Fractal Audio - Atomic CLR - RCF NX - Tannoy VX - Matrix - YouTube Video

^^as xrist04 said and also Scott(Everything is recorded 'live' in the room with my Zoom Q3HD (which does have built in compression/limiting for loud signals) only. No post processing. What you hear is exactly what the Zoom did to it.)I'd say the scoops and peaks folks ar hearing have everything to do with being room miked with the Zoom!
 
True but he also did say that he tried to position the speakers in the same place using the same volume levels. With out measuring distance and angle there is no way to duplicate each take identically which could explain the tonal differences to a cretin degree.

Even though you are hearing one speaker through another it still presents a frame of reference for all three recordings for an end result which will always sound slightly different from hearing it live.
 
To me the RCF and Atomic sound almost the same, they both have a sort of scooped or hollow sound. The Tannoy sounded different, more direct and in your face. I would have to say that there was something different ether in the way it was recorded (cab axis maybe) or there is a fairly large difference in the Tannoy compared to the RCF and Atomic. Scott did say it was not scientific and that they all sounded good but based on the recordings he posted I have to give the nod to the Tannoy as it sounded more like a mic'd guitar cab.

Now the fact that the RCF and the Atomic sounded pretty much the same tells me that the Atomic is on par with what has arguably become the standard for an FR monitor for the Axe.

Maybe the difference you hear could be related to the Tannoys being passive and driven by the Matrix?
 
True but he also did say that he tried to position the speakers in the same place using the same volume levels. With out measuring distance and angle there is no way to duplicate each take identically which could explain the tonal differences to a cretin degree.

Even though you are hearing one speaker through another it still presents a frame of reference for all three recordings for an end result which will always sound slightly different from hearing it live.
I would agree! Also the dispersion angle would be different for each speaker (concerning what is heard off axis,frequency cancelations etc.) from on axis in the room! My guess is they all sound great in front of you!! Couldn't be compared to a room recorder! Also I hear a pretty big difference in the RCF and CLR! I play an RCF and From what I hear I like the CLR and Tannoy VX12Hp best .but Can't justify the cost of the Tannoy and a power amp though!
 
Last edited:
I must say I'm very happy with my Tannoy V12 (an older version) that I've been using for ~2 years now but now that the CLR's are available I'm considering them...but I would think anyone would be happy with any version of the V12 series used for FRFR.
 
I added this to the OP, but here is the same phrase (an original song I recorded back in 2000 called "725") on Soundcloud, you can also download the FLAC version of it from there:

 
Guys, I can't contain myself anymore. You are evaluating FRFR speakers based on a number of elements that sequentially add unknown non-linearity into what you hear.

Scott's room -> portable Zoom recorder mic & electronics -> file compression -> your listening room -> your FRFR electronics / speaker

You certainly can compare one speaker to another in relative terms, assuming Scott's Zoom positioning was accurate, but you have no point of reference. You have no way to compensate or account for the non-linearity each link in the chain adds. Yes, I listened to the YouTube video for fun, and I could hear differences, but I would never make a purchase decision based on this. I really don't know what "neutral" sounds like in this context.

Put in other terms, this is like selecting a fine art paper to use for photographic art based on an iPhone photo that's someone has e-mailed to you.

Scott, you've put a great deal of work into this, and it has been fun. I am concerned however, that some perspective has been lost along the way.

Terry.
 
Guys, I can't contain myself anymore. You are evaluating FRFR speakers based on a number of elements that sequentially add unknown non-linearity into what you hear.

Scott's room -> portable Zoom recorder mic & electronics -> file compression -> your listening room -> your FRFR electronics / speaker

You certainly can compare one speaker to another in relative terms, assuming Scott's Zoom positioning was accurate, but you have no point of reference. You have no way to compensate or account for the non-linearity each link in the chain adds. Yes, I listened to the YouTube video for fun, and I could hear differences, but I would never make a purchase decision based on this. I really don't know what "neutral" sounds like in this context.

Put in other terms, this is like selecting a fine art paper to use for photographic art based on an iPhone photo that's someone has e-mailed to you.

Scott, you've put a great deal of work into this, and it has been fun. I am concerned however, that some perspective has been lost along the way.

Terry.

Terry, it is the Internet, ;)

It was presented as a lark and a data point only. You can't take all of this too seriously. :)

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Forum Runner
 
Guys, I can't contain myself anymore...
My cred around here is next to nil, but I will say this...

I never take the vids and clips as testimony in any situation. I think vids and clips are posted as a nicety by the poster, for those of us armchair critics who suffer IADD (internet attention deficit disorder). I think pretty well everyone who takes their sound seriously knows that a vid/clip is just there for something to watch as a bonus. Scott's ACTUAL testimony about what his ears heard in his room with his gear and his playing is where the real meat of the matter seemed to come together for me. I think anyone seriously pondering the purchase of these [CLRs] or their merits over/under the competition know that vids/clips are just bonus gravy - the truth is in the words.

Just sayin'.

Mo
 
I never take the vids and clips as testimony in any situation. I think vids and clips are posted as a nicety by the poster, for those of us armchair critics who suffer IADD (internet attention deficit disorder). I think pretty well everyone who takes their sound seriously knows that a vid/clip is just there for something to watch as a bonus. Scott's ACTUAL testimony about what his ears heard in his room with his gear and his playing is where the real meat of the matter seemed to come together for me. I think anyone seriously pondering the purchase of these [CLRs] or their merits over/under the competition know that vids/clips are just bonus gravy - the truth is in the words.

I hear what you're saying ventura, but I'm still a bit skeptical. That said, I don't want to put any more of a damper on this thread than I already have. Scott has put a lot into this evaluation and the things he's shared, and it's an important topic. Just the fact that we're talking about a sub $1000 solution of this caliber blows me away. Three years ago when I was looking hard at a Tannoy powered solution I never would have though this price-point and quality would have come together.

Terry.
 
I hear what you're saying ventura, but I'm still a bit skeptical. That said, I don't want to put any more of a damper on this thread than I already have. Scott has put a lot into this evaluation and the things he's shared, and it's an important topic. Just the fact that we're talking about a sub $1000 solution of this caliber blows me away. Three years ago when I was looking hard at a Tannoy powered solution I never would have though this price-point and quality would have come together.

Terry.

Terry,

I'm back home so I'll pontificate a bit more. ;)

I'm just sharing my opinion; it's just my observations and thoughts after a few weeks with the wedge. I've fielded a *lot* of email and PM's through here and TGP about the CLR and felt it was important to share information. Not because I'm paid to (I am not) and not because I'm working for Atomic (because I am not) but because when you find something kickass, you want to go and tell other people... "Hey, this is kickass!"

The video was actually the performance footage for a review done on the guitar and specific to the guitar. I intended to try all the different speakers to see which one worked best and grab a few seconds here, a phrase there out of the whole mess for that review. When I was looking at the raw footage, it struck me that the camera mic (on the Zoom) never moved and I had taken pains to keep the volume consistent across the different speakers and keep the location and angles (best I could) the same. So with all the "hey, what does the CLR sound like?" emails coming in daily... I posted all of it just as a data point.

When I posted above about not taking all this seriously; I was meaning the discussion that sometimes (all the time!) springs up on the Net assuming something like a video or a clip (and as an aside, more often when you have a video rather than just a sound clip oddly enough) as definitive. This was just a data point, and not a particularly scientific one.

Don't let it get to you; it's just a video. All the speakers in it are top notch pro level touring solutions that I'd have no hesitation using. I prefer some more than others; but in the end these are IMHO the cream of the crop as far as I've tested.
 
I never take the vids and clips as testimony in any situation. I think vids and clips are posted as a nicety by the poster, for those of us armchair critics who suffer IADD (internet attention deficit disorder). I think pretty well everyone who takes their sound seriously knows that a vid/clip is just there for something to watch as a bonus. Scott's ACTUAL testimony about what his ears heard in his room with his gear and his playing is where the real meat of the matter seemed to come together for me. I think anyone seriously pondering the purchase of these [CLRs] or their merits over/under the competition know that vids/clips are just bonus gravy - the truth is in the words.
I'll jump on the bandwagon. Yes, I'm a guy who tells anyone who'll listen that it's stooopid to buy a piece of gear based on clips. I'll stand by that for the foreseeable future. I have a similar position about buying stuff based on the recommendations of strangers on teh intarwebz. But here's the thing...

I've known Scott Peterson for well over a decade. I've broken bread with the guy and consider him a friend, not just in cyberspace but IRL as well. We've hung out, chatted on the phone, and exchanged hundreds if not thousands of emails. In that time, I've gotten to know where Scott's tastes coincide with mine as well as where they diverge. I even own his old Rivera Rake (one of many tube amps I've been meaning to divest). Point is, I know how to read Scott's evaluations and translate them into an assessment of how things would work for me. The fact is that I didn't watch the video. In my case, I didn't need to. Based on Scott's commentary I got on the wait list for a CLR, even before starting an off-forum discussion with him about it.

That said, this video does have a virtue generally lacking in such evaluations: it gives the listener an idea of the relative tone of the boxes. You might not be able to tell just how scooped box Y is in absolute terms but you can easily hear it relative to box X. That's not sufficient to make a purchase decision but it can be a handy frame of reference if you happen to have real-life experience with one of the cabs.

My point is not that Scott's word is law. There are certain pieces of gear that he loves that utterly fail me (and vice versa). The point is to reinforce Mo's statement about the narrative being more informative than the video.

And that's all I have to say about that. It's time to reload my recently-repaired AxeFx and play some guitar. :p
 
Just the fact that we're talking about a sub $1000 solution of this caliber blows me away. Three years ago when I was looking hard at a Tannoy powered solution I never would have though this price-point and quality would have come together.

Terry.
Totally concur, but remember the 1st "home computer" by Compaq in the late 80's was $26,000 and not even a proper x286 platform ;)

It is what it is. I think I spend way too much time on the net, but these forums are like a commercial break to my otherwise mundane "corporate" interests I have to tend to on the same screen. Not to mention, I've been in lockdown mode for the last 10 days due to shattering my ankle while walking across a parking lot in my hometown of Whistler; loaded on painkiller goofballs, and lucky to have a bath as my daily highlight, I've been here a little more than I have in the past LOL. Seriously, had to cancel a 6 week surf trip to Costa Rica I was supposed to be leaving for in just over a week. I'm pissed!! So all I've got is retail therapy and music... Hence the reason I'm so jazzed about my incoming CLRs. Everything's become more important that acts as a distraction - and playing music and engaging in conversation about gear - is a definite "good" distraction.

You haven't put a damper on this thread Terry. You're just speaking you mind, which you're completely and utterly entitled to. And I appreciate your thoughts - as you've got a very valid point!

Peace Gents,
Mo
 
Back
Top Bottom