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Referent point

Look if we are going to get anywhere in this discussion on speakers,,,we've been at here now going on 20years +, We need to figure out how we are going to go forward into this 21st C, which now is 21 yrs and going.
Time to establsih some sort of reference posit, a  speaker that we  can all agree on which is neutral, efficient and worthy to be considered true high fidelity, Last qualification, is that any amp can drive the Speaker, From  Jadis JA 800 monos blaocsk a  4 chassis 800 lb amplifier to a  1 watt SET amp.
Sure I realize this is asking for the impossible, 
'But really its not.
There is such speakers.
These would be the wide bands.
You know the Fostex/Lowther you atried back in the day and found less than high fidelity.
Well we should not throw the babt out with the  bath water.
The wide bands were developed in Berlin and Chicago back in the 1920;s. and IMHO are the finest design in any speaker (exception are the horns).
We can not make the big horns as reference, as few of us here can afford the big guys, + many other issues which make  horns not a  practical reference point.\
The only speaker i know that can fill the parameters to be designated as The Reference Point, as wide bands.
All speakers  must be judged next to a  high tech wide band.
Wide bands will expose the glares and flaws in your speaker, which are completely hidden from your ears at the moment.
I mean if we are all seeking true high fidelity  its high time to face the facts of 
1) bigger is not better
2) throwing money at a  speaker will result in great sound
3) thinking outside the box is  the creative approach to discovering high fidelity.
4) a  lab name means nothing when heard next to a  high tech wide band.(We can lay this blame at Sterophiles feet)


mozartfan
asvjerry's avatar
asvjerry
4,724 posts
 
@henry53...uh, the concept of 'diminished results' ought to have kicked in around year 25, but I admire your persistence.... *s*
I liked my 901's once upon ah....but eventually hitting oneself in the sides of the head sonically does feel good when one Stops. ;)

Jus' 'musing.... Jerry
jpwarren58
682 posts
 
If you ask me your headband may be on too tight. 
mozartfan OP
2,143 posts
 

henry5310 posts09-17-2021 2:43amBeen listening to Klipsch speakers for over 50 years, and each new one I keep trying, however they still sound awful to me. Bright to the point of painful and voices sound like megaphones on football field. Not nearly a reference for a great many audiophiles.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Talking horns with my tech geek, he also has issues with Klipsche.
Yet he did go on to say  some horns really voice a  realistic sound stage.
The ones he is refering to are very pricey, and so for all practical purposes, we can not bring in as The Reference Speaker,,, or we could, if we all had access to demo a  high tech horn. Most of here do not have that exp and most likely won't.
So its   back to the future,,that is, the 1920's Berlin and Chicago wide bands as Reference Speakers, 
Jensen , EV  too over that design, but sadly the xover box type jumped in and hijacked the speaker market. 
So further development money  was stolen from wide bands, with onlya  few companies trying their luck with wide bands.
Fostex , Lowther and one other can't recall the name. I see a  pair pop up on ebay now and then.
They go for like $800 /pair, They were the bomb of wide bands in their day,, They have a  peach(?) colored cone,,anyone know what lab I am looking for?
Anyway.
Not sure when the davidLouis VX8 and tang band 2145 were developed.
In my limited exp, it is these 2 8 inchers which qualify as some sort of reference.
The xover box types that Troels Gravesen is working hard at, are dinasaurs. 
THey suffer from too many handicaps. 
Wide bands beat xover types in nearly every criterion. 
danager's avatar
danager
959 posts
 
That's the issue with reference. Respected reviewers and many here on the forum use the Klipsch as their reference speaker.  

Does reference mean the best you've heard or just a baseline to compare other speakers to?
ghdprentice
7,186 posts
 
Great idea of establishing a standard. However, I think this would only work for an individual or small group. Or maybe a store. Too many different tastes, hearing skills, sonic priorities. It’s up there with hearing cats.


You know, as an aside, wasn’t that Bose slick marketing scheme? Listen to this bottom level Bose system… doesn’t it sound terrible compared to the 901?
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