Single Driver Horn vs Multi driver efficient spker

I'm using Cain & Cain SuperAbbys with the C&C Bailey sub, powered by an Almarro amp with 4.8 watts/channel. If I turn the volume, for example, from the 12'00 o'clock position (silence) to the 3'00 o'clock position, the sound is far too loud. The Abbys provide big music, full-range, with plenty of dynamics. These beat every speaker I've ever owned (old 10.01 Bose, ML Aerius i, B&W 803N, Tyler Taylo Refs w/Taylo sub, Tyler Linbrooks, as well as some PSB and Thiels I've also owned ... with all due respect to these wonderful speakers, all of which I thoroughly enjoyed when I had them). The Cains (95 dB) are far more musical and do not require monster amps. Too, everyone is shocked by how great they sound.

While it's true that my Abbys are not true single-driver speakers, because they've got super-tweeters and I've integrated a sub, they sound no less big and musical without the sub. I think they hit 42Hz w/o the sub, which is more than acceptable, but I needed to get lower for some of the jazz I like.

I agree Arkprof the Abbys are terrific speakers and one of my favorites. Basically you have a 3 way system which I imagine sounds terrific. Never heard the Abbys with the extra tweeter. I did listen too them with a ASL set(can't remeber the model at the moment). I believe it was 2 or 3 wpc. I also listened to them with some 60 watt monoblock tube amplifier made by Grommes. The Abbys sounded much better with those 60 wpc monos....much fuller and more open IMHO. There was also a Almarro in the same room albeit similar to yours unfortunely I didn't get a chance to hear it.

I'm learning the key to getting good sound from single drivers isn't just the wattage. The dampening factor plays a large part in what you hear with them. That's probably why most users pair them with tube amplifiers. The dampening factor is lower on average than SS amplifiers. Over dampening a single driver will cause them to sound rolled off, dry and thin.Op amp Chip amplifiers are also great with the single drivers IMHO.

More in some cases isn't always better.When you find that right mix of wattage and dampening factor you know it.The speakers just come alive!

Good listening!

try the klipsch heresy before you go back. a good allrounder with lots of dynamics and bass when set up in corners. most single ended/single driver combos are only a means of ultimate frustration with anything but female vocals and bluegrass. the weight of real jazz , a symphony orchestra, or vintage or newer rock come off as otherworldly(not in a nirvana kind of way). you gotta remember, when sets were invented, 'wee bonnie baker' not 'the beatles' was a big deal. in hi-fi, sometimes 'more' really is 'more'.

You can get an excellent match between efficient, non-horn, dynamic, multi-driver speakers and SETs. I currently own the Total Victories, the Abbys and the Fab Audio Model 1. I now use nothing but the Fabs with a pair of ACI subs, and can't foresee changing. The M1s get along famously with PX25 amps - an Audion Silver Night in my case and an Art Audio in the system of a friend. They also work brilliantly with 300B SETs like those from Wavelength

I prefer the M1s to the TVs by a good margin because they sound much more present and alive. I could get the TVs to wake up, but not with any of my SET amps - it took a pair of 50 watt Canary P-P do do the job. I blame it on the large driver complement and the crossover. The Fabs sound much faster, more transparent and musical to me than the TVs did, even with the powerhouse amps. I've driven them both with PX25 and 300B SETs, and the conclusions were the same regardless of tube type.

I like the Abbys, but frankly they are not in the same league as either of the bigger speakers. With a pair of subs running they sound very present, spacious and dynamic - a non-audiophile friend heard them and said the sound made her break out in goosebumps. Where they lose out is in resolution and refinement. In particular the treble sounds dirtier than either the Fabs or the TVs.

I had a chance to hear a pair of highly regarded single driver back horns with my PX25 amp, and I was seriously underwhelmed in the areas of presence, resolution and dynamics. Both the Fabs and the TVs sounded better to my ears, and the Fabs especially left the back horns in the dust. This isn't a dismissal of back horns in general, just that one model with that one amp. I heard the speakers with a different (very high powered) amp and they sounded fantastic, but that's not the direction I want to go.

If asked, I recommend any of the Fab speakers as a good match for SETs. And yes, I have read the recent 6moons review. I have no idea what Steve Marsh's problem was, because his results are diametrically opposed to what I hear in my system. My speculation is that it was an infelicitous combination of room, amps and cabling. I have found that the resolution of the Model 1's makes them very revealing of things like that. All I can say is that with the appropriate amps, cabling and room environment, these speakers provide the best impression of a planar horn mini-monitor I've ever heard.

Having heard their Stonehenges a number of times as well, I think they are exceptional value for money, and would be my first choice if I had SETs but didn't have "Model 1" cashflow.

Yeah...the Fab Audio Model 1 took a serious beating in that 6moons review.LOL Probably one of the worst beatings I've seen by them.

The Stonehenge looks similar to the Hammer Dynamics S-12. The biggest difference is the Hammer is $650.00 as a kit with a 12 inch woofer and the Stonehenge $2700.00 with a 10 inch woofer.The Stonhenge is ported in the rear .While the Hammer is ported from the front. Other than that quite similar in certain aspects.