nsmt2's blog

Many thanks to Terry London and Stereo Times for their review of the 20M Armada System.

A sample of Terry's comments:

"Every review I have done on NSMT Loudspeaker's models, from the least expensive to the top line references, has provided me with music pleasure in three key areas:
All of the NSMT speakers offer beautiful/natural tonality, timbres, and colors of musical instruments.

All are "champs" at sound staging and imaging.

Mr. Rickett's is a world-class master at transmission line loading/bandpass subwoofers, leading to deep, accurate bass with subsonic extension that can load and surprisingly pressurize a room, based on the size of the cabinet." 

"The 20M Armada effortlessly, even at very high volume levels, allowed the percussive bass drum kicks to fill my acoustic space. The deep extension of the B-3 Hammond organ's bass pedals notes was extremely hard-hitting, but tonality was accurate. I was feeling the psychical ambient air pressure waves as much as hearing the bass notes."

"One of my veteran audiophile friends tried to describe how the 20M Armada sounded to him. He came up with, "it has the speed and details of a big electrostatic panel, with more accurate sized images, but with "big balls" bass and dynamics."

Terry also tested the ability of the Bass Foundation Subwoofer to seamlessly integrate with a wide variety of monitors "...composed of speakers from $600 to $6000 in price from Canton, Wharfedale, Sonus Faber, Harbeth, Role, and Mhi." including the dimunitive Role Audio Skiff. 

Here is what he discovered:

1) The NSMT active bandpass subwoofer was very easy to tune in for optimum performance with each monitor because of its excellent adjustments regarding crossover settings, phase adjustment, and volume levels.

2) If you were blindfolded and did not know you were listening to a small two monitor design with the 20M Amada pedestal, of course, you would swear you were listening to a full-range floor-standing speaker or large panel design with unlimited dynamics and sub-sonic bass extension.

3) With the 20M Amada active bandpass subwoofer pedestal, each monitor's voicing was not lost or interfered with. Still, the power foundation of the lower mid-range and upper bass frequencies was blended seamlessly with that monitor speaker. 

In this regard the Bass Foundation Subwoofers outperformed his highly regarded $12,000 pair of subwoofers.

Read the review here.

A new Model 75 has been added to our lineup. It is an all acoustic suspension two-way design with an active subwoofer. Dimensions are 42 H X 9.5 W X 9 D inches. Frequency response is 26Hz to 20kHz =/- 2.5 dBs. Efficiency is 96.5 dBs.

The Model 75 was the first speaker we sold commercially. It was sold by Performance A/V on Sunrise High in Merrick, Long Island, New York, to a customer who A/B-ed the Model 75s against his legendary Bose 901s. He traded in the Bose 901s for the Model 75s. That was quite a confidence booster for a new startup. The new Model 75 is a worthy successor and upholds the old Model 75 reputation for “imaging on the next block.”

"...these are the best speakers I have ever heard..."

"These unassuming speakers may be the best on the market today."

"I have been a musician for 40 years, professional for 25 so I know what every instrument sounds like in the real world and I play 11 instrumerns at a high level, exotic ones like Japanese shakuhachi flute, Turkish saz, Colombian tiple, and I play guitar and sing, I do rock, blues, reggae, calypso, oldies, etc. I know music inside and out and these are the best speakers I have ever heard hands down. I’ve also recorded in the studio and done tons of home recording so I am a recording engineer and with these speakers every instrument sits in the mix perfectly, just the way the engineer recorded it, it’s unreal how accurate they are. And as a musicain and engineer I understand what a mix is better than a non musician -I've mixed many many songs in the last 40 years, and my ears are perfect, I hear what's on the recording the way it was intended to be heard.The soundstage is perfect also, wide and deep. I had the Grand Veenas--awesome speakers and I had the Tekton Double Impact SEs, even better, but they do not copmpare to the 100s. I’ve had them just shy of two months and every time I listen to them I shake my head in awe. They do everything right, I feel they are totally neutral, they do not add or take anything away from the music. I listen to albums I’ve been listening to for 35-40 years, Sabbath, Zep, Floyd, etc, and it’s almost like listening to them for the first time, it’s amazing and astounding. I like my system to sound natural, like real music which is why I hate Krell, Magico, and Wilson, they do not sound natural, they sound cold and analytical which is the opposite of good sound. I could go on and on but I won’t just get them you will not regret it. And if someone thinks these are not amazing speakers they don’t have good ears it’s that simple. These are objectively incredible speakers." Read more here.

"These unassuming speakers may be the best on the market today." (barany/Audiogon)

Feedback is coming in. So how does the Model 100 stack up against some highly regarded speakers?

Tekton Design Ulfberht:

The Model 100 has better bass, loads the room better, better tonality, and better imaging:

"The bass was great on the Tektons but the bass on these is otherworldy, it's the best I've heard."

"...this speaker (Model 100) was much better than the Tekton ULFS..." (barany/Audiogon)

Harbeth 40.2

The Model 100 has similar tonality but better imaging and way better dynamics:
"I still think of them as Harbeth 40.2 with "balls." If you know what Harbeths offer regarding color/tonality and imaging, the Model 100 has these qualities with even betteer dynamics and deep low end extension."
(teajay/Audiogon)

Omnidirectional MBL Radialstrahler E101 MK II

Similar imaging, better dynamics:

"...the Model 100 demonstrated one of its special qualities by how it could replicate the original time/space with wrap-around holographic immersion for a you-are-there sense that was greater than I ever experienced from a box speaker. The only times previously I heard this was from a pair of omnidirectional MBL Radialstrhler E1O1 MKII so yes, I'm talking soundstaging." (Terry London, 6moons)

The Model 100 wins Stereo Times' most wanted speaker of the 2010-2020 decade.

"These unassuming speakers may be the best on the market today. This company has been has been in business for the last thirty years and it is incredable that they have flown so far under the radar! This status is about to change with this speaker!" (latest comment by barany on audiogon.com)
 

In other developments we upgraded the Model 100 subwoofer amplifier to a class AB 250 watts RMS amplifier that has switchable 120/240 voltage without increasing the price. The Model 100 is currently available in sapele and natural birch plywood cabinets as well as satin black with natural cherry MDF cabinets. Custom finishes are available at extra cost. We are now shipping Model 100s in sapele cabinets and black with natural cherry cabinets in one to two weeks.

Now available in sapele wood as shown above.

 "...the Model 100 demonstrated ... how it coud replicate the original time/space with wrap-around holographic emersion for a you-are-there sense that was greater than I have ever experienced from a box speaker. The only times previously that I heard this was from a pair of omnidirectional MBL Radialstrahler E101 Mk11..." (Terry London, 6moons)

Can a three driver compact loudspeaker outperform monolith multidriver speakers? Sometimes less is more. Just how good is the NSMT Model 100? Follow the discussion on Audiogon by some of those who have heard the Model 100 at reviewer Terry London's home:

"They are the best speaker I have heard over there by far."

"I still think of them as Harbeth 40.2 with 'balls.'"

"...massive bottom end power that blends perfectly."

"mesmerizing"

“...holographic sound-staging...”

"The imaging of these speakers is staggering."

“...purity/beauty of the colors/tonality in the mid-range...”

“...the sheer overall power of the speaker and the deep and accurate killer bass...”

“...They really are wonderful in their ability to transport one to the performance with their amazing imaging.”

“Great for any genre of music.”

“ I found myself getting lost in the music and having many goose bump moments as I listened to familiar tracks.”

Hear the Model 100 now at Audioarchon.

A big thank you to Terry London and Six Moons for Terry's review of the Model 100. Can a modestly priced "box" speaker take on the  imaging prowess of the omnidirectional MBL Radialstrahler E101 MKII? We invite you to read here for yourself and to hear the Model 100 and decide for yourself.

Bass performance is the main determinant of the suitability of a speaker for any room size. With its flexible adjustable bass output, the Model 100 easily fits any room. And its low bass prowess and its ability to pressurize any room will shame many speakers with 15 inch woofers.

Terry describes how the Model 100's has the ability to replicate the original time/space of the musical event with a kind of wrap-around holographic immersion that he has only heard in one other speaker: the MBL Radialstrahler E101 MKII.

More recently Terry noted that "...the Model 100s  [is] "mesmerizing" because of the factors that everyone so far has experienced. First, holographic sound-staging, that encompasses you in the music.  Secondly, the purity/beauty of the colors/tonality in the mid-range.  Thirdly, the sheer overall power of the speaker and the deep and accurate killer bass and how it loads the room with sub-sonics that give you a sense of where the recording was made."

We welcome comparisons to any speaker at any price, with regard to bass performance, musicality, imaging, soundstaging, and value.