Sierra-1 speakers - ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC!

[LATE 2 WORK]

Hello Everyone,

I just received my new Sierra-1 speakers this week in the high-gloss black bamboo, and the fit and finish are outstanding!

I want to start my review by saying that I love music and have been singing all my life along with playing drums. I also have a home recording studio and collect speakers from many different manufacturers. It's a hobby of sorts, but more of a passion than anything else.

When my hearing was tested in a professional sound chamber, the doctor said my hearing was nothing short of extraordinary. I'm saying this only because placement of energy or sound in space really only comes from the perceiver. While my unusual hearing abilities do not make me any more qualified to review speakers than anyone else, I may be able to provide some unique insights that you might find helpful.

First we'll talk about the packaging. The speakers were double-packed cradled in special foam to ensure no damage. The packaging was first rate in every way. For those people wondering whether these speakers are going to get to them in one piece, rest assured these speakers should arrive in perfect condition.

Second, I don't think money necessarily makes better sound. In other words expensive speakers do not equal incredible sound. I have heard many very expensive speakers that to my ears or perception were nothing to write home about. While I can afford pretty much any speakers that I want, I have found that just spending more money doesn't necessarily give you better sound.

There are basic principles in sound reproduction that help to create undistorted frequencies. The Sierra-1 speakers are an extraordinary value because of their undistorted sound reproduction, which easily surpasses more expensive speakers in many categories.

16-bit recordings for the past 15 years or so have been terrible for music in general, and there have been many technologies trying to compensate for technology that has been inadequate at best. From my understanding, the most important aspect of sound reproduction is the recording itself. How the music was recorded, the technology used while recording it, the room it was recorded in, the way the mix-down was done, and the technologies involved in bringing the live feeling back to the music, are all key factors.

So for me to get the most incredible sound it is extremely important to start with an incredible recording. Great speakers that reproduce sound accurately will only amplify what's there, and nothing more. I feel the speakers should be almost invisible from the technology aspect of sound reproduction, and the after-effects should be reproduced by other equipment, but not by the speakers. This is something that the Sierra-1s do outstandingly.

These speakers become invisible to the music by getting out of the way and allowing the details to come through, because of the uncanny smoothness of the overall signature of the driver placement. The tweeters are truly outstanding. They are not hot or cold, they just reproduce a neutral musical reproduction, nothing more and nothing less. The Sierra-1s have probably one of the best tweeters I've heard to date, not because they do something but because of what they don't do. With every song that I've played, I've heard reproduced frequencies that I never heard on any other speakers.

I used one of the many bookshelf speakers that I own, the new NHT Model 3s, to do extensive A/B comparisons at the exact same sound level with the same songs. Every time the Sierra-1 speakers reproduced the music with greater detail and less distortion. Some very important aspects to me, the mid-base and base, are extraordinary in these speakers. When the tom toms become muddied in a speaker in any way, then you know the sound is not accurate. But the Sierra-1s reproduce mid-bass and bass more accurately than any bookshelf speaker I've heard to date.

3 aspects of the Sierra-1s that stand out in my perception; Smoothness, Clarity, and Detail... everything that I'm looking for in a fantastic bookshelf speaker! The dynamics, recovery, and placement are all outstanding.

I just got through listening to the new Paradigm Reference Signature S1 bookshelf speakers with the all metal enclosures, which I'll be buying when they're available for sale in a few weeks. They'll be selling for $1599 a pair, and I plan to A/B test them against the Sierra-1s once I have them home. When I get a chance to go up to my other home, I'll do more extensive A/B testing against my other reference bookshelf speakers.

For now let me just say that the Sierra-1s are world-class in my book and truly invisible before the music! Here's to the silence between the measure, for this is where the real magic begins...

LATE 2 WORK

[tjennings]

Wow, thanks for your opinion Late 2 Work! I'm saving my pennies so I can upgrade my 340 SE's to the Sierra-1's.

[Mike^S]

Hi, Great review! Is this the NHT speaker you mentioned?

http://www.nhthifi.com/products/three.html

[enoch]

I'm thinking about getting some Sierra's...recently sold my NHT Classic 3's. At the same volume levels, did the Sierra's play any louder than the NHT's? Though they are rated at a sensitivity of 86 db, they actually (according to Stereophile) have a sensitivity around 83 db. From your review, it appears that the Sierra's offered more detail to you than the NHT's...and that's impressive, because the level of detail was something I really liked with the Classics. Just wondering if the detail was improved due to the Sierra's going louder at the same levels?

[Mag_Neato]

The ability to play louder at a given wattage relative to another speaker has little to do with a speaker's ability to resolve detail. Take Klipsch as an example. Very sensitive and can play very loud with low power. Compared to NHT, or Ascend, I would not characterize them as more detailed. There's much more to designing a detailed, accurate speaker then raw output.

[enoch]

I understand...I've had Klipsch and I agree with what you are saying. I was just wondering if the OP's perception of greater detail was based on the Sierra possibly playing louder at the same level as the NHT.

[LATE 2 WORK]

Hi tjennings!

I’m glad I could be of help to you, and I sincerely hope you enjoy the Sierra-1 speakers when you get them. I like the feeling of saving your pennies and putting them where your joy leads you...here’s to your having the most joy in your life!


Hi Mike^S! Yes, the speakers that I A/B tested the Sierra-1s against are the NHT Classic 3s referred to in your link. The NHTs are great for what I use them for, which is on my Apple iMac. Wishing you the deepest bass possible...


Hi enoch! Very good question! Yes, the Sierra-1s have a higher efficiency rating in the real world than the NHTs. I’ll elaborate further for you and anyone else who may be interested in this.

All computers that I design and build are 20 dBA or lower, whereas the average computer is around 55 dBA. A 25 dBA computer to my ears is loud, as I can hear a clock ticking on the other side of the house. So the way I A/B test all my speakers is by running a very high quality test signal through the speakers and then matching the sound pressure levels to be the same using a digital sound meter. Once this is set, I go ahead with the A/B test.

In my understanding of sound reproduction, everything after the initial frequency reaction or instrument is a reactionary effect, not causal. That means that all technologies are just aftereffects and come down to a person’s ability to perceive various frequencies. What I’m saying is that sound pressure levels have more to do with a person’s perception than anything else. You could have two pairs of identical speakers at the exact same sound pressure level set through very sensitive electronic testing, and yet no two people will perceive those sound levels to be the same because everyone is unique and becomes aware of frequencies in different ways.

The stereo field that was created a long time ago is not really compatible with the way the body processes sound, because stereo imaging is very unnatural. As more of the technologies of directing frequencies in space come about, you’ll see more and more of the technologies going toward a holographic type of technology, because the body processes sound holographically instead of co-directionally.

I’ve done many blind studies with people listening to super expensive stereo equipment compared against inexpensive equipment. In a real test of cause and effect playing the exact same music at the exact same sound pressure levels within a group of 20 or 30 people, none of them can detect the supposed aftereffect. It’s priceless to watch the look on their faces when the test subjects realize they actually chose and preferred a pair of $800 speakers over the $20,000 ones which they had already bought and paid for. I always advise people to stop trying to buy perception, as it’s not for sale.

In general, much of what is sold to the public is just expensive hype. In the real world I’ve proven to myself and others many times over that the most important instrument of all is the person perceiving the frequencies, because if a person is not aware of something then it’s completely invisible to them anyway. That said, just because it’s invisible to a person doesn’t mean the frequency is not there.

One case in point is that with the current technology of speakers now, the second they go past their balance point within the space you put them in, the field becomes completely collapsed and the frequencies collide like balls on a pool table. This is because of the technology itself. The technology is not yet capable of holographic inter-relationship with the environment. As the understanding of how sound is actually created grows, the technologies will become more evolved with these understandings. For now, the technologies are for the most part in kindergarten.

What I’ve always said is to allow yourself to have the freedom to feel and think beyond the speed of sound...Hope this helps you and remember to have FUN along the way!

LATE 2 WORK

[Mike^S]

Wow, somebody preferred the Sierras over a $20,000 pair of speakers? I love my Sierras, but Wow! That's amazing!

[LATE 2 WORK]

Hello Everyone!

I just wanted to quickly clarify that while the Sierra-1s are totally awesome speakers which I feel easily outperform more expensive speakers, the Sierra-1s were not the speakers used in the real life blind tests I referred to. Please understand that I only just received my Sierra-1s last week, myself.

I personally really love the fact that the Sierra-1s are made with a bamboo case instead of wood, because I’ve always thought bamboo was one of the most incredible building materials available.

Here's to making the world a better a place in any way that we possibly can...

LATE 2 WORK

[enoch]

Late 2 Work: Just ordered a pair of Sierra's in natural (that's the finish my wife preferred )and they will hopefully get to me by early next week. I am looking forward to listening to them! I too like the fact that they are made from an eco-friendly renewable resource.