Introducing the Sierra-LX!!!

[davef]

While the Sierra LX has better dispersion, one drawback to this set up would be that the Sierra LX will not tonally match the RAAL towers, as dome tweeters and ribbon tweeters have inherit differences compared to one another.

I think the bass and mid sound would be better in the horizon because it is a bigger cabinet and has more drivers. The Sierra LX center vs the Sierra 2ex center is probably a more even comparison.

Actually, the LX only has wider vertical dispersion compared to the tower. It is still up-in-the-air if, when positioned vertically on-axis, wider vertical dispersion has any advantages.

Most certainly, wider horizontal dispersion is nearly always beneficial, and in that regard - both the ribbon towers and the LX are extremely wide, with the edge going to the ribbon towers as the overall horizontal polar response is more linear.

[davef]

The expectation in this case...you'd be able to refit the horizon by sending it back to Ascend and only replacing the tweeter....it's the most cost effective method. Iirc...a single 70-20 will run you ~400.00 plus shipping....

Hi billy,

I am not sure where you are getting that cost from, current pricing on a single 70-20 is nearly double that. In addition, the crossover also needs to be changed (an additional expense) and there is also quite a bit of labor involved.

We can do this though - and we have done this same exact conversion dozens of times, but the costs are significantly higher than what you estimated it to be.

It is quite different doing a conversion later on than originally ordering the Horizon with the ribbon.

[billy p]

Hi billy,

I am not sure where you are getting that cost from, current pricing on a single 70-20 is nearly double that. In addition, the crossover also needs to be changed (an additional expense) and there is also quite a bit of labor involved.

We can do this though - and we have done this same exact conversion dozens of times, but the costs are significantly higher than what you estimated it to be.

It is quite different doing a conversion later on than originally ordering the Horizon with the ribbon.

Yes....I realized that after the fact my apologies... When I returned the STC for refit the RAAL towers iirc where 2700.00 and standard towers 2k...but it's still the better option for that individual.

Idk...what the pricing would be for an eventual LX tweeeter upgrade down the road or how viable...it might come in a bit less vs. the 70-20s overall cost and less labour intensive....again I'd defer to Ascends or you.

[davef]

I'm intrigued with the idea of the LX as a center. Let me explain. I recently received a pair of Sierra Towers with RAAL that I use ~60% HT, 40% music.

My center is a rather old "SIERRA TOWER CENTER" a.k.a. the Horizon. It has a dome tweeter (not RAAL), but I don't know if it's NrT or something else (how to tell?).

I also have a single SVS SB-3000 sub, crossed with the Towers and the center at 60 Hz.

I'd love to get opinions on potential upgrades. Here are a few ideas:

1. Upgrade the center with RAAL to better match the towers
2. Replace the Horizon center with a Sierra LX
3. Leave the center as-is and add a second SB-3000

I appreciate your thoughts!

Jim

Hi Jim,

You have the NrT dome in your Horizon. Going with the LX as the center is definitely not going to be an upgrade, dome or ribbon Horizon is still the better center (by quite a bit actually)

If you do want to put money into an upgrade, the best option would be upgrading your Horizon to the RAAL version. Please send me an email and I would be happy to quote you the current pricing for this.

[sccb]

Just finished reading all 75 pages of this thread. I have Sierra 1s in the Gloss Expresso finish and the Sierra 2s in the Satin Expresso finish. I've never upgraded any of them, and somehow missed the EX announcement, or I probably would have upgraded my 2s, and still may at some point. I guess I need to find that thread and read it.

I was looking at the possibility of going to towers, when I stumbled across the new LX line. Just ordered a set of three for my HT room. Depending on how I like them, I might end up upgrading my original Sierra 1s. I love the gloss cabinets on those.

Now the hard part - waiting for them to ship in late June or early July! Glad I saw these with the early bird pricing. Thanks to everyone who provided reviews, it was very helpful in making my decision.

[Nnice]

I have Sierra 1s in the Gloss Expresso finish and the Sierra 2s in the Satin Expresso finish. I've never upgraded any of them, and somehow missed the EX announcement, or I probably would have upgraded my 2s, and still may at some point.

ah, I just had a similar experience. I've owned Sierra 1 for like 7 years, and I just realized like 2 weeks ago there's a nrt upgrade for the Sierra 1. Somehow this whole time I thought nrt tweeter was only a option for Sierra tower.

[Mag_Neato]

ah, I just had a similar experience. I've owned Sierra 1 for like 7 years, and I just realized like 2 weeks ago there's a nrt upgrade for the Sierra 1. Somehow this whole time I thought nrt tweeter was only a option for Sierra tower.

Consider yourself one who has more money in their pocket! My Sierra-2EX's began life as Sierra-1's in 2007, 1 of the first pairs I believe. I've done each upgrade...... NrT, S2, etc. My first pair of Ascends were the CBM-170's, non SE versions. Before I found Ascend I had B&W 602's. Before those I had Vandersteen 1b's. I was always looking for a new speaker before finding Ascend. Now I just wait until Dave comes out with an upgrade for my pair of Sierras. I don't think I will pursue the LX's, at least for now. The EX's push all the right buttons for me.

[James]

Ed,

Can you briefly compare the Vandersteens to the Ascends? If this isn't the right place for this, we can do it in another section of the forum.

[Mag_Neato]

Ed,

Can you briefly compare the Vandersteens to the Ascends? If this isn't the right place for this, we can do it in another section of the forum.

Well, I cannot give an accurate comparison of the two. I had the Vandersteens at a time when I had lesser electronics, and it was many years ago, probably got rid of them in the late 1990's when I picked up the B&W's. Not really sure what I was going for with the B&W 602's, but those became fatiguing to my ears rather quickly due to that gold metal dome tweeter. When I bought the CBM-170's it did not take long to decide to sell the B&W's. I'll say that the Vandersteens will scale up with better electronics, and if you have them set up properly will have excellent imaging, sound stage, and vanish in a 3D space.

[SunByrne]

ah, I just had a similar experience. I've owned Sierra 1 for like 7 years, and I just realized like 2 weeks ago there's a nrt upgrade for the Sierra 1. Somehow this whole time I thought nrt tweeter was only a option for Sierra tower.

I'm not sure I would do an NrT upgrade on an S-1 at this point—I'd be too tempted to just go all the way to the LX. Don't get me wrong, the S-1 NrT is a very nice speaker (I do still have a pair), but the LX is like a whole different animal.

Consider yourself one who has more money in their pocket! My Sierra-2EX's began life as Sierra-1's in 2007, 1 of the first pairs I believe. I've done each upgrade...... NrT, S2, etc.

My first S-1s were later than yours, but now my venerable cherry gloss cabinets have been S-1s, S-1 NrTs, S-2s, S-2EXs, and now LXs. I definitely do not need to even glance at the instructions to do this upgrade anymore.