Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site
In the Forum: Audio News
In the Thread: The best speaker in the world, is yet again available
Post Subject: The best speaker in the world, is yet again availablePosted by Gregm on: 10/24/2007
...For only $ 25k: http://polymeraudio.com/index.html It is sold under the name Polymer Audio and these people also sell amplifiers called "DK design"
I haven't listened to this product & am referring here to the unusual marketing content in their site.
They state their speaker is "best" & they set out to prove this by named comparisons with 2 other speakers... an unusual marketing twist. They don't actually prove anything, but...
...they also give a quick bill of materials vs retail price comparison for a number of named speakers which I found interesting, and they refer to the drivers used in 6-7 models out there.
So their approach is, with us you get a lot more for your money and here's the proof. Whether you need what you get -- or like its sound -- is another matter, it's neither here nor there.
In fact I find this an acceptable argument within one context, at least: if you need what you get (i.e. anyone wishing to diy a very trendy speaker) it's better to buy the speakers & use them as parts rather than buy the parts off the shelf! That much is proven on their site.
What you get for USD: 25k. Two boxes made out of wood & polymer. A super-duper passive xover with selected parts, etc, etc, and one cut-off @ 500Hz /can't tell about the others/ , which took 6-7 yrs of hard-work to design (in fact, some of the drivers used weren't available then -- how's that for forward looking
). You get a 1" titanium dome Supravox tweet; a 2,5"Thiel & partner diamond-ceramic "midrange "unit (allegedly these cost $12k each), and, placed far apart, two 7" mid-bass units paper (?) metal(?) with titanium sprinkled on them from somewhere in Italy. You also get the necessary complement of internal wire, binding posts, support platform.
Interesting comparisons:
it's cheaper than a Tiffany engagement ring, they say, for example. Tiffany's engagement rings, however, have a frequency response of 2Hz - 1,2MHz depending on how well one perceives the loved one wearing that ring and the moment... so that comparison is unsuccessful.
It's better than a Marten Supreme because the mid is cut off @500Hz whereas Marten cuts it off at 1,3kHz "where the ear is at its most sensitive". Note: they must be referring to latest technology ears -- not the traditional ones (i.e. the ones most people on this site probably use). Whatever, if you say so.
It's better than a Magico Mini!!! Now you're talking!
Actually a good question would be, "in what way is it better? Sound for oscilloscopes or JM Jarre?" This question as in: "I heard JMJ being played through a Magico Mini, and the rendition of the chipset in the CMI.... floored me it was so realistic".
That 2,5" ceramic must be doing a hell of a job playing well at 500-600Hz up to I-don't-know-where (5-6 kHz ?)...
Anyway there it is for your casual perusal.Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site