There are many reasons a designer chooses the drivers they do, and excludes the ones they don't. It depends on what they are trying to achieve. The out of band ringing of Accuton drivers make them a terrible choice for a first order crossover. If you look at manufacturer supplied response curves for ScanSpeak drivers, many of them have out of band behavior that would make them not suitable either. Many of his older designs use drivers from many different OEM suppliers. High end OEM suppliers. Do you truly believe that Roy has not bought, measured, and tested many, many drivers for use in his designs? Do you believe he doesn't measure and adjust his speakers during the design process? If you do believe these two statements, there can truly be no discussion with you. A competing, and well respected manufacturer of really excellent sounding speakers (Duke of Audiokinesis), has stood up for Roy and vouched for his expertise as a designer. Which speaker have you designed and built? Where are your measurements of the Chroma that show how poor the design is? Where are your measurements that show uneven frequency response and out of band behavior of the drivers in question that show they are not suitable? Or that the crossover is improperly designed? With none of those things, you are nothing more than some guy, who may not hear particularly well, that has decided to go on a vendetta for some reason over something as insignificant as a speaker purchase that he didn't like.
Green Mountain Audio Chroma HX Review
I just had my Green Mountain Audio Chromas upgraded to Chroma HX. The difference is the crossover, with the capacitors being exceptionally high-grade. The low-pass filter is specially made to Roy Johnson's specifications. Unobtainium (not for sale) Litz wire is used with the latest unobtainium solder. The change is dramatic enough to consider the HX a different speaker, even though the schematic is essentially the same.
And the result is absolutely stunning. I was expecting a substantial improvement, but I was unprepared for the result. It's going to be difficult to put this into words, but I'm going to try. Let's face, we've heard it all before.
I have never heard a speaker that so effortlessly plays music. Every note has more music in it. I guess you could call that greater detail, but the HX transcends that description. Perhaps I should call it harmonic richness. The sound is unbelievably accurate, yet musical, throughout the frequency spectrum. The copious bass digs down deeper while being more well-defined. I would call it high-definition bass, to coin a term. The midrange is similarly tuneful, clear and also hi-def. It just flows naturally and cleanly. I would describe the treble as ethereal, sparkly and airy, never bright.
The HX is also the most coherent speaker I have ever heard. The woofer and the tweeter coexist happily. It is impossible to tell where the crossover frequencies are. You cannot hear the port either, just the bass. I find myself listening for hours, without fatigue, because the music captures my attention and holds it.
The sheer accuracy seems to lend itself to the soundstage, imaging with pinpoint precision. You know where every voice and instrument is at all times. This is an area of audio that I didn't much care about previously, but I cannot ignore now.
Any criticisms? Well one, maybe. If you like to crank the bass hard enough to drive your neighbors to yell death threats, you're going to need a powered sub.
I have heard many speakers in my time, among them Wilson Audio, Joseph Audio, Paradigm, Triangle, Meadowlark, Dali, Thiel, Usher and Vandersteen. None of them can deliver what the HX can. It's not even close. If you have a pair of the already excellent Chromas, HXing them is a must. I have found the speakers that I am going keep for life in the Chroma HX.
Related equipment:
Musical Fidelity A308cr with upgraded clocks
Audio Note Kits DAC 2.1
Pass Labs B1 buffered passive pre modified for shunt volume control
Pass Labs Aleph 3 power amp
BPT BP-1 balanced power conditioner
Audio Magic Matrix Mini power conditioner
Pass Labs Aleph 3 power amp
And the result is absolutely stunning. I was expecting a substantial improvement, but I was unprepared for the result. It's going to be difficult to put this into words, but I'm going to try. Let's face, we've heard it all before.
I have never heard a speaker that so effortlessly plays music. Every note has more music in it. I guess you could call that greater detail, but the HX transcends that description. Perhaps I should call it harmonic richness. The sound is unbelievably accurate, yet musical, throughout the frequency spectrum. The copious bass digs down deeper while being more well-defined. I would call it high-definition bass, to coin a term. The midrange is similarly tuneful, clear and also hi-def. It just flows naturally and cleanly. I would describe the treble as ethereal, sparkly and airy, never bright.
The HX is also the most coherent speaker I have ever heard. The woofer and the tweeter coexist happily. It is impossible to tell where the crossover frequencies are. You cannot hear the port either, just the bass. I find myself listening for hours, without fatigue, because the music captures my attention and holds it.
The sheer accuracy seems to lend itself to the soundstage, imaging with pinpoint precision. You know where every voice and instrument is at all times. This is an area of audio that I didn't much care about previously, but I cannot ignore now.
Any criticisms? Well one, maybe. If you like to crank the bass hard enough to drive your neighbors to yell death threats, you're going to need a powered sub.
I have heard many speakers in my time, among them Wilson Audio, Joseph Audio, Paradigm, Triangle, Meadowlark, Dali, Thiel, Usher and Vandersteen. None of them can deliver what the HX can. It's not even close. If you have a pair of the already excellent Chromas, HXing them is a must. I have found the speakers that I am going keep for life in the Chroma HX.
Related equipment:
Musical Fidelity A308cr with upgraded clocks
Audio Note Kits DAC 2.1
Pass Labs B1 buffered passive pre modified for shunt volume control
Pass Labs Aleph 3 power amp
BPT BP-1 balanced power conditioner
Audio Magic Matrix Mini power conditioner
Pass Labs Aleph 3 power amp
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- 63 posts total
- 63 posts total