CBM-170 vs. Rocket ELT LRS vs. Athena AS-B1

[Darek]

Do any of you know how the Rocket ELT or the Athena AS-B1 would compare to the CBM-170 ?

[BradJudy]

The best answer is to listen for yourself. Assuming you ignore this advice....

I bought Ascends before the ELT line was introduced, so I might be biased, but I prefer the sound of the CBM-170 to the ELT LRS.

Right now, the ELTs are very cheap because the line is being retired. This means a good deal now, but if you aren't planning on buying a whole setup at the moment, you might have to hunt for used items to complete your setup. You didn't give much information, so I don't know if this works for or counter to your plans.

I have never listened to the Athenas.

[Kurt C.]

The best answer is to listen for yourself. Assuming you ignore this advice....

I have two pairs of the Athena AS-B1s and an AS-C1. The B1s are the best speaker I've heard that can be obtained for ~$100/pair, but... I'm saving for some CBM-170s.

If you can afford them, get the 170s.

[Darek]

If you can afford them, get the 170s

Speaking of which.....where are the b stock listings on this website?

[curtis]

Ascend typically does not have a lot of b-stock items, so they do not have a web listing for them. You need to call and ask....and possibly get on a waiting list.

[JohnnyCasaba]

I own the 170's and have heard the ELT's, FWIW, I prefer the 170 (I know, a big shock on the Ascend forum, lol). Like Brad, I had the 170's already when I heard the ELT's, to my ears, the ELT's are brighter and thinner sounding. But your ears are different, you may like them more, try to hear both if you can. Never heard the Athena's outside of Best Buy, so I won't comment on them.

[Darek]

Thanks for the responses.

I called and they are actually out of B stock and A stock untill October 10th. But that just gave me more time to do more research and like someone else that posted on this forum, you can't find anything but high praise....raves for these speakers. My decission is getting easier all the time.

[PhenomeNhan]

I own a pair of ELT LRS (soon to be 3 pairs....had to pick up 2 more pair with their current $100 sale). I've heard the 170s, and it is definitely better than the ELTs. But at $100/pair, the ELTs are an incredible value.

Like someone said, if you can afford the 170s, go for it.

As for the Athenas, I never liked what I heard at BB (not a fair assessment, but oh well). I like the Yamaha NS777 and 555 that were next to the ASF2 (or whatever the big Athena tower model was) that were at BB. I liked the Yamahas more and wondered why many were raving about the Athenas so much. Again, this was at BB, so take it with a grain of salt.

[S_rangeBrew]

As for the Athenas, I never liked what I heard at BB (not a fair assessment, but oh well). I like the Yamaha NS777 and 555 that were next to the ASF2 (or whatever the big Athena tower model was) that were at BB. I liked the Yamahas more and wondered why many were raving about the Athenas so much. Again, this was at BB, so take it with a grain of salt.

Had the same experience with the Athenas. I thought the JBLs were better. Didn't even take the Athenas home to test, they sounded so much worse. Once again, this was in the supercalifragilistic listening conditions in Best Buy, so take it with a grain of salt.

[Kurt C.]

Had the same experience with the Athenas. I thought the JBLs were better. Didn't even take the Athenas home to test, they sounded so much worse. Once again, this was in the supercalifragilistic listening conditions in Best Buy, so take it with a grain of salt.

Wow! In the future I'm going think twice before I tell someone that "speaker X isn't good because I heard it at BB and it sounded terrible". I listened to several different sets of JBL, Yamaha, and Sony MB10 (consumer reports ranked it as their "Best Buy") speakers at BB and the Athena Audition series sounded much better. Obviously speaker location was the difference.

This proves again that the 'room' and location of a speaker have a powerful influence on how the speaker sounds. If I had heard the same speakers with their positions swapped, I'd be giving a totally different ranking.

An aside. This may explain why B*se speakers sell well at BB--B*ose makes sure that their tiny satellite systems are heard in a B*se manufactured display that allows one to experience decent surround sound. None of the other manufacturers do this.