***The Official Ascend Acoustics Sierra Thread*** - Page 84

How about a Sierra bookshelf with the RAAL tweeter? Does such a thing exist or in the works???

Not right now. I would email David at Ascend Acoustics and see if there is a plan in the works.

Proud new owner of Sierra-1 L/C/R speakers along with SE170 surrounds. Can't wait till they show up in the mail.

I am looking for some alternatives to the Ascend speaker stands. A little too pricey for my taste. Anyone have any recommendations for stands for the Left and Right Sierra-1's? Also looking for stands / quality wall mounts for the rear SE170's. Any tips or thoughts would be appreciated.

Just remember the Sierra's weigh about 20lbs each so you'll need a decent quality stand with a 6" top plate. I used the Sanus SF for mine but the NF series could do and I used some blu tack to hold the speaker in place.

I bough mine for this site...



http://www.racksandstands.com/Speaker-Stands-C7.html

I wish they offered free shipping on the stands. I am ordering my sierras from ascends so at least I will get $40 off the stands. I know they might not match well with the color I am ordering (natural finish) but I really like how the speakers can be locked into place. I doubt my kids would ever knock them over but it's added security (blu tack would also be great option on another stand). I honestly wish the ascend stands were a bit taller but the tweeter height does need to be around the height of a 24" stand for me even though I have typically used 28" ones in the past.

How far away to you sit from the speakers?

About 9 feet from the front of my couch (10 feet if I am sitting back on the couch).

Hi all,

recent lurker on this Sierra thread... i came across when one of the guys highly receomended aginst the Vienna acoustics Haydn i have...i was just wondering where in NYC i can audiotion these...after seeing the thread i am sure this is one hell of good speaker..jut want to listen from my ears thats all..

BTW i am planning this for my computer listening which right now consist of

PC ->Peachtree decco 2 DAC -> marantz Ma500 mono pair Amp->Current speaker (VA Haydn)..

I was told biggest difference can be if you bring Sierra 1s in..so i thought if i may ask where i can find these...

V

+1 The SF stands are excellent. I got the 26 inch tall ones, and am also using blu tack to secure the speakers. I got them from amazon which may mean free shipping if you have a prime account, although I can't remember if they were actually sold by amazon or not.

Just checked with Amazon and they do not sell them so no Prime shipping. Good idea though!

Then the 4 inch difference will not be noticeable.

It appears they're sold through Vanns....I believe Vanns also offers free shipping if your interested ....

Much cheaper at Racks and Stands as linked above. Free shipping too... Now i just need to decide what height i should get...

I had no choice because Amazon nor Vanns ships to my address. I end up paying ~175.00 cdn for the SF26" and I just sold them for 75.00 bucks. Great stands IMO....cheaper than most anything else comparable up here.

Why didn't you sell them to me?! =)

I need a pair of wall mounts for my CBM-170 SE surrounds. I see that Ascend sells a pair of Omnimounts for $80, but i have seen them as cheap as $27 + FS at Vanns. Are the two identical and the ones at Ascend just marked up? Any experience with these?

+1 on the Omnimounts...
I had a pair of 170s mounted on them for a couple of years. They worked perfectly. Just be sure you mount them to a stud and not just drywall...

Vanns sells it at $27 per mount (single). Also, they are more of a volume dealer and probably get better pricing than Ascend.

Did you get them directly at Ascend or from a third party distributor? If the latter, did you need anything else in addition to mount them properly?

Maybe someone local to NYC will offer to let you stop by their home and check them out. If not you can always make the purchase and return them within 30 days if you do not like them. For what its worth I am using a similar setup (Peachtree Nova) with my Sierra 1 NrT's at my computer and they sound phenomenal. I cannot imagine you not liking these speakers.

I'm sorry I missed your question earlier. Let me start by saying we are comparing a killer bookshelf against a tower, so it really is not fair but that was the comparison the OP requested and I was just trying to offer my help. I love the Sierra 1 NrT, I simply cannot say that enough and find zero fault in what it does.

I read what the other fellow offered as well and ironically I had the opposite effect. It was the OMD15 that makes me feel like I am in a club listening to the band live. I put on the song "Private Investigations" from Dire Straits and my jaw hit the floor. It may be the mix of that album or the spatial dispersion of the Mirage design, but it was a notch better to my ears and only my ears.

These are both worthy speakers in my opinion and should not be compared against each other as they are two different designs and classes (book/tower) of speaker.

Thanks for replying....i hope soome one do let me stop by.....
i have two questions if i may..

1) Do you need external amp for this...

2) My current setup is

PC-> Decco 2->Ma500 ->VA Haydn...

Has anyone listened VA HAydn and Sierra side by side...

V

First, it must be noted that I was comparing the NrTs with the previous generation OM series that were built in Canada. I have never heard any of the OMD series, it could well be that they are an improvement over the OM series.

There might well be some other major differences in our gear as well. I mostly listen to high resolution material (SACD, DVD-A, or Blu-ray) over HDMI from an OPPO 83SE to an Anthem D2, and then amplified by a pair of Anthem MCA amps which are about 200 watts per channel.

I do believe that average quality content does not show the Sierras in their best light, but they really shine when given quality content. I have some Chesky SACDs that I really didn't know how good they were until played through the Sierras.

In my room, playing through my equipment, it's no contest, the Sierras are significantly better than the OM series. Maybe it's just cause the Mirages are old, and tired like their owner LOL.

Jay

I called Ascend earlier and it looks like they should have more stock of the natural finish early next week. It is going to be a heck of a purchase for me. I almost caved and got the 340's but I know I would be longing for the Sierra. I wish I could justify the Nrt upgrade but I have two little ones at home to think about and the regular Sierra's are hard enough to commit to price wise (at least for me because I will also be getting the center at the same time). I am sure I will be impressed regardless. I have enjoyed my RC-10's so hopefully the Sierra's will impress me. My Yamaha aventage receiver should be here this week and I am also going to order a Rythmik FV12 sub from Ascend tomorrow (hey 5% off will help!). Then I will be done with my post divorce present to myself, lol .

Jay,
Good point on the material. I'm using a Peachtree Nova/MF V-Link/Audioquest Cinnamon USB/JRiver to play hi-rez downloads from HDtracks and a dedicated SACD player that I purchased specifically to play music over the Sierras. The OMD15's are hooked up to a Panny Blu Ray/Onkyo 605 playing redbook cds.

After I posted last night I went and did some more listening to both sets of speakers. Both sound amazingly good with the material played on them. If push came to shove and I had to make a choice I would keep the Sierras over the Mirage. But to my ears it is very close. The next logical move is to swap speakers with equipment and see if that offers any change. I'm very curious to see how the OMD15's play with the Peachtree setup.

-Mike

Will my new receiver be enough for the Sierras? I am a yamaha fan mainly because I like the sound and honestly I have never had any issues software/hardware wise that seem to be common with a lot of other brands. I have an Aventage A710 on the way and should have it this week. It's 90 watts per channel. I have read in this forum (and the ascend forums) and noticed varying WPC being used with the Sierras, some lower than mine and some way higher (used with amps). Will I be okay or should I return it and look for something else? I have never had an issue power wise with my previous Yamahas (765 and 667) but I will be running better speakers now (running Energy RC-10's currently). I know the Sierras are effecient 8ohm speakers but I thought I would make sure. I really don't want to mess with an external amp. By the way, I will be doing a 3.1 setup with 3 Sierras and a Rythmik FV12.

Thanks in advance!

The yamaha should be fine. Most of the specs posted by receiver companies are misleading if not outright lies, and generally represent what the receiver can power when only two channels are used. The sierras are actually not that efficient but they do have a relatively benign impedance curve, so unless you want to be able to hit reference THX movie levels (in which case sierras probably aren't the best choice from the start) I'm sure the yamaha will be fine. Lots of people (including myself) are using them with mid tier AVRs with good results.

Thanks for the response. I had a Yamaha 667 but got a great deal on the 710 from Electronics Expo (way below msrp), so I decided to jump. I have kids so normally we don't have the volume very high when watching movies. I do like to listen to 2 channel music though (something I rediscovered with my RC-10's) and at times like to crank it up. As long as I can play them reasonably loud without any issues, I will be happy. I don't think I will ever hit THX reference levels with two little ones in the house . I noticed some people using as little as 65 wpc and having great results with the Sierras. Heck I think I saw one mention of a person using a 22 wpc tube amp and stating they sounded great.

The only thing you'll notice with the Sierras is having to turn up the volume a bit more compared to the levels you normally listened with the Rc10's. I used my rxv1800 and it easily drove them to deafening levels..just sit back and enjoy your new speakers...

Thanks! I guess I have been reading a little to much thinking my setup wasn't that great when I see a lot of other users with really expensive receivers compared to mine. I am hoping the Rythmik FV12 matches up with the Sierras nicely. I was going to try and swing the F12 but I don't know if I can justify it for my setup. The FV12 isn't pretty and quite honestly bigger than I wanted (gotta get a gramma pad now as it won't fit on my subdude) but it is $300 bucks cheaper .

Do I need to buy the Q plugs when I order? My left and right speaker will probably be toed in with at least a foot of room from the the back wall. My center will be on top of a media cabinet, closer to the wall (probably 6-8 inches from it). If they help my situation, I will buy them. If I can save some money, I will wait .

Now I just have to decide on the TP-24 stands. I am getting the Sierras in Natural Finish and do like the fact that the TP-24 stands lock to the speakers (for my kids). I know they don't match but trying to decide if they would be a better option than a metal stand (wouldn't have to use blu tack either with the ascend stands). They are pretty much the perfect height tweeter wise from my couch. A little lower than what I am used to though (26-28 inches).

For your situation, I would definitely get the Q plugs and experiment (especially with your center channel).

For the stands...how old are your kids, and do they goof around close to where the speakers will be?