Finally got to hear the XPL200

[jblnut]

These have been on my list for a very long time and I finally got to hear a pair (freshly refoamed by our local speaker fixer extraordinaire Brian Salazar of Holt Hill audio). He has them in one of his demo spaces along with an A list of great speakers from years gone by (Like Snell A's, various Aerials, ARs, etc). The XPL200's did not disappoint once we hooked them up to some decent power (Musical Fidelity monoblocks). That titanium mid is the star of the show and it really added a ton of detail and "space" to recordings. I hadn't heard one since I sold my XPL140's 15 years ago and everything I remembered came right back. I expected better and lower bass than what I heard though. A set of Aerial 7's we played afterwards totally destroyed the XPLs in terms of reach and they only have a pair of 6" drivers. I think you'd want a sub for anything under 40hz.

Here's your chance if you're in New England and you've always wanted a pair! Run don't walk...


jblnut

[Mr. Widget]

Holt Hill Audio: looks like a very cool place.

https://holthill.com

Interesting to hear about the lower end of these speakers. Could it have been room placement?


Widget

[jblnut]

I think that's just how they were voiced. If you look at the specs they are already down 6db by 36hz iirc. The Aerial 7s in the exact same spot had strong bass down to the upper 20s.

And yes it is a fabulously cool space. Where else can you hear some JBL Barons, then some Quads, followed by classic AR, KLH and countless others , all restored to their former glory?

Jblnut

[rusty jefferson]

Nice philosophy and completely reasonable prices for that used gear to give people a chance to get into audio without breaking the bank.

[Titanium Dome]

Interesting to hear about the lower end of these speakers. Could it have been room placement?


Widget

Sure, room placement can always be a factor, but the only way to hear the XPL 200a's full potential is through active bi-amping. Paraphrasing Greg Timbers, marketing and accounting can make a great speaker good.

The difference between using the "economy" stock networks and a DX-1 with the correct custom cards opened my ears to the truth about the 2214H driver, which I thought was a lightweight. It became a shocking, bass-punching powerhouse with great control and clarity once I was able to bi-amp it correctly.

Of course, GT thought an 8" driver should be where the 6.5' driver is, but that's another story.

[jblnut]

Hey thanks Ti Dome - long time no talk :-)

I had a lot of experience with bi-amping an even better bass driver in my 250Ti's over the years (sometimes driving it directly from an amp using an active xover). While it did make the bass stronger and more impactful, it didn't go any deeper. That's physics between the driver, cabinet and room.

I'm gonna stand by my assessment that XPL200 is pretty much done by 35hz. No real harm or insult there as that's easily augmented with a sub (which I did with my 250's as well as the Salon 2s which don't roll off until 22hz).

jblnut

[DerekTheGreat]

These have been on my list for a very long time and I finally got to hear a pair (freshly refoamed by our local speaker fixer extraordinaire Brian Salazar of Holt Hill audio). He has them in one of his demo spaces along with an A list of great speakers from years gone by (Like Snell A's, various Aerials, ARs, etc). The XPL200's did not disappoint once we hooked them up to some decent power (Musical Fidelity monoblocks). That titanium mid is the star of the show and it really added a ton of detail and "space" to recordings... ...I expected better and lower bass than what I heard though. A set of Aerial 7's we played afterwards totally destroyed the XPLs in terms of reach and they only have a pair of 6" drivers. I think you'd want a sub for anything under 40hz.

jblnut

Mr. Timbers said himself that he chose the 2214H was chosen to give the XPL200 lower bass extension. The frequency response curve does show quite a bit of drop-off below 50hz. As an XPL200 owner, I concur, the midrange is absolutely fabulous. The bass extension is fine by me. I use a Carver TFM 55x for the mids & highs and a Crown K1 for the bass, driven by a Adcom GFP 555, split with an Ashly XR1000. I find the K1 delivers tighter bass than the fabled K2. Anyway, there is nothing this speaker doesn't do for me. Tight bass you can feel like a dagger to your heart and all the warmth & timbre I've previously only read & dreamed about. Sounds great at any level, which is deceptively dangerous as it's made my tinnitus worse. You won't realize how loudly you've been listening to it until you've turned it down.

[DerekTheGreat]

Holt Hill Audio: looks like a very cool place.

https://holthill.com

Interesting to hear about the lower end of these speakers. Could it have been room placement?


Widget

Indeed it does. Wonder if they'll repair stuff which has been shipped to them. I love edgewound, but he's had my 128H for almost a year now.

Sure, room placement can always be a factor, but the only way to hear the XPL 200a's full potential is through active bi-amping. Paraphrasing Greg Timbers, marketing and accounting can make a great speaker good.

The difference between using the "economy" stock networks and a DX-1 with the correct custom cards opened my ears to the truth about the 2214H driver, which I thought was a lightweight. It became a shocking, bass-punching powerhouse with great control and clarity once I was able to bi-amp it correctly.

Of course, GT thought an 8" driver should be where the 6.5' driver is, but that's another story.

I can concur that the XPL200/A need to be actively biamped. I think Greg said the inductor doesn't play very well with the 2214H. When I moved to active bi-amping, the bass was leaps and bounds better than I ever thought possible. It got extremely tight and more authoritative compared to how it was. If edgewound would ever finish my lone 128H, I could recompare against my L150A's. Something inside says those were slightly better in the bass delivery department than the 200.