Steve Guttenberg finally reviews the Eminent Technology LFT-8b loudspeaker.
Over the past few years I and a number of other owners of the Eminent Technology LFT-8b have on this site extolled the virtues of this under-acknowledged loudspeaker. I myself have encouraged those interested in Magnepans to try and hear the LFT-8 before buying. That is not easy, as ET has only five U.S.A. dealers.
I am a long-time fan of Maggies, having bought my first pair (Tympani T-I) in 1973, my last (Tympani T-IVa) a few years ago. But the Tympani’s need a LOT of room (each 3-panel speaker is slightly over 4’ wide!), which I currently don’t have. So I gave a listen to the MG 1.7i, and didn’t much care for it. As I recounted in a thread here awhile back, I found the 1.7 to sound rather "wispy", lacking in body and tonal density (thank you Art Dudley ;-).
Brooks Berdan was (RIP) a longtime ET dealer, installing a lot the company’s linear-tracking air-bearing arm on Oracle, VPI, and SOTA tables. After Brooks’ passing his wife Sheila took over management of the shop, continuing on as an ET dealer. I knew Brooks was a fan of the LFT-8, and he had very high standards in loudspeakers (his main lines were Vandersteen, Wilson, and Quad). The shop had a used pair of LFT-8’s, so I gave them a listen. They sounded good enough to me to warrant investigate further, so I had Sheila order me a pair, along with the optional (though nearly mandatory) Sound Anchor bases.
I wouldn’t waste your time if I didn’t consider the ET LFT-8b to be just as I have on numerous occasions (too many times for some here) described it: the current best value in all of hi-fi. Hyperbole? Well, you no longer have to take it from just me and the other owners here: Steve Guttenberg finally got around to getting in for review a pair (the LFT-8 has been in production for 33 years!), and here is what he has to say about it. After watching the video, you can read other reviews (in a number of UK mags, and in TAS by Robert E. Greene) on the ET website.
To the imbecile above who commented they are Made in China on the fact that they’re cheap, and without doing any research whatsoever, I hate to burst your bubble. Thigpen builds them in Florida. I have a pair of LFT-8b’s and they say ‘Made in the United States’ right on the label. Image: https://imgpile.com/i/9X7Kzh
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@dynamiclinearity @bdp24 - as @mijostyn pointed out, the SPL dropoff with distance has nothing to do with the speakers being planars or dipoles. Line source speakers produce a cylindrical wavefront (whether they are dipoles or not), which has an SPL falloff of 3db with each doubling of distance. A point source speaker (most conventional speakers) produces a spherical wavefront which reduces SPL by 6db with doubling distance. This is why you'll see a stack of speakers on stage for large rock concerts, creating an effective line array so that the audience sitting close to the stage doesn't get totally blasted out when the sound is loud enough for the audience in the rear. Using a dipole sub vs a conventional sub isn't going to affect the SPL falloff in the bass, but since the wavelengths are so long, the sound pressure at any point in the room is affected as much by room modes as anything else. That said, I do prefer the sound quality from dipole subs (for music). I think they sound more natural and integrate more seamlessly with dipole main speakers. |
Okay Albert (@ledoux1238), two pics sent---Eric. For others interested, the Mye LFT-8 stand looks just like the Sound Anchor bases (including the two front "legs" which extend out from the bass enclosure), with the addition of support arms (I believe Grant Mye calls them "struts") that are attached to the back corners of the stand and reach up to the side rails, right at the middle of the tweeter’s length. The two arms clamp onto the side rails just as seen in the Mye stands for Maggies. I suppose one could just add support arms to the Sound Anchor bases, but it would take some fabricating ability and tools. |
@bdp24 Eric, thanks for the photos. I would like to keep the SA stands, so I may end up fabricating a set of struts with a local metal worker. @chowkwan Very impressive set and twin LFT 8a's! What is a ' Super Lumi ' phono?
It is clear that LFT 8's suffer from a lack of brand identity and a lot of disinformation. Some of the un-truths have been floating around for ages, and despite continuous attempts to correct, still persist. Refuting some of the un-truths : They are made in the US of A; they are tube amp friendly, 20 W min; they have a wide and deep enough sweet spot; .......etc What I don't understand is this: The ET 2 linear tonearm from the same brand enjoys a very healthy reputation and respect. A thread here on Audiogon on the ET arm has over a million views. However, the speaker from Eminent Technology seemed consistently under-rated. Is the speaker world much more competitive with many more choices? Did the ET arm established itself in an era of less good tonearms , and hence garnered good reviews and established a fan base early? |
That’s a great idea Albert. From the pics it appears the only difference between the Sound Anchors base and the Mye stand are the struts. I had thought of cutting some 3/4" Baltic Birch plywood into appropriate length strips (maybe 1/5" wide), screwing two of those homemade struts onto the top of the bass enclosure and back of the planar panel (at each top corner). Not elegant, but then I’m not an elegant guy. ;-) I too am mystified by the low profile of the LFT-8b. Everybody knows about Maggies, very few about the Eminent Technology speaker. Of course ET having only five U.S.A. dealers and not advertising doesn’t help! I was lucking in having a great dealer who actually had a pair of LFT-8’s in his listening room. Brooks Berdan was one of ET’s biggest dealers, installing a LOT of ET arms on Oracle, VPI, and SOTA tables. Brooks was also a Music Reference dealer, and the RM-9 Mk.2 and RM-200 Mk.2 amps work splendidly with the LFT-8. Both tube amps, 125w/ch and 100w/ch respectively. Unlike the 3-4 ohm Maggies, high current not needed. |
