Munich High End Show, 21 May 2009. Neat Acoustics is pleased announce the launch of the ELITE SX. The ELITE SX is a worthy successor to the ELITE SE.
The ELITE SX continues the Neat tradition of delivering serious audio performance from discreet and attractive enclosures, by means of unorthodox thinking and the ingenious implementation of some unusual ideas. Extremely low distortion, especially in the bass, has long been a feature in the ELITE.
In this new ELITE SX, this virtue is evident across the entire frequency range.
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Unlike traditional bass reflex designs, the ELITE SX incorporates an innovative staggered port tuning design. A 32mm diameter port on the rear of the cabinet is tuned to 40Hz, with a narrow operating band. An additional 50mm diameter port, mounted in the base of the cabinet, is tuned higher, over a wider operating band.
This carefully judged system delivers a very convincing full-bodied bass performance, far more impressive than might be expected for an enclosure of these dimensions. The cabinet stands above a solid, heavy slate plinth by means of 20mm aluminium spacers. This allows the port to breathe correctly and fixes the distance from the lower port to the plinth at the optimum height.
The main drive unit is the latest version of that used in Neat’s upmarket Ultimatum range. In keeping with Neat’s thinking, this unit has a 6.5in doped paper cone, a ferrite magnet assembly and a fixed aluminium phase plug to enable smoother integration with the tweeter. The new tweeter is a soft-fabric dome type with internal damping and a non-resonant chamber. Neat believe that the choice of tweeter is critical, because the tweeter lends the whole speaker its essential character and integrity. In this context, the tweeter’s strengths of superb dynamic contrast and accurate tonal colour match the similar virtues of the main drive unit.
As with all Neat loudspeakers, the crossover, though simple in execution, is the result of painstaking development. Neat prefer to judge all aspects of tuning & voicing by ear, rather than referring to measurements. This is an iterative process, which takes time. The crossover in the Elite SX is a simple three-element type utilising low-loss air-core inductors and a high-grade polypropylene capacitor. The slopes are first order (Bass/midrange) and second order (HF) slopes. All crossover components are specified within very tight tolerances in order to ensure excellent pair matching.
Specifications
Bass/Mid Unit: 6.5in Doped Paper Cone
HF Unit: 25mm Soft Fabric Dome
Enclosure: Two-way bass reflex, staggered tuning
Recommended amplifier power: 25 – 200 watts
Impedance: 8 Ohms nominal
Sensitivity: 89 dB
Plinth footprint (wxd): 26x22cm
Size (hxwxd): 90x20x18cm
