Ascend Acoustics CBM-170 Loudspeakers by Jeff Van Dyne [email protected] P R O D U C T R E V I E W November 2003 Before SoundStage! Network publisher Doug Schneider brackets, should you want to hang the CBM-170s on mentioned sending me a pair of Ascend Acoustics the wall. At this price point you’re not going to get exotic CBM - 1 70s for review, I had never heard of the company. veneers, but you do get a reasonably well-constructed A quick look at their website revealed enough information speaker with a quality of parts much higher than the norm. to pique my curiosity. From their relatively expensive Aerogel woofers to their advanced and complex crossover Ascend states that their goal for the CBM - 170 was to network, the $328/pair CBM - 170 uses unusually high- "focus on vocal accuracy and clarity, instead of unrealistic quality component parts for its exceptionally modest price. over-emphasized bass." The frequency response supports If you do the math, you soon realize that an extraordinary this claim: the bottom end is listed as 69Hz at the -3dB percentage of the cost of this speaker has gone into the point, which is higher than many much smaller speakers. parts that count. Ascend’s philosophy is that if you want deep bass, you should pair their speakers with a high-quality subwoofer. Rather than design and build their own subwoofer, adding Description to an already crowded market, Ascend teamed up with The CBM- 1 70 is a moderately sized "bookshelf" monitor Hsu Research to offer the VTF-2 and VTF-3 subwoofers that, at 9"W x 10"D x 12"H, is very nearly a cube. Th e directly from the Ascend website. By happy coincidence, I finish is basic black laminate over 0.625"-thick MD F, had a VTF-3 on hand for review; the combination achieved with rounded cabinet corners to reduce diffraction losses. a synergy that belied the relatively low combined price. While the finish isn’t exactly ugly, I wouldn’t call it elegant ei t h e r , and the speaker’s middling size means that a pair The CBM- 1 70 is a bit on the short side; Ascend recommends of them won’t be all that easy to hide. Decorators won’t tall stands. My stands were just a bit short of what they be thrilled, but they should be able to work with it. The recommend, but I was able to use the stands’ spikes to simple, easy-to-remove grille hides a magnetically shielded tilt the whole assembly up toward the listening position. 6.5" Aerogel woofer with a phase plug and rubber This worked just fine. The speakers were fairly forgiv i n g surround, and a 1" soft-dome tweeter with a neodymium of placement—none of the positions I tried made them magnet. Around back you’ll find a pair of all-metal gold- sound at all bad. I got the most balanced sound in my plated binding posts, a small port for enhanced bass room with the Ascends pointed directly at the primary response, and a pair of 0.25" threaded inserts for mounting listening position, about 2’ out from the wall and about www.goodsound.com 2 P R O D U C T R E V I E W 8’ apart, which is just slightly less than the distance from cover of Nirvana’s "Smells Like Teen Spirit," the attack of the speakers to my chair. the piano, bass, and drums came through to present an intensity of anger that I don’t hear even in the original. I’ve dissected some similarly priced speakers that make Excellent. In The Bad Plus’s cover of the Aphex Tw i n s ’ do with a single capacitor in series with the tweeter for "Flim," the tight and tidy bass and drums are essential a first-order crossover, but have no crossover at all on to the presentation of this song, which the slightest bit the woofer. Ascend uses a second-order crossover that, of muddiness or coloration would ruin. No worries—the combined with the natural rolloff of the drivers, produces Ascends reproduced it correctly. a fourth-order acoustical crossover. As if this weren’t enough, Ascend also states that there’s a second filter On the opposite side of pianoland is Michael Nyman’s above the crossover point on the woofer, to increase The Piano Concert o [Naxos 8.554168]. The Ascends the rolloff of the woofer response even more. Sheesh! proved their abilities again, but this time with subtleties. A crossover this complex costs money in a price range Where the music ebbs and flows, the Ascends were where cutting costs is already unavoidable. right there, neither leading with an etched treble nor following with a muddy bass line or midrange. Th e CBM-170 is one of the few budget speakers I’ve heard Sound that seemed equally comfortable playing soft or loud. It The true test of any speaker is its sound, and what better presented a nice balance throughout this recording, test disc than Nirvana’s Ne v e r m i n d [Geffen 244 2 5]? I had adding a sense of presence with a touch of sparkle in the CBM- 1 70s hooked up with the VTF-3 while I listened the horns in the background of "The Beach," and good to "Smells Like Teen Spirit" at neighbors-calling, cops- layering of instruments in "The Hut." This is the stuff of knocking-on-the-door volume levels. This was one much more expensive speakers, or so I used to think. potent combination—these little speakers could rock. I served it up and they dished it out. I fed them juice and One album of jazz standards I can never get enough of they took it. You get the picture. In "Lithium," a cymbal in is Bill Berry’s For Duke [R e a l T ime 500 1]. The beauty of this the left channel never quits—it was real enough through collection of Duke Ellington hits lies in its simplicity. The the CBM- 1 70s that it had me wondering where my li t h i u m original recording, cut directly to vinyl back in 1978, was was. I’d forgotten how loud this album could get in the one of the sweetest, most involving jazz recordings of hands of an immature male. I reminded everybody else that era. For more than 20 years, I’ve listened to several how loud it is, too, but the Ascends didn’t complain; tracks of this album through every speaker I’ve had in they handled the excessive volume levels and dynamics the house, so to say that I know For Duke well would with aplomb. be an understatement. And a simple recording should be easy to get right, shouldn’t it? Wrong. I’ve heard it sound I love jazz, but because I get tired of the same old standards every way, from dry and analytical to fat, bloated sludge, and most of the current dreck of so-called "light jazz," and a whole lot in between. The best speakers let I’m forever on the prowl for something a little different. the album live and breathe with a touch of warmth I found it in The Bad Plus’s These Are the Vistas and sweetness, while retaining exceptional articulation. [Columbia 87040]. For those of you who think a jazz So far, only three speakers I’ve had in my house have piano trio can’t do something different, check this one nailed it. The first was a pair of Magnepans I once owned. out. I hesitate to call it "acid jazz," so I’ll just call it jazz The second are my current references, the Silverline with a h e a v y rock influence. The opener, "Big Eater, " Sonatinas. The third is the Ascend Acoustics CBM-170. gives you a hint of what’s to come, with a heavy bass The Maggies and Silverlines are pretty lofty company for backbeat and lots of percussion dished out over the a $328/pair speaker! piano’s intricate, active, but somehow softer foundation. The Ascends kept up with all of it marvelously. The piano If you’re in the mood for a little fun, check out Ween’s sounded perfectly natural, and cymbals and rim shots Chocolate & Cheese [Elektra 61639 ] —but be prepared for came through with astonishing clarity. On Bad Plus’s more than a little bad taste and political incorrectness. www.goodsound.com 3 P R O D U C T R E V I E W Speaking of which, the chimes on "Spinal Meningi t i s " The Mirage Omni 50 was a closer match, with nearly as travel between and beyond the speakers with perfect good detail and clarity through the upper frequencies, precision. The Ascends reproduced this effect accurately. though the Ascend was smoother across the spectrum. This, I’m sure, had much to do with room interactions, At all times during the course of this review, the Ascend which are taken into consideration as part of the was the absolute model of clarity and precision, without Omni design. The effect of those interactions is a huge sacrificing musicality. It easily kept up with the fast, funky soundstage and openness that few, if any, conventional toe-tapping pace of Voodoo Lady, whose pop tunes speakers in this price range can hope to match.