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Is it time for active speakers?

That's because xlr 2 xlr cables have lots of real world uses. Tends keep the prices sensible.

Atc chucked in a pair of said cables with my 100s
 
I have had actives for 10 years and I doubt I would go passive again. And you absolutely do not need to spend big money on xlr cables...
 
In terms of sound quality there are only advantages for 'actives' Ben Lilly of ATC confirmed that , ATC continue to produce passive version because there remains a demand.
Retailers have traditionally not been over keen on actives because 'upgrade' options are severely diminished!
Contemporary designs bring even more advantages, compact enclosures yet completely 'full-range' , controlled directivity, cardioid bass response , boundary and contour filters
,enabling you to place the speakers where you want !
Less boxes, more music.
Keith
 
Purite Audio said:
In terms of sound quality there are only advantages for 'actives' Ben Lilly of ATC confirmed that , ATC continue to produce passive version because there remains a demand.
Retailers have traditionally not been over keen on actives because 'upgrade' options are severely diminished!
Contemporary designs bring even more advantages, compact enclosures yet completely 'full-range' , controlled directivity, cardioid bass response , boundary and contour filters
,enabling you to place the speakers where you want !
Less boxes, more music.
Keith
Click to expand...

Not quite true, drivers and tech develop. ATC introduced there own HF unit after years of developing. This is now in both the passive and active speakers. What Ben stated is no different from the retails preaching separate's are better. From my experiences of both passive and active systems, an integrated (with digital/streaming input) and passive speakers (with minimal x-overs) is the better solution.
 
There are genuine advantages with active operation, especially when the crossover is implemented digitally, DSP can be used to correct driver anomalies, reduce distortion ,the Kii's have a motion feedback circuit, the speakers can limit themselves to avoid damage , correct overall phase, virtual point source, added to the features I mentioned earlier a whole host of advantages over passive .
Keith
 
Pre owned Meridian DSP actives are quite cheap..a good place to start..I think you can get DSP5000's for less than a grand
 
Nothing to do with appearances. They all sound OK but nothing special. Also did lots of dems at proper pro audio shops like funky junk etc. ATC were the only ones what ticked the boxes correctly and they only play well loud. IMHO
 
Surely the whole 'price at which things become good' thing is a bit irrelevant as it obviously depends on how deep your pocket is. I mean, we can all make a loose prediction that the more cash you have to spend the better the system you'd expect to be able to put together. The question for most people would be 'for my fixed budget, does an active system offer me the possibility of a better sound than a passive one'.
I've only ever had two pairs of active speakers compared to many many different passive combos so am not gonna make any bold statements, but right now I'm feeling very smug about my recently acquired 2nd hand studio actives.

My interconnects cost me £5.50 off amazon :eek:. I may splash out and spend a bit more on a 2nd pair one day, maybe even up to £30 if I'm feeling flush.
 
maybe the active- owners here would like to name a few models in the Epos M12i size and about £600-1200? would be interresting to have a look: how much do you need to spend?
 
£5.50 off Amazon you big spender, Mogami microphone cable here , at a hugely more expensive £70.00 for a five metre pair.
Keith
 
I was just the thinking about practicality. My audiolab 8000M's weigh a lot as do my shielded Epos M12is - I dont think I would want them all in one box - The 8000M's transformer is very large & I bet radiates a nice magnetic field. So for decent powered active speakers we are talking big speakers? and definitely not valves?
 
Traditionally ATC for example plate amps class A/B with heatsinking on the rear, contemporary designs are increasingly using Class D, compact and efficient.
Keith
 
I've been using actives for the last 10 years. I wouldn't go back to passive unless it was for something serious like vivids or large PMC's.
But at the same time, I don't think I'd jump in 5k+ for any new digital actives as they might become obsolete or non repairable. I know Musical fidelity and AVi don't service older equipment of their own.
 
kc5819w said:
The list of technical advantages is too long to list here. It's not a sweeping statement at all. The passive crossover in passive separate systems interacts with the drivers and destroys the damping control of the amp and introduces phase problems.

In an active speaker you have independent amplifiers for each individual driver which operate after a line level electronic crossover which allows for much better driver motion control, steeper crossover slopes and no colouration.

The only excuse for passive crossovers is their low cost. Their behavior changes with the signal level dependent dynamics of the drivers. They block the power amplifier from taking maximum control over the voice coil motion. They are a waste of time, if accuracy of reproduction is the goal.
Click to expand...

the question is how bad IN REALITY rather than some theoretical argument?
 
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