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Sierra Tower vs Salk Song Tower (both RAAL) - Page 2

post #31 of 47
4/1/12 at 12:00pm
I too would like to see a comparison between the Salk Song Tower and Ascend Tower.
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post #32 of 47
4/1/12 at 12:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by lou99 View Post

I too would like to see a comparison between the Salk Song Tower and Ascend Tower.

There already is one in the SE WI speaker GTG thread, and they'll be another one in the same thread in two weeks.
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post #33 of 47
4/1/12 at 12:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Veda View Post

Well I'll be paying $1000 for shipping each speaker here so resale wouldn't be that good but no matter, I rarely sell speakers unless they sucked completely. There's always a place for a good furniture...

I think these are keepers!
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post #34 of 47
4/1/12 at 12:56pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Veda View Post

Which I believe is almost impossible for most of us due to many reasons . Thus the request for help from those who have heard them...

Actually screw it! I'll order both a Sierra Tower and a Phil 2 even though it's impossible for me to return them! Curiosity does kill...

With the price you're going to pay to have both of these delivered to Asia, you might as well have just got some high end Ushers and called it a day.



http://www.usheraudio.com/Loudspeake...20diamond.html
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post #35 of 47
4/1/12 at 7:10pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jay1 View Post

With the price you're going to pay to have both of these delivered to Asia, you might as well have just got some high end Ushers and called it a day.

I was really into Usher back in 2009 and can get them quite cheap so I'm very familiar with their offerings both low and top end. I owned the S520 + Be-718 and have auditioned the ones you mentioned. They are very inefficient which is a minor issue compared to the limited soundstage which was the deal breaker. Actually I've had my Be-718 for sale for about a year now. Once you go ribbon it's tough to go back to dome tweeters unless perhaps waveguided. In the last 13 years I've bought and sold many high end speakers but nothing can beat my good ol Newform R630. Sure Usher has that midrange magic for jazz but I'm somewhat convinced that they misrepresented the efficiency rating and also the highs... ain't the speakers you'd use for house music.

I know I'm taking a risk of ordering without audition and based solely on specs. Well for now the Sierra Towers as Dennis is unable to ship the Phil 2's outside US at the moment. I'll work something out later to get them here
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post #36 of 47
4/1/12 at 9:56pm
I had the Be-718 in my room for a few days and thought is was excellent.

I had once read that the US version of the Be-718 is different than the one in Asia. Do you know if there is any truth to that?
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post #37 of 47
4/1/12 at 10:09pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by cschang View Post

I had once read that the US version of the Be-718 is different than the one in Asia. Do you know if there is any truth to that?

Exactly the same, even if I wanted to just upgrade the tweeters to DMD it's a simple swap process without involving the crossover (according to the dealer). $800 to upgrade, might as well spend some for the next speaker... Thus the hunt for a new set of towers.
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post #38 of 47
4/3/12 at 5:30am
Thread Starter 
BTW, check this out... You'll get a lot of laughs especially if you know the Usher's specs

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...2#post21861592
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post #39 of 47
4/6/12 at 3:07pm
Having heard both recently and they are great options in the $2k range. elow is my opinion - please take it with a grain of salt without getting offended:

Build Quality - Both are excellent.

Music Performance (Full Range) - Mids and highs were equally good. I dont think anyone stood out there. The Ascend Tower took the cake because it was able to play deeper and more dynamic without compression. They both perform (and measure well).

Music Performance (with Sub) - Salk Song Tower won here because the sub could fill in for the bass. the upper treble battle.

Movies - Ascend Tower shined no question. Perhaps due to its dedicated woofer for mids and higher sensitivity. Played loud and clear.

Design - From a aesthetic and designer point of view, the Tower looked very clean. I thought the Salk Tower looked like a sideways MTM speaker stamped on a wood rectangle (no offense). To counter that comment, Salk has many customer and beautiful wood working that can be done for an extra fee.

Overall - I would choose the Ascend Tower for its ability to multitask between HT and Music. There were no real glaring downsides for my application. The icing is that Ascend's Horizon Center absolutely blows away the Song Center in every aspect. Crucial for HT applications.

Professional Reviews of both here:
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazin..._songtower.htm
http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazin...er_speaker.htm
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post #40 of 47
4/6/12 at 3:30pm
jeffc...was this with both using the RAAL ribbon tweeter? I am thinking not, since you listed "in the $2k range". The RAAL puts them closer to the $3K range.
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post #41 of 47
4/6/12 at 4:00pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by jeffc1 View Post

The icing is that Ascend's Horizon Center absolutely blows away the Song Center in every aspect. Crucial for HT applications.

Could someone who has a SongCenter please comment on this? In general, I have not heard/read much about the SongCenter. So, any input will be useful.
Everywhere, people rave only about the SongTowers...
Thanks.
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post #42 of 47
4/6/12 at 4:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by cschang View Post

I had the Be-718 in my room for a few days and thought is was excellent.

I had once read that the US version of the Be-718 is different than the one in Asia. Do you know if there is any truth to that?

I believe Danny Richie modified the original Asian crossover to provide more baffle step compensation. I had the original version in my house for a week or so, and redid that crossover as a one-off. The original was pretty good--just a little elevated in the mids and highs. I never was super impressed with the Be tweeter-- seemed to lack air in the very high end.
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post #43 of 47
4/6/12 at 6:47pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dennis Murphy View Post

I believe Danny Richie modified the original Asian crossover to provide more baffle step compensation. I had the original version in my house for a week or so, and redid that crossover as a one-off. The original was pretty good--just a little elevated in the mids and highs. I never was super impressed with the Be tweeter-- seemed to lack air in the very high end.

That's what I thought too about Danny modifying the crossover. I have read there were different versions, and that there were not. Do you have experience with a "Richie" version? Yes, I thought the tweeter was good, but it was not a strong point.
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post #44 of 47
4/6/12 at 8:04pm
Sorry, I never heard Danny's version.
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post #45 of 47
4/6/12 at 9:11pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dennis Murphy View Post

I never was super impressed with the Be tweeter-- seemed to lack air in the very high end.

Is this why most top end ID now use ribbon instead of dome? That designers finally realized ribbon is the only way to break away from dome tweeters limitations? Even Monitor Audio's top series now use ribbon.
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post #46 of 47
6/25/12 at 12:33pm
jeffc1,
I appreciated your thoughts on the Salk ST / Ascend Sierra Tower comparsiion as there are so few out there. Could you explain further your thoughts regarding the comparison using a sub? It appears you were writing about the dome tweater, not raal versions? Also, anything additional would be helpful. Thanks.
Steve
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post #47 of 47
2/1/13 at 7:41pm
Old thread, but I'm very interested in this throw down.

If the Horizon Center = Ascend Tower + RAAL and Song Center = SongTower (no RAAL), this might not be fair. But has anyone heard both?
Quote:
Originally Posted by lifeisbeautiful View Post

Quote:
Originally Posted by effc1 View Post


The icing is that Ascend's Horizon Center absolutely blows away the Song Center in every aspect. Crucial for HT applications.

Could someone who has a SongCenter please comment on this? In general, I have not heard/read much about the SongCenter. So, any input will be useful.

Everywhere, people rave only about the SongTowers...

Thanks.
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