sonosphere
Well-Known Member
Hi friends,
I would like to share with you the details of my new upgrade, the Usher V-601 speakers. HFV has helped me towards audio gear selection since I first logged in last year. I believe my observations during auditions would help others too. (Since these are overall observations rather than detailed assessment, I am not posting this under Review section)
Though I (still) love the signature of Wharfedale 9.2 (my earlier speakers) after listening to Usher S520 at an audition I decided to go for a speaker having more detailed presentation but without sounding too treble-inclined. The 520 was first option obviously. Meanwhile I auditioned Quad 12L2, Paradigm Titan, Monitor Audio RS1 and Paradigm Monitor 7. My personal observation of these auditions including the 601 are mentioned below for reference by others. It goes without saying that personal is the key word here and YMMV
Backing Equipment: NAD C320 was the amp used for all auditions, CDP changed from speaker to speaker, however I may add that all sources were very detailed and having fairly neutral sound. All auditions were done with only moderately loud volume, say 85dB, hence loudness capacity of one speaker above the other wouldnt be evident in my observations (all of these can very well deliver SPL of 85 dB approx at 2 meter in a 10 feet x 12 feet room).
Songs: The same songs were used to audition all the speakers (the genres were soft rock, pop and songs by AR Rehman)
Note: All the speakers, except Monitor Audio RS1, were brand new when auditioned hence their performance can be expected to improve more in terms of dynamics and low-end extension, after approx 200 hrs of burn-in.
OBSERVATIONS:
Paradigm Titan (Source: Arcam CD7 CDP)
1. Tonal balance: Mildly forward sounding with adequate bass (if 1.5 feet away from wall) and good though bumped up bass (if 6 inches away from wall the below observations are on this setting)
2. Detail: Very good on upper midrange and treble. Adequate in mids to bass.
3. Dynamics: Very good dynamics specially on treble-end. Hair-raising during crescendo moments in rock music when drums, bass and cymbals come together (Refer the drum hits after the helicopter sound in Wall from Pink Floyd). The bass of kick drum really thumps!
4. Remark: Personally found the audition very enjoyable on ALL songs in the current setup, however wouldnt think of partnering this with a bright CDP or bright amp. (In this audition, the Arcam CDP and NAD amp were both on little warm side). The warm end of midrange sounded subdued and upper midrange slightly enhanced to my ears.
Monitor Audio RS1 (Source: Arcam CD7 CDP)
1. Tonal balance: Very forward sounding with just a hint of bass even when placed 6 inches close to wall, though upper-bass frequencies were adequate enough to convey the bass-lines.
2. Detail: Extremely good on upper midrange and treble. It brought out textures in treble-end of synth-effects that I had never thought existed. Good in mids. Barely noticeable texture-details in bass.
3. Dynamics: Very dynamic on treble and mid range. However due to lack of bass heft, the overall effect felt like sparkle without punch.
4. Remark: Personally found the audition enjoyable only on songs with warm orchestration and good quality recordings, in the current setup. Partnering this speaker with a bright CDP or bright amp is out of question for me. Again, the warm end of midrange sounded subdued and upper midrange slightly enhanced to my ears.
Paradigm Monitor 7 (Source: Denon upsampling CDP, model no.??)
1. Tonal balance: Mildly forward sounding with adequate bass. This FS was placed approx 1.5 feet away from rear and side walls)
2. Detail: Just about good on upper midrange and treble. Adequate in mids to bass. Actually I found the Titan to be better, even though 7 is a floorstander.
3. Dynamics: Good dynamics, especially on treble-end. Mids and bass dynamics were good but overall effect didnt come out as well as Titan on moderately loud volume.
4. Remark: Due to similarities of its signature with Titan, I couldnt help comparing it with Titan in all respects. Where I found Titan to be very good, I would consider 7 just good. I do think of partnering 7 with bright CDP or bright amp to get more details and midrange dynamics from 7.
Quad 12L2 (Source: Denon upsampling CDP, model no.??)
1. Tonal balance: Laid back sounding with good level of bass even though it was placed 3 feet away from rear and 2 feet from side walls.
2. Detail: Good on midrange. Treble shone only on percussive instruments like cymbals, otherwise the treble end appeared subdued. Though the bass was prominent, the texture detail was not equally prominent; it sounded more like fat bass.
3. Dynamics:Moderate dynamics, in bass to midrange. The treble end dynamics were subdued in comparison.
4. Remark: The overall SQ is a dramatically different from Paradigms. I found the signature a bit too lush and velvety on warm recordings (some people may want exactly this I used to till I heard the 520). On recordings with sparkle it definitely sounded very enjoyable. I would definitely partner this with a bright CDP and bright amp.
Usher V-601 (Source: High-end DAC make /model no.??)
*(BTW I skipped the Usher S520 option, since I had received feedback that the 601s were even better)
1. Tonal balance: Overall neutral with slightly enhanced midrange, having good level of bass even though it was placed 6 feet away from rear (!!! due to some unavoidable compulsion) and 2 feet from side walls.
2. Detail: Very good on midrange. Moderately good on Treble and bass end.
3. Dynamics: Good dynamics, across full range. Though the crescendo was not as good as the Hair-raising event of Titan doing the hits playing Pink Floyds Wall. (If this Usher also needs (well a Be-718 does) a "strong" amp to bring out its true dynamic potential... well one of these days I am goint to find out)
4. Remark: The overall SQ is a dramatically different from forward and laid back sounding speakers. It sounds neutral and somehow makes each instrument sound distinct, separate and real in the soundstage. The real aspect was the deal-clincher to me. It matched my memories of live concerts I heard at college. Those concerts had minimal of sound processing to sweeten /compress things. The mics from acoustic instruments directly led to a basic Peavy mixer and then to a Carver PA amp. Its this real sound (un-sweetened, un-subdued), that led me to choose Usher V-601.
OTOH the same real sound may sound too ordinary to others used to treble end shimmering sparkle or lush textures where one instrument loses individuality into another instrument (not too long ago, I liked everything lush)
Postscript:
The story on Usher V-601 wouldnt be complete if dont share some non-sonic aspects of this speaker thru pics in next post below. The build-quality and ruggedness of this speaker is something that came as a pleasant surprise. These bookshelf speakers are BIG, heavy and built like a battle tank, and on the contrary have subtle aesthetics of a mellow sunset boy have I turned into a poet! (You need to see the lacquer finish on its real wood veneer to believe it. You wont find it on any big Bookshelf at 35k).
This post ends with words of gratitude and thanks for our fellow member Surrealistix who once again (first time was for Usher 520 audition) offered his place for audition and went out of his way to make me feel comfortable, and for Mr. Sridhar of ARN systems for arranging the 601 at Mumbai for demo.
I would like to share with you the details of my new upgrade, the Usher V-601 speakers. HFV has helped me towards audio gear selection since I first logged in last year. I believe my observations during auditions would help others too. (Since these are overall observations rather than detailed assessment, I am not posting this under Review section)
Though I (still) love the signature of Wharfedale 9.2 (my earlier speakers) after listening to Usher S520 at an audition I decided to go for a speaker having more detailed presentation but without sounding too treble-inclined. The 520 was first option obviously. Meanwhile I auditioned Quad 12L2, Paradigm Titan, Monitor Audio RS1 and Paradigm Monitor 7. My personal observation of these auditions including the 601 are mentioned below for reference by others. It goes without saying that personal is the key word here and YMMV
Backing Equipment: NAD C320 was the amp used for all auditions, CDP changed from speaker to speaker, however I may add that all sources were very detailed and having fairly neutral sound. All auditions were done with only moderately loud volume, say 85dB, hence loudness capacity of one speaker above the other wouldnt be evident in my observations (all of these can very well deliver SPL of 85 dB approx at 2 meter in a 10 feet x 12 feet room).
Songs: The same songs were used to audition all the speakers (the genres were soft rock, pop and songs by AR Rehman)
Note: All the speakers, except Monitor Audio RS1, were brand new when auditioned hence their performance can be expected to improve more in terms of dynamics and low-end extension, after approx 200 hrs of burn-in.
OBSERVATIONS:
Paradigm Titan (Source: Arcam CD7 CDP)
1. Tonal balance: Mildly forward sounding with adequate bass (if 1.5 feet away from wall) and good though bumped up bass (if 6 inches away from wall the below observations are on this setting)
2. Detail: Very good on upper midrange and treble. Adequate in mids to bass.
3. Dynamics: Very good dynamics specially on treble-end. Hair-raising during crescendo moments in rock music when drums, bass and cymbals come together (Refer the drum hits after the helicopter sound in Wall from Pink Floyd). The bass of kick drum really thumps!
4. Remark: Personally found the audition very enjoyable on ALL songs in the current setup, however wouldnt think of partnering this with a bright CDP or bright amp. (In this audition, the Arcam CDP and NAD amp were both on little warm side). The warm end of midrange sounded subdued and upper midrange slightly enhanced to my ears.
Monitor Audio RS1 (Source: Arcam CD7 CDP)
1. Tonal balance: Very forward sounding with just a hint of bass even when placed 6 inches close to wall, though upper-bass frequencies were adequate enough to convey the bass-lines.
2. Detail: Extremely good on upper midrange and treble. It brought out textures in treble-end of synth-effects that I had never thought existed. Good in mids. Barely noticeable texture-details in bass.
3. Dynamics: Very dynamic on treble and mid range. However due to lack of bass heft, the overall effect felt like sparkle without punch.
4. Remark: Personally found the audition enjoyable only on songs with warm orchestration and good quality recordings, in the current setup. Partnering this speaker with a bright CDP or bright amp is out of question for me. Again, the warm end of midrange sounded subdued and upper midrange slightly enhanced to my ears.
Paradigm Monitor 7 (Source: Denon upsampling CDP, model no.??)
1. Tonal balance: Mildly forward sounding with adequate bass. This FS was placed approx 1.5 feet away from rear and side walls)
2. Detail: Just about good on upper midrange and treble. Adequate in mids to bass. Actually I found the Titan to be better, even though 7 is a floorstander.
3. Dynamics: Good dynamics, especially on treble-end. Mids and bass dynamics were good but overall effect didnt come out as well as Titan on moderately loud volume.
4. Remark: Due to similarities of its signature with Titan, I couldnt help comparing it with Titan in all respects. Where I found Titan to be very good, I would consider 7 just good. I do think of partnering 7 with bright CDP or bright amp to get more details and midrange dynamics from 7.
Quad 12L2 (Source: Denon upsampling CDP, model no.??)
1. Tonal balance: Laid back sounding with good level of bass even though it was placed 3 feet away from rear and 2 feet from side walls.
2. Detail: Good on midrange. Treble shone only on percussive instruments like cymbals, otherwise the treble end appeared subdued. Though the bass was prominent, the texture detail was not equally prominent; it sounded more like fat bass.
3. Dynamics:Moderate dynamics, in bass to midrange. The treble end dynamics were subdued in comparison.
4. Remark: The overall SQ is a dramatically different from Paradigms. I found the signature a bit too lush and velvety on warm recordings (some people may want exactly this I used to till I heard the 520). On recordings with sparkle it definitely sounded very enjoyable. I would definitely partner this with a bright CDP and bright amp.
Usher V-601 (Source: High-end DAC make /model no.??)
*(BTW I skipped the Usher S520 option, since I had received feedback that the 601s were even better)
1. Tonal balance: Overall neutral with slightly enhanced midrange, having good level of bass even though it was placed 6 feet away from rear (!!! due to some unavoidable compulsion) and 2 feet from side walls.
2. Detail: Very good on midrange. Moderately good on Treble and bass end.
3. Dynamics: Good dynamics, across full range. Though the crescendo was not as good as the Hair-raising event of Titan doing the hits playing Pink Floyds Wall. (If this Usher also needs (well a Be-718 does) a "strong" amp to bring out its true dynamic potential... well one of these days I am goint to find out)
4. Remark: The overall SQ is a dramatically different from forward and laid back sounding speakers. It sounds neutral and somehow makes each instrument sound distinct, separate and real in the soundstage. The real aspect was the deal-clincher to me. It matched my memories of live concerts I heard at college. Those concerts had minimal of sound processing to sweeten /compress things. The mics from acoustic instruments directly led to a basic Peavy mixer and then to a Carver PA amp. Its this real sound (un-sweetened, un-subdued), that led me to choose Usher V-601.
OTOH the same real sound may sound too ordinary to others used to treble end shimmering sparkle or lush textures where one instrument loses individuality into another instrument (not too long ago, I liked everything lush
)Postscript:
The story on Usher V-601 wouldnt be complete if dont share some non-sonic aspects of this speaker thru pics in next post below. The build-quality and ruggedness of this speaker is something that came as a pleasant surprise. These bookshelf speakers are BIG, heavy and built like a battle tank, and on the contrary have subtle aesthetics of a mellow sunset boy have I turned into a poet! (You need to see the lacquer finish on its real wood veneer to believe it. You wont find it on any big Bookshelf at 35k).
This post ends with words of gratitude and thanks for our fellow member Surrealistix who once again (first time was for Usher 520 audition) offered his place for audition and went out of his way to make me feel comfortable, and for Mr. Sridhar of ARN systems for arranging the 601 at Mumbai for demo.
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