Finally after 7 years of search... Full Range: Voxativ.


I’ve found almost ecstasy with Full Range speakers.

First of all, sorry for my english, not native.

Been a Tube and High DB sucker since I tried 7 years ago. Since then I’ve had tones of amps and speakers naming few ones: Lavardin ISx Reference (love this one), Acoustic Plan Mantra, ARC i/50, INT-25, Mastersound Compact 300B, Dueundici, Dueventi, Octave V70 Class A, Jeff Rowland Concentra, MA252, MA8900, Leben CS300Xs, CS600, Naim Atom, vintage Yamaha, Denon... and lot of speakers: Audio Physics Avantera, ProAc T10 Signature, Harbeth P3esr (magical), M30.2XD (amazing with tubes or lavardin), JBL 4349, L100 Classic, 4305p, 4329p, Buchardt A10, Zu Omen, Druid, Klipsch Heresy, Forte, Cornwall, Devore Oranguntan’s (Until today my fav ones), Sonus Faber EA3, Concertino, Concerto, Cessaro Wagner Mini, Boenicke W11, Meyer Tonapparate Ylva, Yonna (amazing ones, second favs) to mention few...

But then I started to read bout Full Range speakers, can just a single small cone or driver delivers all I was looking at? floating music in the room, realism in voices, wind, strings, delicacy, intimacy, refined, touchable...

So I phoned Inés Adler and started to explain my feelings bout a system, what music I Love (Jazz, Bossa, Soul, Folk, Flamenco, Blues, and some Reggae, classic rock and classical maybe...) and She was convinced I’d love her Zeth absolut system, so done, I received them and hooked them with the matching Box, a kind of AB amp with 50 or 70wpc with DSP, Streamer, DAC, so less boxes, more happy wife and life.

Holy crap: live concert and in the stage with musician feeling is second to almost none of my old systems, the clarity, pure tone and voices... I almost can touch them. Special mention to female voices but not fall behind men ones. Piano is superbly reproduced, seriously, also acoustic guitars and trumpets (imagine Chet Baker or Joao Gilberto).

How can an 8" driver be so full and engaging? Imaging pretty good also.

I only can imagine what the Ampeggio’s or the 9.88 or the other expensive options can do, with their 211 or 805 electronics.

Is the first time I really don’t have the need to be trying systems, sort of feeling I had with Mastersound/Octave and Devore, but much less fussy. My last system was Boenicke and Holborne Passion (gonna list for sale this superb amp, possibly best I’ve tried alongside Mastersound), and was a meaty sound but those superb swiss speakers really need to breath and I just don’t have the space right now for them. Full range sound much more balanced and engaging.

Seriously such clarity and realism, immediacy... I’m still freaking out everyday I listen to them (I work from home and spend like 8 hours listening to music). Even they are so coherent, don’t have the word to express the feeling, is like the FQ don’t eat each others but at the same time they’re like a whole...is like look thru an open windows instead behind the glass if You understand me, I don’t like laid back sound or too warm (never understood why people tells tube amps are so warm or whatever, always found a good one to be super realistic, open and clear and with bloom at the same time). Pretty natural sound.

Special mention to the bass department, again, cannot believe with such small driver this kind of bass, is just perfect, if I’d need for more, would get the Z-Bass, for now I’m more than satisfied.

BTW I have the new driver in them: 1.9 AC instead of 1.8, been told it reaches 33-35hz,

I’d like to thank Voxativ team, forum members who helped me and those who have talked bout full range or Voxativ options during the years here.

Thanks for reading.

superelmar

I also love low watts and high DB.  So desire the Voxativ but alas its too pricey :)

I've heard several systems with their drivers, including their Ampeggio system, and I like their sound.  I have also heard a few other systems based on full and wide range drivers that I like a lot.  One of the best sounding, and not crazy expensive systems is the Charney Companion single driver system with an AER driver in a quarter wave back loaded horn cabinet.  It delivers a very clear, coherent, warm and full sound with reasonable bass.  

Songer Audio also has a great sounding single driver system that employs a field coil driver.  They also offer a two-way system employing that field coil driver and it sounds great too.  

My favorite full range speaker is the Jensen ERPI M-10 field coil that was built in the 1930's and there are working models that sound fantastic, particularly if they are supplemented on top with a tweeter (i.e., run full range but with a tweeter supplementing the output way on top to counter the narrow dispersion that would result from a 13" driver operating full range).  The big downside is that a matched pair of M-10s is not easy to come by and they are expensive.

This past weekend, I heard a stereo pair of Western Electric 728 drivers (also ancient) in Karlson cabinets.  This was thrown together just to see how it sounds, and with no further tuning (e.g., adding cabinet damping), the combination sounded quite good--very dynamic and coherent sounding.

I like systems employing full/wide range drivers used in multi-way system, like the M-10 with tweeter mentioned above.  The Cube Audio Nenuphar Basis system, employing their proprietary full range driver and a powered woofer is a great sounding example too.  I am a fan of Pure Audio Project open baffle speakers that employ wide range drivers and woofers for the low end (they even have models with Voxativ field coil wide range drivers).

@superelmar 

Thank you for taking the time to share your joy and listening impressions. It is very evident that you are utterly pleased and satisfied with this new full range speaker setup. I am happy for you  and hope you enjoy this for many years to come.

Charles

Thank U all for your time and responses.

 

Yeah Was looking at Cubeaudio, AER and Pure Project, at the end Voxativ has been a pleasant experience, would love to listen with a tube amp, who knows?

YES, by all means look at tube amps.  I really like lower powered tube amps of all topologies--single ended, pushpull and output transformerless.  I would take advantage of the higher efficiency of the Voxativ speaker to explore low-powered tube amps.  Most higher powered tube amps employing a lot of tubes to increase output don't thrill me as much.