Cube 2's. It's ALL in the room!

[_D_S_J_R_]

This is just an initial post of fresh thoughts on hearing the loan Cube 2's in a few different rooms...

My workroom setup seems increasingly to be a careful compromise, as the speakers cannot be set up properly and currently sit on a computer desk on double thickness 'Celotex' pads in an attempt to get tweeters at ear level. I first tried the Cube 2's here and was confused with the sound to the point of panic. After the usual back and forth (You haven't set them up as I told you to etc.) I abandoned them for a few days, as I was due to get my 24" heavy stands back here. In the event, I took them with me, together with my Rogers LS5/9's, these latter sounding heavy handed, one-note-treble and, well, almost boomy set up in my workroom.

Anyway, on these proper stands and carefully positioned relevant to the back wall, one forward and the other back, BOTH speakers took on a stature I just couldn't get at home, the bass, mids and higher frequencies blending properly and communicating effortlessly. Biggest surprise was the Cube 2 in all honesty, as the Omni-nature came into its own. My old friend repeatedly asked me how much the Cube 2's were and told me he really did enjoy listening to them. So did I and we gave them a good couple of hours of use to great advantage.

The whole Cube 'experience' is different from normal 'point and squirt' speakers. Some will love it and others may not. I had a huge grin of relief on my face when I finally came to box them to bring back home, as my feelings weren't really about the speakers at all, but rather about the room they have to play in.

Not much more to say, but I thought it fair to pass on my findings

[Dr Bunsen Honeydew]

Glad you have finally found it. Have you brought the stands back with you to try in the main system.

[_D_S_J_R_]

Oh yes

[Dr Bunsen Honeydew]

I have got Cube2 and Cube3 at the mo but no Cube1. I am waiting on two (top two) cabs from the Cubix Pro design with inbuilt amps I am building for Terry Booth, there seems to be some hold up with them.

[_D_S_J_R_]

As requested, final thoughts on the Cube 2.

I've now had a chance to use these in two additional listening rooms and on solid 24" stands I now have back here. After the confusing (for me) results in the nearfield and not set up as well as they deserve, I took them to a well known friend who has a small converted barn for a listening room. The room itself looks normal enough, but obviously the walls aren't solid brick or whatever... On my old heavy Something Solid 24" stands, they sounded great, with a good and funky drive to them. As the Doc suggests, the mid-bass is easily fine-tuned by fine-positioning and it was relatively easy to blend the bass and mids together I found. The overall presentation is well clear of the boxes and the two of us very much liked what we heard and the Cube 2's were playing for a good couple of hours and also proved themselves to be happy with different amps. I left later that afternoon much buoyed up by the experience

A few days later, I had a marathon session here at home on the main system. Four speakers were compared, the important one here being the old IMF Compacts I use upstairs and really like. On the main system, the Compacts sounded dry, mid-forward and well, almost airless. In comparison, the Cube 2's had air and space if there in the music, the mid was quite natural, really nice I thought and a sound I think I could live with. Having heard a really well set up pair of Cube 1's this afternoon I confirm that neither give away anything to more conventional 'direct radiating' speakers and both are the slave of the recording fed them, responding well to well recorded music.

[Dr Bunsen Honeydew]

I accept what you are saying, BUT, you need to explore what goes on with a room with room boundaries. Acoustic Research started the work with Roy Alison when he was there which was initiated by the LST and culminated in the 10pi. It was done by altering phase projection by using auto transformers in the crossover to cater for pi - 2pi - 4pi placement which equals - no close wall - single wall surface - corner (two surfaces). It worked to a greater or lesser degree but it was filters so complicated the crossover and effected the sound. When Roy Alison started his own company he decided to *physically* design speaker for the close wall positions as he discovered by doing so he worked with the room boundaries instead of fighting them or trying to correct them. This is the approach I take, it is *not* the same as the omni speakers that became popular in the 60's with the likes of Sonab, that is different, this is working *with* the reflections of wall boundaries, and I believe I have taken the concept further on from Roy Alison, but other will just say that is conceit, but hearing is believing.

[_D_S_J_R_]

I have to add that the Cube 2's downstairs, sounded more like the Cube1's I heard yesterday (thanks to Phlakaton ), albeit smaller in scale as my bridged amps aren't as capable/powerful, my room isn't as large and the Cube 1's are bigger anyway.

[Dr Bunsen Honeydew]

I really like Phlakatons system and the room and environment assists this. Each time I have progressed him up he has had jaw dropping moments, I love that I love to see people not expecting much and then being slapped in the mush by it

It is really nice to have a system like this local to me.