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Thread: Sierra-2 Development Thread

  1. #681
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    Nov 2011
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    Default Re: Sierra-1 NrT: Next phase?

    Custom-tooled, magnesium cast basket frame...I think I'm gonna have a crisis! So how many multivitamins did you have to purchase in order to extract the magnesium for the basket? I'm thinking of a prime number between 90 quadrillion and my calculator broke.

    My coworkers must wonder why I've got a stupid-looking grin on my face this afternoon. It's magnesium, baby!
    -Jacob

  2. #682
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    Default Re: Sierra-1 NrT: Next phase?

    Magnesium is a piece of cake compared to acquiring enough Kryptonite for the new caps in the crossover.........!
    Ed

    * Sierra-2EX's W/V2 crossover upgrade
    * (2) Rythmik F12's
    * Parasound Halo P6
    * Audio by Van Alstine DVA-M225 Monoblock Amps
    * MiniDSP 2x4HD For Sub calibration
    *World's Best Cables Canare 4S11 speaker cables

  3. #683
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
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    394

    Default Re: Sierra-1 NrT: Next phase?

    Quote Originally Posted by davef View Post
    You guys seriously crack me up.. You guessed it, you are going to have to gut the woofers and install the motor assembly, surround and spider into the new baskets..

    Seriously though, and here is something that will surprise you -- that custom tooled cast basket frame is magnesium. Only one woofer vendor I know of that uses cast magnesium basket frames.
    Finally, proof positive the new 2s will be getting a new woofer!!!!! WOOF WOOF

    Used to live in Security, CO. fairly close to Ft. Carson. Often times when they were having night exercises they used magnesium flares attached to parachutes to light up the "playing field". I would guess this alloy is non-flammable?

    Too cool, these new drivers sound like they're going to be major high tech! Can't wait for the rest of the details! Neodymium magnet perhaps?

    Jay

  4. #684
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    Default Re: Sierra-1 NrT: Next phase?

    Quote Originally Posted by RRT-NPS View Post
    Curtis, that thread on AVS is where I read that the modified Sierra 1 would best the Sierra 2.
    I think that post referred to the specific tweeter, as our custom RAAL 70-20xr is the overall better tweeter compared to the custom RAAL we are using in the Sierra-2. However, it is not as simple as this -- it is all a matter of determining which component is more appropriate for the specific application. The Sierra-2 ribbon has wider horizontal and vertical dispersion, which is more appropriate for a bookshelf speaker, while it does sacrifice some dynamics compared to the 70-20. However, and I must stress this point so as to not cause any confusion, the dynamic capabilities of the RAAL 70-20xr are overkill for a bookshelf speaker and the dynamic capabilities of the Sierra-2 ribbon actually exceed that of our highly regarded NrT dome.

    I have been listening to the Sierra-2's for 2 months now and I am hooked. They do everything anyone could possibly ask for in a bookshelf speaker
    .
    .
    .
    Good Sound To You!

    David Fabrikant
    www.ascendacoustics.com

  5. #685
    Join Date
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    373

    Default Re: Sierra-1 NrT: Next phase?

    Quote Originally Posted by davef View Post
    I have been listening to the Sierra-2's for 2 months now and I am hooked. They do everything anyone could possibly ask for in a bookshelf speaker
    Wow! On top of everything else, they are invisible and free?! You really did think of everything, Dave!

    haha -- j/k, of course

    In all seriousness, though, congratulations! This has been an absolutely massive undertaking of a project. It's gone far beyond anything I would have expected. The normal corse of action in this business seems to be, "hey, we bought a giant pile of these drivers, and we have a giant pile of these cabinets. Let's stuff one into the other, and call it a day!"

    Definitely not Dave's style though! I have to say, a great deal of credit must be given to Aleksandar over at RAAL. Certainly not every driver manufacturer would agree to take so much time and put in so much effort to develop such a custom and specific driver. Certainly not when they already had something of a similar design already in their lineup. The normal response would have been, "why don't you just adjust your cabinets to use the driver that we already make?" But not Aleksandar. It really is such a great working relationship that Ascend and RAAL have forged. Both willing to go many extra miles to really do things right, rather than just aiming for the path of least resistance.

    Kudos to all involved! I WILL be a Sierra-2 owner at some point in some form.


  6. #686
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Posts
    277

    Default Re: Sierra-1 NrT: Next phase?

    Quote Originally Posted by Peabody View Post
    And... I placed an order for my new 5.1 speakers today!! Towers and Horizon w/RAAL, CBM-170, and F15HP. I added this not to brag.. ok, maybe a little.. but so you won't think I'm just some nutcase who goes around randomly reading forums.
    Some of us nutcases take offense! We carefully plot what forums to read, and when.

    Congrats on the order Peabody!

    Mark

  7. #687
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    Default Re: Sierra-1 NrT: Next phase?

    Quote Originally Posted by jonathan_teller View Post
    Wow! On top of everything else, they are invisible and free?! You really did think of everything, Dave!

    haha -- j/k, of course

    In all seriousness, though, congratulations! This has been an absolutely massive undertaking of a project. It's gone far beyond anything I would have expected. The normal corse of action in this business seems to be, "hey, we bought a giant pile of these drivers, and we have a giant pile of these cabinets. Let's stuff one into the other, and call it a day!"

    Definitely not Dave's style though! I have to say, a great deal of credit must be given to Aleksandar over at RAAL. Certainly not every driver manufacturer would agree to take so much time and put in so much effort to develop such a custom and specific driver. Certainly not when they already had something of a similar design already in their lineup. The normal response would have been, "why don't you just adjust your cabinets to use the driver that we already make?" But not Aleksandar. It really is such a great working relationship that Ascend and RAAL have forged. Both willing to go many extra miles to really do things right, rather than just aiming for the path of least resistance.

    Kudos to all involved! I WILL be a Sierra-2 owner at some point in some form.

    Credit must also be shared with Olav Arntzen, Director/President of SEAS (SEAS is making the custom woofers for us ) Olav has gone above and beyond to make this happen for us, the woofer has been an unbelievable undertaking. Samples upon samples over the past 2 years, many revisions, a half dozen drawings -- it was actually more time-consuming and more difficult than the tweeter. More on the woofer as we get closer, I still have to approve the tooling

    However, it is important to stress this -- these are not off-the-shelf parts being forced to work together by means of a crossover -- with the help of those mentioned (and many engineers), these components have been specifically designed to work together with each other, which greatly simplifies the crossover network and continues with the Sierra-1 paradigm of the less is more mantra.

    This has been the single largest engineering project I have ever been involved with, be that with Ascend or previous companies I have worked for. I can not even begin to describe the many issues we have had to overcome and the countless sleepless nights. To be honest, I came close to scrapping this project many times and if not for our remarkable relationship with both SEAS and RAAL, who were both willing to endure and help overcome the many challenges - this speaker, at least in its highly optimized form, would simply not exist.

    While we are not there just yet, I believe all hurdles have been overcome and it should be smooth sailing from here forward....
    .
    .
    .
    Good Sound To You!

    David Fabrikant
    www.ascendacoustics.com

  8. #688
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Location
    New Orleans, LA
    Posts
    74

    Default Re: Sierra-1 NrT: Next phase?

    Quote Originally Posted by davef View Post
    I think that post referred to the specific tweeter, as our custom RAAL 70-20xr is the overall better tweeter compared to the custom RAAL we are using in the Sierra-2. However, it is not as simple as this -- it is all a matter of determining which component is more appropriate for the specific application. The Sierra-2 ribbon has wider horizontal and vertical dispersion, which is more appropriate for a bookshelf speaker, while it does sacrifice some dynamics compared to the 70-20. However, and I must stress this point so as to not cause any confusion, the dynamic capabilities of the RAAL 70-20xr are overkill for a bookshelf speaker and the dynamic capabilities of the Sierra-2 ribbon actually exceed that of our highly regarded NrT dome.

    I have been listening to the Sierra-2's for 2 months now and I am hooked. They do everything anyone could possibly ask for in a bookshelf speaker
    Thanks for taking the time to explain this further, it has been a big help. I usually am NOT a fan of forums but when dealing with ID companies they can be a very useful tool in helping one make an educated decision. Sadly you have to wade through a lot of craziness, in most forums, but when the designer and owner of the company chimes in, well let's just say it makes decision making a hell of a lot easier.

    I owned Sierra-1s a few years back but kinda lost my love for the hobby, sold all my gear and have been listening to a Sonos Play 5 since. The Sonos system made me fall in love with music all over again, which made me want a dedicated 2 channel system again.... and wanted the Sierra-1 again.
    I loved that bamboo cabinet and I loved how deep those speakers would go. I guess I chose the right time to buy a system because I came across this thread. I can not wait to get my hands on a pair of these Sierra-2s.

    Any chance I will have them before Christmas?

  9. #689
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    Nov 2011
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    Default Re: Sierra-1 NrT: Next phase?

    Wow. I knew this project was intensive, but Dave's comments really put things into perspective. Simply incredible. That info gives me new appreciation for this product, and I will be mindful of that during the upgrade process. I'll think about the sleepless nights, the months of toil, the endless revisions, and the combined effort of so many skilled professionals across the globe. All of that effort, just so customers like myself can enjoy our music and movies even more. I have a very strong feeling that whatever the asking price is for the Sierra-2, it's not even close to what Dave should really charge for this new loudspeaker.

    Thanks for sharing that with us. I'm going to bookmark this page so I can refer to it in the future. I don't ever want to take the Sierra-2 for granted.
    -Jacob

  10. #690
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    Mar 2004
    Location
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    Default Re: Sierra-1 NrT: Next phase?

    Dave,
    Can you explain the advantages of Magnesium over Aluminum in case some of us were unclear?

    I'm sure there are several. Thanks!
    Ed

    * Sierra-2EX's W/V2 crossover upgrade
    * (2) Rythmik F12's
    * Parasound Halo P6
    * Audio by Van Alstine DVA-M225 Monoblock Amps
    * MiniDSP 2x4HD For Sub calibration
    *World's Best Cables Canare 4S11 speaker cables

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