Audio Pro Addon One vs. Audioengine A2
Sep 24, 2010 at 3:52 AM Thread Starter Post #1 of 9

pocketrocket

100+ Head-Fier
Joined
Sep 22, 2010
Posts
125
Likes
21
most of you might know the Audioengine A2:


 
I found out about them after I bought my Audio Pro Addon Ones. Look at the resemblance


 
Their physical dimensions are very close, with the Audio Pro being 0.1" deeper (they might measure in a different way so I suppose they're the same). Audioengine A2 woofer size is reportedly 2,75", Audio Pro site says Addon One has a 3,5" one. Haven't measured either, but from the pictures they seem really similar even in woofer size. Even the reflex ports seem the same although they're positioned differently, and the backplates have some resemblance. 

What are the chances they both have same components, at least for the elements and cabinet? A2 are $199, Addon One I bought for 199€ (with VAT so they're practically the same price too). Might Audio Pro be making them with a license from Audioengine or the other way around? Just wondering, the Audio Pro certainly sound neat just like people have described the A2s sound.
 
Sep 24, 2010 at 9:37 AM Post #2 of 9
Not sure about this, but the pdf from the website shows similarities to the A2's, down to the wireless dongle, and the speaker stands. 
beerchug.gif

 
The one advantage the audio pro seem to have over the A2's would be the grilles over the tweeters at the top. I always had this fear the someone would poke the tweeters of my A2's and spoil it...
 
Feb 22, 2012 at 11:58 AM Post #4 of 9
I bought a pair of Audio Pro Add On Two's
They have two inputs one via RCA & one via Stereo mini jack.
They include a remote control for on/off, volume control & input selection.
Plus the subwoofer output & USB in for thier proprietary wireless dongle.
These Audio pros cost abotu twice the price of the Audio Engines ( which by them selves I find a good value)
but the Audio pros wiht thier patented Ace Bass sound to me like Real speakers,not nice desk top computer jobbies.
Sure they may not be cheap but IMO worth every penny, in my room they don't even require a sub for the listening I do.
I'm enjoying them more than I could have hoped for !
addon2_prod2_0.jpg
addon2_prod3_0.jpg

 
Mar 4, 2012 at 3:58 AM Post #5 of 9
I've heard of this "Ace Bass" feature, but what does it actually do? From the outside it looks an awful lot like the exact same reflex port than the one in the Audioengine. Could you enlighten me on the topic?
 
Unless miniscule footprint is your top priority I would not waste time with speakers of this size due to a variety of reasons. Needing a subwoofer, too high crossover point to subwoofer, bad low frequency response and lack of sound pressure being the most vital ones. Of course if you listen to very small volumes then it's ok, but for normal listening and more critical listening I would much rather get for instance the B3031A studio monitors pictured below.

I paid about $350 for a pair of these babies, new:


 
Also, oldish thread, I've long since stopped looking into improving my setup, once I get my balanced audio interface I'm in audio zen (unbalanced causes annoying whirring sounds from computer PSU, balanced doesnt do this)
 
Apr 6, 2012 at 1:19 PM Post #6 of 9
From Audio Pro's website:
 
Since 1978, we have designed and manufactured loudspeakers which have gained worldwide acclaim - specially within our specialty - active subwoofers. Not surprisingly, Audio Pro's speaker history started with a unique product. The B2.50, a rare subwoofer featuring built-in amplification and active crossover electronics. B2.50 incorporated the ACE-Bass (Amplifier Controlled Euphonic Bass) technique. It's a patented technique designed to reproduce low frequencies from small enclosures. The ACE-Bass in the B2.50 used dual subwoofer speakers, exactly monitored by servos in order for the electronics to make adjustments accordingly. Ace-bass was invented by Karl Erik Ståhl, a young Swedish engineer who refused to back down until he had created a way to achieve deep bass without filling the living room with speaker cabinets the size of telephone booths. The ace-bass technology was first presented at the 61st Audio Engineering Society Convention, New York, in November 1978. Audiophiles were amazed, and Audio Pro became world famous in HiFi circles. Especially impressive was the extremely low bass, which gave sonic sensations that few had experienced outside the concert hall. The ace-bass technology has been further deveolped during the years and is still used in all Audio Pro subwoofers today.

A more tecnical description of ace-bass

 
In Elektronikvärlden (a Swedish hi-fi magazine) No. 8, 1988, Bertil Hellsten wrote a very good and instructive description of the ace-bass technology. Below is an abstract of the article:
 

General

There are many ways to accomplish good bass in a loudspeaker. One is to have a large cabinet and a large woofer.

 In practice, the lower limit for a woofer is set by the lower resonance frequency, which can be lowered by increasing the membrane's mass. By adding weights, you can go lower and lower in frequency. But, at the same time, the speaker will respond increasingly slowly.

 In addition, the membrane's compliance and damping will no longer match, so the result isn't useful. To achieve a very low limiting frequency in a small woofer, a combination of mass, compliance and damping is needed, and this is impossible to achieve mechanically.

Audio Pro's solution - electronic mechanics
Seen from the amplifier's point of view, the loudspeaker is an electrical component with its mechanical attributes transformed into electrical magnitudes. The mass corresponds to a capacitance, and the compliance to an inductance that is in parallel with the capacitance. The attenuation corresponds to a resistance that is in parallel with both of the above.

 By adding more inductances, resistances and capacitances, one should easily be able to change the loudspeaker's mechanical attributes. This is the main idea behind Audio Pro's ace-bass loudspeaker constructions.

 But there is a catch. The drive unit's voice coil has a resistance that lies serially with the parallel 'mechanical' components. This means that we can't parallel-connect directly to the woofer's mechanical parameters. It is not connected to the amplifier firmly enough.

If we were to increase the damping by parallel-connecting the amplifier output with a resistance, we would still never get a lower value than what the voice coil's resistance gives, and that is not good enough. The same thing happens to the other attributes. They are 'hidden' by the voice coil's (and the speaker cable's) resistance.
 

Negative resistance

The solution is to serially connect the amplifier output with a negative resistance. But you can't buy that at your nearest electronics parts shop. It can only be achieved by positive feedback in the amplifier's output stage.

 There are several sensitive factors that can easily cause the system to self-oscillate. However, correctly trimmed, you can achieve a system that exactly equalizes all the resistances that are in series with the drive units' properties. In this way, you can also reach and affect the loudspeaker's mechanical attributes electrically.

 You can also choose to let this influence decrease with increasing frequency, where it's no longer needed.

 By using this feature fully, Audio Pro maintains that you can decrease the speaker's physical volume by 90%, compared to a conventional bass reflex box!
 

ACE-BASS is an abbreviation for Amplifier Controlled Euphonic Bass.

 

 
 
Jul 31, 2012 at 10:31 AM Post #7 of 9
Just got my ADDON ONE (black)...I'm happy to report that I am really happy with this set. It was a replacement set after I busted my AUDICA MPS-1. Totally agree with you, myself also do not have to worry about the bass for a small room. Clarity and mid range are awesome. It just did what I expected from a good quality speakers. It fills the study room easily. I connected them to my I-Mac, flanking it and sometimes I used it to listen to my I-Pod Classic (via line out), running all songs on lossless. Would highly recommend this to anyone who is looking for a 2.0 speakers for PC/MP3. An option to add a SW is an advantage. For now, in my study...I do not need a SW.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top