nva lousdspeakers , what do you think about them?

edited January 2011 in Loudspeakers
Hi guys , as the title suggests , what's your opinion on cube 1, cube 2 , cube 3 (old model) and cubix speakers ?
tnx
ciao
s.

Comments

  • Hi Sergio. You're opening a can of worms here ;-)




    I don't like them, to be absolutely honest, sorry Ben (@Docfoster will be along soon to rubbish my views).

    They are brash, hard to listen to and spread detail all around the room.

    But that's only my opinion - but as a long-term NVA amp nut.
  • edited January 2011
    Hi ugly, tnx! In your opinion this harsh sound they produce can be the result of a bad positioning or they give an  aggressive and forward sound in all cases ?
    tnx
    ciao,
    s.
  • edited January 2011
    From my experience, that's how they are.

    But Ben has a pair of Cubes, and I'm sure he can give you very good reasons why I'm totally and utterly wrong 
    :)
  • However seems they were heard only by a bunch of people, let's say the nva-junkies :-))))
  • I am an NVA junkie. Possibly the longest using NVA junkie. 
  • edited January 2011
    Hi Sergio,

    I used the NVA cube for about 6 weeks, the ones that had the 6.5 inch driver & were sold to the music teacher in Antwerp. I had them for about 6 weeks, Bi-amped with '70s & '40s.

    They are scary dynamic, in yer face, rude speakers, they are very revealing. I do understand their being described as aggressive. I found they were always 'loud' even when quiet, but the scale they produce was just huge.

    To illustrate: my Royds produce an accurate reproduction of a scaled down band/orchestra in my lounge; the cubes bring all 18 musicians into the room with me. It's almost a case of sensory overload.

    My biggest criticism is that they are coloured; forgivably so perhaps, but having been spoiled by my RR3s I couldn't accept them. I thought carefully about selling the Royds to get the prototype cubes (I was offered a good price) but I was not prepared to accept the trade off. The fact I was considering it at all is testament to their strengths.

    Gromit had them before me, and he also had the newer, smaller cubes as well; I'm sure he can describe them more eloquently. I will say this - the cubes haven't left me. I often wonder how the cubes would sound on certain tracks even now - they are nothing if not exiting.
  • I have the cube 1s. I love 'em with my all nva amp/cable setup. Very natural presentation. This could as equally be called 'revealing' as Alan calls it.

    Dynamic yes - but I feel that this is part of their natural/revealing presentation. (Live instruments are very dynamic in terms of dB levels!). (The 8 inch driver delivers impressive but tuneful wallop.)

    They replaced a pair of huge Dynaudio Audience 82 3 way floorstanders in my system. I took about a month to choose (my back still bares the scars), and by the end of that time the Cubes had opened up massively and surpassed easily the impressive Dyns. During this break-in period the Cubes also became more transparent. They are are a different speaker now to the one I picked up from RD at Scalford.

    My one word of caution would be that the Cube 1s seem very room- and position fussy. In Scalford Hall the room was too big and the Cubes sounded drained and insipid. At the Whittlebury show the room was too small and the sound was cluttered. In RD's lounge (I felt) the speakers were too close to the rear wall, and again the sound was cluttered. Fortunately they seem to suit my lounge (4mx8m), with about 1/2 metre to rear and side walls.

    BTW I'm hoping to host a speaker get together at my home in Gloucester on 20th Feb. Figlet (Jason) is coming with his fancy floorstanders. Anyone interested in Cube 1s or in bringing their own speakers along, let me know!

    Ben

  • edited January 2011
    To add one other thing. The cube 1s seem to have lowish sensitivity. This might be due to their woofers firing vertically upwards.
    Being NVA no figures obviously, but given the same amp volume setting, the cube 1s were noticeably quieter than the Dynaudios, rated at 87db.
    That said, I've never been in any way concerned that the system with the cube 1s was struggling.
  • edited January 2011
    I don't like them at all.
    Coloured and shouty IMO and much as Dave describes.

    Undamped acrylic cubes are not good for speakers IMO, nor is running a metal dome at anything other than a high crossover point when on a first order filter.

    I like the Alison designs on which they are apparently modelled but those used bespoke drivers built for the job, and much better suited to shallow crossover slopes.


  • Looks like I'm outside the marquee on this one... %-(
    Rob - I don't think the tweeters are metal. They don't look like it anyway...
    Ben
  • Rob & Ben

    The current generation of NVA speakers no longer use metal tweeters. 
  • I have mixed feelings about the Cubes albeit having only heard them a couple of times. I think Richard deliberately designed them to produce a big and brash sound to compliment his new range of Statement amps. Hence they are not everyone's cup of tea.  For me they are incredibly dynamic with a huge 3D soundstage. This however spreads the music a little thinly in my view with a resulting loss in resolution. They are very unique and unconventional and definitely an acquired taste.
  • edited January 2011
    I have mixed feelings about the Cubes albeit having only heard them a couple of times. I think Richard deliberately designed them to produce a big and brash sound to compliment his new range of Statement amps. Hence they are not everyone's cup of tea.  For me they are incredibly dynamic with a huge 3D soundstage. This however spreads the music a little thinly in my view with a resulting loss in resolution. They are very unique and unconventional and definitely an acquired taste.
    I think I agree with this absolutely Mervyn. Subtle they aint.

    Ben, you mention efficiency & loudness, but I couldn't ever get them quiet enough for day-to-day listening or TV use; they are able to put on a performance but never fade into the background & just disappear for a while - I guess I just found them tiring. Although, they are very capable speakers, and most impressive in their own right. No other speaker can do what they do, that is for sure, and I absolutely understand your loving their immediacy & dynamics.
  • Rob & Ben

    The current generation of NVA speakers no longer use metal tweeters. 
    Ah ok.

    Same comments would apply though for any dome.
    Standard dome tweeter distortion is high at the low end of the range and a simple electrical filter will highlight this. Brashness and muddle is a good way to describe the effect. More as you turn up the wick.

    Worth looking at old AR and Alison tweeters which had larger radiating area and were designed for a gentle slope filter. The concept is fine but I don't think it translates properly into the NVA designs - you must as a minimum use bespoke drivers IMO.
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