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.

Great tweeter, airly highs. Midrange is spot on.

weak low end, but, of course are meant to go along with a sub.

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.

Similar Products Used:

Sony, Aiwa, Klipsch RBs, Paradigm Studio

Excellent Value, reasonable price for quite good sound. Beautiful highs, decent mids.

Nothing glaring, when used with a quality sub. Works as engineered to (small rooms, on-axis, with sub).

The are good speakers; nothing more, nothing less.

The highs are outstanding and are what separate these from big box retail speakers. The mids are good; the bass weak and in need of a quality subwoofer for true full-spectrum sound.

Off axis sound is unremarkable... these are not Ohm Micro Walshes! But for small box speakers these have fair imaging and are not brutally unforgiving of less-than-ideal positioning. For the very fair price these will surely please, if not amaze, the audio enthusiast. Pair with a detailed amplifier and good digital source for

A very good product at a fair price, with no glaring weaknesses sans the lack of bass (which was a conscious trade-off of the manufacturer). Don't let he endless stream of over-keen reviews skew your judgement: these are not miracle-working speakers. Nonetheless I do recommend them.

Customer Service

Very good; agreed to ship to Canada via USPS so as to avoid me getting financially raped by UPS or Fedex. Fair shipping cost.

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Polk, Mirage

As a guitar player of many years, I am familiar with various studio monitors, speakers designed to reproduce sound as accurately as possible for people who mix music professionally.

These speakers are studio monitors for the consumer. They are constructed in the same way as professional monitors, and have the great, flat frequency response expected in a studio monitor. There is a slight weakness in the midrange, but they are still the best consumer speakers I have ever heard anywhere near this price. There is no competition. Just buy them.

When you first get your speakers, expect a slight harshness as the tweeters break in a bit -- at least that was my experience. Then it all smooths out, and is beautiful. I love them.

Customer Service

Not needed.

Similar Products Used:

Studio monitors.

The CBM 170's greatest strength is their neutrality. I would not classify this speaker as warm or bright. You will know which of your cd's are well recorded and which are not. This speaker is truthfull but does not beat you up with the truth. I am still able to enjoy the music on poorly recorded cd's unlike some speakers that would make you want to discard many of your discs.

I am hearing more detail in the high frequencies. Cymabals and brushed cymbals sound much more natural. The delicate sounds of the harpsicord are beautiful.

Midrange detail is excellent. The speed of the midwoofer gives instruments new life. It is easier to hear differences in guitars and playing styles. Banjos and dulicimers sound more precise. Listening to a Michelle Shocked recording I noticed how playful her voice was in one song. I was never aware of that with my old speakers. Violins sound how they are played depending on the music.

I am pleased with the amount of bass. Living in an apartment it is enough bass to sound balanced without getting me in trouble with the neighbors. Cello recordings sound natural. Jaco Pastorius' technique is easy to hear even if the low bass is low in level. If I moved into a house I might buy a subwoofer but would not feel a strong need for one.

The efficiency of the speaker is also appreciated. It is 3db more efficient then my previous speakers and easier driven by my integrated amp. Music sounds more dynamic using the same amp.

I am amazed by the quality of sound achieved from two quality drivers, quality crossover and the designers talent. I even like the cabinet. The speaker looks like a speaker. The money was used wisely in drivers and crossover instead of a fancy cabinet.

None at this price point.

I have been wanting new speakers for awhile that were more accurate and detailed than my old ones. I had visited several traditional audio shops and was not pleased with the demos or the unwillingness to demo. I began to look online for speakers. It is a brave new world shopping for speakers sight unseen and sound unheard. I was aware of all the positive reviews the Ascend CBM 170 SE's had received so I checked out their site. I liked what they had to say about their speakers and design. They claimed that their speakers had what I was looking for in a new pair. Sitting at the computer I ordered a pair. I am pleased to tell you that they are as described on their web site.

They are very neutral speakers. They image well. There is more seperation between instruments. Soundstage is wide and has more depth. Bass is tight without any artificial boost to give the impression of more bass. They reveal the ambiance of the recording venue if it was captured on the recording. They sound good with my current equipment and will reveal any upgrades to source or components.

Customer Service

None needed. Speakers are shipped in double cartons and protected by styrofoam packing.

Similar Products Used:

My long term speaker was the NHT SuperOnes. I have owned speakers from Advent, AR, A/D/S, B&W, Bose, Celestion and Polk.

The Ascend CBM 170 SE's are being used with a Cambridge Audio Azur 640A integrated amp. Sources are a modified Rega Planar2 and a Marantz CD5001. Speaker and interconnects are by Alpha Core.

Near perfect sound reproduction, great value, transparent sound. Surprising bass from a relatively small speaker.

They don't come with a 12-pack?

If I walked blindfolded into a room with CBM-170 SE speakers playing and was asked to guess the price of the sound-emitting things before me, I'd have to say "umm, maybe a thousand dollars?"

These speakers sound expensive. They certainly don't look that way, but who cares? What's important is how great they sound! They're hooked up to an old Yamaha receiver, sitting atop 32" Sanus stands about 10' away from my couch. The soundstage is huge, crystal clear, and lively. The speakers are very honest - they reproduce sounds - both good and bad exceptionally well. This means, as others have said, that good recordings are breathtaking and bad recordings sound that much worse. Either way, the sounds are pure and not annoyingly colored like lesser speakers do. You may or may not want to use a subwoofer. Surprisingly, after a few dozen hours of listening, the bass response really picks up. I'm quite impressed by the low end, but a sub will be added down the road.

All this for under $400? Yes. Even after reading dozens of glowing reviews, these beauties exceeded my expectations. Buy them if you want brilliantly engineered speakers at a wonderfully low price.

Customer Service

No complaints.

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood, Infinity, Polk, Mirage, Boston Acoustics

Natural, detailed, and uncolored sound.
Bargain price.
Decent looks.

They aren't free.

I'm a music lover first, an audiophile only by necessity. My interest in audio equipment is a means to an end. I just want to hear what is on my favorite recordings without anything added or anything missing. But I am pretty darn serious (my wife says fanatical ) about it. I am also interested in the technical aspect of speaker design. Back when I started, AR and KLH were the undisputed leaders in the speaker biz. Around 1970 Dynaco came out with the phenomenal A-25s. About a decade later later the Boston Acoustics A-40's came along. Both of these were smallish inexpensive speakers than sounded amazingly close to the best that was then available, consequently they sold by the truckload.
The Ascend Acoustics CBM 170 is the current heir to the best small inexpensive speaker of their time throne. Everything you've read about how good these speakers are is true. I have the new SE model and it is more realistic sounding than the best I've heard from B&W, Boston, Paradigm, and Monitor Audio at up to $800 a pair. I would have gladly paid $500 for these speakers. If they had a nice veneer finish, they would still be a bargain at $1000.
They will not fill a large room at rock concert levels. No small speakers can. They don't have really deep bass. No small speakers do. What they can do is play from about 60 Hz right up to the limits of anybody's high frequency hearing about as accurately as today's technology allows. That means that cellos will have their full weight in the bass, but the lowest half octave of the double bass is attenuated, as is the bottom octave of the piano. They don't boost the low end to fool you into thinking you are hearing more bass. They give you clearly and exactly what is on the recording and they blend perfectly with my Hsu Research VTF-2 subwoofer. All instruments sound full and natural. Vocals are especially lifelike. Detail is sumptuously realistic. I can hear the difference between every one of the many mics used by J. Gordon Holt on the first Stereophile test disc. Every recording has it's own distinct sonic character through these speakers. They do not make everything sound the same or mask poor recording practices by smothering your CDs with colorations. They are phenomenally clear and precise.
You can't buy these speakers in stores. You have to order them to hear them. Ascend makes it easy to return them if you don't like them but I really doubt that many would. I've looked for years for small speakers this good because I've been spoiled by the $1500 Monitor Audio Silver 8i floor standers in my living room. Not anymore. The search is over. We have a new small speaker king. Do yourself a favor, try these. You won't be sorry. Long live the king.

Customer Service

Superb. All questions answered quickly. Fast shipping. Great follow up.

Similar Products Used:

B&W, Boston, KEF, Paradigm, Monitor Audio.

-Extremely neutral -Bass response (-10db) down to 35hz -Wide imaging -Not fatiguing - throw all the brightest albums you have and be amazed how you can hear the detail yet not be fatigued at all.

-Slightly less detailed than metal-based speakers like Axioms -Very wide, needs a stand with a large base -Wide imaging (not pinpoint accuracy if that's what one prefers, so meant more for HT than for nearfield)

This is for the Signature Edition: I will make no assumptions of how this compares to much more expensive speakers. But what I can tell you is, I have auditioned this set with what is usually considered good speakers in this price range and found this to be my favorite.

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Axiom M22ti NHT SB2 Onix Rocket RS250 Athena AS-B2

extremely accurate, the frequency response is incredibly flat quality parts and sophisticated crossover network low price excellent customer service

logo looks cheap

this is a true audiophile speaker that you can buy at mass market price

great for rock music!! open sound and not compressed which is what you want. amazing value. tight little......base response

are you kidding?, none at this price.

wow, for 328 US these are a steal, no doubt. i use my system mainly for music listening in stereo. i own a pair of Paradigm studio 60's and have these in parrelel with the 170's. when i hooked up the ascends, they somewhat took over, they seem to play louder than the studio 60's and to me a are more open, (and by far better for rock music!!) im even considering selling the paradigms and getting another set of cbm 170's to go in parrelel. i have 2 300 WPC sunfire stereo amps that i use to biamp the studio 60's, total of 600 + 600 + 350 for my powered sub, = 1550 watts. all this just to get a more powerful system with more output, and the only thing that actually gave me more output in the end was the addition of two more speakers: --the "cbm 170's". darn right. if you want more output -- add speakers, not $3000 amplifiers!!. also they say these speakers have weak base? not exactly so. i have them mounted on the wall up high (which i totally recomend, they will sound at least 20-30 percent louder!!) so there about 3-4 inches from the wall and let me tell you these little speakers thump pretty good. i use a HSU VTF-3 350 watt powered subwoofer and the cbm-170's significantly added to the overall base output of my system as a whole, the base now seems more rounded and fuller. these speakers definately integrate well with the HSU subs. make no mistake! -- these speakers rock! and dont be afraid to dish out the power to them, im running them with the same sunfire 300WPC amp as the paradigms, and they handle it , no sweat.

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