pioneer boy
New Member
Was wondering if anybody knows what the bass response is like on the ADS L810's...and for that matter what kind of speaker it is in general?
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Fast_Eddie
Upper-middle fi
It's a great speaker. Two 8" woofers in seperate sealed sub enclosures. Amazing bass. Some thing they're a bit bass heavy, but they're just right to my taste. But the bass is just the foundation of the story. the big dome mids and tasty little dome tweeters bring a lot to the party as well. They are fantastic speakers.
They can play loud but sound great at low volume too. Only down side is in imaging and soundstage. You have to do a lot of work to get them to image well and even then, it's very two dimentional. That matters a lot to me, but I've been able to get them working well enough that I use them as my mains and really enjoy them.
Prices have come back down to Earth over the last year or so. What they're selling for now, I think they're back to a bargin for what they do.
Take care,
Ed
thedelihaus
Nocturnal transmissions
Very good speakers.
The L810 is an L630/L730 cab with a 2" mid instead of the 1.5" and twin 8" woofers instead of the single 10".
These are the same drivers as the L1230.
Now, the L630s, of which I own a pair, are a smooth, delightful speaker with great bass. The twin woofers of the L1230s I have go lower, and are a smidge tighter. The 2" mid seems to make the speaker a bit hotter overall to me- I find myself turning down the tweeter attenuator on 'em. A bit more sizzle than the L630s.
The L810s with the same drivers as the L1230s, but in a smaller box of the L630/L730s can produce, to some folk, a few issues.
One spoken of was a bass hump, and I'd almost call it, in severe cases, congestion.
And since they're cramming two 8" woofers in the place of one 10", you get another issue- limited room for the tweeter and midrange.
So, they get placed side by side, horizontally, instead of vertically.
This can produce issues with how the ear processes the signal- possible comb-filtering, in some folk's thoughts. I'd agree more on maybe the Polk 10s, with side by side 6.5" drivers maybe experiencing this than the L810s and the two different-sized small drivers (how many of us have played our speakers on their sides, in tight quarters, in the past?). But it may still have an effect on the sound.
Also, the drivers aren't mirror-imaged, if you want to be nit-picky.
But there's legions of fans out there- can legions be wrong?
It's a great speaker indeed and one worth a listen to, to see if it jives with you.
The L810 is an L630/L730 cab with a 2" mid instead of the 1.5" and twin 8" woofers instead of the single 10".
These are the same drivers as the L1230.
Now, the L630s, of which I own a pair, are a smooth, delightful speaker with great bass. The twin woofers of the L1230s I have go lower, and are a smidge tighter. The 2" mid seems to make the speaker a bit hotter overall to me- I find myself turning down the tweeter attenuator on 'em. A bit more sizzle than the L630s.
The L810s with the same drivers as the L1230s, but in a smaller box of the L630/L730s can produce, to some folk, a few issues.
One spoken of was a bass hump, and I'd almost call it, in severe cases, congestion.
And since they're cramming two 8" woofers in the place of one 10", you get another issue- limited room for the tweeter and midrange.
So, they get placed side by side, horizontally, instead of vertically.
This can produce issues with how the ear processes the signal- possible comb-filtering, in some folk's thoughts. I'd agree more on maybe the Polk 10s, with side by side 6.5" drivers maybe experiencing this than the L810s and the two different-sized small drivers (how many of us have played our speakers on their sides, in tight quarters, in the past?). But it may still have an effect on the sound.
Also, the drivers aren't mirror-imaged, if you want to be nit-picky.
But there's legions of fans out there- can legions be wrong?
It's a great speaker indeed and one worth a listen to, to see if it jives with you.
Fast_Eddie
Upper-middle fi
Deli, many times I've thought that the 810s could be made into world class speakers by building custom cabs that address the issues you mention. God, I wish I had more time on my hands...
Fast_Eddie
Upper-middle fi
Oh man, I just realized something!! I have a good friend who is a profesional carpenter who also owns a pair of L810s! How have I not thought of this before! Maybe if I gather the information to design them better, he would build two sets of cabinets. Hummmm.
thedelihaus
Nocturnal transmissions
Eddie,
I imagine a slightly larger (taller) cabinet to help put the drivers in better order (vertically aligned) and to give those woofers room to breathe might do the trick.
May need to tweak the x-over slightly.
My L1230s are outstanding. Maybe you could make a tower version of them- kinda like the L1290s, but retaining the bass of the L1230s, which, at least on paper, goes lower.
Problem with the L1230s?
Pushed hard, you can get the woofers to reach their limit.
It's loud and boisterous at that point, so not really an issue unless you want to rattle a few things.
This seems to have been cured with the L1290- a former a/d/s/ worker told me this- but the bass response is lesser in the L1290.
Dunno if the L1290 used different drivers- this could also be a reason they don't suffer the bottoming of the L1230s.
I imagine a slightly larger (taller) cabinet to help put the drivers in better order (vertically aligned) and to give those woofers room to breathe might do the trick.
May need to tweak the x-over slightly.
My L1230s are outstanding. Maybe you could make a tower version of them- kinda like the L1290s, but retaining the bass of the L1230s, which, at least on paper, goes lower.
Problem with the L1230s?
Pushed hard, you can get the woofers to reach their limit.
It's loud and boisterous at that point, so not really an issue unless you want to rattle a few things.
This seems to have been cured with the L1290- a former a/d/s/ worker told me this- but the bass response is lesser in the L1290.
Dunno if the L1290 used different drivers- this could also be a reason they don't suffer the bottoming of the L1230s.
soundmotor
super modified
If I was rebuilding L810's I'd clone them as L1230's.
The asymmetric baffle of the L1230 has nice advantages over the L1290 vertically aligned one.
The asymmetric baffle of the L1230 has nice advantages over the L1290 vertically aligned one.
thedelihaus
Nocturnal transmissions
Well, I've spent time with soundmotor, and he knows his a/d/s/, so I'll go with him on this.
As for me, the a/d/s/ L1230s are not as "decor friendly" as the smaller L810s, but i liked 'em better. But you need to commit to the room issue.
soundmotor
super modified
You know, in thinking about this a bit more, an L1290 rebuilt as an L1230 might be the best of all. It would certainly address the bottoming issue and the top end is essentially identical to the L1230.....
:scratch2:
thedelihaus
Nocturnal transmissions
Wazzit, different woofers then, betwixt the two models?
Anyhow, you gotta drive 'em pretty hard to get 'em to come out of composure. So for all you L1230 hunters out there, unless you play your music shamefully loud, don't worry about it.
Remember, Telarc used L1530s as monitors- the L1230s are a better home size, and in my opinion thee best of a/d/s/ I've heard, so far.
TheL810s are an L1230 repackaged so that the significant other doesn't bean you on the head for carrying home too big a speaker, and it still sounds very good.
Anyhow, you gotta drive 'em pretty hard to get 'em to come out of composure. So for all you L1230 hunters out there, unless you play your music shamefully loud, don't worry about it.
Remember, Telarc used L1530s as monitors- the L1230s are a better home size, and in my opinion thee best of a/d/s/ I've heard, so far.
TheL810s are an L1230 repackaged so that the significant other doesn't bean you on the head for carrying home too big a speaker, and it still sounds very good.
soundmotor
super modified
L1290 had more excursion & cast aluminum chassis vs. the L810 stamped ones.
You could get the L1290 to bottom but it took more to do so.
Both of these speaker designs were designed before home theater & throbbing rave-style club music.
Carmina Burana was about as tough as it got.
thedelihaus
Nocturnal transmissions
Yesh, it took a very, VERY demanding Lords Of Acid CD track and judiciously applied gobs of volume to make 'em ache...
Lotsa pushing on my part to get them to briefly protest.
:yes:
sealy
Addicted Member
I recently got ahold of a pair of 810's. I am very pleased with them. They are now my main speakers. Lovely, clear sound, look great as well. Placed too close to the back wall they will have a bit of exaggerated mid bass, easily remedied by placement. I think they are only down about 3 db at 40 hz, but drop off rapidly after that. I supplemented the low frequencies with a PSB subsonic 3 subwoofer. My plan is to put the mid/tweeter in a time-aligned vertical array separate from the main cabinet. I won't enclose the mid or tweeter, but I will put some felt on the top of the cabinet to reduce reflections.
If this is a bad idea, please tell me.
If this is a bad idea, please tell me.
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wineslob
Wiping out white van
It could be a bad idea. The closer to a point source you can make dome drivers, the better off you are. I've done DIY speakers for 30 years and the BEST imaging were always 2-3 ways in a vertical alignment, as close to eachother as possible.
Fast_Eddie
Upper-middle fi
I've thought about that too. Hope you do it. I'd love to hear how it works. I have mine tilted back and that helps imaging a lot.
Getting them on 10" or so stands helps the bass too. In fact, it gets pretty tough to beat.
