Need help on speaker decision

[tyv1993]

Hello all,

I am new to this forum but have been reading for a few weeks now.
I am in the market to upgrade to better speakers. My current setup looks like this.

Mac Mini running Amarra>>HDMI>>Yamaha RX-474>>Klipsch KB-15 Bookshelf Speakers

I am most interested in the CMT-340SE and the Sierra-1. The Sierra-1s are a little over my budget but I'm willing to stretch it. I also like the upgrade ability for the future. This setup will be mostly used for music listening (lossless cd files) but some occasional movies.

Are there pros and cons to each? Or is the Sierra-1 better in all categories?


Thanks,

Tyler

[FirstReflect]

Just one man's opinion, but I'd have to recommend going with the Sierra-1, if for no other reason than because you'd then have the option to easily upgrade them to Sierra-2 in the future! And given the refund that Ascend gives you if you return all of the standard Sierra-1 parts, you only end up paying a little over $100 extra to end up with the Sierra-2 vs. just buying the Sierra-2 right away. If the Sierra-1 are already stretching your budget, then clearly the Sierra-2 aren't affordable right this moment. But you won't have to feel as though you wasted money if you upgrade to the Sierra-2 in the future. Yes, it's a bit more expensive in total, but not that much. And in the mean time, you can enjoy the excellent Sierra-1 for as long as you like!

The CMT-340SE are physically quite a bit larger. I do believe they can play a bit louder at the extreme upper limit of their output range. But the Sierra-1 are no slouch in terms of output. Given your associated equipment, it's highly unlikely you would ever come across that difference in actual listening.

To my ear, the CMT-340SE are actually the more ruthlessly neutral speakers vs. the Sierra-1. I personally find the Sierra-1 to be just a wee bit "coloured", with a bit of extra "warmth" due to their bit of midbass emphasis. One of the goals with the Sierra-1 design was to allow for satisfying bass extension and output without a subwoofer. So there's a bit of "bloom" on the low end as a result. But overall, the Sierra-1 is the clearer, more detailed speaker thanks to superior transient response and self-damping.

All-in-all, I think the Sierra-1 is the better choice in your case. Hope that's of some help!

- Rob H.

[tyv1993]

Just one man's opinion, but I'd have to recommend going with the Sierra-1, if for no other reason than because you'd then have the option to easily upgrade them to Sierra-2 in the future! And given the refund that Ascend gives you if you return all of the standard Sierra-1 parts, you only end up paying a little over $100 extra to end up with the Sierra-2 vs. just buying the Sierra-2 right away. If the Sierra-1 are already stretching your budget, then clearly the Sierra-2 aren't affordable right this moment. But you won't have to feel as though you wasted money if you upgrade to the Sierra-2 in the future. Yes, it's a bit more expensive in total, but not that much. And in the mean time, you can enjoy the excellent Sierra-1 for as long as you like!

The CMT-340SE are physically quite a bit larger. I do believe they can play a bit louder at the extreme upper limit of their output range. But the Sierra-1 are no slouch in terms of output. Given your associated equipment, it's highly unlikely you would ever come across that difference in actual listening.

To my ear, the CMT-340SE are actually the more ruthlessly neutral speakers vs. the Sierra-1. I personally find the Sierra-1 to be just a wee bit "coloured", with a bit of extra "warmth" due to their bit of midbass emphasis. One of the goals with the Sierra-1 design was to allow for satisfying bass extension and output without a subwoofer. So there's a bit of "bloom" on the low end as a result. But overall, the Sierra-1 is the clearer, more detailed speaker thanks to superior transient response and self-damping.

All-in-all, I think the Sierra-1 is the better choice in your case. Hope that's of some help!

- Rob H.

Thanks for the great input! Yes, I also really like the upgrade ability of the Sierra-1s. I do have a subwoofer but it is not the quality of these sierra-1 speakers so I'm wondering if I will use it much until I can upgrade that too if I feel the need.

Also from what I'm reading because I listen to more music than use for HT that the Sierra-1s are much better in that department.

[FirstReflect]

Glad to be of assistance

I don't really "get" the commonly thrown around distinction between movie audio and music audio. I see it all the time where a review or forum post says that a speaker is somehow better suited to one or the other. To me, that's like saying, "these speakers are good for sound, but not for sound." Doesn't make any sense

Movies have lots of music in them. And, in fact, these days, I'd contend that movies contain the far more challenging content since they still have dynamics and large differences between loud and quiet, while so much modern music is all dynamically compressed and has no difference at all between loud and quiet! As my podcast co-host Tom Andry has pointed out, he thinks that whole phrase started because reviewers always need something nice to say about bad products. So they just throw it out there that a bad speaker isn't good enough for music, but it's fine for movies because at least you can still make out what people are saying. Well, that really isn't saying much, is it? That's just a reviewer trying not to piss off a manufacturer so that they'll continue sending them products to review!

No, a good speaker is a good speaker. And a bad speaker is a bad speaker. If a speaker isn't great for music, then it isn't somehow good for movies. I just think so many people are used to nothing but crappy built-in TV speakers that literally ANYTHING sounds like an improvement. And most people only ever watch TV shows and movies via their TV speakers. So they think a crappy speaker sounds fine for movies, but then they try it for music and it doesn't even sound as good as their crappy white earbuds, so they say, "bad for music, fine for movies". Nope. Just bad all around. Your built-in TV speakers being even worse doesn't make them "fine for movies"

Regardless, all of Ascend's speakers are good speakers. They "tell it like it is", and that goes for movies, music, TV shows, everything. The Sierra-1 offer superior clarity, transient response, and self-damping. Those things will be audible and of benefit no matter what you're listening to

[tyv1993]

Glad to be of assistance

I don't really "get" the commonly thrown around distinction between movie audio and music audio. I see it all the time where a review or forum post says that a speaker is somehow better suited to one or the other. To me, that's like saying, "these speakers are good for sound, but not for sound." Doesn't make any sense

Movies have lots of music in them. And, in fact, these days, I'd contend that movies contain the far more challenging content since they still have dynamics and large differences between loud and quiet, while so much modern music is all dynamically compressed and has no difference at all between loud and quiet! As my podcast co-host Tom Andry has pointed out, he thinks that whole phrase started because reviewers always need something nice to say about bad products. So they just throw it out there that a bad speaker isn't good enough for music, but it's fine for movies because at least you can still make out what people are saying. Well, that really isn't saying much, is it? That's just a reviewer trying not to piss off a manufacturer so that they'll continue sending them products to review!

No, a good speaker is a good speaker. And a bad speaker is a bad speaker. If a speaker isn't great for music, then it isn't somehow good for movies. I just think so many people are used to nothing but crappy built-in TV speakers that literally ANYTHING sounds like an improvement. And most people only ever watch TV shows and movies via their TV speakers. So they think a crappy speaker sounds fine for movies, but then they try it for music and it doesn't even sound as good as their crappy white earbuds, so they say, "bad for music, fine for movies". Nope. Just bad all around. Your built-in TV speakers being even worse doesn't make them "fine for movies"

Regardless, all of Ascend's speakers are good speakers. They "tell it like it is", and that goes for movies, music, TV shows, everything. The Sierra-1 offer superior clarity, transient response, and self-damping. Those things will be audible and of benefit no matter what you're listening to

Yea that makes sense. I'm leaning towards the Sierra-1 just gotta decide on the finish.