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Submitted by
Veda
a Audio EnthusiastDate Reviewed: November 12, 2012
Bottom Line: Having owned the super accurate Sierra Tower RAAL, I decided to give the very highly rated CBM-170 SE a try. I've always preferred ribbon tweeters every since I started this hobby so didn't think much of these monitors. My thought that they'll make do in my kid's bedroom to replace the overkill Usher Be-718 berylliums. During a few decades of my dwelling in this hobby I've tried many of the big boy monitors: Focal, Dynaudio, Totem, PSB, a bunch of Ushers, Paradigm, KEF, etc etc I don't remember all... long story short, these ultra cheap pairs of monitors are probably the most accurate and pleasurable I've ever listened to. Very balanced top to bottom, quick and efficient but lacking any harshness. Not surprising given the ultra flat frequency response but I was very suprised at the amount of bass these things seem to radiate. No artificially induced hump to make it bigger than it is, very honest speakers that I can throw any kind of music from house, jazz, acoustics. My concern of the softdome tweeters lacking any kind of high end clarity is also false as IMO the Ascends are overall more realistic sounding the Usher Be-718! Keep in mind the Ushers are 7.5x the price of the Ascends. You think that accurate monitors are agressive and cold but these speakers are just the opposite. If anything no sweetened british speakers have been so involving with jazz and vocals yet so ruthless with metal. Unbelievable...
The life of an audio enthusiast can be an expensive one with changing speakers every week or month which I did once upon a time but sometimes you come across a product so good you're willing to keep it for decades. I truly believe the CBM-170 SE is one of those and certainly has become the standard in which I will measure other monitors. So if you're looking for a pair of bookshelves (at any price), you should definitely give these a try first.
Used product for: Less than 1 month
Duration Product Used: Audio Enthusiast
Product model year: 2010
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
ghill166
a AudioPhileDate Reviewed: January 17, 2012
Bottom Line: My entire experience with Ascend was top-notch. The customer service was great, and very responsive.
It's already documented all over the internet that these speakers contain drivers and a crossover that are WAY above their price-range, but you really need to see the speakers to get a feel for the quality.
My main concern with these speakers was that they would not be able to compete with the clarity of some of their metal tweeter based competitors like Axiom or Paradigm. I regret ever having doubted Ascend. If there is one word to describe this speaker, it's CLARITY. I'm not a fan of Norah Jones, but she has always had some great recording quality. On some of her songs, you can literally hear the "smack" of her lips opening and closing before she sings! Now, my Polk's sound like someone had covered them with a blanket.
I should also mention that these speakers have great dynamics. They're not big by any means, but they can really put out some SPL's for their size! They can easily fill any medium sized room when paired with a sub, and they sound so natural even when they're cranked. Even my wife mentioned that the music sounded like it was being played in the room.
There is one downside, though. Now, I need to buy a new receiver just ot make sure that my Ascends properly treated.
Forget about the competition and take the plunge. You won't be disappointed.
Used product for: Less than 1 month
Duration Product Used: AudioPhile
Product model year: 2010
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
Kumar
a Audio EnthusiastDate Reviewed: April 30, 2011
Bottom Line: Paid $80 for a used pair and I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the sound these speakers produce.
Don't buy them if u are concerned about how they look.... they look quite ugly and cheap except for the binding posts. I compared them with my NHT VT 1a floor standers and the CBM170s have a much wider range comparatively. I drive them on my Nakamichi AV-1 and cant even increase the volume to 15-20% in my decent sized living room. These dont have any artificial bass or any artificial warmth seen in most medium priced speakers. A friend of mine says these sound very much like his Paradigm Studio 20s, thats quite a comparison considering the price difference.
Used product for: 1 to 3 months
Duration Product Used: Audio Enthusiast
Overall Rating: Value Rating:
Submitted by
RWoods
a AudioPhileDate Reviewed: December 4, 2010
Bottom Line: Picked these up for $298 on Black Friday and man do they rock. I typically only build my speakers because honestly the price/performance ratio just isn't there on mass produced audio equipment. But, I'd been hearing a lot about Ascend on the various audio forums, so I'd been wanting to give them a shot and for $298 I figured why not.
I only have one pair of commercial speakers to compare these against, which are Paradigm Studio 20s I purchased in the early 2000s, before I discovered the wonders of DIY. Compared to the Studio 20s, the Ascends blow them away for about half the price. They reproduce music so accurately it's really quite astonishing. In my room I measured about +/- 2 dB from 70 Hz - 18 kHz...pretty incredible for a sub $300 speaker! The highs are airy and let you "see" into the music better than any commercial speaker under say $750 that I've ever heard. They are missing some bass. These don't go much lower than 60 Hz. But, what is there is punchy and accurate. No fake boom to make these sound deeper than they actually are.
In terms of build quality, they are very good. WAF isn't there, because honestly the finish is pretty ugly, but the cabinet uses pretty thick MDF and is well braced. The drivers are high quality, manufactured by OEMs with pretty prestigious reputations, and supply drivers to some speaker manufacturers for use in speakers that cost in the thousands of dollars. The tweeter, made by SEAS, is the real star, but the Audax woofer is excellent as well. They really work well together. Finally, you have the crossover which you can tell had a lot of work put into it. This is not a single capacitor used simply to keep the speaker from blowing up, which is what you'd find in the typical sub-$300 speaker (and sub $1000 for that matter). This crossover is actually doing something! Ascend doesn't skimp here either using pretty high quality air core inductors and bypass caps.
OK, I'm done rambling. In a nutshell, these are a great alternative to DIY and far superior to anything you'd find your typical "audiophile" shop. Honestly, I'm not sure I could build complete speakers for $300 that sound as good as these.
Used product for: Less than 1 month
Duration Product Used: AudioPhile
Product model year: 2010
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Audiophonics
a Audio EnthusiastDate Reviewed: June 15, 2008
Bottom Line: I purchased these speakers as rear surrounds to complete a 5.1 system. My setup consists of a Panasonic sr55 reciever, paradigm studio 20s as LR and a 470 center. Basically I wanted an inexpensive way to complete the setup without resorting to buying another set of studio 20's. (aiming to get studio 60's soon).
Anyway, these speakers fit the bill perfectly. Had no expected such quality, but they sure come close to the studio 20's, for half the price. The timber matching is off slightly, but far closer to my mains and center than I ever expected. Highs are airy, midrange is full, and imaging is quite wide. I am getting a VTF2.3 to complete the setup, and I have no doubt that the 170s will shine with the low end support.
Additionally, the time I did test the 170s as mains when I first purchased them, I did hear a small but distinct difference between the tweeters of the 170's and those of the 'digms. The studio 20's are ever so slightly crisper w/dialogue, and in the upper harmonics of explosions and the like, this is probably due to the 170's soft dome tweeters vs the studio's aluminum one. As I've said the difference is slight, and the 170's are quite a phenomenal value.
Used product for: 3 Months to 1 year
Duration Product Used: Audio Enthusiast
Product model year: 2006
Price Paid:
$368.00
Purchased At: Ascend
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