[jwbrent]

  Nice purchase :¬)

Thank you ...  

 

 

[kazsud]

Glad you are happy with them. They look awesome.

I've been eyeing their scansonic line for the mb-1 and mb-2.5 but I've read they dont share much of the Raidho sound.

 

[jwbrent]

Glad you are happy with them. They look awesome.

I've been eyeing their scansonic line for the mb-1 and mb-2.5 but I've read they dont share much of the Raidho sound.

Well, the ribbon tweeter on the Scansonics is supposed to be very similar to the Raidhos, and in my mind, that's what makes these speakers so special.

 

[phoenixdogfan]

They look drop dead gorgeous.
 
Myself, I went a less expensive route and bought a brand new pair of Kef LS 50's which I found on the internet for $1225, with free shipping.  I'm very happy with my purchase, bit would dearly love to hear those Raidho's, b/c I'm certain they sound every bit as gorgeous as they look.

 

[jwbrent]

  They look drop dead gorgeous.
 
Myself, I went a less expensive route and bought a brand new pair of Kef LS 50's which I found on the internet for $1225, with free shipping.  I'm very happy with my purchase, bit would dearly love to hear those Raidho's, b/c I'm certain they sound every bit as gorgeous as they look.

I always thought of the LS50s as a go to speaker under 2K. I'm also a sucker for special edition models, anniversary versions, and the like.
 
Congrats on your purchase. 

 

 

[kazsud]

Does it make a difference if they are tilted on the stands?

 

[jwbrent]

Does it make a difference if they are tilted on the stands?

I imagine it does. Time aligning drivers is a common practice in high end audio speaker design. Raidho's approach is more simplistic by using the stand as a means to keep the arrival times of the high and low frequencies phase coherent. Additionally, there may be a benefit to soundstage heighth since ribbons typically have less vertical dispersion than traditional tweeter designs. I've not tried any other stands, but if I were to do so, I would adjust the spikes to replicate the leaned back nature of the original design.

 

[jwbrent]

The only issue I mentioned about XT-1s were the matching stands. The included feet for the stands are lightweight plastic, the kind you would find under mass market electronics. The threaded inserts are a very small diameter, so finding sturdy replacement spikes might prove to be an issue.
 
Well, Raidho now has spikes for the stands but they sell for $480, more than half the price of the stands alone!. Don't think I'll be getting these.
 
On a different matter, I continue to be amazed with the level of detail retrieval the XT-1s have ... without emphasizing the upper frequencies. Just a very natural sound that allows for hours and hours of continuous listening. 

 

 

[jwbrent]

We need more Raidho fans posting their love!
 
Anyway, TIDAL MQA sounds pretty fantastic on my XT-1s.

 

[nvfan]

I wonder how these compare to the Dynaudio C1s? They've been pretty much the statement monitor under $10k for the last few years so it should be interesting to see how it compares.

 

[jwbrent]

I wonder how these compare to the Dynaudio C1s? They've been pretty much the statement monitor under $10k for the last few years so it should be interesting to see how it compares.

I worked in the industry and the retailer I worked for was a large Dynaudio dealer. We had C1s on demo, so I got to listen to them a lot. I also owned a pair of Special 25s, a stand mounted speaker that retailed for 5K. I was always impressed with the Dynaudio sound.

The Raidho's proprietary tweeter is what separates the two manufacturers apart. I prefer the ribbon tweeter over the dome design used by Dynaudio. I've owned ribbon speakers before, and I just like the upper frequency presentation a bit better.

I can imagine, though, some preferring the Dynaudio sound.

 

[nvfan]

You prefer ribbons in general or just this ribbon in particular you feel outperforms the esotar2?

The C1s I think are mostly praised for their woofer and also woofer-tweeter implementation, not necessarily the absolute performance of the tweeter. Many bookshelf speakers at or below the C1s pricepoint have superior tweeters (B&W Diamond, RAAL 70-20XR, various Beryllium tweeters) but the C1s have mainly stood the test of time due to the very tight step response, linearity, smooth sound, and incredibly clean decay plot free of any ringing. They have impeccable measurements for a 2-way bookshelf speaker but its not going to beat any exotic drivers in terms of speed or treble extension.

 

[jwbrent]

You prefer ribbons in general or just this ribbon in particular you feel outperforms the esotar2?

The C1s I think are mostly praised for their woofer and also woofer-tweeter implementation, not necessarily the absolute performance of the tweeter. Many bookshelf speakers at or below the C1s pricepoint have superior tweeters (B&W Diamond, RAAL 70-20XR, various Beryllium tweeters) but the C1s have mainly stood the test of time due to the very tight step response, linearity, smooth sound, and incredibly clean decay plot free of any ringing. They have impeccable measurements for a 2-way bookshelf speaker but its not going to beat any exotic drivers in terms of speed or treble extension.

The first ribbon speakers I heard and owned were a pair of Apogees and they left an indelible imprint on me. I have since listened to many ribbon speakers, but not all of them were to my liking. When I first listened to a pair of Raidhos, I was captivated by their sound, and the experience brought back fond memories of my Apogees.
 
The one area the Raidhos work better is in their ability to allow me to listen at low volume levels without losing musical engagement. I never was able to manage this with Dynaudio speakers, always feeling the need to turn up the volume to get them sounding their best.
 
I love low powered tube amps and when I owned the Special 25s, after awhile I realized this was not a good combination, at least to my tastes.

 

[townes]

I never heard Raidho's, but I know and appreciate the magic of ribbons 

 

 

[jwbrent]

  I never heard Raidho's, but I know and appreciate the magic of ribbons 

 

Are those Studios?