Emotiva T1 Towers - Audiophile Quality or Just Home Theatre Towers?

mofojo:
Have two home studios and use RME products in both, currently their UCX and UFX converters. The ADI-2 DAC is different in that it has all dsp functions only addressable through the unit controls. The other RME ad/da converters use the TotalMix computer interface -- an industry standard.
SO, there are substantial EQ and other DSP functions in the DAC but the interface keeps me from experimenting with them until May when I get back to my stereo system. All of these options are detailed on the RME website and DSP controls work effortlessly on the older units I employ.
However, have now had 3 days with the unit running very dense orchestral feeds and can tell you it is the REAL THING. Check it out.
For comparisons to standard consumer DACs, see the Gearslutz website and check out the reviews for the RME ADI-Pro 2. There are many comparisons to Schiit, Benchmark, and others. The ADI-2 DAC has the same circuitry for DA conversion as the ADI-Pro 2. The only differences are small improvements made to jitter and analog circuitry in the newer DAC.

213runnin -

The Goldenears are engineered in the US and built in China just like the Emotiva speakers.  Being built in China isn't necessarily a bad thing if proper quality control is in place, a lot of very nice speakers are manufactured there.

As far as the Goldenear specs go, Sandy Gross seems to have brought  the extremely optimistic frequency response quotes with him from Definitive Tech.  According to anechoic measurements the Triton Ones have peak bass output around 40hz and are down nearly 20db by 20hz.  They probably have some sort of output at 16hz, and room gain will help, but they're not deep sub-bass monsters.  

For under the $5,000/pair of the Triton Ones a pair of Emotiva T2s paired with one or two very nice subwoofers would offer much better bass performance, greater flexibility in placement for optimizing bass response to the room, and likely better midrange and midbass response.  

For under 5000, so would about 15 pairs of speakers made by loudspeaker only-manufacturers.  Buy whatever floats the boat, but to support the idea that Emotiva has something unique seems like a stretch.

The T2s weren't out when I bought my T1's (the whole 5 channel system was on offer for around $1100 so I didn't think I could go wrong, and I wasn't dissapointed). Yes the GoldenEar Triton Ones are better, I have them in a HT setup in the family room, but are they five times better ?

IMHO, no, not 5x better. I was running both the GoldenEar Triton Ones and the Emotiva T1's from Emotiva XMC-1s (I've standardized on them as my surround sound processor of choice, they really are that good). Is the extra 20% of performance worth another $4k ?

Depends on your budget. But I will say my neighbor went out and bought an identical Emotiva T1 5 channel setup after hearing both my GoldenEar Triton Ones and the Emotiva T1's and he is still happy with his decision.

Emotiva makes studio monitors, they know how to make good speakers.

The T1’s are good, but I would get the T2’s if you can afford it.

They image well and have a decent soundstage, and they are fairly accurate. Direct comparisons were made with their B1 bookshelves against the KEF Q100, and the B1 had better midrange and treble, but the KEF edged it out in imaging (as expected).

The T1 is my usually go-to recommendation for the cheapest good tower speaker.