Auditioned Ascend Sierra 1s

[Carraway]

I got a chance to hear a pair of Ascend Acoustic's Sierra-1 speakers with the NRT tweeter upgrade. I'll provide some brief thoughts if it helps anyone.

As the system was vinyl only and I didn't bring any of my own LPs, I connected my phone through a small integrated amp I brought and used lossless files of Herbie Hancock's The Piano, Son House's Original Delta Blues, Maria Schneider Orchestra's The Thompson Fields and Jonathan Finlayson's Moving Still.

First impression was that the soundstage was rich, deep and detailed. Very good start. Then I noticed the bass was quite surprising given the size of the speakers. The lower registers also had a rather nice timbre. Hancock's solo piano was especially rich sounding below middle C, as was the lower brass in Schneider's orchestra.

I had an issue from the mids to upper mids, however. It's been quite some time since I've heard very flat studio monitors, but that range sounded rather forward and exaggerated to me, giving kind of a hard texture. I especially noticed it with solo piano and House's voice, also a bit with trumpets as they had a little honk to them. The owner said he believes that's the NRT tweeter, as he originally had Sierra-2s with the ribbon but felt they were too laid back in the upper mids, so Ascend suggested the Sierra-1s with the NRT upgrade.

In an effort to make sure I wasn't mishearing/remembering things, I did a quick check with my headphones then listened to the speakers some more. After a bit I felt that I was trying to overlook the upper midrange edge and began to think that it would bother me too much long term. I also decided that, overall, they weren't enough of an improvement over my aging, 90s-era PSBs and Paradigms to justify the cost.

So I suppose that, for me, the Sierra-1 speakers with NRT tweeters did a whole lot of things right but one particular thing wrong. I think if I mainly listened to rock and pop I would be okay with and may even have liked that edge, but as most of my listening is jazz I felt it was too much.

On paper I thought they would be about perfect and was surprised someone in my area had a pair for sale (and at a very reasonable price). The owner was also quite cool and patient as I believe my musical taste is very different from his. So while I was all set to buy some new speakers tonight, I didn't. I'm not sure where to go from here. I'd like to hear the Sierra-1s with the base tweeter and the Sierra-2s with the ribbon, but I believe the only way I'd be able to do that is to order them and do a home trial. I'll probably look towards some other choices. It was an interesting experience at least.

 

[crouse]

Nice review. Thanks!

 

[runnin']

Yes, thanks for sharing this. I've got a pair of the Sierra-1 with original silk dome tweeter, and the Sierra-2. Oddly enough, I haven't compared them side by side except for a short demo when I first got the 1's. BTW, they are in my theater system, and the Audyssey correction somewhat neuters them as it does all speakers, to achieve a flat frequency response, in room.

That said, I find the 1's easy on the ears with no harsh or bright characteristics. I'll have to take them down into the basement system now and compare with the 2's. The 2's are crossed over higher than the Sierra 1 according to the manufacturer, due to the ribbon tweeter's needs. What a speaker, though. The high frequency detail really shines on proper listening material and there are simply no weaknesses at this price point. Both models employ the exact same cabinet, which is very inert. Rap your knuckles on the side and there is absolutely no hollow sound, or much of a sound at all.

By comparison, some Paradigm and Tannoy towers I have give off a hollow echo so it's easy to see how good the Ascend cabinet is.

 

[Carraway]

As an update I sent some questions to Ascend, as I really liked the speakers except for that harshness/liveliness, and David Fabrikant replied himself. He did say that the Sierra-1 NrT is designed to have a very lively, energetic and detailed presentation, while the CBM-170SE, Sierra 1 and Sierra 2 are more neutral and relaxed. After he asked some other questions he highly recommended the Sierra 2s for my preferences/system, and I'm seriously considering them, even though that's a bit more than I anticipated spending.

 

[zappafan2]

I just purchased a pair of Sierra 1's and could not be happier, the build quality of these speakers are amazing. I listen to a lot of rock and a lot of jazz, my jazz records sound phenomenal with these speakers. I thought about the 2's but decided on the 1's and I have no regrets. With the return policy if the 2's are more than you anticipated, maybe get the 1's and if your not happy return them for the 2's. It is a pain to do that but you may be happy with the 1's, lots of positive reviews over the years. I was questioning not getting the 2's but after hearing the 1's I am happy, I agree with runnin' the 1's are very easy on the ears no fatigue at all which has been a problem for me with other speakers.

 

[runnin']

Yeah, you really can't go wrong with the 1's. I finally got around to a side by side comparison with the 2's and a couple of amps. First I tried a Parasound A21/P7, but it took a while to disconnect one pair to connect to the other and I really couldn't trust my impressions because I felt the two models were fairly close. Both models had no trouble with 250 wpc, though I don't blast the music. So I connected both pairs to a Nad C356BEE on the A/B speaker outputs and was able to instantly switch from the 2's to the 1's.

What became apparent after a while was the extra detail of the 2's. This wasn't obvious to me on the typical old pop/rock I have, but on better quality recordings with small band arrangements and lots of space between the notes. Piano and vocals can reveal lots! Anyway, the ribbon tweeter just seemed to have that extra level of realism over the silk dome. I don't know if it's the accuracy of a Raal ribbon, or even the lower crossover point of the 2's, but the end result was a better presentation of the music. It wasn't a huge difference, however, and the 1's do have a bit more bass I think. Also, I wouldn't say that either pair was brighter than the other. I don't think I have the hearing skills of some but this is what I could hear after repeated comparisons.

When I was intially buying the 2, I considered the Sierra 1 as well and figured I could probably be happy with them, but in the end thought I'd always wonder what if(It was about a year later that I came across a LCR set of the Sierra 1 and bought them used). The Sierra 2 is more expensive and only you can tell if it's worth it in your system.

 

[Carraway]

Thanks, zappafan2 and runnin'. I do mainly listen to jazz and like detail. I think I'm running into my standard audio/musician issue in that whenever I think about spending a fair amount of money for home audio equipment I start thinking about what instruments I could buy for that amount.

Edit: I also recently bought a used Bryston 2B-LP amp and am thinking the Sierras would be a nice match.

 

[zappafan2]

Well good luck with whatever you decide and let us know if you end up with some ascends, when I purchase something that costs a fair amount of money I think about how much music I could buy lol.

 

[Carraway]

Well good luck with whatever you decide and let us know if you end up with some ascends, when I purchase something that costs a fair amount of money I think about how much music I could buy lol.

Thanks and will do. I'd like to be able to compare to some others, but it's tough to find much of anything to audition anymore.

As an aside, thinking about how much music you can buy reminds me of a college friend who had the "pizza index." About everyone thinks of fairly expensive things in terms of how many of something they regularly like buying the amount would buy. For him it was pizzas, for me it was also albums or books. Another friend thought in terms of cases of beer, while another in illicit substances.

 

[runnin']

Thought I'd update this thread since I've ordered another pair of Sierra 1's.

I've gotten into Tannoys the last year, although it's just their more entry level stuff with the concentric drivers. But recently I think I reached the end of what they can do for me. Or maybe it's the Schiit Bifrost Multibit that revealed the weakness in them. They are Tannoy Saturn DC6i, and the cabinet vibrations with a somewhat imprecise tweeter had me thinking that the amp I'm currently running them with, a Nad C375BEE, wasn't as up to snuff as I thought. I've got 3 Sierra 1 in my theater and thought I'd swap in a pair.

Good grief. They bitch slapped the Tannoys all around the room. Better bass. Cleaner clear sound. Highs giving better location cues and resolution. Better at high volumes. Here's the kicker. I sold my pair of Sierra 2 a couple of months ago talking myself into the idea that most of the 80's music I listen to can't benefit from the ribbons. But the Bifrost I recently got put so much more detail into this music, and now I really regret selling them.

So I emailed the buyer, asking if he's happy with them, maybe he wants to sell? Not a chance. Right now I'm a bit tight budget wise, so I ordered the Sierra 1 with the idea of upgrading them to the Sierra 2 next year. All this just to get back to what I already had! Morale of the story? Sometimes you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone.

 

[Carraway]

Thought I'd update this thread since I've ordered another pair of Sierra 1's.

I've gotten into Tannoys the last year, although it's just their more entry level stuff with the concentric drivers. But recently I think I reached the end of what they can do for me. Or maybe it's the Schiit Bifrost Multibit that revealed the weakness in them. They are Tannoy Saturn DC6i, and the cabinet vibrations with a somewhat imprecise tweeter had me thinking that the amp I'm currently running them with, a Nad C375BEE, wasn't as up to snuff as I thought. I've got 3 Sierra 1 in my theater and thought I'd swap in a pair.

Good grief. They bitch slapped the Tannoys all around the room. Better bass. Cleaner clear sound. Highs giving better location cues and resolution. Better at high volumes. Here's the kicker. I sold my pair of Sierra 2 a couple of months ago talking myself into the idea that most of the 80's music I listen to can't benefit from the ribbons. But the Bifrost I recently got put so much more detail into this music, and now I really regret selling them.

So I emailed the buyer, asking if he's happy with them, maybe he wants to sell? Not a chance. Right now I'm a bit tight budget wise, so I ordered the Sierra 1 with the idea of upgrading them to the Sierra 2 next year. All this just to get back to what I already had! Morale of the story? Sometimes you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone.

Thanks for the update. I once had a set of Tannoy monitors. In my audio engineering days I often used them as nearfields, especially as I didn't care much for the Yamaha NS-10s with toilet paper over the tweeters that were ubiquitous at the time. I sold the Tannoys quite some time ago and occasionally think about getting another pair. But I haven't.

Today, however, I did see a B-stock sale on Sierra-1s and decided to give them a try. I'm looking forward to them.

 

[runnin']

It's a really good price that you can't go wrong with. I read on their forum that the drivers may benefit from a little break in time but they sound so good already!

 

[runnin']

I currently have a pair of Tannoy Definition 6.1 that I've been comparing to the Sierra 1. It took me a while to get a handle on the differences, the guy that sold the Tannoys to me said this line excels with tubes. I do not have tubes, and while I understand that tube fans are very loyal, it's not in my future. Anyway, against the Sierra's I started to realize the Definitions seem to push the midrange frequencies somewhat. For me, the end result is they can get a bit congested sounding, while the Sierra's stay very clear and composed no matter the music. If what the seller said about tube gear is true, then I'm sure the Tannoys would improve, and don't get me wrong, they are a nice sounding speaker. But with my gear, the easy choice is to sell the Tannoy speakers.

Carraway, did your Sierra 1 come in yet? Any early impressions? Mine have about 25 hours on them, and if there are any changes in sound, they are too subtle for me to notice. But what a great speaker, I just love how clear they are and even at high volumes they sound effortless. Well, until the room limitations kick in, I should look into room treatments next.

 

[Carraway]

runnin' - Thanks. It's been some time since I've heard the Tannoys, and even they they were compact studio monitors, but I liked using them.

I don't yet have the Ascends. I ordered them last Wednesday and received the invoice, but I have yet to receive notice that they've shipped. Last I checked my card hasn't been charged yet, either. I'm hoping I'll like them with the normal tweeter; from what I heard of the NRTs I think I will.

 

[runnin']

Okay, with their B stock sale they've probably been receiving lots of orders. The normal tweeter is very good in my estimation, unless one prefers a top hot end(which I do not).

 

[Carraway]

I'm guessing they have a few orders, and the invoice did say it normally takes 3-5 days. So I'll have to be patient. I'm pretty hopeful. As I said in originally making this thread there was a lot I really liked about the NRT Sierras except for that forwardness. From what you, others and David Fabrikant said I think the standard Sierra 1s should work nicely.

The Sierra 2s are tempting, but I had a tough time justifying the cost, especially as I'm considering a new digital piano and hiking shoes while my car and laptop are getting up there in age. As am I, really.

 

[Carraway]

Received the Sierra-1s today, with the standard tweeter. And of course I've been playing a whole variety of things. So far I'm liking them quite a bit. At first I thought some rock sounded a bit anemic, but I think that was the recording, while experimenting with placement and possible some break in is helping. So far jazz like Herbie Hancock's The Piano and Kenny Barron and Dave Holland's The Art of Conversation sound fantastic. Son House also sounded great. I'm playing Presidents of the United States of America I now, and it sounds great.

 

[runnin']

Nice! I keep A/B'ing the Sierra 1 with the Tannoys I've got on different music, and the Ascend speakers don't get congested but remain clear, open and detailed. I've got the 50 hours on them, and any break in was subtle or gradual to my ear. But they really are a great sounding speaker.

 

[Carraway]

Thanks. Playing more things today, and I'm even more impressed. Nice detail and clarity, good soundstage, no glaring peaks or forwardness, and surprising bass from monitors. The only downside is that I'm thinking my digital sources and turntable cartridge could use an upgrade now.