Spatial Audio Labs X4 | Sound Clips with Commentary

#openbaffle #audiophile #loudspeaker
Spatial X4: bit.ly/3xn3L8p
Spatial Audio Labs X4 | Sound Clips with Commentary
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[@JoshuaValour]

$5 tooth plier jobs for everybody 😂

[@eyeshezzy]

😂😂

[@chrisboylan4599]

I'll take one Josh.

[@mikesmith5389]

A year later and I've just found this video. The first thing to note was how extraordinary natural your voice appeared especially as you moved around the room, I could pin point your voice precisely and when you were behind the mic your voice was behind me. I don't know how that works with 2 channel stereo headphones but it did. Regarding the speakers it was all very powerful and forward sounding. It was difficult to hear depth to the sound i.e. the sound was all around the room but never from behind the speakers. Whether that's a limitation of my headphones or the spatial audio I don't know but it was a very satisfying impressive sound nevertheless. Be interesting to know if you've still got them or you've moved on but 30 minutes of fascinating listening.

[@Newrecordday2013]

Thanks man! I still have them and they are great!

[@kevinchen1517]

I have a pair of x4 for a couple of months now. These take time to burn in. Initially sounded thin but now more 3d. Agreed the tweeter is very good. Bass is quick but not as big as box speakers

[@eyeshezzy]

True the Perlistens had the thick punchy bass i like

[@mikewiley3057]

Dude - would love to see an overview of your plans for your new room. Arch plans, constr techniques (?), room treatment

[@mikewiley3057]

Oh? TX BBQ? 👍

[@j.m.harris4202]

What doesn't kill us makes us Stronger! Glad you survived the horrors of tooth infection! I can sympathize with you, I just had a rear Molar extraction that took a month to heal! Ron, I appreciate your Presentations!

[@deadpeoplestuff5686]

outstanding - totally convinced by open baffle (thanks Ron...) here's my two cents - whatever you throw at these speakers they produce the much vaunted natural 'analogue' sound that audiophiles/listeners are seeking: these speakers seem to defy/correct the source. well done Spatial - really hope to get my hands (ears!) on a pair some day...

[@RoknRolUSA]

Wow, just checked in and the prices have definitely went over my budget now. Back to diy.

[@jon4715]

diy with the open baffle speaker project

[@rothgartheviking858]

have to agree with that. But these are amazing speakers.

[@amirjubran1845]

Yeah I thought maybe 5 grand but I'm in Canada so these would cost me as much as buying a pair of Harbeth M40.2 second hand.

[@n.lyndley.9889]

have definitely gone over

[@figaro8119]

There's this thing called an orchestra, some of us wonder how it might sound via X4s.

[@rikardekvall3433]

Ron! You are back. Thanks. I will Watch later, when kiddos are sleeping. My time.

[@rickp6731]

The new IO Design Naked RS Loudspeakers must be heard to be believed ! Best speakers at Munich 2023 show...period

[@garyphillips8812]

Hi Ron. Thanks for this and hope you will be ok in your health. Would love to for you to have included a classical piece to see the soundstage.

[@jimx1169]

Trippy listening with headphones. Cool!

[@gjhunter9326]

I’ve been waiting for this. Thank you Ron!

[@markhouseholder]

I hope you are feeling better…..thanks for what you do…grateful 🙏

[@tomcede6428]

I have these and the X-5. The X-5's sound great what ever music is played. However, I found the X-4's vibrate (that is the front panel) when low notes are played. Try playing Cantate Domino O'holy Night. When the organ is playing the front panel vibrates to the point of making their own rumbling sound. I think a couple of diagonal braces are needed on each side of the speakers.

[@bigbrudi]

Different finishes on them?

[@tomcede6428]

@@bigbrudi The X-5 has the Nutmeg (no longer available) and the X-4 is Natual. I prefer the Nutmeg.

[@tomcede6428]

@@bigbrudi I should add that you can call and pay extra for other finishes. I would strongly recommend the Gaia feet. The normal feet are plastic on the X-4's.

[@hochhaul]

I love *some* AMT's. I like more tame AMT's such as the ones used in the MartinLogan Motion line. I think the X4's amt might be just a tad boosted due to the waveguide. It's almost shouty like a compression horn. Fantastic detail and attack. I wish there were more loudspeaker manufacturers working on refining AMT's because think there are aspects of the design that offer a big advantage. Overall, I think I prefer the M3.

[@karlschauff7989]

I think if it was a shallower horn it would help a little. If only JBL would apply their waveguide magic to an AMT. AMT's are really amazing for some genres. I have heard some cheaper AMT's that were sibilant but that was one that was paired with a basic horn or waveguide. The Heil AMT is great but might have been too much for the X4's. Pure Audio had an option to use them but I have never heard a Trio15 equipped with the Heil AMT. The AMT that MartinLogan uses is smaller and probably rolled off to keep it out of the frequencies where an AMT doesn't blend in as well.

[@hochhaul]

@karlschauff7989 Yeah JBL would probably have the engineering prowess to develop an AMT with a waveguide that avoids the typical downfalls of a horn/waveguide.

[@johncallaghan3097]

Late to the party, but a) These sound really good and b) I have a pair of Decware ZF15M open baffle clones I built to official specs. They also sound very good, but I have no way to compare them. At some point maybe you'll review the Decwares and do that comparison. If anywhere near as good, the Decwares, even the commercially made ones, would be a comparative bargain.

[@Cmdaddy88]

Listening to this on my trusty old HD700 EQ'd to Harman target maxing out my Topping EX5, man it sounds good!

[@histubeness]

I'd love audition these against my M3 sapphires, but at 7.5K the X4's are outta my league.

[@tedallen8391]

Hi Ron. Glad you are feeling better. I just listened to your presentation. I don't know if it was the choice of songs or something else. It seemed like the music had a echo or boom sound to it. I can't really put my finger on it. It seemed to sound different than my M-3's and your other videos. Maybe it was you tube or my computer. I would like to hear some classical pieces on them. Keep up the great videos. Thanks, Ted Allen

[@budgetaudiophilelife-long5461]

🤗 I just finished listening on headphones … And RON I THINK YOU HAVE SET A NEW RECORD 😁 (pun intended ) THIS DAY …. For your listeners and I am impressed with binaural listening and open baffle speakers …THANK YOU for doing this and now I think I’m going to listen on my stereo and make a comparison💚💚💚

[@klaymoon1]

The fact they have no enclosures, it sounds to me that all low energy is bouncing off your walls. Would you recommend open baffle speakers to people without sound treatment and closer to the wall?

[@kathyrippa9301]

Hard to tell what the speakers sound like through headphones and a compressed music playback site. On some sounds, the speakers bass is rather booming, very flat sounding, mids sound like they are being forced into my ears, cannot tell any high end. No as sweet sounding as I would imagine. I can hear your voice behind me with my headphones, interesting, I kept thinking someone was behind me in my home. I am very familiar with open baffle speakers and know what they can do. The video does not allow that to come through. Overall the system is very solid state sounding with no dimension again, video, music site compression. I prefer field coil speakers to what I am hearing but a much different cost. Thank you for taking the time to produce the video.

[@falcogol3451]

review accompanied with sound demos is great idea. 👍

[@myplacerighthear3691]

I really need a pair of these I truly truly truly do I have been an audio aficionado 😊 food alongside 40 years. Even though I'm only listening to these on KZbin.. I for one of them have been sold.. next to that they look absolutely beautiful.. my room size is 50 ft long 30 ft wide with 10ft ceilings. I'm wondering whether or not I need to pair of these for a room that size.. educated opinions matter to me please reply.. thanks very much

[@chazfaz3595]

@New Record Day Ron. I really enjoy you sensibilities and videos generally... In this particular video, I am astounded. I am astounded by your narration. Not quite as much by what you are saying as by what I am experiencing as you walk all around the room. What I am hearing is really clear; but the sound stage is so sweet! It's as pronounced a 3D holographic experience as I could imagine. I close my eyes, and you are walking all around me, just a few feet away. I am listening through my Beyerdynamic DT770 Pro headphones, with an old RealTec HiDef sound card and cheap Class-D amp. So what model microphone and recorder are you using to achieve that magic?

[@chrisboylan4599]

Glad to see you entertaining a grey alien true audiophile for his inspiration!!!

[@chrisboylan4599]

I am guessing that reply isn't you Ron, but a scammer, hope to meet you in person while visiting Danny's shop after the 1st of the year! I try to watch everything u make w/thumbs up! Keep up the good work...

[@tweakradje]

Can you redo this in your new room? These are one of the best speakers I ever heard on youtube. They don't sound like speakers at all.

[@issadad]

I've been closely following all of your vids that feature Spatial Audio Lab, and had pretty much decided to go for a pair -- until this video. On all selections I'm hearing exactly what I've been running away from in YT demo after demo: that cold slightly metallic over-resonant horn-ish sonority, as if none of these musical instruments is purely acoustic. To my ears all the music here, as well as the vocals, projects an excessive twang or amplified halo, as if it had been recorded in a subway or reverb had been added to the mix. This is the "live" stadium rock sound I've come to associate with Klipsch, and precisely what I did NOT hear from the Sapphires or the X5, which may be a step down from these X4's but which did not add that amplified nasal coloration to everything.

[@Newrecordday2013]

I need to redo the clips of this speaker in my new room when I’m done treating it. It’s possible that might be more of what you are hearing. Thanks for the comment!

[@issadad]

@@Newrecordday2013 Thanks for the reply! For what it's worth, although it took me a minute to adjust to your style, I've come to regard you as the gold standard in YT audio consulting. Channels like Steve Guttenburg, Jay's Iyagi, Andrew Robinson, even Thomas Tan all seem to have rejected sound demos as more trouble than they're worth on YT -- and yes, any YT demo is problematic. You're almost unique in taking on the challenge, and look how hard you work to get it right! (Now there's an untried opportunity in online audio: a sales outlet that painstakingly demos every product.) At the moment, I'd ask just one thing: what I reported hearing in this X4 demo -- in my admittedly lame impressionistic language -- am I making any sense at all? Am I hearing something that's there?

[@CC-bg8gf]

Your binaural shootout from April 1st 2021 was sooooooo much more pleasant to listen too and it did include Spatial Audio speakers so I don't think that the X4s are at fault in the above sound clips. So much boominess here for some reason. Any explanation?

[@spelare2]

Linkwitz was really into making binaural recordings to use when he was constructing his speakers. Have you ever thought of trying his LX521 ?? Which are said to be the best OB speakers.

[@jaakvandriessche9558]

Hey Ron, can you teach 'Jay's audiolab' 'ultra high end' "extreem low quality camera work and soundclips" how to do his you tube channel...? I love your work!

[@jakus514]

Gotta go to an endodontist for root canals! Average dentist likely doesn't have a cat scan to see the details of the tooth, you may have 4 roots instead of 3, and if they miss one it'll surely get reinfected. And I'm dealing with weird similar symptoms due to low level infection in my wisdom teeth, gotta take care of those suckers!

[@dmcmaster3544]

As much as I value Ron's ears on the X4s, I would never spend $8500 (with GAIA feet) without hearing these with my own ears. Especially with speakers I'll try to demo them in my own room, or at the very least in a dealers showroom with my own amplification. As much as I'm tempted, my 50 years in audio tell me to keep the credit card in the wallet.

[@dontcare563]

Sounds very nice. Unfortunately, when I went to the AXPONA a few months back and listened to their speakers I really wasn't impressed at all. Maybe it was the music they were playing or maybe it was the room. I haven't written off Spatial Audio yet. One concern I have is future repairs since this is a Boutique company and Clayton is a one man show. This applies to many companies though and not just Spatial Audio. My concerns with the X-Series are if that internal amplifier ever went out.

[@twwgraphics689]

X4 is 100% passive...so no repairs would be needed. Unless you do something silly

[@dontcare563]

@@twwgraphics689 I believe some of their speakers have powered woofers thus my statement.

[@Shorby99EK]

Your not only one that thought that.

[@aceofspades6667]

He’s not a one man show I’ve been to their facility and he’s got a team or at least he did.

[@dontcare563]

@@aceofspades6667 He's the DESIGNER and the key to the whole operation. If he goes the company goes with him!

[@brucelamanna878]

Ron: Love the demo, The x4s are great. I'm been listening with my 2 week old Holo Serene KTE , May KTE dac , 1 month old Pass Lab XA25 amp with the M3 Sapphires , WOW , Anti Cable power cords with material 31 far-rites opens up the amp and front end , SFAF is doing a XLR cable shoot out in a couple of weeks which will help in my search, heard the X4s @ Pacific Audio Feast and believe you need to be at least 15ft from them otherwise their too hot on top and unfortunate that my room isn't big enough THX keep up the good work and be well

[@stevenfuller185]

So great to hear you are feeling better and so great to hear you ! love to hear some more !

[@samuraisuzuki210]

Hi Ron, you and Danny got me on the train for open baffle speakers. I have had a taste of the open baffle sound having Magnepan 1.7 and love it but now I am very interested in cone driver open baffle speakers. Up here in Canada we have “Tri-Art B series 5 Open” open baffles speakers. Would you be able to review these speakers? It would be interesting to see how they stack up against the X4 ultras and the NX Oticas.

[@stephendunn8055]

Sorry for your dental woes. Not much worse. Are you still planning--or were you ever planning--on doing a comparison of the Perlisten S7t and the R7t?

[@jimsregaturntableshifijukebox]

Looking forward to this 👍 Jim 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🙂

[@chylywhite6187]

Please list audio equipments used, thx. Great sound capture.

[@djfirestormx]

the midrange glares really hard. while some people might like that, its overtaking the lower midrange

[@gadymarcus5297]

magnifico.

[@Licoricedisc]

Would be very convenient if you listed equipment used in the review... not sure why this wasn't included?

[@FlyGuy457]

Here at the Cheap Dentist Man, we can assure you we are a one stop shop. You need a root canal, $19.99 comes with an infection free of charge. We are pain med free unless you wish to bring your own. You need one tooth or 20 teeth out, all the same low low price. All are welcome and no one leaves happy. We strive or consistency. Nice review by the way.

[@TheHammerofDissidence]

So grab a cup of coffee and let's start digging in.

[@tweakradje]

It is such a wierd experience when your speakers disappear and seem to do "nothing" at all. Very great mids on these.

[@ABC-rh7zc]

Probably too late now but if you're building a listening room, why make it rectangular? Far from ideal :)

[@revtex]

Dude, you freaked me out when you kept saying my name. 😁

[@JeyDeeSweden]

Sounds somewhat weak over the Tube. Well, my thinking is: Open baffle gives a airy, uncolored effortlessness in the bass. But not the massive, effortless, high density muscular juicyness that the truely well tuned really big, bass reflex speaker will deliver? True?

[@johndaddabbo9383]

Thanks Ron! Question: May I ask if you auctioned the X4's with a variety of music genres (and if not can you maybe please do so?) and are there any types of music which don't sound so terrific over the X4's (bad recordings of course will). Thank you so much for this added insight. Example: is all of my Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Rush, and newer Dua Lipa music going to sound equally as good? Based on what I've heard you play I'm not worried about my Hiromi, Keb'Mo', and Lara Fabian. Is there ANY music you feel at all to worry about, or do we finally have a one-and-done speaker with the X4? -OR- will you cover this in your full review? If yes, I can wait. Thanks!

[@tomcede6428]

I found the X-4's do not do well with lower organ music range. The upright panel needs bracing as they vibrate. The same thing happens with any music with low base. The X-3 or X-5 has better bracing and can play any music.

[@johndaddabbo9383]

@@tomcede6428 Ahhh Thank you for that very helpful feedback. Although it won't apply to me personally as I implement a Subwoofer (three in fact) in my two channel audio setup. My current floorstanders have dual 12" plus passive 12" and hit -3dB @ 18hz in my room and despite this I still cross them over at 40hz for reasons just as you suggest :) (tightens the bass and low mids, is more dynamic with increased headroom, not to mention my amplifier loves me for doing so... I tend to play things a bit loud).

[@issadad]

If "intoxicating" is what you mean to demo here, and the X4's are that, perhaps a more musical excerpt -- something acoustic with human voice? -- might have come closer.

[@ferchizzle]

Can you do an updated comparison test with the same new amps w the X4s vs the M3s vs the Perlistens at the same listening level?

[@neumeisteranimalhospital2627]

Did I miss the full review on the M4's. I remember seeing some teasers, but never a full review?

[@nicomodesto5282]

Best system in the diminishing return park, home run, how much the entire mrsp? Cheers .

[@quant2011]

Please spend more time researching why particular speaker sounds "good" to you. From the technical perspective. With X4, is it a combination of AMT tweeter of high quality + 12 inch mids (i guess by Eminence?) and simply no box? Similar approach is in Bastanis speakers which have rave review by very experienced people. They also have high sensitivity tweeter, big midrange and open baffle woofer. And now........ one of the absolute Guru in audio design Stavros in His Aries Cerat brand has a new speaker Aurora with.... Ribbon tweeter, big mid (horn here) and open baffle woofers (4 of them per side). All these are very different from Magicos & Wilsons & Rockports which use dome tweeters and small mids +woofers and boxes........

[@joelazenby9303]

Ron, you had X5s for a while and I have X3s. Can you characterize differences between X4s and the other two X?s I have MAY DAC and Burson Timekeepers and do not hear same kind of reproduction in my room. Wondering if thick pad underneath wall to wall thick carpet is too "absorbing"?

[@MrBoomtheroom]

what other equipment is being used in this demo?

[@59seank]

They sound "hollow" to me. I don't know how to describe it, but it's not right. To each her own.

[@NiclasMardfelt]

How do you upgrade the X4 bass and tweeter? Remove the Gaia’s and replace them with Townshend Seismic Speaker Podiums. My thought is that Townshends would improve what Ron raves about greatly. To all of you that have not tried Townshends, you have only listened to half your speakers performance (if the suit your speaker).

[@kevinchen1517]

I have my x4 on Townshends

[@histubeness]

Which size number are your podiums used for your X4's? They come in different sizes/numbers. --Thanks

[@LKiruha]

I was expecting two Benchmark AHB2 amps with Spatial X4😞

[@crazyprayingmantis5596]

I'm sure these sound great in the room but I'm not loving the sound through my headphones, I've heard a lot better on this channel, maybe it's the head rig I don't know.

[@gabrielargentina]

I hear all open baffle demos on KZbin too heavy on the midrange. Is it just me?

[@johnupton5271]

You gotta play left alone by Airixis she has got the most bad a** voice

[@dihydrotestosterone]

You talk too much... let the speakers do the talking and keep your commentary for the end or halfway....👍😇

[@hughthewineguy]

Cable risers!!

[@CS-bz9lk]

I have heard Spatial Audio Labs speakers twice at shows and each time I developed a headache within minutes and had to walk. It wasn't too loud and I forget what front ended them. Typical show conditions, so there's that. However, there is something about the immediacy of the sound that gave me a headache. Though this video is excellent, it still gave me a headache at moderately low volumes though quality headphones. Just not for me.

[@fabianwhs9891]

Playes this thrue 5$ mono speaker fIx viDeO plEaSe!

[@TheHammerofDissidence]

Lmao, that Josh V. joke.

[@fletchermunson6225]

Never use a dentist who works out of a van.

[@brankocernik8384]

At $5 i don't think you can pass that up !!!

[@frankieknuckles9610]

Nice speakers but too harsh and not smooth for my taste.

[@aceofspades6667]

Spatial audio m3 sapphires are a bit smoother on top end. Maybe go find ron’s prior clips of those.

[@stevieg2755]

No volume man

[@scottchegg1209]

A great review you can get your teeth into

[@JingoLoBa57]

lol teeth can be such a bummer

[@pauldavies6037]

I am sure these are great speakers but as I have said before listening to these or others via the dummy head on phones sounds terrible and does represents the sound they are capable of

[@Newrecordday2013]

…And there it is.

[@ericharrelson32]

@@Newrecordday2013 some people can't hear the forest for the trees. LOL

[@lapocasini1246]

The stereo mic'd setup sounds way better

[@quant2011]

Now imagine mid here will be alnico or fieldcoil and baffle will be from cast iron

[@budgetaudiophilelife-long5461]

🤗👍THANKS RON …SUPER GLAD 😃 YOU ARE DOING BETTER…I HOPE IT CONTINUES 👍 I love ❤️ these reviews… but I will have to watch this later.🥹 LOOKING 👀FORWARD TO IT 👏👏👏💚💚💚

[@coldfinger459sub0]

And a good pair of headphones . Not like your $39 Walmart specials. Through a good DAC Possibly a tube preamplifier to give you that amazing separation and imaging. With a good dedicated headphone amplifier not your laptop not your iPhone.