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In the Forum: Playback Listening
In the Thread: Remedies the Beauty
Post Subject: To answer your questionPosted by N-set on: 10/26/2022
 Paul S wrote:

It seems from following these threads that no one so far has been content to stay focused on recreating the accidental success of the original Dunnoy/Dannoy. Is this because no one can actually recreate the original, or is it because everyone has issues with these speakers that they'd prefer to improve on? For instance, don't we always say that one wants 20 dB headroom. Does this mean people are happy listening at 70 dB, or does it mean that something about the Danoy "offsets" the need for headroom? I still can't figure out how you can push the Red down to 50Hz with the original configuration and also get the headroom? While multiple Red drivers sans tweeters "sounds logical", it would take some work to avoid serious combing.

I have no idea what was the original accidental success, only those present there know. So I use my inner reference. The first sounds were not breathtaking, but the sound started to grow on me (i.e. I was missing it) and after changing the floor has become very very interesting and magnetizing. What I'm missing is some air, some breathing. There is sth like a veil I'd like to remove. I don't know yet if that is an inherently limited dynamical range of this simple configuration  or other factors of my implementation:

1. The room: Not easy at all, pretty dead even when empty, complicated shape. Plus I've never had any speakers here (I moved few yrs ago and was concentrated on my Staxes) so only learning the room. After changing the floor the things have improved (=more alive). I start to research proper room treatment now. I also don't have much freedom in speaker location, which may not be the best in already difficult room.

2. Electronics: In lieu of a better one, I'm temporarily using Yamaha C1 pre which I got with B2. I suspect it is killing the sound. It was for sure killing bass in one of the channels due to a dirty pot. I plan to change it to 801A DIY. Also my B2 had dirty input pots and bypassing all that crap did help to open up the sound a bit.
3. The Staxes set the reference line very high, or perhaps better said, somewhere else. The direct and immediate connection to the musical material is hard to beat.
Other random comments:
1. When you look at the speaker response (e.g. my curves up the thread) a natural question arises if you can add some reinforcement below 50Hz? It does not feel much like one needs it when listening but a temptation grows to extend this magic of Dannoy bass even lower. That's why there is a lot of talking of adding drivers, active or passive, increasing the dias etc etc. In my personal context I was also hoping to get more of that "breathing" with a proper LF. Comments of the guys who had time to experiment with adding a LF are not very encouraging though - hard to extend the bass without spoiling the elegance of the sound.

2. IIRC, Bill measured 90+dB before distortion. Subjectively, they can play loud but "not into the face". In any case, in my room the sound of big orchestras is missing some scale and size. If this is inherent to this simple design, my room, my electronics, or a mix of all, I cannot say until I at least change the pre and play with the room.

Hope this answers a bit.








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