Dennis Had Inspire Amps

[Musica Amantem]

Originally Posted by Rosco65

I don't own an Omega 7, but do own a pair of Super Alnico Monitors as well as a pair of Super 3's and Super 3U's. While the Alnico drivers are "better" in that they are higher in the Omega food chain, they do give up some of the speed and high end of the RS5 driver in the 3 series. However, the larger Alnico - and 7 series - driver does offer better midbass and simply will move more air.

Louis has recently added "1.5 way" models to his production line. Of particular interest is the 1.5 way Super 3 in monitor and tower model. A second driver is added below 500hz to the main full range driver. This supports the low to upper bass range in which the small driver starts rolling off. Above 500hz the natural rising response of the main driver takes over. The result is much better bass and 3 dB greater efficiency (97.5dB/W/M). The two drivers have the same surface area as one of the larger drivers and can move the same amount of air (or more) while retaining the speed of the 1.9 gram RS5 cone.

Yes, I'm aware of the new Omega 1.5-way line, and also of its prices! The new design is a great compromise attempt between both extremes and makes sense. OTOH, Alnico drivers may well be challenged in speed (anything larger than the 4.5", light-weight 3-series drivers is) but there are tradeoffs, like timbre, body of sound, overall sound texture and bass vs speed, dynamics and higher registers. This of course is a matter of taste and musical preferences. I would love to listen to the old Alnico super monitors with any of the KT-88 Inspire amps, particularly acoustic jazz with fewer instruments!

[Rosco65]

Originally Posted by Musica Amantem

Yes, I'm aware of the new Omega 1.5-way line, and also of its prices! The new design is a great compromise attempt between both extremes and makes sense. OTOH, Alnico drivers may well be challenged in speed (anything larger than the 4.5", light-weight 3-series drivers is) but there are tradeoffs, like timbre, body of sound, overall sound texture and bass vs speed, dynamics and higher registers. This of course is a matter of taste and musical preferences. I would love to listen to the old Alnico super monitors with any of the KT-88 Inspire amps, particularly acoustic jazz with fewer instruments!

I have the current version Alnico Super Monitors and the KT88 amp (as does Peter). They are wonderful but IMO have three shortcomings:

The upper bass slowly falls off below about 300 hz or so, leading to a somewhat thin sound. This has led to users adding active midbass modules to flesh out this region. Others take advantage of the rear port to use near-wall placement to boost the lower registers.

The Alnico driver uses a whizzer cone. This can occasionally give me a tiny bit of stridency. This is not uncommon with the interaction of the whizzer cone with the main cone in other drivers as well (Fostex, Lowther). The RS5 does not have a whizzer and reproduces high frequencies even better.

The RS5 driver is so light that it simply functions much better in the upper registers, as well as being "faster" in every other way. It does not have that "alnico sound" we get from the overload characteristics of alnico though.

The downsides of Louis' drivers is that they sacrifice low frequencies for extended high end. I agree with this compromise. In contrast, my Altec 414A's give s solid 40HZ but roll off at 4KHZ. This is similar to the Eminence driver used in the Tekton Lore.

Frankly, as long as the region from 100HZ to 3,000HZ is covered by the same driver I can find ways to fill in the extremes. In the case of the Omega drivers, either using midbass modules or passive helper drivers (i.i., 1.5 way) adds the additional fullness and ability to move air in the bass region. In the case of my Altec or the Eminence, a tweeter (or in my case HF horn driver) fills in the top two or three octaves.

[Musica Amantem]

Rosco65 - Thanks for the thorough explanation. It is much clearer for me now. My Tekton Lore 2.0 (10" Eminence driver) also uses a tweeter for a similar 1.5-way arrangement, along with a whizer cone, which so far has not manifested itself as strident, maybe because I rely on decent room treatment and optimal positioning.

Bass performance with my loudspeakers is very nice and the whizer cone/tweeter arrangement take care of the main driver's high frequency roll-off. In fact, with some output tubes, like the KT-66Z, the frequency range seems quite flat, with a particularly natural, neutral presentation. But, these are no Alnico drivers in terms of texture and some instruments' timbre, although I must say mine present the best timbre I have owned in a pair of speakers so far, especially when combined with the right tubes (i.e., GL KT-77 and others).

IMO, Omega seems to be oriented to the active SUB user, as compensating for both extremes' roll-off cannot be done in the general full-driver/high sensitivity realm with success at both ends. It is a smart compromise if the end user applies the right set of SUB complements to the rig. I still would like to hear the Alnico driver which Chocho claims is "the best he has ever designed" (at least until relatively recently).

[o]

Originally Posted by BearCityUSA

As I have been shuffling around my life to get ready to move out of my house during a renovation/addition my 90's vintage Epos ES-14s have migrated to my office. The speakers are a large monitor type setup with 8" mid/woofer and 1" titanium dome tweeter. The 8" runs full range and the tweeter has a simple 2.2uf cap as a high pass filter. They were rated 86db back in the day........................ Anyway, I hooked them up to my PSE to see how they would be driven..................... Not to concert levels but louder than I typically listen while not working on a personal growler. my conclusion is that the PSE can drive a lower efficiency speaker to pretty loud levels and can specifically make these sing.

Sounds like a nice fit to me.

From Stereophile, keeping in mind your PSE has a lower output imp. compared to typical SE or PP tube amps.

"The ES 14 has a reasonably high sensitivity, 2.83V of B-weighted pink noise raising an estimated 87dB/W/m. Coupled with this highish sensitivity, it is very easy to drive, as shown by the plots of impedance magnitude and phase (figs.1 and 2). It drops below 8 ohms only in the very top octave, and then to just 7.2 ohms. I would have said that this combination of sensitivity and easy impedance characteristic would make the ES 14 a prime candidate for being driven by a classic tube amplifier. Note, however, the large swing in impedance value, particularly in the bass and upper midrange. This will mean that the speaker's sound will become exaggerated in these frequency regions when used with a tube amplifier with a high output impedance."

[Musica Amantem]

Originally Posted by opnly bafld

Sounds like a nice fit to me.

From Stereophile, keeping in mind your PSE has a lower output imp. compared to typical SE or PP tube amps.

"The ES 14 has a reasonably high sensitivity, 2.83V of B-weighted pink noise raising an estimated 87dB/W/m. Coupled with this highish sensitivity, it is very easy to drive, as shown by the plots of impedance magnitude and phase (figs.1 and 2). It drops below 8 ohms only in the very top octave, and then to just 7.2 ohms. I would have said that this combination of sensitivity and easy impedance characteristic would make the ES 14 a prime candidate for being driven by a classic tube amplifier. Note, however, the large swing in impedance value, particularly in the bass and upper midrange. This will mean that the speaker's sound will become exaggerated in these frequency regions when used with a tube amplifier with a high output impedance."

Except Stereophile refers to "tube amplifiers" as those pertaining to the large, more powerful class of high-end amps, like those from Audio Research, VTL, Manley, with typical Push-Pull designs operating at relatively high watts. An 87 dB sensitivity, no matter how you look at it, is no mate for small, single-ended (PSE or not) tube amps like the Inspire. Sure you can listen to it, but the amp is not working in its sweet spot, likely compromising its SQ profile. Just my opinion, of course.

A quote from a 2014 Stereopphile article on the general subject:

When I reviewed VTL's 25W Tiny Triodes in April 1991, I found them to be incredibly fun little suckers to play with, but got frustrated with their inability to drive my Spica Angeluses (my edit: 87 dB sensitive) to reasonable levels with most of my recordings. I loved what I was hearing, but there wasn't nearly enough of it! As it turns out, John Atkinson was listening; not just to my plea, but also to the new VTL Compact 160 monoblocks in preparation for a full review.

[Musica Amantem]

Originally Posted by Musica Amantem

Except Stereophile refers to "tube amplifiers" as those pertaining to the large, more powerful class of high-end amps, like those from Audio Research, VTL, Manley, with typical Push-Pull designs operating at relatively high watts. An 87 dB sensitivity, no matter how you look at it, is no mate for small, single-ended (PSE or not) tube amps like the Inspire. Sure you can listen to it, but the amp is not working in its sweet spot, likely compromising its SQ profile. Just my opinion, of course.

A quote from a 2014 Stereophile article on the general subject:

When I reviewed VTL's 25W Tiny Triodes in April 1991, I found them to be incredibly fun little suckers to play with, but got frustrated with their inability to drive my Spica Angeluses (my edit: 87 dB sensitive) to reasonable levels with most of my recordings. I loved what I was hearing, but there wasn't nearly enough of it! As it turns out, John Atkinson was listening; not just to my plea, but also to the new VTL Compact 160 monoblocks (my edit: Push-Pull) in preparation for a full review ...

Sorry. there was a momentary loss of server in the forum while I was submitting this message. Please disregard the duplications.

[Rosco65]

Originally Posted by Musica Amantem

Rosco65 - Thanks for the thorough explanation. It is much clearer for me now. My Tekton Lore 2.0 (10" Eminence driver) also uses a tweeter for a similar 1.5-way arrangement, along with a whizer cone, which so far has not manifested itself as strident, maybe because I rely on decent room treatment and optimal positioning.

Bass performance with my loudspeakers is very nice and the whizer cone/tweeter arrangement take care of the main driver's high frequency roll-off. In fact, with some output tubes, like the KT-66Z, the frequency range seems quite flat, with a particularly natural, neutral presentation. But, these are no Alnico drivers in terms of texture and some instruments' timbre, although I must say mine present the best timbre I have owned in a pair of speakers so far, especially when combined with the right tubes (i.e., GL KT-77 and others).

IMO, Omega seems to be oriented to the active SUB user, as compensating for both extremes' roll-off cannot be done in the general full-driver/high sensitivity realm with success at both ends. It is a smart compromise if the end user applies the right set of SUB complements to the rig. I still would like to hear the Alnico driver which Chocho claims is "the best he has ever designed" (at least until relatively recently).

If I'm not mistaken, the Tekton is actually a two-way speaker, not a 1.5 way speaker. The difference is this:

Two way: A high frequency driver is crossed over to cover the high frequencies. The main driver may or may not have a low-pass crossover. You Tekton fits this bill. It is likely that the 10" driver has a low pass filter that may take the whizzer cone out of the equation.

1.5 way: A full range driver is run without crossover. A helper driver, either a woofer or in the case of the Omega a driver similar to the full range driver, is crossed over with a low pass filter cover the upper bass region and below, effectively doubling the cone area in the bass region and adding 3-5 dB in bass output. In the Omega speakers, this is done at 500hz for the RS5 driver and 200hz for the Alnico driver. Since the driver impedance generally rises below 500hz anyway, paralleling another driver doesn't make the impedance too low.

Louis has been committed to single driver speakers for almost two decades. His speakers have evolved primarily to maximize single driver performance and to incorporate his OEM drivers. The apparent simplicity of his speakers has led many owners to seek to improve them. Two areas of potential improvement have been the extreme highs and the bass regions. With his newest drivers (especially the RS5) the high frequency extension is excellent, though a few users have added upward facing tweeters for dispersion. More owners have sought to add additional bass energy to the speakers. This has led to Louis offering active bass adders (its not really a true subwoofer but rather a midbass module) and to offer floorstanding models intended to use room boundaries to reinforce the bass. But what many owners and louis himself have come to realize that it has not been the deep bass that was missing but the fullness in the mid to upper bass (80-500hz). The newer 1.5 way speakers address this specific shortcoming, adding 3-4dB to the region below 500hz in the RS5 based model.

If money was an important factor (and it almost always is for most of us) I think the best speaker in Louis' current lineup is the new Super 3 HO Monitor. It is an honest 97dB, has the best high frequencies in lineup, and goes down low enough to mate with a true subwoofer (<50hz). It costs either $1,295 or $1,395 depending on finish, which is a great deal when compared directly with a KEF LS50. I would argue that it would trounce an LS50 in any matchup. The floorstander may go lower in the bass region, but it costs $1,000 more and at my age (52) I've vowed to only own speakers that can be broken down and carried by one person - myself.

Louis' Alnico driver has remained unchanged for the past few years. He has also added a 1.5 way version that uses the same driver without a whizzer cone, but it costs $3,200!

[Musica Amantem]

I stand corrected. Thanks for the enlightenment, as usual . I was not aware of the new(?) 3 HO Montor. It seems nicely priced and highly sensitive, although cabinet size may indicate a potential need to complement its performance through active SUB (s).

[Rosco65]

The need for an active sub is up to the room and the listener. The same drivers are used in a larger floorstander as well. However, at the end of the day we are still talking about two 4.5" drivers - they can only move so much air and to get real bass, no matter how big the cabinet, you may need a sub or two.

[Musica Amantem]

Just confirmed the Psvane CV-181 T-II improves the performance of the excellent but boldy (in my rig) GL KT-88's, to the point the boldness is almost gone. This input tube has worked best with KT-66Z and KT-88, while the Shu Guang CV-181 T black coat is best for the misteriously surprising GL KT-77.

The GL KT-77 is quite a different beast in the sense it does not follow the traits of all the others (either 6L6/KT-66, or larger/bolder KT-88/6550), but has a sound all of its own, with the midrange particularly resolving in the Triode configuration. The Psvane CV-181 T-II seems too much of a sound-opener for the KT-77, making it somewhat strident in peak registers. Not with the black coat, though, with which this ouput tube excels.