hORNS universum videos

[bonzo75]

I m gonna do a full Horn you tube investigation at work on wednesday .
Thanks for posting everybody

That's great. Will you be doing full set amps investigation on Thursday and all analog on Friday?

 

[andromedaaudio]

Haha , i m doing SET investigation on Tangs channel already but may be who knows.
You know me i rarely spin cds even now with the levinson dac in the house.
" Turntables are to complicated for me to many variables" so no .
But people here have stunning systems /horns

 

[wil]

Could you post the source information on these videos? Vinyl, Streaming? Specific performance? That makes the videos useful if someone wanted to compare the a recording of their own system.

 

[Alrainbow]

More to follow. This is not really a compare but to show consistency achieved by same speaker corners reissue in two different rooms with different equipment with the speaker.

Can you be more specific both systems sounds completely different , what consistency am i missing ..?

 

[bonzo75]

Can you be more specific both systems sounds completely different , what consistency am i missing ..?

It has to sound different with different electronics. If it sounds the same that is bad. But in both you can hear the musical details. The rest is for the individual to experiment and tune to his preference. From both videos I can see that one is not a lucky sounding set up where everything aligned by accident, but these two set ups, and as Aviad further experiments with different electronics will show that the musical character stay through. Sure, you can add a bit of air here, bass there, by changing one or two components. If course if one likes neither that's different, then the speaker is not for him

 

[bonzo75]

Could you post the source information on these videos? Vinyl, Streaming? Specific performance? That makes the videos useful if someone wanted to compare the a recording of their own system.

All were vinyl except for the Bach cantata as mentioned

 

[bonzo75]

Scheherazade from byrdparis

This is the same scheherazade LP. Apologies it is noisy but I take my 33 rpm analog productions around while I keep my new classic records 45 rpm packed. This is playing with the big 80 watts Ming Da SETs, not with Allnic phono But with audio detail, and a 500 GBP AT33 cart .

 

[byrdparis]

All were vinyl except for the Bach cantata as mentioned

sorry not to mentioned, the two bach suit were from TIDAL streaming thru aurunder N10 and CH Precision C1 DAC
everything else i or bonzo posted from my system were LPs.

 

[andromedaaudio]

I have listened to both systems on a couple of vids .
And they both sound nice i think.
Are they more dynamic then a cone system ,? not necessarily imo , it depends on the cone design
If you listen to my last tape on tangs channel of the orchestrra it gets very dynamik .
regarding byrdparis system i can hear the KT 120 character coming through , i have Tungsols KT 120 .
The voice ( opera ) SET thing ? in the other horn system comes through very nice , which is a treat of hornsystems but they lack often in integration .
What they often do with horns is pick the music that suits the system .
This is a general remark .
I have a Bach cello suite no 1 on tape from Ultra analogue recordings , sound is very similair
I can make a vid playing the tape and post it here if interested ?

I ll listen some more.
Sheheradze sounds very different in both systems .
Sounds the set system passes through more detail but highlights things ,, the byrd paris hornsystem makes it sound more a coherent whole .
Byrd paris system sounds more like my own
Just my 2 cents

Ps i listen with sony NC headphones WH 1000X M3

 

[the sound of Tao]

One of the things that I have had as a takeaway from being able to listen to various horn systems in these video shares is how dominant the horn material is in the essential life and characteristics of the system.

I love the innately lively characteristic of composite horns and how they bring an enthusiasm and vitality to the presentation. Byrdparis’ horns have really clarified that for me. Timber horns like laminated birch in the Animas seem to relax the dynamism in some ways and I find also comfort in the ease that wood horns bring over composite horns. I really look forward to Bill sharing his horns as well as some future sonic glimpses of Duke’s new horns

I almost feel like exploring a multi way horn with composite horns for larger scale music and also keeping my two way laminated birch horn for smaller and more intimate scaled works might be a good plan for me. Either way a folded OB subwoofer is soon on the horizon here.

I appreciate all the sharing that goes on here in the forum especially within the horn community. The videos that Ked and Tang have both driven especially have generated a better understanding of the essential characteristics of the various horns which is especially vital in this topology as there is so much diversity in the sonic nature of the horns.

Beyond the essential joy in sharing great music and great sound I think this is also very much helping me hone in on my next diy speaker target. All the sharing is very much appreciated.

 

[byrdparis]

I have listened to both systems on a couple of vids .
And they both sound nice i think.
Are they more dynamic then a cone system ,? not necessarily imo , it depends on the cone design
If you listen to my last tape on tangs channel of the orchestrra it gets very dynamik .
regarding byrdparis system i can hear the KT 120 character coming through , i have Tungsols KT 120 .
The voice ( opera ) SET thing ? in the other horn system comes through very nice , which is a treat of hornsystems but they lack often in integration .
What they often do with horns is pick the music that suits the system .
This is a general remark .
I have a Bach cello suite no 1 on tape from Ultra analogue recordings , sound is very similair
I can make a vid playing the tape and post it here if interested ?

I ll listen some more.
Sheheradze sounds very different in both systems .
Sounds the set system passes through more detail but highlights things ,, the byrd paris hornsystem makes it sound more a coherent whole .
Byrd paris system sounds more like my own
Just my 2 cents

Ps i listen with sony NC headphones WH 1000X M3

Hello dear sir,
thank you for your kind reply.
Ked has a way of turn you (me/us) to a video clip producer )
but i did it gladly because its nice to share and give some back to the people who share in WBF a lot over the years and in general.

a few remarks as i discussed with Ked privately and in general regarding those clips (my own in any case)
1 - i am not in contest with anyone, and not in the "field" between Horns and cons obviously. i think each topology can do great things and less great...YMMV.

each topology brings something else to the table. i lived with cons all my life, Focal, Avalon, Audio physic, Magico (s1. s3mk3, q3) etc...
and i was dreaming of having a great horn system. mainly because i think they suits my idea for transparency , detail, clarity, dynamic and character.
with a lot of luck and some help from PPL around here; i choose the Universum mk4. and i'm glad i had.
they truly remarkable. i also trying for a couple of months now, different amps. and will continue in the future to try getting the Best from them (to my taste). some more amps need to enter my house in near future. but for now my own custom kt120 amps are fantastic to my needs.

2 - my taste in music is vary a lot, i listen most to classical music, but enjoy listening to ROCK, METAL, JAZZ, PROGRESSIVE etc... i think as everyone knows already, some speakers can do some stuff very very good. and other kind of music maybe a bit less. i think the "Uni" can do a lot of things great! and i like them with different styles, and not just a specific one, as might the average men will think they suited for.

i would LOVE to hear the bach sonata from tape playing your own system.

3 - as i talked to Ked a few days ago, there is so much variables in our phone recordings that its impossible to compare, nor to understand fully (in my idea not even close) what its sound like in our different room when we recorded.
the tiny iPhone mic can't begin to get the full magnitude and scaling nor the fines nuance and micro dynamics we feel in life.. but it's bring some of the enjoyment and characters that the UNI (and the rest of the system and rooms) play, so great, what the hack.

A

 

[bonzo75]

A couple of videos I had posted earlier on another thread

 

[bonzo75]

 

[bonzo75]

When Andromeda said he was going to do an investigation of horns and sets in one day, I knew his reply would be a disaster. The videos are meant to give an idea, not do a golden ear thesis without prior exposure to the equipment. Same as when you see new unfamiliar gear at a show.

For those who are looking at videos, all we are trying to show you is an overview of the type of sound you can get from these horns. The fact that they sound different with a CH phono, Allnic phono, SETs, and push pull is an advantage. The fact that they sound different with different recordings is an advantage. It means they are transparent. You want the sound to vary as you change.

Essentially here you see violin, orchestral, choral, vocals, cello, and piano played through different systems.

I don't want to make this a cone vs horn thread. Aviad already mentioned he owned some high end cones before moving.

 

[byrdparis]

here is something a bit different i did yesterday
Ella fitzgerald and Joe pass, lp (Pablo) on the J.sikora standard MAX with the KV12vta and ortofon Anna connecting to the CHP P1.

 

[bonzo75]

I have been listening to Anima since 2014, and universum since 2016. I like both. They both are very different and I could live loving both of them. The Scheherazade video, of all scheherazade videos posted, sounds best to me in the Anima, but that doesn't mean I will choose the Anima over universum. I can't recommend one over the other, it's very personal. If you like both you have an issue. If you dislike one it is easy. But that requires in room listening with different music, to go deeper than videos.

 

[andromedaaudio]

Off course , but these are ¨ pandemic reviews ¨ as you already stated the day before .

You gotta adapt

 

[andromedaaudio]

here is something a bit different i did yesterday
Ella fitzgerald and Joe pass, lp (Pablo) on the J.sikora standard MAX with the KV12vta and ortofon Anna connecting to the CHP P1.

Sounds nice , they look very nice too , balanced this way

 

[bonzo75]

Universum is one of the best I know at vocals and violin, very similar to electrostats. The Ella shows that.

 

[Audiophile Bill]

One of the things that I have had as a takeaway from being able to listen to various horn systems in these video shares is how dominant the horn material is in the essential life and characteristics of the system.

I love the innately lively characteristic of composite horns and how they bring an enthusiasm and vitality to the presentation. Byrdparis’ horns have really clarified that for me. Timber horns like laminated birch in the Animas seem to relax the dynamism in some ways and I find also comfort in the ease that wood horns bring over composite horns. I really look forward to Bill sharing his horns as well as some future sonic glimpses of Duke’s new horns

I almost feel like exploring a multi way horn with composite horns for larger scale music and also keeping my two way laminated birch horn for smaller and more intimate scaled works might be a good plan for me. Either way a folded OB subwoofer is soon on the horizon here.

I appreciate all the sharing that goes on here in the forum especially within the horn community. The videos that Ked and Tang have both driven especially have generated a better understanding of the essential characteristics of the various horns which is especially vital in this topology as there is so much diversity in the sonic nature of the horns.

Beyond the essential joy in sharing great music and great sound I think this is also very much helping me hone in on my next diy speaker target. All the sharing is very much appreciated.

Hi Graham,

Some interesting comments. Personally I think the life and vitality you refer to “in the composite” horns is not due to the composite horn material but the drivers. The 2 prominent composite horn vids are Uni and Cessaro both employing Be CDs (Radian and TAD) respectively. The Anima is a *very* different mid driver using paper cone and in and of itself radically different sounding.

Ime ymmv etc - composite horns add a *deleterious* plastic signature onto everything that is usually obviously heard. Ones ears can filter this out after a period of time but it is always there. This was one of the main reasons for me going to the trouble of my chosen path. I think some people are less susceptible to the plastic addition - it bothers me a lot and I wondered why. It is probably that I spent so much of my life listening (and playing) to classical instruments and you get acutely aware of it. As a brass player (myself) you have to learn to listen carefully to your tone and improve it over time with changes to your embouchure and / or breathing control.

In order to make this more objective, one just needs to do the correct test of same driver in same horn geometry with wood or composite and see. I spent several months doing this with a few full range drivers (AER, Stamm, Lowther and Voxativ). The test remains for me to repeat on the Be CDs - I am doing this very soon.

One final comment is that ideally the resonance of the horn itself is out of the frequency response range for that horn channel - i.e below the fc of the horn. To achieve this, *mass* and rigidity are essential. Thin body horns resonate and add their own distortion to the musical content. I tested this with vibration apps. The big mid bass horns are really tricky to stop this happening. That said it is possible to enjoy the additional resonance added to the signal.