Detail, accuracy, imaging

A little bright and unrefined

This is sort of an "after the fact" review in that I've sold my NHT 1.5s and replaced them with NHT ST-4s. So this is more of a eulogy. The 1.5s completely set a new standard when they came out for accuracy, detail and imaging. At the time, the slight brightness and lack of refinement was easily acceptable because most other speakers had major fatal flaws as opposed to slight "issues". Even today, they hold their own, but with newer speakers out, they aren't what they were. The biggest issue was the crossovers which were dumbed down in favor of a good cabinet and drivers. However, mine were modified and it made an enormous difference in the imaging and refinement. Still, the new SB-3s were better overall. I still miss certain aspects of the 1.5s, however. In any case, I have found that putting SB-3 crossovers in the 1.5s not only work, but transform the speaker into a far more refined, richer, smoother, better imaging speaker. This is not expensive, less than $100 from a dealer, although there isn't a "retail price" on the SB-3 crossovers so they are free to set their own. I was surprised that this would work, but NHT informed me that the 1.5s and SB-3s are very similar electrical, physically and driver-wise. They were a little surprised that the results were so good, but said there wasn't any harm in doing so. I couldn't hear anything that the mod did any worse, everything, subjectively, was better. Although I have fond memories of the 1.5s, I won't be going back, even after the modifications. I'm currently salivating on the prospect of new, more expensive NHT bookshelf speakers that are supposed to be shown off at CES. I am rating the 1.5s according to what they would be to someone buying them used now. Add at least a point in both categories if you upgrade the crossover as it makes a huge difference and thoroughly modernizes the speakers.

Similar Products Used:

Various B&Ws, NHTs, Paradigms, PSBs, etc.

Very well matched to the NHT 2.9 as a rear speaker

none

When a speaker is bought as a rear speaker, its performance on its own becomes irrelevant. It must be judged in how it supports the front speakers. And in that role, the 1.5 is a superb complement to the 2.9/audiocenter-2. Set up correctly, it never attracts attention to itself, and its sonic character blends SUPERBLY with the front speakers.

If you have a pair of 2.9s, and don't have the space and/or budget for another pair of 2.9s from the rear, the 1.5s are an excellent stand in.

I have not tried listening to the 1.5s as front speakers, but I had two pairs of Super Ones, and a pair of NHT 2.3As (all at different times) that were used in stereo duties. They all performed superbly, and upto all expectations, and I expect that the 1.5s will as well.

I expect that anyone looking to use these as front speakers will not be disappointed in the refined, polished, clear sound. THe only reservation is that NHT speakers always sound crystal clear, unlike say the B&Ws which have a lovely warmth to them. But thats a question of what sort of sonic character you like rather than absolute best or worst.

Similar Products Used:

none (atleast not as rear speakers)

Extremely accurate, speakers. Crisp high end with low noise.

2-way, ergo not as full as 3-ways (obviosly)

First, let me say that I am very happy with these speakers and I haven't heard ANY speaker the can touch the fluid cooled aluminum dome tweeters in these 10 liter cabinets.

Put them together with a good sub (I use an SA-2 - very accurate) and these speakers will kick-A for home theater and do quite well for music as well.

Having said that, they are 2-way speakers and if you're accustomed to 3-way speakers you'll notice they are missing something in the middle, even if adjust your sub to crossover a little. There is just nothing like 3-way's except 3-ways.

At some point in the future, I intend on picking up a couple of 2.9's which also have the aluminum dome tweeters. (You WANT these tweeters - they don't hiss and they reach very high - pay attention to shattering glass sounds or rain in movies) Then, I'll move the 1.5's to the rear.

My system:
HTR-5150
NHT 1.5 (fronts)
NHT Super One (rears)
NHT AC-1
NHT SW2Si
JVC XV-511BK DVD
JVC HVHS HIFI
Home Theater Master MX-1000 (remote - yes, I consider it an integral part of the system!)

The NHT 1.5's have been part of my system for almost a year. They are by far the most "musical" speakers I have owned. What is most impressive about these speakers is that they cause no fatigue over long listening periods (such as Mahler's 7th Symphony). In my system, they are being driven by an ancient Proton D540 integrated amplifier which provdes ample power to power the NHT's loud and distortion free. Transients sound especially lifelike; it is obvious that these are "fast" speakers. The NHT's need some help on the bass especially with bass intensive music such as pipe organ, etc. I use a pair of home built subs driven by dBX 150 monos and an electronic crossover. However, for most music the NHTs are more than adequate by themselves. These speakers are an excellent buy.

Well, the 1.5 is a good sounding speakers....i had them about 3 months ago. Currently, I'm driving these 1.5s with Proton D540 integrated amp (but I only use the D540 as pre-amp)and an old alchemy overture 150. Sounds very good, highs are very sweet, and the mid is not irritating. The only weak point of the 1.5 is there is a lack of bass....but what the heck, with a nice and clean sub you will get a full-bodied sound from these little jewel. I wonder what would happen if I use a vacuum-tube preamp..

ps: NHT i.5 needs a lot of power if you want to listen their actual performance..

Highs and Midrange are clean, but the low end has not much punch if you like
bass emphasis. I added an NHT SW1P with an SA2 amplifier and the change was
dramatic. I have them on 24" stands and set them about 9 ft apart. The
soundstage image is stable, even if you walk around the room! NHT recommends
that you set your listening spot 1.5*speaker plane i.e. the distance between
the two speakers to get the optimal position.

I've had them for about 6 months, no complaints, I'm very happy and with 600
a pair with these characteristics, what else can you ask for?

I've had a pair of 1.5's for about a year. I first auditioned their Super One and similar price range B&W speakers. Then I made the mistake of listening to these - I had to have them. There's no comparison to the others in the treble/midrange. True, I had to scrape an extra couple hundred dollars together - but it's worth it. I got a 13% discount from the price on the 1.5's and think discounts are common.
Setup was tricky since these speakers like lots of space from rear and side walls. I use stands - they aren't really good for bookshelf use.

I had to add the matching SWP2i 10" sub because there's just no low bass energy. They sound best using 75 hz high pass on the SWP2i's line level crossover (don't run them fullrange) and about the same freq. for the sub's low pass.

These are power hungry monsters, by the way.

The 1.5s are great speakers for small scale orchestral and jazz music. For music that is not acoustic, the 1.5s sound very thin compared to B&W 602s.On the other hand the 602s sound average on small scale acoustic music. To answer Manny's question; the 602s are better all round performers for HT/music than the 1.5s. For the money (1.5s $600.00 retail,602s $550.00 retail), the 602s are the better choice. If you prefer a more natural sound to your music spend $200.00 more and buy the B&W CDM2 ( $800.00 retail). They are the best BOOKSHELF speaker in that price range. I still give the 1.5s 4stars because when it comes to reproducing acoustic music they do it well.

I brought the NHT 1.5's during the Christmas of 97... I listened to the 1.1's and compared them with the Mission 730's and clearly, the NHT's are superior in the areas of clarity, punch and musicality. So with the 1.1 on my mind, I went and audition a few more uplines of the NHT's and decided to go with the 1.5's and a Custom sub (made by me). At first, when I brough these hunnies home, I was'nt impressed on how it sounded in my living room. It didn't sound as good as I remembered it. So I tried to break it in. Then though it was my cheap $1 speaker wires.. well, I went and brought a pair of audioquest type4 speakers wires, and it gave me noticable improvement on the spot. I listened to these speakers for half a year powered by a Technics amp, CD, etc...
Anyways, comes summer time and I brough back my school system from college.. consists of Harmon Kardon Intergrated Amp and a Sony CA-9ES CD player. Knowing that they are superior components than my Technics', I hooked them up and replace the Technics with the Harmon Kardon and Sony CD.. Guess what? These speakers sang like a angel, so fuckin sweet..!@! (excuse my language). The clarity of it is so amazing and it makes such a good pair of studio monitors. The weakeness of these speakers is that you have to get the right components to match it. I'm rediscovering my whole CD collection with this new system. =)

I have had many pairs of speakers over the years and I recently bought a pair of NHT 1.5's. They are an amazing pair of speakers for their size and price. I use them for home theater mainly, but they also sound excellent on music. The only thing is that these speakers are VERY, VERY, VERY power hungry! I was driving them with a Denon AVR-3600 receiver which is 95 watts/channel into 8 Ohms. It just didn't have enough power to drive these speakers to their full level of performance. I went to my dealer and auditioned these speakers with Denon's flagship receiver, the AVR-5600 which is 130 watts/channel. With this amount of good, clean power, these babies REALLY sang! They had an amazing transparency to them with a clean and pure sound. On home theater material, they are amazing. I would recommend to anyone going to buy this speaker to drive them eith ABSOLUTELY NO LESS THAN 120 WATTS/CHANNEL. You will not hear the full potential of them if you don't. By the way, I purchased the AVR-5600 and I am absolutely awe struck by its sound quality and power.