Borresen X3 measurements

I’ll take system synergy over measurements any day. I will take my ears over any measurements. If a speaker measures good, what does that mean? What amp did they use? A tube amp? A set? An analytical sounding amp or a warm sounding amp? There are some speakers that might measure well but I wouldn’t own them unless I had the warmest sounding amp, or I wouldn’t buy a warm sounding speaker with a warm sounding amp.

The biggest thing for me is to get a speaker sized right for your room without the need for extra room treatments or dsp to tailor the sound. I moved from a larger dedicated room to a medium size room 16’ in length. I had a very nice sounding larger speaker and even with using dsp and several super bass panels, the bass was overwhelming. In all of the audio shows I’ve been to for the last 25 or more years (ces, the show, rmaf, Tampa, and many others), the best sounding speakers have always been: revel, usher, raidho, Wilson, and totem.

I would have loved the Revel Salon 2 or Studio 2 speakers, but the bass would have to be tamed by panels or dsp. So I bought the newer release of Revel BE with the smaller woofer speakers that allow me to remove all the bass panels, still kept the ASC tube traps for corners, I stopped using dsp, and allowed me to get the speakers 1/3 of the distance into the room to get all the bass I need without using subwoofers.

Seems to me that how speakers sound should be the most important criteria.  We all have biases and preferences.  A speaker that is superb according to measurements but still does not sound "good" or "right" is not what we enjoy.  After all, the goal is reproduction of music, hopefully accurate, but it has to sound good.  Just my "two-bits" worth ... inflation, you know!

I respect Erin and the reviews he gives.  However, I do wonder if his review would have been different if the speakers were given to him by Borresen.

I was disappointed when I saw the measurements for the X3.   I think the engineering was not fully done on this speaker.   In the video he describes that the measurements line up with what he was hearing.    I heard a good quote a few months ago;  "Measurements are for dating but listening is for marriage".   The wisdom here is to look for speakers that measure well, but buy the ones that you love listening to.

The thing about Erin's review, for me, was that he claimed to hear this midrange "hole" in the sound before measuring and then backed up what he percepted by talking to others.  I've felt that a lot of his other reviews were way over-measured to the point of being burdensome. With electronics that makes perfect sense, but speakers are such a personal item that that approach seems sort of backwards. The Borrensen review, however, was done right and there was lots of collaboration. Guttenberg didn't want them taken out of his house, on the other hand. Just different approaches. Better just to examine everything and make your pick. Speakers are more personal than anything else.