Bye bye Ardens…
- Thread starter JTC
- Start date
windhoek
The Phoolosopher
The boxes for my Eatons are huge so I can only imagine how much bigger are the Arden boxes. It's a shame you've called time on them. It took ages for me to get my Eatons to work in my room; room treatment, positioning and mana acoustics platforms being the solution. And now that I've got a Technics 1210GR that's somehow a bit bass-lite compared to my LP12, records have never sounded so enjoyable as the Eatons have a fantastic midrange. I can only guess your Ardens will have had all the same potential but more just waiting to be unlocked.
Regardless, you've had a blast along the way by the sounds of it and all the best for whatever comes next
Regardless, you've had a blast along the way by the sounds of it and all the best for whatever comes next
Weecrackpot
Frank made me do it.
It’s rather sad seeing it like this, reminds me of my Chatsworth exit due to my financial meltdown,
i can never get them back now the prices have doubled what I sold mine for, needs must and all that.
i can never get them back now the prices have doubled what I sold mine for, needs must and all that.
JTC
PFM Villager...
I’m only a little sad they’re going. For my purposes, I’ve achieved a surprisingly close result with the P3ESRs and the SB3000. Last weekend I spent some final time with the Ardens, and - apart from the bottom octave (30-60Hz) the P3s are so close. The P3s also have a fraction more detail and HF extension, which was my only ongoing black mark against the Ardens. I could have lived happily ever after with the Ardens but being able to get basically the same SQ at half the price, and with greater, more even bass as a result of the sub and its EQ, was enough to tip the balance. Great though the Harbeths are, the SB3000 is an incredible sub, way better than all the subs I’ve had in the past. Together, it’s a superb combination and I can get to my windows again!!!
Weecrackpot
Frank made me do it.
Glad you got to what the Arden’s can do via a different route with the help of a sub,
the windows thing, isn’t great you can see your reflection and say to yourself “you handsome devil you are”,
that’s the clincher for these svelte P3’s.
p.s.when I see my reflection, it’s similar to my Avatar, not a nice sight.
the windows thing, isn’t great you can see your reflection and say to yourself “you handsome devil you are”,
that’s the clincher for these svelte P3’s.
p.s.when I see my reflection, it’s similar to my Avatar, not a nice sight.
hifinutt
hifinutt
The boxes for my Eatons are huge so I can only imagine how much bigger are the Arden boxes. It's a shame you've called time on them. It took ages for me to get my Eatons to work in my room; room treatment, positioning and mana acoustics platforms being the solution. And now that I've got a Technics 1210GR that's somehow a bit bass-lite compared to my LP12, records have never sounded so enjoyable as the Eatons have a fantastic midrange. I can only guess your Ardens will have had all the same potential but more just waiting to be unlocked.
Regardless, you've had a blast along the way by the sounds of it and all the best for whatever comes next
yes a good friend called by when my eatons were new and was less than complimentary . they took a few weeks to settle .... that was 4 years ago !! something remarkable really considering all the speaker eye candy on here . those boxes do certainly look smaller than you would think .
Interesting, as I thought the P3ESR has a warmer treble and reduced HF extension and detail in comparison to the SHL5+ (which in turn sounds warmer and less detailed than the Marten). The Ardens must sound pretty warm I guess.
Good to know the P3ESR integrates well with the SVS SB-3000.
ToTo Man
the band not the dog
I don't remember if JTC ever mentioned what his listening height was relative to the height of the centre of the Arden's DC, as this could have been contributing to its lack of treble clarity/sparkle. Tannoys are traditionally designed to be listened to 15 degrees off-axis but AIUI this guidance relates to the horizontal plane. If you are also 15 degrees off-axis in the vertical plane then you are effectively listening 30 degrees off-axis and the high-frequency roll-off will be pretty audible on what already appears to be a relatively warm on-axis voicing:
Legacy Arden frequency response:
Legacy Arden frequency response:
JTC
PFM Villager...
To be fair, a lot of my initial reservations about treble were actually due to a combination of my room being slightly over damped, the relative fullness of the Arden’s midbass and a slight loss of acuity in my own hearing. The P3, for whatever reason, works better in my room/with my ears.
Weecrackpot
Frank made me do it.
A subwoofer is something I’ve never used, does your current set up still give the presence the Arden’s give you?,
I’ve read the way to dial in the sub is to the point you don’t hear it so iam guessing the presentation is different.
I’ve read the way to dial in the sub is to the point you don’t hear it so iam guessing the presentation is different.
Sub configuration is best done with a mic + measurement software, and when aligned correctly can give you a really solid bottom end. It's really not that hard, so long as you change one thing, re-measure, no point going and changing 3 things at once as you'll just get confused.
If ardens are anything like my 15 inch HPDs, the presence you talk of is more to do with the rest of the frequency range rather than the bottom end, which is if anything light compared to the visual expectation given the amount of cone you end up looking at.
Weecrackpot
Frank made me do it.
Thanks for clearing my misconception regarding presence is linked to the amount of bass a speaker is pumping out,
setting up a sub properly sounds complicated if you want to do a proper job.
setting up a sub properly sounds complicated if you want to do a proper job.
tonerei
pfm Member
I somehow saw this day coming.
Yes it was probably on the cards from the first week
. I had discussed Cheviots and Ardens with JTC before buying. At the time the deal available made the Ardens worth seriously going for as the price difference was not massive. I was very concerned that the Ardens would be just too difficult (big) for my room so I decided to go for the Cheviots. This thread and JTC's experience and advice makes me glad I went with the smaller speaker.
Amber Audio
This is the Day
Worth a read of a couple recent threads about Subs, been using them since the ‘80s initially with standmount speakers like ProAc and then with floorstanders too, integrated properly the can add more than just thump and yeah they shouldn’t “advertise” their presence.
https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/thr...ze-and-placement-in-room.256434/#post-4388947
https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/thr...ze-and-placement-in-room.256434/#post-4679978
https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/review-the-svs-micro-3000-sub-with-ls3-5a-speakers.266531/
notevenclose
pfm Member
My advice to customers was always to rattle the windows for the first hour or two to frighten the neighbours and alienate the cat, then keep turning it down until you can't hear it any more.
After a week, repeat the latter part of the procedure.
When you turn it down until 'inaudible' this time, it'll probably be pretty close to the optimum setting.
Amber Audio
This is the Day
Certainly a cheaper option than an expensive DSP box of tricks
notevenclose
pfm Member
Certainly a cheaper option than an expensive DSP box of tricks
Ah, when I was flogging such items, the only box of tricks on offer was from Paul Daniels.
My instinctive reaction (yes, here at Luddites'R'Us HQ) is to think I'd trust an expensive DSP box of tricks about as far as I could throw him (PD), but since he was, it seems, quite tiny, perhaps that's not the best example.
Purely for future reference, anybody got any idea how chunky or otherwise Keith is?