Sierra 2-EX vs Sierra LX

[jwreich13]

Hi jwreich,


Are you able to post a pic of the front of your room showing the speaker positioning?

Also, you might try using Q-Plug "S" with the LX, that will make the bass response of the LX very similar to the bass response of the LS50, which will then make the midrange and highs sound more prominent.

Tried both of the Q-Plugs with the LX and no real change. I've taken a pic of the front of the room and had to play with it a while before it would fit. I did use a tape measure to make sure that it was at least a foot from the back wall. I can't do anything about that tiny side wall on the right speaker.

PXL_20221119_200419647.MP (2)_2.jpg

[James]

For what it's worth, I've generally found that KEF speakers (and other speakers with metal tweeters) sound bright to me. And although they have great clarity, I find them too bright for my taste. Different people may have different preferences, of course.

The LX has a metal tweeter, but it sounds like a lot of work went into making sure it didn't have the flaws metal tweeters usually have.

[monkuboy]

Tried both of the Q-Plugs with the LX and no real change. I've taken a pic of the front of the room and had to play with it a while before it would fit. I did use a tape measure to make sure that it was at least a foot from the back wall. I can't do anything about that tiny side wall on the right speaker.

PXL_20221119_200419647.MP (2)_2.jpg

The speakers being that close to the walls (especially the right side) is going to boost the bass. Try listening to them for a while and then go back to the KEF’s. I bet you will find the KEF’s sound too bright.

[jwreich13]

The speakers being that close to the walls (especially the right side) is going to boost the bass. Try listening to them for a while and then go back to the KEF’s. I bet you will find the KEF’s sound too bright.

I have listened and the KEFs treble sounds great. That is the problem. As I said, there is at least a foot between the speakers and the wall which should be enough. With the Q-Plugs, the Ascend just sounds muffled.

Btw, this is just my secondary system so I think I have some idea what half-way decent stuff sounds like. I have Spatial Audio Labs X5s in my main listening area which sound wonderful.

I'm not putting these speakers down. I'm using them more in my HT set up where they sound much better, a bit more space behind them, no side wall and a much more open room. I'm just not sure that that is what I'm looking for. I have about 25 days to figure this out.

I've always been a guy who loves the transparency of ribbon/planar/open baffle speakers so it may be I picked the wrong model to try. I did hear the Raal tweeter with the BMR Philharmonic at an Audio Show in Phoenix, AZ so I thought I knew what those would sound like as opposed to the LXs. Unfortunately, the Ascend Sierra 2EX-V2 wasn't a speaker that was featured at the show.

[davef]

Tried both of the Q-Plugs with the LX and no real change. I've taken a pic of the front of the room and had to play with it a while before it would fit. I did use a tape measure to make sure that it was at least a foot from the back wall. I can't do anything about that tiny side wall on the right speaker.

PXL_20221119_200419647.MP (2)_2.jpg

Are you listening to strictly vinyl in this system?

Also, where is your listening positioning relative to the speakers?

Are you saying you don't hear any change in bass and midbass using Q-Plug S, which fully seals the port?

[jwreich13]

Are you listening to strictly vinyl in this system?

Also, where is your listening positioning relative to the speakers?

Are you saying you don't hear any change in bass and midbass using Q-Plug S, which fully seals the port?

I have been listening with bluetooth music from a phone or ipad. Listening position is the entire room but mainly about 8 feet in front of it. You see one chair but there is a second chair in line with that first chair (where the pic was taken from) which is mainly where I listen from. I had to reduce the pic in order for it to load onto this site. Here's a pic from the other side.

PXL_20221119_200430232.MP_1.jpg

I didn't say there was no difference in the mids or lows, I said it seemed muffled which essentially took away the biggest plus of those speakers.

[Mj30250]

The KEF is a coaxial, so its vertical directivity is going to be virtually the same as its horizontal. This means if you're wandering around room as you're listening, the KEFs will maintain their tonality and sound fuller when your ears aren't vertically on-axis with the tweeter. The LXs are much wider horizontally, but narrow somewhat as you get further into the treble frequencies. You also have a lot of reflective surfaces in that room including a hard floor, and that may be "energizing" the high frequencies of the KEF a bit more (floor bounce).

An interesting test would be to switch off your sub and cross both speakers at, say, 150Hz. This will mostly eliminate the differences in bass response and allow you to concentrate on the mids and highs. My guess is they will sound far more similar. If so, you could then work on EQ'ing the bass to get a more balanced sound in your room.

[curtis]

An interesting test would be to switch off your sub and cross both speakers at, say, 150Hz. This will mostly eliminate the differences in bass response and allow you to concentrate on the mids and highs. My guess is they will sound far more similar. If so, you could then work on EQ'ing the bass to get a more balanced sound in your room.

He can't cross at 150hz, his equipment doesn't have any bass management.

[Mj30250]

Ah, sorry...missed that. I'm not familiar with the CA unit he's using.

I did see that he hooked the LXs into a Denon as well which I presume would provide bass-managment. He could also try the experiment there. It would at least help solve whether or not he's truly hearing rolled off highs or if they're simply getting outshone by the bass output. Based on the PIR plot, the KEFs actually show a dip in the lower treble. That should be noticeable and to the LX's advantage, unless, again, he's listening outside of the vertical listening window.

[jwreich13]

Ah, sorry...missed that. I'm not familiar with the CA unit he's using.

I did see that he hooked the LXs into a Denon as well which I presume would provide bass-managment. He could also try the experiment there. It would at least help solve whether or not he's truly hearing rolled off highs or if they're simply getting outshone by the bass output. Based on the PIR plot, the KEFs actually show a dip in the lower treble. That should be noticeable and to the LX's advantage, unless, again, he's listening outside of the vertical listening window.

I did put the Q-Plugs in and played them as mentioned in an earlier post. They are doing well in the HT set up but that wasn't the reason I bought them. I have to determine whether that is an appropriate fit given my system and their cost.