Sound comparison between 3 speakers(Use Headphones for best results):
-CSS Audio Criton 2TD-X Towers(With superior crossovers)
www.css-audio.com/
-Gr-Research X-SLS Encore Towers(With upgraded crossovers)
-GR-Research X-CS Encore(Single speaker in mono)(With Upgraded Crossovers)
www.gr-research.com/
Other Equipment:
-Integra DRX-5.3 Receiver
-Sony UBP-X800M2 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
Recording Equipment:
-Tascam DR-2d Linear PCM Digital Recorder
-2 Audio-technica AT2035 Cardioid Condenser Mics
Audio clips recorded at 96kHz, 24 bit.
Demo clips: #1 & #2 are high resolution flac files, #3 is a DVD Audio disc, and #4 & #5 are MP3's from tunetank.com. The opening and ending text pages music is another clip recorded from the CSS 2TD-X's.
Listening Room and Placement:
20 feet by 14 feet room, vaulted ceiling to 10 feet, open on one side.
All speakers were placed 24 inches from front wall, 9 feet apart, and 6 feet from the mics.
No subs, no grills.
2 corner bass traps and some minimal absorption.
Conclusions and comments:
-Yes, I know a better comparison would be with the X-MTM Encore Tower and/or a pair of the X-CS Encores, but I can only compare with what I have.
-To no surprise, the differences on the recording are quite subtle but noticeable(bass is easiest to hear). The differences in my room are anything but subtle. Most of my comments are from hundreds of listening hours with the Encores and dozens of hours on the CSS and yes, I know you "Burn-in" folks say that's not enough time. I'll make an addendum later if needed.
-I tried my best to level match each speaker but it is definitely not perfect, sorry.
-BASS:
-The CSS is definitely a sub optional speaker, tight impactful, deep extension, chest thumpingly strong
X-SLS Surprising deep(40Hz), nice warm tone, balanced well with my SVS SB1000pro sub. Set my high band pass filter at 50Hz and it rolled off smoothly with my sub. I like the tonality of the low end of these towers.
X-CS Tight punchy mid-bass(Kick Drum range) Strong and fast. Not as deep extension because the smaller sealed box but still impressive. My guess is this sounds similar to the X-MTM Tower but with less bass extension.
-MIDRANGE:
CSS A very forward presentation. Vocals sound natural and have a very "In the room" quality to them. Powerful and clean. A noticeable strength with these drivers.
-X-SLS-A little laid back in presentation. Voices sound natural but get a little distorted at high volumes
-X-CS-Like the CSS with a forward presence and powerful. Very clean and natural sounding. A lot of room filling sound from this small box.
TWEETERS:
CSS The most forward presentation in the group, airy but balanced. I was worried about listening fatigue but so far so good. Still better than my B&W 605's.
X-SLS Laid back, warm but does blend with the midrange well. My earlier thoughts were that this tweeter almost disappears. The only issue I had was at loud volumes this tweeter overwhelms the woofer balance and becomes quite bright. Again, only at really loud levels.
X-CS I think this tweeter balances better with the 2 woofers. It stays well behaved even at ridiculous level. Clean and airy with a little warmth. Two of these X-CS's with a sub would be a kick butt system for a medium to large size room.
Sensitivity and SPL's Both the Criton and X-CS are listed as 90db sensitivity and the X-SLS at 87db. The funny thing is that I had to lower the volume on my receiver 2 or 3 decibels for the X-SLS's to match the other speakers(?), and the single X-CS level was the same as both L/R Critons(?) I know it could be how my amp is handling the ohm load or a possible error on my part in the assembly of these speakers. It is peculiar that the lower rated X-SLS's needs less wattage to shine. Fewer woofers maybe?
IMAGING, SOUND STAGE, TIMBRE, AND ALL THE JAZZ: The two towers easily create a good center image facing straight forward but when I toe them in about 15 degrees the stage center becomes very defined. The timbre of the X-SLS's at low and medium volumes leans a little warm and pleasant (Sorry folks, I don't mind a little warmth), but gets very strident at high volume levels. Both the Critons and X-CS like power and seem to handled it well. Midrange and Tweeters did not distort or break up at extreme levels for me in my room(90+db). The only difference was the Critons bass followed with almost as much slam as if I had my sub on.
The 2TD-X's are my new favorite for an "All in one Package." Low end to top end they are well balanced and neutral sounding. From soft to "O My God, Call the Police" levels, they maintain their composure. They seem to do it all very well. The surprise in the group was how good the X-CS sounded. I did try it with my sub on and it matched well. I rolled it off at 55Hz and it was impressive. The "BANG FOR THE BUCK" prize still goes to the GR Research models. The performance to cost ratio is hard to beat. More to come.