Sound,Quality,Value

None

I bought these ribbon technology speakers to replace aging Maggies and have been pleased with them. I agree with all previous reviews as to comments on sound quality, construction, and customer service. If you are considering purchasing these speakers I would highly recommend it.

Similar Products Used:

Magneplaner MG-2's

Killer transparency

"Significant other" acceptance?

I have recently up-graded from the Module 30 to the 630 (see my review of the Mod 30). I did so on the basis of what I learned about the mid-woofer used in the 630; the ScanSpeak 18W/8545 mid-woofer. This driver is used in some very expensive and well- received systems. It is also about as costly a 6.5 in. driver as you can buy. I anticipated greater resolution in the lower mid-range and that is exactly what I hear. Consequently, I have found the 630 to be significantly more transparent, top to bottom, especially in the lower octaves. The low end is about the same since I still use my Velodyne ULD 12 sub-woofer with the 630. (By the way, I have used this sub with a variety of speakers, including my reference system, the Thiel 3.6. It always results in better sound overall. The low end is of course extended and improved but so is the mid and upper frequencies. I believe the speakers can do a better job above the 85 Hz cut-off, if relieved of reproduction below this frequency.) As much as I loved the Mod 30, I love the 630 even more. They are among the best audio purchases that I have ever made. Highly recomended

Just purchased the Newform Research R630 speaker. My initial impressions are: very good build quality, the ribbons are very substantial looking and the black oak finish is also very nice. With this type of hybrid speaker you can really get a glimpse at what is avaiable in high end speakers today. For example, this speaker retreives good detail with a deep well focused soundstage with air surrounding the images (try Jewel:Spirit). Not hard to set up like panel dipoles, but can attain the same transparent sound these designs are capable of. Treble does not seem to be etched at all but almost sweet in the good sense. The bass is quick, tight, punchy and tuneful and has a certain texture to it. I guess using the Scan-Speak carbon paper driver is probably responsible for this as seen on many high end speakers today---Merlin, Proac, Wilsons etc.The crossover between the cone and the ribbon seems to me virtually seemless unless you are very picky because even the Genesis II are probably not perfectly seemless too and they cost about US$35,000. To sum up, a great value which offers a musical sound which can be driven by any decent amp, but of course better components upstream with give a more refined sound. My motto "Plug and Play" isn't listening to music the reason why we are all in this hobby.

I am a music lover and electrical engineer who does extensive research to discover those products that provide 99% of the performance of the ultimate components for a small fraction of the cost. I unconditionally recommend Newform Research loudspeakers as an outstanding example of such products. I own a pair of R630s and a pair of R530s.
With the R630, Newform Research has seamlessly mated their world-class 30" ribbon driver to the excellent ScanSpeak 6-1/2" carbon fiber mid-bass to achieve a sound that blows away anything near the price! They present a very dynamic, refined sound. Soundstaging and imaging are superb! One would have to spend substantially more to approach the sound quality of Newform Research loudspeakers. They are only available factory direct which is how they are able to offer such an exceptionally high quality sound for a very reasonable price. Their customer service is outstanding.

Compared to planar speakers like Magneplanars or Martin-Logans, the Newform Research R630s have the excellent soundstaging, imaging, openness, transparency, quickness and realism in a smaller footprint without the beaminess (the sweet spot is much larger with the Newforms). The closest thing I’ve heard to the Newform Research R630s is the Gallo Acoustics Nucleus Reference speakers ($4000/pr). But the Newform Research R630s are slightly better for much less money. To me, the R630s are better sounding from 1 KHz and up thanks to the awesome 30” ribbon tweeter. There's an openness and realism to the high end that really becomes apparent with difficult to reproduce sounds like cymbals, pianos and female vocals. Lower midrange and bass are similarly rich and well-defined on the Gallos and the Newforms. Both systems can benefit from a high-quality, properly-mated subwoofer.

R630 description: A narrow profile 2-way design with a single Scanspeak 8545 6.5" carbon-fiber driver in a front-ported MDF box, 8.25" wide, 14" deep, and 29" high, the bottom mounted to a 5/8" thick plywood plinth to lend the speaker stability. The specifications are eight ohms nominal, +/-3db, 34Hz-20,000Hz, 88db sensitivity. The box alone weights in at around 43 pounds, has two sets of five way terminals on the back for biwiring or biamplification. On top is a vertical bracket made of thick steel to which the ribbon structure is mounted. The monopole ribbon itself is 30" tall, approximately 3.25" wide and 2.5" deep, and weighs about 26 pounds. It contains two 15" x 0.75" ribbons, mounted about an eighth of an inch from the front of the structure, which is heavily beveled for good horizontal dispersion. Because the ribbon is a line source, it has negligible vertical dispersion. The crossover point is 1000Hz, better than a full octave lower than typical two-way loudspeaker systems, and the crossover itself is quite simple, consisting of a capacitor for the ribbon and an air core inductor and capacitor for the woofer.

One cautionary note: These speakers are designed for listening while seated (or standing if you’re less than about 5’8”). The vertical dispersion is so well controlled (avoiding floor and ceiling reflections quite effectively) that if the level your ears is a couple of inches above the top of the ribbon structure, the highs drop off dramatically. If this is a factor, I recommend spending the extra bucks for the R645s which use a 45” tall ribbon driver. (Alternatively, slightly raising the front of the speaker to tilt it upwards a bit extends the vertical projection.)

Overall performance and value

The Newform R630 is an outstanding high-end loudspeaker.
Strengths: excellent tonal balance, clarity, detail and transparency, extended and airy highs, dynamic and surprisingly deep bass. Imaging is great and the soundstage is both wide and TALL. I‘ve had extensive experience with both the Martin Logan Aerius (original version, not "i") and Gallo Nucleus Solos. Compared to the Aerius, the R630’s are better in almost every way, especially treble extension, dynamics, and dispersion; in terms of midrange coherence, the Aerius greatest strength, the R630 is just as good or nearly so. The Newform R630’s are more similar to the excellent Gallo Nucleus Solos in terms of the great high- end, overall transparency, ‘immediacy’, and dynamics; the R630’s have a much TALLer (more realistic) soundstage presentation and a little deeper bass. Other Newform R630 advantages: Quality construction with substantial build
and a nice, neutral (black) finish. Friendy, personal, expert service from the designer/ manufacturer. Factory-direct pricing.
I’ve heard a lot of speakers in 15 years of doing the audiophile hobby thing – Newform R630’s are excellent speakers at any price and,at $1516 delivered, the single best speaker value I know. 5++ stars for value, 4.5 to 5 stars for absolute performance.

Similar Products Used:

Martin Logan Aerius, Gallo Nucleus Solos

No speaker I've ever heard does so much to divert attention away from the sound system and unto the music. No speaker has made my electronic components sound so good.
No other speaker I've heard does such justice to large orchestral and choral works played loudly.
No other speaker makes it so easy to differentiate individual instruments, voices, and applauding hands.
No other speaker has revealed so many things I never knew were in the recording.
No other speaker has spurred me to review recordings I haven't listened to for years.
No other speaker I've heard is so smooth that it makes poorly engineered recordings tolerable.
No other speaker I've owned has caused such a stir amongst my audiophile friends.
No other speaker has ever prompted my wife to remain in the listening room for more than two hours at a time.
No other speaker has ever inspired me to stop looking for other speakers.

Similar Products Used:

I live in a big city near a much bigger city. I've been priviledged to audition virtually everything.

Early this year I decided to get rid of my high end system and settle for a well engineered budget system. Afterall, the easiest way to achieve an excellent system is to strive for accurate sound. The Dynaudio 1.3 mkII was quite accurate (mainly because of the woofer) but this time I decided to go for something different. There must be a solution to some of the current problems with standard speaker design without having to spend a fortune. After reading all the speaker reviews and visiting all the manufacturer links on this site, a few brands stood in my mind but Newform Research seems most attractive. This is for several reasons:
1) The ribbon and midbass combo is a balanced approach. Pure ribbon designs are missing the much needed bass and they have placement problem.

2) Newform recommends components which I think represent the best performance / value in the market (ie: Spectron and Hsu).

3) Their ribbons are popular among speaker builders and these are people who know what technically makes a good speaker.

4) I move to a new place every year. Good hybrid speakers are usually expensive and bulky. Newform floorstanders are slim and can be disassembled into 2 parts.

After corresponding with John M., the speaker designer, I decided to get the popular R630. Now I'm used to ordering heavy components through mail but getting a pair of floorstanders from Canada seemed risky. I'm even more concerned knowing how UPS handles heavy packages (they killed three of my packages this year). Luckily, they arrived safely without a scratch due to the careful packaging. But still if the parts aren't well made, something would've broken or got loose inside. Anyway, they passed the durability test.

Associated Components:

Hsu TN1220HO sub + the 250W amp
Sim Audio Celeste I-5080 integrated
AA DTI32 Pro
MSB The Link DAC
PS Audio P300 power plant
PS Audio Power Link power cords
Harmonic Tech Pro-9 Plus speaker cables (replaced by Tributaries SP4)
Harmonic Tech Truth Link interconnects
Nordost Moonglo digital coax
Tributaries SCA-150 digital coax

Setup: The room is a straightforward rectangle 12X26X8. The speakers are set up using the standard formula which puts them 5' from the front wall and 3' from the sides. This sacrifices bass but gives maximum soundstage. No toe-ins, spiked to the carpet. One thing that's unique is that since the tweeters are separate, you can align them anyway you want. You can also replace the Nordost Flatline Gold wires used to connect the tweeters. So that's room for even more tweaking.

Physical: Built quality is better than I expected. Actually, for the price it's quite fair. It's just that most other brands are so overpriced because of the additional costs. One thing that really amazes me is the weight of those slim tweeters. They're like pure steel rods. Definitely well built. The midbass driver is ScanSpeak carbon fiber, the high end alternative to traditional paper cones (some consider paper to be the most accurate cone material). The front ported R630 is biwireable and they look similar to the binding posts used in Energy Connosseur speakers. As for the finish, Newform products come only in black ash. I prefer rosewood or cherry but since the black matches well with the tweeters, it actually works out for the best.

First Impression: Nice soundstage, tight bass, fast and neutral. Midrange is focused without grain or excessive smoothness. I noticed that the treble is rolled off; similar to when I first heard the Infinity Modulus. But then it takes 3 weeks for the ribbons to burn in. In addition, I was used to hearing the temporary Aiwa speakers with their bright tweeters. So, I ran them for 3 weeks nonstop using a huge variety of music. I waited another 2 months and ran a Sheffield degauss CD.

Critical Listening: First, let me say that I'm very familiar with my amp's weaknesses. The Sim sounds bright and thin compared to other amps but excels in transparency. It is also a bit lean in bass. Now, the fully burned in Newforms have all the merits I mentioned but they are better in almost every aspect. Compared to the Dynaudio, the soundstage is wider but focus is very much preserved. Midrange is transparent yet cleaner. Bass is similar (farther into the room) but faster and more controlled. I've never heard a drum sound so musical, even with the amp's limitation and placement issue. Separation of instruments is superb. Well, it's not fair to compare a monitor to a floorstander (even if they're both 2 ways), but the Dyna is $800 more. The R630 is also the only accurate speaker I know that do not sound etched with bright amps. This doesn't come with veil or lack of detail, thus neutrality is preserved. This is especially apparent with piano and guitar. Sounds perfect? Almost. Some brass instruments lack enough metallic properties that make them sound convincingly realistic. Afterall, huge soundstage comes at the expense of pinpoint localization and extreme details. They sound slightly too smooth and airy. But I'm being critical.

I hate to sound emotional but the R630 is simply the most neutral sounding and balanced performer I have ever heard. They're the only speakers that do Rebecca Pidgeon as well as techno. I didn't get a chance to use them with any other amps but I know their characteristics would match well with just about anything. A bright amp is probably the worse but I still get good results with mine. They are no true 20-20 fullrange but they do an excellent job in their area. With the addition of a Hsu TN1220HO sub and spending a long time with an SPL meter, I got it to be as flat as it can be without an equalizer. Perhaps the R530 is a more ideal model for sub integration. By sealing the ports with cloth I think the sound should be similar to the R530. Actually, if I still have the Krell or Bryston I wouldn't even need a sub with the current setup.

Some considerations: Newform speakers are designed for seated and may I add, serious listeners. Even when your ear is below the top of the tweeter, the real treble is located at the lower 70%. The R645 should be tall enough but it requires a larger room. Another thing, you can't put any metal objects on top of the midbass cabinet since there can't be any steel object 6 inches around the tweeters. So perhaps no metal beads or Totem beak here.

Conclusion: The price is very reasonable and the performance is excellent. You can go for more expensive Totems and Dynaudios and you'll probably get smoothness, warmth, etc. But uncolored phase correct sound? Think again. Well, a Dunlavy SC-II is probably better but that's $1K more. There are other interesting speaker designs that I'd like to check out: Brentworth, Wavelength, German-Physiks, etc. But can they offer the same value/performance as Newform Research? Very questionable.

Incredible detail. Huge open soundstage. Perfect blend of one of the best drivers in the world (Scan-Speak 8545) and amazing Newform ribbon. No center channel needed. Value blows away every B&M store speaker.

I'm 5' 8" and that seems about the limit for how tall you can be and not have the treble begin to drop off. I have no probs. with it.
I'd like to see them with some wood vaneer cabinets. Light Maple and Dark Cherry would be smart I'd think. Maybe just the option for the face? That wouldn't cost too much to do. Oh, just wait we could all do that ourselves -heh

These are without a doubt in the top range of speakers. There are thousands of speaker companies with so many diff. ways of producing sound that there's no way anyone can say this or that is the best speaker ever, but if you have a typical sized HT room, lots of air to put around these babies, and a solid sub (like SVS for a matching bargain/yet super high quality example), you'll have an excellent stereo or with two pair 4.1 set up that'll stand up against anything.
Can I say they're the best I've ever heard. Not really.
I could never afford $20K Revel's or B&W's to hear how they compare side by side with the Newforms, but neither have a dome tweeter that's as fast as this ribbon, and doubtfully more detailed since speed is so tied to detail.
They both go lower than the Newforms (the 630 goes very low though!), but then again I, like most of us, use a sub in my set up, and both Revel and B&W make subs to match their top speaks so they clearly think you also need a sub for their speakers too.
It's become a running joke here it seems to say "can't buy better for 2-3 times the price", but compared to almost every store bought, marked up, cheaper driver, speakers it's true.
I can name a few companies that COULD be as good a deal as the Newforms (Norh, B-G radias, Monsoon planars, Diva Swans), but since they're all mostly only online available and I haven't bought 'em I can't say they're better or worse. Looking at the specs and details of these models I still choose the Newforms, and no regrets even after a year (and for electronics, that's a lifetime!!)

Similar Products Used:

Listened to Maggies 1.6 (didn't like 'em at all. Flat UN-dynamic. No bass. microsweet spot), Matin Logan's up to the Prodigys (love 'em but they weren't any better than the Newforms and you can't buy M-L for the Newform's price), Revel Studios and Salons and B&W's top 80X models (loved both the Revels and B&W's, but I'd buy a 2nd Miata first!)

I have had the pleasure of listening through these speakers for the almost nine months that I have been stationed ( I am a Navy doc) in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Due to space limitations, I could not bring my long term reference speakers with me( Carver Amazing Platinum Mk IV's-- probabably the most politically incorrect but one of the best speakers ever made). Once I broke in the R630's, I stopped missing my Carver's. These speakers are WONDERFUL! If you are truly a music lover and appreciate the beauty of musical instruments and the human voice, than you can't help but fall in love with these speakers. You would be hard pressed to find a more accurate and natural reproducer of the recorded event regardless of how much money you spent. I have attended the last five out of six Stereophile HiFi shows, and I have heard literally hundreds of outrageously expensive, tweaked-to-the-max systems. These speakers can hold their own with the best of them. Please read the excellent review on this site by Tom Hayden for an accurate description of these speakers and their sound. As he mentions in his review, if you want to get bass response below 30 Hz, then get a good subwoofer. I occasionally augment my R630's with a HSU 1220W with excellent results, but most of the time these speakers' tight, tuneful bass satisfies just fine. If you would like to know about the rest of my system/associated equipment, please read my review of the giant killer preamp by Monolithic Sound, the PA-1.

Wide, spacious, detailed soundstage
Customer Support
Great conversation piece at parties

Royal pain in the wazoo to carry up three flights of stairs by yourself

After living with these speakers for almost six months now, I can confidently say that I made the right decision. Here’s the low-down:

Build: These babies are solid, and they weigh quite a bit. The shipment arrived in four separate boxes (1 for each mid-bass cabinet and ribbon) and I almost broke my back carrying them up to my apartment on my own. Piecing them together was a breeze, however, and everything about the R630’s - from the hefty solid metal feel of the ribbons to the gold plated terminals - seems very well constructed. Sure, they may not be the best looking speakers around, but I personally think they look cool prominently standing over five feet tall in my living room. Small bookshelf speakers be dammed!

Sound: You remember the old commercial “Is it live, or is it Memorex”? Well, the same could be said of the R630’s. These speakers reproduce music so vividly, so “right there” that I often find myself starring at the ribbons in awe because it’s amazing that something so unconventional looking can produce such a lively, detailed sound. Music becomes more of a presence rather than something directed at you. Take for example the “In Session” live recording between Stevie Ray Vaughn and Albert King. Not only will their searing guitar jams leave you floored, but the whole recording almost sounds as if you’re standing in the studio right there with the musicians; this is quite an accomplishment considering that the recording is over 17 years old. If this type of music doesn’t float your musical boat, don’t worry, because I have yet to hear a genre that doesn’t sound good through the R630’s, and that includes everything from Dave Matthew’s “On These Crowded Streets,” the Indigo Girls “Rites Of Passage,” or The Grateful Dead’s “Dick’s Picks Vol. 5.”

Movies: The R630’s easily excel as much with movies as they do with music. The other night I rented Braveheart, and the speakers projected its entire soundtrack from start to end just beautifully – and that was running through an old VCR connected to an analog receiver. A reviewer for the R645 model described the Newform’s sound as “floating in space,” and that’s probably the best way to describe the Braveheart soundtrack; general background music kind of floated around and between the ribbons while particular sounds such as birds in the forest or branches snapping stood out with pinpoint accuracy. This combination produces a very wide, holographic soundstage that the company’s website describes as a sort of “3-D image.” Newforms Research also recommends not using a center channel, and I have to agree – it’s just not needed. After experimenting a bit, I ended up leaving my center channel on its phantom setting.

(Slight) Disadvantage: One thing that does take a little bit of getting used to with these speakers is that to fully appreciate their sound, you must be sitting down. Once you stand up or bend down below the speaker’s range, you’ll miss their sweet spot - but not by much. For me, this is a small tradeoff for high quality speakers.

Customer Service: This is something which in my opinion gives a product that competitive edge, regardless of how good it may be. The only person I dealt with from beginning to end was John Meyer, the speaker’s designer. John did an excellent job of keeping in touch with me both at home and at work, as well as returning my bothersome Friday night phone calls. I have yet to find a stereo dealer anywhere who can provide the same caliber of customer service (and this, by the way, definitely applies to Sensuous Sounds in Tampa, Florida).

Bottom Line: Granted, spending $1,500 on speakers shipped all the way from Canada that you’ve never heard nor seen before is certainly a valid concern. But take my word for it; these speakers, once properly broken in, are well worth the money and effort: Five stars without question.

http://www.newformresearch.com/index.html


Equipment used:

Onkyo TX-SV727 Receiver
NAD 515 CD Player
McIntosh 7100 Amplifier
Audio Control C-101 Equalizer
Nordost Super Flatline Speaker Wire

Similar Products Used:

Genesis, Mirage