When should actives be recommended?
Well given that for a lot of people the TV is their 'media hub' and most TVs don't have analogue outs, some don't have optical or some won't pass through audio from connected sources, I can see value in HDMI connectivity.
I can see HDMI connectivity being used in a wireless AV receiver setup though for multi channel use. Something like the Xeo transmitter for example.
Wireless multichannel Actives with HDMI connectevity is already being done by Aperion in the US
So using the speakers from the TV rather than traditional sources? Contraversial. Yes, HDMI would be handy.
Dynaudio also have wireless actives, but I was thinking more along the lines of a complete wireless multi-channel system, not just the surrounds.
Edit: Veering of topic here (again), I think this threads spent.
Got to love these sadly all too familiar circular arguments. Horses for courses one man's meat etc etc.
Been around "Hi-Fi" since the days when the flat earthers first surfaced (and common sense and engineering went out the window) "don't even have a telephone in the same room as your speakers or the SQ will be degraded" Oh and Mr Belt and all his nonsense some right rib ticklers there.
Went active some time ago and I doubt I'd ever return to my callow youth box swapping ways but the're probably not for everyone. Now I just enjoy the music one thing I'd agree with though. Not many Pro-Audio monitors have much in the way of WAF my ADAMs are pug ugly but that was easily solved I divorced the wife. Those ribbon tweeters are much less strident :)
Keep smiling ohhhh and don't forget to listen to the music
If your post was always designed to be in favour of the recommendation of actives (this thread topic) when there was a possibility they fulfil an OP's needs, then great. Any surprise is because of the recent spate of objection to any post recommending actives, as has been the case from PP, AL and jjbomber of late. Your recent very silly isolated quote re the PMC YouTube video showed that you may be similarly biased, but glad to see that's not the case 
Hey, please leave me out of your posts. I've never heard actives nor do I have any plans to.
It seems that some owners of some actives, or proponents of same appear to have a great love of the word "silly". With an occasional condescending tone to go with it....
Anyway, yes, actives, by all means, just a good thing the OP hasn't gone for the current crop of 9.1 Red Spots with their apparent issues with some Apple gear. Not sure why that wasn't picked up by AVI in testing the new 9.1s mind.
If you can't use the TV as a pre-amp/hub of sorts, because it doesn't provide the connections/functionality then it would be handy if you could connect HDMI sources directly.
If you've heard anything, actives or whatever, and you like them then buy them.
What is hard ro bear is the messianic posts of a particular make of actives who would tell you to but them if you asked for advice on a food processor! :rofl:
As for any theoretical advantage of actives I'm sorry bit I don't buy that; that's all a one with the looney cable posters to this forum - the "my ears can't be wrong" brigade.
Chris
If your post was always designed to be in favour of the recommendation of actives (this thread topic) when there was a possibility they fulfil an OP's needs, then great. Any surprise is because of the recent spate of objection to any post recommending actives, as has been the case from PP, AL and jjbomber of late. Your recent very silly isolated quote re the PMC YouTube video showed that you may be similarly biased, but glad to see that's not the case
If your post was always designed to be in favour of the recommendation of actives (this thread topic) when there was a possibility they fulfil an OP's needs, then great. Any surprise is because of the recent spate of objection to any post recommending actives, as has been the case from PP, AL and jjbomber of late. Your recent very silly isolated quote re the PMC YouTube video showed that you may be similarly biased, but glad to see that's not the case
In the 1970’s to 1980’s Ivor Tiefenbrun used reverse engineering marketing for the Linn LP12. He took every feature of the LP12, good, bad or indifferent and discussed it in a way that made the LP12 way of doing things seem like the best way and any alternative ways of doing things were said to be inferior.
For example: the LP12 is belt drive. “Belt drive is the best as it isolates the motor from the platter”. “Idler drives rumble and direct drives suffer from cogging and motor noise.”
The LP12 is a suspended design. “Suspended decks are better because they provide isolation.”
The LP12 used an AC motor. “AC motors are more musical.”
He also used a siege mentality so that whenever anyone criticised the sound of the LP12 the blame was never put on the turntable itself, but on the person doing the criticising so that they were either “deaf” or not using the right listening methods, not using the tunedem method, or they were just Linn knockers, or they were stuck in the old ways where speakers were said to be the most important component when they should be applying GIGO.
There was also a certain amount of Neuro Linguistic Programming, so that certain words were associated with the LP12: “musical”, “tuneful”.
This marketing was powerful enough to get dealers, hi-fi journalists and Linn owners to repeat his marketing for him.
Ashley James has been using similar marketing methods with AVI.
The AVI ADM9’s are small, ported, 2 way active speakers with a DAC and pre-amp section built in.
So: “active speakers are best because of the distortion in passive crossovers.”
“Small speakers are best because they image better than speakers with wide front baffles.”
“Ported is best because almost all modern speakers are ported.”
“Passive speakers boom and tizz”
“2 way speakers are best as you only have 1 cross-over region”
On the one hand I admire these reverse engineering, siege mentality, NLP marketing techniques, because of the huge sales success that Linn had on the back of them.
On the other hand…
As for any theoretical advantage of actives I'm sorry bit I don't buy that; that's all a one with the looney cable posters to this forum - the "my ears can't be wrong" brigade.
Chris
Chris, the advantages of an active crossover are very real. A bit of time with google will find you all the info you need.
This will get you off to a start. Clicky and clicky and clicky
Wow!
I have not been on here in months and still cannot believe these arguments are still going on.
In answer to the OP, on this forum there is no time to mention let alone recommend an active without risking the same 'discussion' breaking out. I can literally go back months and months probably years and find the same type of thread.
I still think the best advise is to listen to a range of gear and make up your own mind. Everyone has a different take on what sounds good.
...Ashley James has been using similar marketing methods with AVI.
These two people are remarkably similar, are they by any chance related? I think we should be told!
I think both sides can be a bit annoying. I think that if it's within the budget, or thereabouts, it's fine to suggest them, especially because many people aren't even aware of actives (although if they have more than a few posts in this forum, they must've read about actives/AVI).
It's the fact that the suggestion is almost always together with highly repetitive cliches, being dergatory about passive speakers (boom tizz, not everyone can handle the honesty of actives, actives are always technically superiorthus guaranteed to sound better...).
On the other hand, there's no need to let a suggestion of actives rustle your jimmies just because the OP originally only talked about changing a certain component, and calling out the person prescribing actives only means the thread turns into another argument that is of no use to the OP.
In the 1970’s to 1980’s Ivor Tiefenbrun used reverse engineering marketing for the Linn LP12. He took every feature of the LP12, good, bad or indifferent and discussed it in a way that made the LP12 way of doing things seem like the best way and any alternative ways of doing things were said to be inferior.
For example: the LP12 is belt drive. “Belt drive is the best as it isolates the motor from the platter”. “Idler drives rumble and direct drives suffer from cogging and motor noise.”
The LP12 is a suspended design. “Suspended decks are better because they provide isolation.”
The LP12 used an AC motor. “AC motors are more musical.”
He also used a siege mentality so that whenever anyone criticised the sound of the LP12 the blame was never put on the turntable itself, but on the person doing the criticising so that they were either “deaf” or not using the right listening methods, not using the tunedem method, or they were just Linn knockers, or they were stuck in the old ways where speakers were said to be the most important component when they should be applying GIGO.
There was also a certain amount of Neuro Linguistic Programming, so that certain words were associated with the LP12: “musical”, “tuneful”.
This marketing was powerful enough to get dealers, hi-fi journalists and Linn owners to repeat his marketing for him.
Ashley James has been using similar marketing methods with AVI.
The AVI ADM9’s are small, ported, 2 way active speakers with a DAC and pre-amp section built in.
So: “active speakers are best because of the distortion in passive crossovers.”
“Small speakers are best because they image better than speakers with wide front baffles.”
“Ported is best because almost all modern speakers are ported.”
“Passive speakers boom and tizz”
“2 way speakers are best as you only have 1 cross-over region”
On the one hand I admire these reverse engineering, siege mentality, NLP marketing techniques, because of the huge sales success that Linn had on the back of them.
On the other hand…
I lived through the Linn/Naim Flat Earth/PRaT marketing thing and well remember all the Linn hype and noise and also how Ivor was famously caught out on some of his early negative claims about digital, by subjecting himself to a Blind ABX test, which he failed....
And then there was the Naim marketing machine and all it's hype and bluster... "You're nobody without a Naim" etc....
It certainly seems that the marketing of many HiFi products in an ever decreasing niche market leads to some claims that should be taken with a grain of salt when there is no supporting measurable or controlled listening test evidence.
JMac
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Well given that for a lot of people the TV is their 'media hub' and most TVs don't have analogue outs, some don't have optical or some won't pass through audio from connected sources, I can see value in HDMI for stereo use
I can see HDMI connectivity being used in a wireless AV receiver setup though for multi channel use. Something like the Xeo transmitter for example.
Wireless multichannel Actives with HDMI connectivity is already being done by Aperion in the US
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