Question for Dave - Long winded.

[spl_nut]

Hello everyone...

From my very limited lurking it seems I've found a decent place - Where opinions are actually discussed!

To my question...

From the Sierra introduction page:

"development of what we consider to be one of the highest performance loudspeakers ever offered."

Respectfully I ask, on what do you base the above statement?

Mutually understanding that fidelity is both objective and measurable - What experiences can you share that support such a claim?

Politely, I'm asking you to quantify... Perhaps set a reference that I, and others can relate.

Please realize that I'm not trying to rile anyone, and that If I've overlooked already stated answers, then please show me where I can find them.

...

Very modest equipment: Rotel RCD-1072, RC-1070 & RB-1080. Audioquest Copperheads (Audio Art soon) & ZU Julians. NAIM Wiremold connected to a dedicated circuit.

We've spent a week in-house with the Spendor S5e and thoroughly auditioned Gallo's 3.1s & ProAC's Reference 1SC.

EPOS' M12.2 was kicked after minutes of listening and the Monitor Audio RS8 pair we purchased were sent packing in no time.

Some of the speakers above are very, very capable - Yet, only the Gallos are even close to meeting expectations.

Our current 'short list' is Selah's SA-1, Dyn's Audience 42, the Sonus Faber Concertino Domus, ZU's Tone, Mark & Daniel's Maximus-Ruby, Audio Physic's Spark, BL Audio's two way - And to mix it up, Mag's MMG.

And the Sierra...

Would we be wasting Ascend's time and money by ordering a pair of Sierras? Knowing we'd fully take advantage of the return policy.

Fair question.

Peace... And if I've offended anyone, I apologize in advance :)

[curtis]

I have heard Dynaudio 52's, Selah Tanzanites, and the older Sonus Faber Concertinos and can easily state that I think the Sierras would be in the very least comparable.


Mutually understanding that fidelity is both objective and measurable - What experiences can you share that support such a claim?

Politely, I'm asking you to quantify... Perhaps set a reference that I, and others can relate.

With all due respect and curiosity, can you give an example of the type of information you are looking from another company?


Yet, only the Gallos are even close to meeting expectations.
Also out of curiosity, what were your expectations?


Would we be wasting Ascend's time and money by ordering a pair of Sierras? Knowing we'd fully take advantage of the return policy.
Meaning no matter what, you will send them back?

Where are you located? Maybe there is someone near by willing to allow you to audition theirs.

[davef]

Hi spl_nut and welcome to our forum.

I will do my best to answer some of your questions:


From the Sierra introduction page: "development of what we consider to be one of the highest performance loudspeakers ever offered." Respectfully I ask, on what do you base the above statement?

Based on what I consider are the primary factors in determining loudspeaker performance. The ability to faithfully reproduce the source material.


Mutually understanding that fidelity is both objective and measurable - What experiences can you share that support such a claim?

From a measurement perspective, few loudspeakers that I have measured (in my 25+ years) can match the measurements of the Sierra for the criteria that I feel are keys to the performance goals we set.

From a subjective/listening perspective, I would suggest you make that determination for yourself.


...Some of the speakers above are very, very capable - Yet, only the Gallos are even close to meeting expectations.

Our performance goals are well known... Exactly what are you looking for in loudspeaker performance?


Would we be wasting Ascend's time and money by ordering a pair of Sierras? Knowing we'd fully take advantage of the return policy.


Meaning that if you do not like them you would send them back? If that is the case, you would certainly not be wasting our time. If you go into this with pre-conceived notions about performance, or you are not sure what type of performance YOU are looking for, I would say that you might be wasting more of your time than ours....

I am really not sure of exactly what you are asking of me. Do I feel the Sierra can compete with the speakers you mentioned? This depends on what YOU want in a loudspeaker. From my standpoint and what I desire in a loudspeaker, the Sierra (and our other models for that matter) lay waste to much of what is our there at any price.

Hope this helps