These CHEAP Speakers Surprised Danny! Emotiva XB2!

Рет қаралды 31,085

GR-Research

Күн бұрын

Пікірлер: 122

@greggibson33 3 ай бұрын

Emotiva does an outstanding job of creating solid products at an affordable price.

@ford1546 2 ай бұрын

Although this model is good, don't expect other models from this brand to be good. A cheap model now and then can be good. The absolute best ear plugs I've heard are some of the cheapest you can buy. They came with the samsung galaxy s8. You can also buy them loose today. Think they are AKG/Harman Kardon - Black (EO-IG955B SEGWW) Don't shoot me if I write wrong.

@greggibson33 2 ай бұрын

@@ford1546 Don't worry.... I'm not armed.

@mizake01 3 ай бұрын

Very educational. If I could, I'd buy GR stuff just to keep these videos going, as a public service. I'm 50. Been paying attention to how music is created, performed, recorded, played back for 25 years. What GR publishes synthesizes consensus on loudspeakers very well. Spoken honestly, to the point, moving steadily along, lucidly. Good job. I would have loved to have taught alongside GR-kinda folks. Kudos, GR!

@RennieAsh 3 ай бұрын

3:34 warm the area gently with a fan heater for a few minutes, will soften the glue . Try to make sure you're not pointing warm air into the AMT

@fonkenful 3 ай бұрын

Just a quick thought on why Emotiva isn’t worried about the 4 ohm impedance is that they have a pretty extensive line of multi-channel power amps and two AVRs with more than adequate power supplies to be stable into such loads. I just added one of their 7 channel models to my Atmos rig, and am quite pleased with improvement in dynamics over running all of the receiver’s internal amp channels Hard to argue against investing a few more dollars per pair for rear chamber damped AMTs, upgrading the binding post to even just brass, and definitely the 10 seconds of machining time required to chamfer the rear side of mid-bass driver through holes.

@marcparsons1726 3 ай бұрын

Messed up one of those glued rings refoaming Infinity RS-325 speakers. Always good advice Danny! (next set).

@wswsn7396 Ай бұрын

Measurements are very good for these $500 a pair compared to many other $1500 a pair bookshelf speakers. Since the measures impendence is very low for many AVR's, Emotiva should offer some speaker/amp combos to promote sales and assured performance for customers.

@DodgyBrothersEngineering 3 ай бұрын

Interesting tip about diffraction on the inside edge. I need to build a long over due sub, and I was thinking about trying to bevel that inside edge. Sounds like it might not be an issue at the frequencies I want to play.

@phantomplastics6582 3 ай бұрын

I bought his kit for the Dynaudio Special 40 and it was incredible. Highly recommended. Also bought the Magnepan 1.7i kit but not managed to install it yet.

@user-ko8kx8vf1k 3 ай бұрын

I own 2 pairs of emotiva speakers as well as few high end speakers as I have 5 systems in my house. In my opinion the emotiva speakers are the best bang for the buck speakers! Have done side by side with many other brands and they are hard to beat.

@MasterofPlay7 3 ай бұрын

what about klipsch?

@user-ko8kx8vf1k 3 ай бұрын

@@MasterofPlay7 In my opinion not even close, emotiva way better. I've owned a few pairs of Klipsh and they are very fatiguing for metal music. Honestly the Emotiva T1+ has the best horizontal off axis sound I've heard that's the most impressive thing about the speakers. I've got 2 pairs of in ceiling surround Klipsh speakers in my theater room and they work wonderfully. I just bought two of the new emotiva Xc3 center channel speakers for my theater room. Burning them in now in Billiard Room system and they sound awesome. Going to mount both on wall on each side of Big screen.

@bigjay1970 3 ай бұрын

JBL fan?🤔😁

@toby9999 3 ай бұрын

@@MasterofPlay7I have not heard a klipsch that didn't sound harsh. That said, there are a lot of models, so maybe there are good ones. Perhaps the harshness is due to these horns?

@MasterofPlay7 3 ай бұрын

@@toby9999 which ones do you have? I think it has to do with the amp as well right?

@paulyates1415 2 ай бұрын

Question: do you aim to avoid using a PCB for the crossover, when possible? (using hard wired instead) BTW You have my respect, to share your knowledge allows us to have more understanding & insights. I recently rewired my old B&W 684 S1 floorstanders, 1st order xover. i soldered quality UK speaker cable direct to drive units and stripped the cap & 2 chokes off the pcb and wired them externaly to the bi amped class D Fosi V3 amps which are fed direct from a raspberry pi fitted with twin psu Allo DAC. The rewire of the speakers was quite amazing and uplifted the clarity and sound considerably. Many thanks and keep up the video,s. Paul

@mariancol2428 3 ай бұрын

Very good information, I have been following you for a long time. I modify the crossover myself with Mundorf components. It would be good if you added information to the clip from two years ago where you said why we need to put good components in the crossover, the quality of the components that must be used depending on the frequency.

@choronzo202 3 ай бұрын

I dunno about Danny’s upgrade this time. I mean, it’s a budget speaker built to a price point for budget amps and signal sources and so on. Is it worth it? I can’t imagine this will be paired with high end revealing amps and dacs and so on. With that in mind it seems EmotivA😅 has done just another magnificent job with the price point that was the starting point for this construction. Kudos!

@BoRerunn 2 ай бұрын

$600 ain't too budget

@dannyrichie9743 2 ай бұрын

@@BoRerunn The base level upgrade is only $275.

@choronzo202 2 ай бұрын

@@BoRerunn Can be debated of course. My point still stands though. He didn’t mess with the crossover points. It seems to me the design is maximized for the price already aka emotive did what they could and did great.

@choronzo202 2 ай бұрын

@@dannyrichie9743 I get that. But the system you would put this speaker in might not reveal the upgraded sound. Because EmotivA kind of maximized the output of this design already. He didn’t provide new crossover points. Just improved parts quality. And that is where I question this upgrade.

@BoRerunn 2 ай бұрын

@@dannyrichie9743 Danny destroyed that speakers quality rating

@mattbukala2728 3 ай бұрын

Emotiva makes great equipment and speakers I look forward to my next purchase

@scottmackey4182 3 ай бұрын

Thanks for doing this speaker Danny! At $499 (when in stock) is easy for a lot of people and adding your kit to significantly improve the speakers is a killer deal!

@jdlech 3 ай бұрын

Second! haha. Looking at that spectral decay, that tweeter is CLEAN. Absolutely gorgeous.

@spons1982 3 ай бұрын

i have the XB2s sitting on top of my prime pinnacle towers, they honestly compete when flipping back and forth between them.

@rogerdouglas2306 2 ай бұрын

nice analysis, but if you plan on selling upgrades, then when not add the before and after to the initial video, like this one, to show customers exactly how much your kit improves the results. ( i mean of course the results on paper and not how it literally sounds on youtube... )

@dannyrichie9743 2 ай бұрын

You won't get but about 10% of what the upgrades do in a compressed KZfaq file.

@rogerdouglas2306 2 ай бұрын

@@dannyrichie9743 people would be more interested in the paperwork results and line graphs rather than actually looking for a difference in youtube sound quality.

@daviddrake6875 Ай бұрын

Yes Danny I was thinking that too.

@maxpower78-15 3 ай бұрын

I have the series 1 T3 towers from them. Im very pleased.

@HansDelbruck53 3 ай бұрын

I also have the T3 speakers. Very satisfied with their performance.

@retrogaming3025 19 күн бұрын

Do you ship to the uk?

@scottkraniak4874 2 ай бұрын

Got to check out Shahinian acoustics best speakers ever

@homeyleclerk4632 3 ай бұрын

Here @ GR Every spkr is a Nail

@Expedition18 3 ай бұрын

Great video 👍

@ford1546 2 ай бұрын

Hello. What about the treble? can you insert another resistance value to get a flatter response?

@dannyrichie9743 2 ай бұрын

They can be easily adjusted.

@petertimp5416 3 ай бұрын

So does the attached magnet to the back of the speaker have no performance benefits?. I was under the impression that they stuck it on the back there to ‘improve’ a cheaper speaker!?!? Thanks for work work😊

@dannyrichie9743 2 ай бұрын

No it doesn't.

@petertimp5416 2 ай бұрын

@@dannyrichie9743 👍

@martinriiser5523 3 ай бұрын

Danny, bucking magnets in this speaker are not used for shielding. Please contact Emotiva speaker engineers for more information.

@JoeJ-8282 2 ай бұрын

Please elaborate on what specifically you're talking about there...

@jtee9548 3 ай бұрын

You might shield a speaker if it's near a turntable?

@jimbendtsen8841 3 ай бұрын

No.

@JR-ho5qm 3 ай бұрын

I have herd there is another reason for the bucking magnet but I forget what it is. I think something to do with adding a bit extra motor strength? Not sure.

@burgie4241 Ай бұрын

Oh yeah, one other thing-- I don't understand how the plastic insulation on the outside of the wire could have any influence on the signal running through it ( all other things being equal )

@veroman007 3 ай бұрын

i wanted to upgrade the x over in my, now sold, elac dfr52 but you stated the parts involved would be too costly and i take you at your word. that said its nice that this unit could undergo a simple parts upgrade easily. incredible lack of resonance!

@user540000 6 күн бұрын

He says you should drop 300-400 dollars on parts to get rid of tin connectors in the signal path but what do you think is inside your amp? unless you have a high end 2000 dollar amp then what is the point, you still have "tin in your signal path"

@nealpetty9659 2 ай бұрын

No test comparison after upgrade? So does that mean those changes are not measurable?

@dannyrichie9743 2 ай бұрын

The parts quality upgrade will not change these measured responses. The only real change that we would see in the measurements is if we put and accelerometer on the side panels before and after the upgrade as the No Rez will knock out the panels resonances down by 10db or more.

@JoeJ-8282 2 ай бұрын

A parts quality upgrade of exact same original values won't necessarily change any of the actual measurements, however, the improvement in overall sound quality, clarity, and fine detail resolution WILL definitely be noticable upon listening to them, especially in the midrange and treble regions!... That's why, as a reviewer, you mostly should rely on listening comparisons, rather than strictly ONLY comparing the "numbers" or technical "measurements" of a speaker... There's still plenty of qualities about sound and music that cannot be accurately or effectively measured or "quantified", but even with using the same electrical spec crossover values as the original design, (because as Danny stated, it already worked quite well electrically and measurement wise), you would still definitely HEAR a considerable improvement in the "non measurable" aspects of the sound coming out of it, with a significant improvement in parts quality, especially with better quality capacitors and inductors in the tweeter circuit, along with the clarity of the upper woofer's range, into the mids.

@doctormidnight 3 ай бұрын

Hey Danny, what's the difference between Dynamat and No-Rez? Are they the same thing or totally different?

@dannyrichie9743 3 ай бұрын

Very different. Dynamat is designed to damp the ringing of metals, not wood. It also has no foam layer for controlling standing waves.

@doctormidnight 3 ай бұрын

@@dannyrichie9743 OK, thank you for answering that.

@petertimp5416 3 ай бұрын

Maybe if you have the time, to test a speaker with it then test after removing it.

@SlagroomenCornflakes 3 ай бұрын

What do you mean?

@petertimp5416 3 ай бұрын

@@SlagroomenCornflakes the attached magnet on the back of the woofer

@7dollarhaircut 3 ай бұрын

Regarding your advice to round off the interior edges of the cabinet’s woofer cut out: would rounding all sharp edges inside a cab be beneficial? Specifically, the hard angles where each cabinet wall meets.

@dannyrichie9743 3 ай бұрын

Rounded edges minimizes any turbulence in the box, but it is the inside edge of the woofer throw hole that can disrupt the response.

@JoeJ-8282 2 ай бұрын

@@dannyrichie9743Yes, because right at that back edge of the woofer, (AND midrange, if open back type), a sharp edge results in sound difraction at certain frequencies, or at least a specific frequency, which then can result in a resonance coming back around and affecting the direct driver's response, either adding to it or partially cancelling it at that resonant frequency.

@MyLittleBitOfEverything 2 ай бұрын

I am confused. You keep saying that trimming that inside ring "might" reduce some of the problems in the upper midrange. Would the person who sent you the speaker not allow you to trim it down to confirm this?

@dannyrichie9743 2 ай бұрын

Trimming rings?

@condostereo 3 ай бұрын

When copying a crossover that already performs well, do minor tweaks still have to be made in parts values to account for air core vs iron core inductors? Do tweaks have to be made for different gauge inductors? Do changes have to be made for components that are values not available off the shelf standard?

@hoth2112 3 ай бұрын

Only on occasion do values need to be tweaked from stock values, but when it occurs, it will be small differences like 6.8ohm vs 7ohm resistor or say 3.9uF vs 4uF cap, which are small enough to be inconsequential as they are still within the +/-5% typical tolerances of most components. The only time you have to account for inductor gauge is for large values, especially above 3.6mH where air core inductors start to get quite large and the DCR gets quite high, but if you're going from say a stock 1.5mH 18-20 gauge iron-core to a 16 gauge air-core, there's nothing to worry about as the DRC is still quite low. However, say you had a 12mH, 16 gauge iron core used on the bass circuit of a 3-way speaker playing below 300Hz, you would need a ~10-12 gauge air-core to compensate for the difference in DCR, and at that point you're looking at easily $150-200 per coil, not to mention the air core will also be much larger and heavier. Plus, at those low frequencies there is less performance to be gained by going to an air core vs one that has to play up into the midrange and crossover around 1000-3000Hz.

@JoeJ-8282 2 ай бұрын

To OP: THAT is a VERY good question! One that MOST people wouldn't even know to ask, so kudos to you on bringing up those points... For a reasonably thorough and good answer to those questions, please read the comment above mine, as he already explained the major things to consider with this.

@davidtomsett 2 ай бұрын

$499 per pair direct from Emotiva

@mdocod 3 ай бұрын

A few component value adjustments in that crossover probably would have twisted those knees into better shape. I wouldn't bother replacing all those parts if it didn't include any effort reshape those curves a bit.

@obijuan8466 3 ай бұрын

How do you feel about adding norez, or another vibration damping product to the flat parts of a stamped basket?

@ChicagoRob2 3 ай бұрын

I put silicone caulk on all accessible portions of the basket frame. It does a great job eliminating ringing, etc.

@dannyrichie9743 3 ай бұрын

Oh yeah, peel off the foam and use the damper on them. Works great.

@JR-ho5qm 3 ай бұрын

@@ChicagoRob2I do this as well although I use a Autobody damping caulk

@raidendigital1003 3 ай бұрын

500 Spacebucks a pair is NOT cheap. Monoprice MP-65RT, 2 way bookshelf with ribbon tweeter 50-70 spacebucks. I'd actually buy a kit for those because they're actually cheap, and I wouldn't be too worried about doing mods to them with my lack of skills.

@IanKnight40 3 ай бұрын

Are you in the UK?. I can supply details of a diy mod kit for those.

@raidendigital1003 3 ай бұрын

@@IanKnight40 No. Those speakers have been out of stock everywhere I looked, here in the American Empire. I was considering buying a second pair or two but could not find any.

@IanKnight40 2 ай бұрын

@@raidendigital1003 shame you are not in the UK, I have 10 Pairs boxed new left. A good mod is to put a 0.33mh low dcr air core in series with the bass driver. To take another step, turn the tweeter into a second order crossover by adding a small wire diameter 0.33mh air core inductor in parallel after the capacitor. This transforms the tonal balance by getting rid of the nasality in the woofer and also not working the tweeter so hard. Line the box with bitumen sound deadening pads. Cheers Ian.

@raidendigital1003 2 ай бұрын

@@IanKnight40 I have a video where I VS these against the Dayton's. I like the monoprice's much more. The Dayton's are like a Tequila hangover to listen to.

@IanKnight40 2 ай бұрын

@@raidendigital1003 the mp bass driver is really good and smooth.... The trouble is that it is used full range so having a small 1st order coil on there really does help with integration and tonality with the tweeeter... There is less comb filtering. The box adds loads of coloration so if these drivers were in a really good sealed enclosure of around 8 ltrs there will be improvements there.

@wishbone20t 2 ай бұрын

I wonder if these speaker companies use this information as free consulting advice and modify their speakers based on Danny's recommendations?.

@dannyrichie9743 2 ай бұрын

Klipsch did.

@JoeJ-8282 2 ай бұрын

Some do, but most companies probably don't care enough because their speakers are selling to (uninformed) people regardless of what they may sound like.

@user-rr3pi8ey1m 2 ай бұрын

what you want for the money?

@burgie4241 Ай бұрын

Couldn't the peaks in the response be easily EQ'd out with parametric EQ (like Mini DSP)? Danny always places heavy emphasis on spectral decay response and yet, other review testers (like Erin's Audio Corner) with their super sophisticated test systems (Klippel Near Field Scanner) never seem to refer to this particular measurement- wonder why?

@Finite-Tuning 3 ай бұрын

AMT's have quickly become my favorite tweeter. AMT's and silk domes, that's all that I'll buy with my money. But the AMT's play accurate without making your ears bleed like titanium does. I hate titanium tweeters! All the AMT's that I've played with and tested, they all play down to 2K no problem, even the elcheapo Dayton Audio versions. The downside to AMT's is that they are not very forgiving and it's pretty easy to hurt them. If you ever hear one whistle at you during a frequency sweep, it's been pushed too hard! Cheers 🍻

@user-gf7kj5vj3p 3 ай бұрын

I have speakers with titanium treble. Not harsh at all. Rew shows they're pretty flat

@hom2fu 3 ай бұрын

here we go again! silk dome vs metal dome. :) for some people 1 or 2 db gain on metal material can sound harsh. i read a lot of measurement and people opinion over 10+ years TWO. metal sound harsh could be your amplifier is too bright

@Pete.across.the.street 3 ай бұрын

Aluminum dome give me a headache every time.

@Finite-Tuning 3 ай бұрын

@@hom2fu: What are you talking about? I didn't compare anything, I merely stated what I like and what I hate and what I'll spend my money to own. It's not about how metal measures for me, it's about bleeding ears! It's nothing to do with my amps or yours, I just hate titanium tweeters, they hurt my ears, all of them that I've ever heard anywhere on any system! AMT's are metal too, a lot of them are, but I love AMT's overall. I've never heard a bad AMT, unless it's damaged. I have heard some damaged ones that will whistle though. It's not exactly a pleasant sound.

@Adywerty88 3 ай бұрын

Somebody please send to Gr Research Polk r600 and R400

@matthewtaylor7355 3 ай бұрын

Danny is going to do a tear down on full range drivers.The crossover kit/wool will only cost 734USD.With non magnetic carrying handles for the cardboard box

@BoRerunn 2 ай бұрын

He's showing what needs to be done

@dannyrichie9743 2 ай бұрын

I have yet to see a "full range driver" that did not need a filter to correct for various issues including step loss, impedance issues, to break up mode, ringing issues, or a rising response.

@matthewtaylor7355 Ай бұрын

@@dannyrichie9743My Quad electrostatics don't need any filter etc... The best full range experience

@ronbrock738 2 ай бұрын

Emotiva is excellent just like it is manufactured . Saw the thumbnail and immediately knew was a clickbait lie. He sighs, then displays his disdain If be gives a compliment ,it's always backhanded. Spend 3-400 dollars, and it'll sound the same. How can his measurements look good with those disgusting, cheap crossover parts? Those speakers somehow sound amazing, but that's just my opinion.

@matereo 19 күн бұрын

No two way loudspeakers ever sound good with a kevlar bass/mid driver

@impuls60 3 ай бұрын

4 Ohm is very suitable for class D amps wich gives a lot of power in 4 Ohms.

@vegaslimoguy2376 3 ай бұрын

Any decent power amplifier out on the market can drive 4ohm speakers with no problem at all. I own Adcom amps that are class A/B and can drive as low as 2ohms. Most power amps will have no issue with this at all and they dont have to be class d.

@larrydunn4626 3 ай бұрын

@@vegaslimoguy2376 to be fair what Danny said is a lot of receivers out there would have trouble driving multiple pairs of speakers that are 4 ohm... ie. center, L,R, and a pair of rears.