Ushering In A New Era at the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest
The Beryllium-Domed Be-718s, aka the Tiny Dancers
The RMAF Reports are in and they’re loving it!
“The Usher [Be-718s] punched way above their weight… How on earth they could fill up a large room with that much sound remains a mystery to me. The crescendos reached true fortissimo levels.” “The Usher Be-718 is simply a great loudspeaker that delivers a level of performance far above what its size and price would suggest.” “This is a speaker that deserves review coverage in Stereophile…”
— Jacob Heilbrunn, TAS reviewer, AVGuide RMAF Report
–Robert Harley, the Absolute Sound, October issue review
–John Atkinson, Stereophile Online RMAF Show Report
Dallas, TX, October 31st, 2007 • Usher Audio Technology, manufacturers of high value, high performance speaker systems and electronics, captivated audiences at this year’s RMAF in Denver, CO.
“We specify our products based on actual market needs, scouring the globe for the best designs and parts based on a strict price/performance ratio. We build and assemble speakers that are extremely attractive, mesmerizing to hear, that easily integrate into your system and your lifestyle,” enthuses CEO and president of distributor MusikMatters, Atul Kanagat.
The Be-718s are the first product developed with our Global Design initiative. The high technology drivers, crossovers, and timed-aligned cabinets are designed and built by Mr. Tsai Lien Shui at Usher Taiwan, with finishing cosmetics supplied by a firm in the United Kingdom. Dr. Joseph D’Appolito, Usher’s long-serving technical consultant, provides crossover tuning here in the ‘States. Finally, Texas-based Danny Richie, chief designer at consulting firm GR Research, modifies the production units with upgraded crossover parts and JPS Labs internal wiring. Danny also adjusted the speaker’s baffle step compensation and improved the vertical off-axis dispersion.
The Be-718s (dubbed the Tiny Dancer–the smallest member of Usher’s highly acclaimed Dancer Series) offer lustrously finished cabinets perfectly at home in the most refined settings, and function just as well as the centerpiece of a first or second audio or multichannel home theater system.
The Be-718 features Usher’s superb Beryllium Oxide tweeter, matched with a specially designed woofer to keep up with the tweeter’s speed, clarity and extension. Thrill to the tight, deep room-filling bass that never loses its grip, delicacy or composure. Marvel at the high quality connectors that stabilize connections and signal transfer for the best sound imaginable.
You’ll simply never believe such fine, room-filling sound comes from relatively small speakers; you’ll definitely imagine you’re hearing much larger units. The Be-718s uncover low-level detail usually lost in the noise floor of less resolving speakers.
For The Technically Inquisitive: Beryllium Domes and Usher’s Drivers
Usher has been producing speakers in Taiwan for more than thirty years, and makes a number of specialized in-house drivers featuring Be beryllium ceramic diaphragms. These are created by heating beryllium formers to greater than 700 degrees, transforming them into brittle but extremely high-strength beryllium oxide. This ceramic’s enormous strength-to-weight ratio pushes the Be dome tweeter’s transient response to an extraordinary level while minimizing distortion as no fabric-dome can claim.
The Be tweeters’ upper-frequency response is extremely focused and dynamic, but full-bodied, grain- and glare-free. Some manufacturers run their beryllium tweeters above 30kHz because they can, but research with the standard-setting Klippel R&D System at www.klippel.de that dynamically measures non-linear motion clearly shows that running beryllium tweeters out to almost 40kHz causes break-up distortion. Usher’s Be tweeter operates up to 30kHz eliminating the dual resonance points most beryllium tweeters are saddled with.
As a cost-cutting measure some manufacturers specify a voice coil that’s smaller than the dome it drives, but that creates resonance and distortion. Usher uses a full 1.5-inch voice coil driving the diaphragm close to its outer edge for better control, higher velocity, and power without break-up distortion.
Audition the beryllium-domed Be-718s and find out why everyone’s talking about our Global Design Project and their Amazing Sound and Surprising Value!
MSRP: $2,795 without stands • Available in Piano Black with Pioneer Birch side panels
Available Soon: More colors and matching stands
Be-718 Features:
• Be Beryllium Tweeter
• JPS Labs Alumiloy internal wiring
• Front ports for easy placement
• Dancer-style best quality speaker terminals
• Cosmetics redesigned by Kam Young in the UK
• Retuned crossovers featuring all new/upgraded parts:
o Erse high-purity oxygen-free copper air-core inductors
o Mills resistors
o Sonicaps
o Erse Poly Caps
o Gen.2 Sonicaps
Specs
System Type: 2-Way
Tweeter: 1.25-inch Be Beryllium (9980-20BEA)
Midbass: 7-inch Paper Cone (8948A)
Sensitivity: 87 dB @ 1 watt / 1m
Nominal impedance: 8 ohms
Frequency response: (-3 dB) 42 Hz ~ 35 kHz
Power handling: 200 watts
Crossover frequency: 2.06 kHz
Weight: 37.9 lbs each
Dimensions: (w x d x h) 10.2″ x 16.9″ x 15.2″
Shipping box: (w x d x h) 24″ x 19.1″ x 18.9″
Shipping weight: 82 lbs
Music Matters!
MusikMatters distributes and markets high end audio brands dedicated to superior products at reasonable prices. Founder/CEO Atul Kanagat explains “We at MusikMatters believe that the considerable achievements of the High End should be captured in new, affordable designs and marketed to a broader, music loving audience. We are dedicated to the goal of understanding the factors driving consumer behavior in today’s crowded marketplace and to craft offerings that help bring new customers to the industry.” Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, MusikMatters works through and wholly supports traditional dealer distribution channels, adding value with optimal distribution of specific audio product lines, unsurpassed support, easy and reliable ordering, and joint marketing efforts. MusikMatters is the exclusive US distributor for Usher and now represents JPS Labs line of cables.
MusikMatters • 1303 Motor Street Dallas, Texas 75207 • info@musikmatters.com
214.638.3500 phone • 214.704.6082 phone • 214.722.0325 fax 214.722.6082 cell
For Press Information, Photos or Reviews Contact Jonathan Scull • Scull Communications
jscull@scullcommunications.com • www.scullcommunications.com • 212.807.0519
