. The bass and detail were adequately balanced this way.


Thanks Cranky for your views! Yes, headphones move less air and sound a little less impactful, but their resolution of detail and their disciplined bass makes them a pleasure to listen to! You will never have standing waves in a good headphone, the kick drum and timpani will be very very deep and tight with the fundamental frequency of the drum strike delivered intact! However, it would never give you the slam of a good speaker, leave alone a sub! When I play large orchestras on my Wharfedales the bottom end sounds punchy and tight... but most budget speakers emphasize the mid-bass a bit to give an illusion of good bass response! Yes, it has impact and it is LOUD... but listen to a set of high end cans like AKG K701/the newly launched $1400 Sennheiser HD800, and you have tonally accurate bass, missing some of the visceral impact of loudspeakers. And this bass is unfettered by room interactions and standing waves... it is just clean yet lean deep bass that is still enjoyable! :D Have to listen to the Ushers though and find out how high-end standmounts stack up to high end loudspeakers!
 
You're welcome to come and listen to my setup, but I don't have the Tiny Dancers but their (slightly) bigger brother. I don't know who is modding the BE-718, but I have rewired my Mini Dancers..


Sorry, i made that mistake. I thought you had the BE-718
 
I have owned the Tiny Dancer for an year now and am very happy with my setup. I guess you must have already read the posts on the forum and the reviews. Let me know if you have any specific questions I can answer for you about my experience with these speakers.
 
Purchase the Audiolab 6000A Integrated Amplifier at a special offer price.
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