About 10 years
ago, I bought a pair of Shahinian Diapasons from Richard Shahinian. When I went
to visit him, he showed me something he had been working on for years. He put
a midrange driver on a table. He hooked up an amplifier to it. The sound was
what you would expect from a driver outside a cabinet. It was thin and honky
sounding. Richard Shahinian pointed out that this is the sound that most midrange
drivers produce. He said that what the world needed was a driver that could
produce the midrange spectrum accurately. He said that he had tried for 20 years
to get such a driver built. He had discovered a driver made in Japan and used
by Henry Kloss in his old Clock Radio that KLH used to build. He took this driver
and played it - still with no case. The sound was very good. Voices sounded
like voices.
nOrh
3.0 Prism |
Richard Shahinian told me that
if such a driver were available, I would throw my new speakers in the
fire. He explained that the company had gone out of business.
When I came out here to Asia,
I started to search for a driver that would do what Richard Shahinian
was looking for. I found a similar driver - the one we are using in the
3.0s. It turns out that this driver was not being used in any other loudspeaker.
The reason is that this driver was much more expensive than other drivers
available. We spent six months working on the cabinet and getting the
sound just right.
The nOrh 3.0 uses the 3 inch
driver that is the best sounding full-range small driver we have ever
heard. This driver is remarkable in that it is rated 100 to 20,000Hz.
We were able to extend the response down to 75 Hz -3dB. A pair of nOrh
3.0s are able to fill a fairly large room. The sound is quite surprising.
The speakers actually image well. The midrange is very smooth. The sound
is quite remarkable considering both the size and price of the loudspeaker.
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We are
actually making two versions of the nOrh 3.0. We will have a drum version and
a Prism version. Why two? The main reason is that the Prism will work on a bookcase.
It doesn't need any space behind the speaker.
The
nOrh 3.0 would work very well as a replacement speaker for a mini system. It
would also be a major upgrade to many of the popular satellite/subwoofer combinations
that are quite popular. The nOrh 3.0 will also make a very reasonable center
or rear speaker for a modest A/V system, since they are magnetically shielded.
|
I bought a Cambridge Soundworks
FPS1800 Multimedia Speaker System for my computer. I believe this is a
very good value. You get four speakers, subwoofer and amplifier for under
$200 USD. This system is quite adequate for playing games and providing
typical computer sounds. I do not personally think it is quite up to the
task of long-term music listening.
I replaced the front loudspeakers
with a pair of nOrh 3.0s. I adjusted the subwoofer volume down to a modest
level. I find this a very enjoyable way to listen to Real Audio broadcasts,
MP3s or even watch TV and DVDs at my computer. This combination could
be used for any modest listening environment.
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Namphung
with a nOrh 3.0
|
I have also used the
Decware ZEN tube amplifier with a pair of nOrh 3.0s. I fed the signal with a
Worldspace Digital Radio.
The combination was very pleasing. I can listen to digital broadcast music and
news over this combination. The nOrh 3.0 would be an ideal upgrade for existing
mini systems, Bose Lifestyle, or other small driver based systems.
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Karen
with nOrh 3.0 (totally cool)
|
The nOrh 3.0s will set a standard
for small/low-cost loudspeakers. Nobody should expect a pair of 3.0s to
be a reasonable substitute for the 9.0s. However, the 3.0s will provide
an unexpected level of performance for its price. As with all nOrh Loudspeakers,
each speaker will be handcrafted and the quality of materials will be
typical for nOrh.
The nOrh 3.0 will be 87 dB
sensitive. The frequency response is 75Hz to 20,000 Hz. Maximum constant
power is 20 watts.
There are many small loudspeakers
on the market today. Most of them are made from plastic. Most of them
offer a frequency response of 150 Hz to 12,000 Hz or worse. Most offer
a sensitivity of 84 dB or less. I can think of one pair that goes for
$700 per pair that has response like this.
The 3.0s sound remarkably close
to the 4.0s. They don't play as loud. They don't handle as much power.
Nonetheless, at it's low price, you get a loudspeaker that does not sound
fatiguing. It plays loud enough for most applications.
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For those of you who
have worried about buying a loudspeaker that you haven't heard, here is your
chance to audition a nOrh product and not take a big risk. The nOrh 3.0 makes
a great gift for your daughter or son. I am sure they will find it totally cool.
About nOrh Marble
3.0
I am a busy person.
I can't count the number of times I have awaken to find my face imprinted with
the keys from my keyboard. My wife will tease me “fell asleep at your computer
again”. Each day, I have plans of watching a movie, reading an article
or listening to music but more often than I wish to admit, all that time is
taken up by work.
My most productive time is late at
night. One reason is that my family is asleep. Another is the time difference
of Thailand to the west (GMT +0700).
I have tried to make
my desk my center of productivity. I frequently listen to music at my computer.
I also watch movies on my computer. In the year 2001, I gave myself a Christmas
present - a pair of marble nOrh 3.0s.
The
marble 3.0 sounds even better than the Teak and Drum. The new design allows
us to increase the volume of the cabinet. This allows us to extend the bass
a little lower. The cabinet is resonance free. Voices are absolutely natural.
Musical instruments are produced with great clarity. A pair of marble 3.0s will
play loud enough to fill a room with music. Despite their size, the sound is
very open and natural.
The
marble 3.0 has powder coated grills with strings (ALA nOrh 9.0s and nOrh 7.0s).
Each nOrh 3.0 is shielded so they can be placed next to a TV or computer monitor.
The
nOrh 3.0 is beautiful enough to be at home anywhere. It would match the decor
of an expensive restaurant or hotel. It would be ideal on someone's fireplace
mantle. It is ideal for the executive who wants to put quality on their desk.
Most
importantly, the nOrh 3.0s are an excellent value. We are introducing the marble
nOrh 3.0s at $350.00 per pair shipped. We don't know if we can hold this price
or not. The cabinet is more expensive for us to manufacture than many companies
spend on their large MDF cabinets.
I
know that it is hard to explain the difference between the three nOrh 3.0 models.
For me, I would give the nOrh 3.0 drum to my daughter. It is a great small loudspeaker.
It is inexpensive and it sounds great.
I
would give my wife the Teak Prism 3.0s. These look great. They are easy to place.
Being made from real wood, they are easy to match decor.
I
would give myself the nOrh 3.0s. Why? Because I like them.
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