Ovator s-400 Issues

Nick, worth checking on the S400 positioning guidelines in the manual. IIRC they are:   > 0.5m to the sidewalls, no more than 1m of space behind the speakers. No toe-in, though from what I read here on the forum, a little can be advantageous.

I have set them to the recommended distances etc and moved in 10mm increments in all directions but they are way off in terms of detail, soundstage they just sound flat. Really disappointed as they are beautiful speakers it seems they just don’t suit my room.

Nick

I’m assuming here that you didn’t listen to them first. While many think the Ovators are excellent  there are many who much prefer the older Naim speakers. Speakers are the one piece of hifi that you really must try at home, unless you are willing to take the risk. The advantage of buying used, of course, is that you can treat the purchase as an extended home demo and sell them on if you don’t like them. 

Because I bought them used I was unable to dem them first, I knew it was a gamble buying them, I know speakers are very personal/room dependent. I always had it in mind to sell them on if they didn’t suit, as I said before I’m disappointed, they look fantastic but don’t sound right in my room. Is the sound “signature” a bit lifeless compared to my Allaes as it may not just be room acoustics but the nature of how the are meant to sound?

Nick

In my opinion, Allaes (which I have heard several times, also in my own living room), are like after you had three or four Vodkas of medium quality, while Ovators are the world you have all around when sober and relaxed: it may look more flat and boring, but doesn't leave you with delusions and headache (and, as I have just discovered, can suddenly spring to life paired with the proper amp).

Just my opinion.

Yes I'm wondering if they are a little " under driven " by the nova 

You cannot make butter with a toothpick. 400s need careful placing and I don’t think your Nova is up to the job. I used a Uniti to drive mine and it was just pathetic but a  different story with the 282/250. See if you can borrow a different amplifier. The 400s are very rewarding but you’ve got to be patient. Best of luck.

Interestingly, Massimo is getting great results with his CDX2 and Nait XS2. Maybe the Nait is better than the amplifier in the Nova, but it’s no 282/250. I’d be cautious about throwing money at the problem. It could simply be that Nick doesn’t like the speakers, or they don’t work well in his room. 

True, but there’s no harm in trying and I have not even mentioned the supercap.

Please pay attention to the fact that the Ovators need's to be "played around with" in terms of distance from rear wall, wheras the Allees had a firm position against the wall....I personally succeded with the Ovators with a distance of appr. 65 cm from the rear panel to the wall, and with a 5-8 degrees of toe-in towards the listening position....it's not a bad speaker, but IF you are into the "old" speaker sound from Naim speakers, you'll probably never learn to live with the Ovators.

Good luck

Daft question - no transit bolts in the BMRs per chance and they are working vs blown? Also no blanking caps in the transit bolt holes - not that I think this makes a ton of difference. 

Oops  - forgot the 400s don’t have transit bolts - getting confused with my old 600s!

I thought the Nova would be well up to the job of driving the Ovators as it’s often seen driving big focals with great results. As for positioning I’ve had them from 10 cm to 40 cm from the rear solid wall and the are approx 60cm from the side wall, no toe in.

There seems to be no detail or depth to the sound as if you have cotton wool in your ears! I really want to like them as they have great tight, full bass and a bigger sound I was looking for.

Nick

Have you tried toeing them in a bit? That would give more focus in the upper registers. It’s worth a bit more fiddling before throwing in the towel, though I suspect from your posts elsewhere that it may already have been thrown. 

I am prone to a knee jerk reaction! I will have another go at positioning them tomorrow, I am disappointed and a bit dispondant with the speakers. Tomorrow’s another day!

Nick

It’s also worth remembering that once you have had speakers for a while - like you and your Allaes - everything else can sound wrong to start with. I’d put them about a foot from the back wall, maybe a bit further apart than the Allaes were, toe them in a bit, just enough to get a stable central image on vocals, and then just listen to them for a week and see how it goes. Then put the Allaes back. If you still prefer the Allaes then that is the  time to ditch the Ovators. 

My old NaitXS/FC2 drove Ovators S400s splendidly, and so should a Nova i'd imagine (even though i'm not a fan of any of the current Uniti models in terms of musical presentation).

I have lived with my Ovator 400s for the last 4 years. They are a very clinical sounding speaker with an absence of boxy coloration in the sound. They do reproduce the music very faithfully without artefact. They can sound a bit sterile after listening to a more exuberant and resonant speaker. I have not heard the Allaes but I guess they may be more lively. Mine sound great in my room with 15 cm distance from the back wall and 4 m apart. They are2 m from sidewalls and slightly toed in. They present the musical truth, nothing more and nothing less. The Nova should be  ample to drive them, mine sounded great with a super Uniti.

It may take a while to get used to this characteristic sound , and hopefully you will come to appreciate their presentation,  but it they  just may not be your bag, baby.

Ovators are not fussy regarding positioning. That’s part of the beauty of the BMR.

I believe they need more amplification than a Nova which is why they’re criticised so much. I went from bare Superuniti to 300dr with mine and they came to life (I still have them). You’re going to need spend more money if you want them to sound their best I reckon. 

They only have around 100 hrs of use in them, could this be a factor as I know how much Naim equipment needs to be ran in?

Nick

I’d say a few hours and they should sound ok if they’re going to at all

My default question, writing as someone who once ran n-Sats for five months out of phase: Are the S400s in phase?

Christopher_M posted:

My default question, writing as someone who once ran n-Sats for five months out of phase: Are the S400s in phase?

I’m sure they are  I will double check.

Nick

Darky Bear has some great stuff on setting up Ovators.I also went from allaes to s400 thought for quite a while it was a mistake.I found unlike some  they were very fussy on there placement in my room. Work on back wall first when you feel thats right work on distance apart then they all came together with slight toe in.The last adjustment in my room made the sound come alive no regrets now.

Yes double check the phase. Also has the speaker cable been discussed? NACA5 ? And the plugs? Ovator speakers do have their own plugs. Note the Nova left right speaker connection is also not the Naim norm. Looking from the back the RH speaker is on the right. But you would have had that OK previously ...