NHT speaker sound timbre (1 Viewer)

[Jay Villero]

I own NHT VT-1.2 front speakers with a VS-1.2 as my center and HDP-1 dipole surrounds. I am seriously considering upgrading my Pro Logic Amp to the Outlaw 950 and building out a 7.1 system (adding two direct radiators for back surrounds). My speakers have been discountinued, and the VS-1.4's are on close-out.

Does anyone know if the 1.4's use the same drivers as the 1.2's and would be well timbre-matched?

 

[Haru]

The 1.4s use different drivers from the 1.2s. It may be a similar sound, but I doubt it will be a close match. The 1.2s use the same mid and tweeter as the Super Zero and the Super Center. These speakers will have a very close timbre match with your 1.2s so I think you should try and look for a set of those.

 

[Chris Tsutsui]

Let me get this straight... Timbre matching is matching the quality of sound. So if one speaker had harsh highs, it would sound good when paired with another speaker with harsh highs.

The tweeter has lots of detail and quality sensitive imaging to perform. This makes the tweeter crucial for a timbre match - (more than the woofers at least). So if they used the same tweeter and midrange it would be pretty close, but you also have to factor in enclosure and circuitry cause those affect sound as well.

ah, I guess I'm gonna have to take the manufacturers word on whether a speaker is timbre matched cause I still don't know how to document "timbre" on paper.

 

[Mark R O]

I do not know how to document "detail" or "sensitive imaging" on paper. Fortunately, "timbre" matching is more a common sense skill and doesn't demand publishing white papers or legal briefs. One can reasonably assume that a speaker with the same drivers, basic cabinetry, and shared components with another model in it's series is going to sound very similar (barring any manufacturer conspiracy). Look the same, sound the same is probably strict enough doctrine to follow for most systems.
Haru's suggestion is right on for you Jay. A pair of Super Zero's would be ideal. They are the same size and use the same woof/tweet as the HDP-1's. An economical solution as well.

 

[Haru]

I think timbre can be defined as the sonic singature of a speaker. No doubt the speaker engineers have hundreds of graphs denoting the performance characteristics of a driver, if its anything like any other form of engineering. most likely, a combination of factors makes up a speaker's timbre.

I think the only way the consumer has of timbre matching speakers is to take the manufacturer's word for it. If you can't do that, then you should try to find speakers that are the closest in terms of the drivers they use and the driver arrangement.

I know voicing can be a tricky business. I was a big fan of the Super Zero and when the Super One came out, I had some back and forth with Ken Kantor (cofounder of NHT, designer of Super Zero and 3.3) and he described to the me the goal of making an existing driver, the 6.5" from the AR 206 acoustically matched to the 4" driver of the Super Zero, because above 80Hz, the 6.5 HAD to sound just like the 4".

He got pretty damn close. If you audition a super one and a super zero side by side, you WILL detect a difference, but its very difficult to tell if the difference is due to the greater dynamic capacity or the lower frequency extension, of the super one, or tweeter height differences.

The point being that speaker designers know what timbre is and they know how to work with it. But its not something that consumers can get too involved with beyond following manufacturer recommendations.

 

[Haru]

one more thing. you can try sending NHT a question from the technical support section of their website. Ask them something like "what NHT speakers can be used in a system comprised of VT and VS 1.2s is these cannot be found?" Ask them to include discontinued speakers because you can find them at close out prices.

I've had spotty luck doing this, though. Sometimes (one gentleman in particular) they are very good about it. They send you a long, clearly written message explaining what the deal is and what you can or should do. But at other times, you won't get any response. But what the heck. give it a shot.

you might also want to see about getting used 1.2s on ebay.

 

[Charles Gurganus]

Jay, I have a pair of VS1.2's if you are interested. I have the boxes and they are in excellent shape.

 

[Pat Wilshire]

Send off an email to David at NHT tech support (actually Recotron). He's far and away the best tech support person I've ever dealt with from ANY company.

Email address removed . . . .

 

[Haru]

David is the guy I talked to as well, but I didn't want to post his info here because I have a feeling he wouldn't like it.

 

[Pat Wilshire]

Haru --

Ah, SPAM, didn't think about that . . . . I've pulled his email address off of the post. Jay, if you really want to get in touch with Dave, ping me and I'll give you his info.

 

[Phill O]

I have the NHT 2.5i with the AC-1 and 1.5 .
I happen to love how they sound. they are not perfect but
what is in the world of speakers. But overall they are the
correct speaker for my house and my taste.
NHT
Will this thread turn into a NHT love fest?
Oh yes on to your question I think that you may be happy
with either the superone or the superzero. And perhaps they'll
be easier to get as well. Good luck.

 

[Charles Gurganus]

Where is Jay? You can't get a better match than the VS1.2. Let me know as I will take a reasonable offer.