nspei
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EliteAudioSound Speakers Arrive....
JoeE SP9
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Of course there is an interest here. Was that price of $139 for one or a pair?

nspei
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Sorry to be unclear...that was $139.00 for a pair.
Still listening - and should be packing for a trip!
Way too early to be specific: it's possible that the speakers will need some break-in time. I may be able to discern some boxy colorations, but I'm being hasty (should do some sweep tests and some tone bursts when I get back).
I did very quickly peek inside the cabinet - absolutely nothing in the way of sound damping material in either compartment. There also seems to be no cross-bracing: at this price, no surprises. The 10" speaker has a smallish magnet, and is marked 4 Ohm; the mid-ranges seem nicely built, and are marked 3 Ohm. Cabinets approx. 42 1/2" X 14" X 6 1/2 ", in 1/2" MDF, total weight about 50lbs per speaker.
BTW The box is an embarrassment! It proudly displays the MSRP of $2199.00, as well as a bunch of meaningless "awards" that this brand is supposed to have garnered. Just the thing for selling these out of the back of a pick-up. Irrelevant, but certainly not conducive to warm and fuzzy faith.
I have to keep reminding myself that these cost $70 each. Box notwithstanding they're better than $70.

Buddha
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Hi, Nspei!

Thanks for the report.

The way you describe these speakers reminds me of that speaker from Best Buy that was 49.00 per pair that got the audio websites all aflutter last year.

As a cheap diversion from the wearying cost of Hi Fi gear, this may be a good side project, for sure.

My neighbor, Big Mike has a favored concoction of glue and sand and some other material that he has mixed up and used to damp cabinaets without taking up alot of interior volume. That, plus judicious batting and attention to diffractive surfaces may pay big dividends. At that price point, some felt driver surrounds might perk things up for a small increase in cost.

Even some Radio Shack binding posts may have an impact.

Lastly, I bet those drivers are almost left to fend from themselves with regard to a true crossover. I don't know the ins and outs, but some cheap caps and resistors may let those babies sing better, too.

Anyway, keep us up to date. I'm intrigued by your project.

JoeE SP9
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At $139 a pair they are something I'm going to seriously think about. What have you got to loose? I could sell them to the denizens of my neighborhood for what I paid if I don't like them.
EDIT: The shipping charges are $79!!! That must be how they make their money.

Yiangos
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I know this brand.It's a "white van" brand.Just do a search on the web and you'll find out yourself or check just one of the many "anti-scam" sites like scamshield.com

nspei
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Yep, it certainly IS a white van brand! I can well imagine that some poor suckers looked at the MSRP and paid much more than I did, and for them I feel sorry....I wouldn't want to have paid any more than I did for these things. I bought them out of interest, no other reason - and I don't really think they'll have the High-End quaking.
Some informal frequency tests seem to demonstrate a seriously limited frequency response (in my small room), and doubling below 55Hz. There doesn't seem to be much information above 10KHz. And yes, there are noticeable humps around 75Hz and maybe 200Hz. These might be somewhat fixable with damping the enclosures.
However, the image is stable with a decent sense of spatial location, with reasonable depth and height. Some of the listening has actually been very enjoyable. I'm still surprised at the euphony with some difficult choral music - although male choirs don't do quite so well (my suspicion is this is to do with missing information - upper harmonics for example: they simply don't go there) On Day Two of this self-infliction I'd have to say that despite some very serious limitations these aren't altogether awful (how's that for faint praise!) I've listened for hours at a stretch, and am not suffering. For neighbors looking for an ultra-cheap speaker, I wouldn't feel terribly guilty suggesting these. I agree with Buddha; they're an interesting and fun diversion from the usual expensive gear.
They might well sound better with a little judicious damping and upgrading - and as long as it's cheap, why not? So far I'm actually enjoying some of the sounds coming out of these resonant boxes. Always, of course, bearing in mind what the dollar cost was.
Bottom line so far, for the fun-factor, I'd say they're worth the paltry amount I paid!

Editor
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Quote:
Bottom line so far, for the fun-factor, I'd say they're worth the paltry amount I paid!

If you get tired of listening to them, "spei," I'd gladly run 'em through my measurement regime, to satisfy my idle curiosity.

John Atkinson
Editor, Stereophile

Buddha
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Quote:

Quote:
Bottom line so far, for the fun-factor, I'd say they're worth the paltry amount I paid!

If you get tired of listening to them, "spei," I'd gladly run 'em through my measurement regime, to satisfy my idle curiosity.

John Atkinson
Editor, Stereophile

That is my nomination right now for coolest idea of the year!

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I know I keep harping on this next part, but once again, I think we once again see the impact of ""different" or "new" and the seductive capacity of a novel experience. These speakers are probably much worse than they sound to you right now.

I don't mean that in a bad way, just thinking of past experience in the hobby.

Left unfiddled with, I would predict a relativey rapid transition to lisetning fatigue as you get used to the speaker's flaws; but right now, it's flaws are not the same as your usual speaker's flaws...and therein lies the seduction.

As I always say, "It's just like dating. The newest chick always seems better until you become familiar with and tired of he flaws."

The other Hi Fi lesson, just like with dating, is "Beware any new product that calls special/unique attention to itself, or is overy 'vivacious' or 'seductive' at first listen. Therein lies the most direct path to Hi Fi dissatisfaction."

No offense, ladies.

nspei
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John - excellent offer! Let me ponder this when I return.

Nick

nspei
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Buddha,
As your name suggests, what you say is wise. Doesn't sound like "harping" to me.
I'll bet you're right, but I'm going to try to listen through my "dollars-paid filter" (which, incidentally, guarantees to smooth out any too-radical frequency anomalies

nspei
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I just thought...If JA does some measurements of these babies, and he actually does some listening (if he can take it) maybe we could initiate a new Stereophile Award - how about "Product of the Nanosecond Award"?

Jeff Wong
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A full review of this speaker would probably be out of place in the magazine, however, it could make for a pretty fascinating feature article, where 3 or 4 well known cheapo products were measured and plugged into a reference quality system (one at a time) and given an overview. Comparing the measured and heard performance to true high-end gear might illustrate how far apart things really might be.

jazzfan
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Quote:
A full review of this speaker would probably be out of place in the magazine, however, it could make for a pretty fascinating feature article, where 3 or 4 well known cheapo products were measured and plugged into a reference quality system (one at a time) and given an overview. Comparing the measured and heard performance to true high-end gear might illustrate how far apart things really might be.

Jeff,

I think you're onto something there but with just a little bit of "tweaking" your idea could be made into a really interesting article. Why not make it into a three tiered shoot out with the "high end" speakers on the top tier, the mid-fi speakers on the middle tier and the "white van" speakers on the lowest tier.

Compare build quality, sound quality and measurements and make a "bang for the buck" graph similar to the ones sometime seen in various computer magazines. I'm pretty sure that many "high end" speakers would do quite well but I have my doubts about several of the mid-fi speaker brands.

atom
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I guess the offer for the speakers is reasonable enough.

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