PRODUCT COMPARISON

Ribbon Loudspeakers by Newform Research.

It is always comforting to know which products you can compare when you undertake the upgrading of your system. But, the factory direct model can make it very difficult to make comparisons as the prices are way out of wack (read "lower") with the retail list of acoustically comparable products.

Specific model comparison is an impossible task for a manufacturer to tackle. So the point we will be addressing is acoustically comparable brands. We will leave the consumer to wade through the retail market and sort out the dollar relationships for each model they are considering.

People examining Newform Research loudspeakers are in the market for sound quality, not furniture. Sound quality of this nature is usually associated with planar loudspeakers of some sort. The major brands available today are Magnaplanar and Martin Logan. They share the classic planar traits of transparency and detail but sound quite different.

Newforms are probably closer to the Magnaplanar sound which may be slightly sweeter than the Martin Logan sound. Room, equipment and setup variables make this an extremely generalized statement.

Comparable classic planars of old include Apogee, Quad, Acoustat, Dayton Wright and many others.

To compound the issue for those who have not yet been bitten by the "planar or death" bug, we'll mention a number of excellent conventional loudspeakers. There are a fair number of specialist manufacturers who do a very good job. Among the companies who have lasted, Vandersteen, Meadowlark, Merlin and Totem apply a great deal of care plus considerable original engineering in the development of their loudspeakers.

The price bracketing exercise would see the R645 running against speakers in the range of $4000 to $20,000. Above that, the upcoming NHB Ultra or the custom made ExcelArray would be the ticket.

The best loudspeakers from Newforms point of view in this group would be the Magnaplanar 3.6 and 20. They might require a subwoofer in some installations but the vast majority of systems either have them now or will have them in the future anyway. Also, amplifier requirements might be more specific but most people in this bracket are well amped already.

The R630 is generally a smaller room choice and price is less of an issue. Anyone considering spending less than $4000 on a pair of loudspeakers and who has a room or under 200 square feet would do well to consider the 630.

Ultimately, the customer has to make the final determination of what constitutes a valid comparison. Newforms main points are: Understand your application, don't be unduly swayed by price levels. Musical performance does not necessarily fit into the nicely designed price point marketing strategies of the corporate planners as easily as they would like. The range of products that deliver a truly satisfying musical performance in your room might well straddle an order of magnitude ( X 10) price range.

Don't let prices determine your perception of performance.

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Email: ribbons@newformresearch.com Tel: 705.835.0081