The best value in high-end speakers
PLASMA SIGNATURE - Sold Out Special Pricing On RMAF Demo
RIBBON SIGNATURE
New Plasma Signatures are sold out, the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest (not only best sound of show but best sound at any show ever) show demo is available for $14,0000 and an updated prototype pair is available for $12,000.00.
The new Plasma Signature is the culmination of all we have in learned in the last 15 years of speaker design. I have always loved the dipole panel speaker design with its big, natural soundstage along with an addictively open and airy sound. My challenge was that I also loved my Wavelength Cardinal XS amplifiers with Western Electric 300B tubes with their musically natural and soul-engaging sound. Now I had determined two requirements for my system, but they were incompatible. So I kept the amps and decided to develop my own efficient dipoles with the encouragement and help of Gordon Rankin of Wavelength.
My first breakthrough design was the Cabernet and it is just amazing, but it’s 100 db efficiency won’t allow its use with the plasma tweeter which is compatible up to 97 db efficiency. Plus, many customers prefer the line array performance attributes in a system with subwoofers built in. So the design and trials continued.
The culmination of all of these design parameters was the Triode Line Array which exhibited at RMAF 2015 to rave reviews from both show attendees and the press. The Plasma Signature is the next step up the performance ladder from the Triode Line Array and is our best speaker to date.
By separating the bass and mid treble units we are able to optimize both cabinets for ultimate performance. The pyramidal shape also aids in suppression of internal standing waves. The new Plasma Signature offers the large and expansive soundstage of big planar systems with bass and dynamics standard dipole planers can only dream about - and can be driven with an 8 watt SET amp!
With four 4” drivers front facing and another identical set of four 4” drivers facing back that are operated in phase gives the Plasma Signature the air moving capability in the midrange of a 12” driver.
Dipole speakers have the rear wave out of phase which makes for much tougher positioning requirements to get the best sound and minimize cancellations. These eight 4” drivers operate from 80 hz – 7000 hz with just one inductor to smooth the response and readies them to seamlessly blend with the incomparable plasma tweeter. The system is supported on the bottom end with a 12” subwoofer, 500 watt class D amplifier with adjustable volume and crossover, and loaded with two 12” passive radiators. This makes for a full range system with spectacular full range performance of 24 hz – 60,000 hz. Speed, resolution, air, space, dynamics and sound staging are all world class making the Plasma’s Signatures price/performance ratio unbeatable.This is a truly unique speaker that will reward the listener with immediate satisfaction and more importantly long term satisfaction with a speaker that offers strengths of many different speakers in one complete design.
Signature Series
New Ribbon Signatures are sold out, only one last demo speaker left in excellent condition for $8,000.00 or can be upgraded to Plasma Signature for total price of $12,500.00.
The Ribbon Signature is the same speaker as the Plasma Signature with a pure ribbon tweeter, not a plasma. It took three years to find the right tweeter and crossover to get it’s performance close enough to the Plasma Signature to justify the Signature designation. It is a world class speaker in it’s own right beating speakers up to 3 times it’s price and it can be converted to a Plasma Signature anytime in the future.
What's in a Vaughn?
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Reference Series
Line Array Major
"I had always loved the resolution and presence of the line array speaker systems however they always ended up having a loss of focus could be distracting. After 8 years of numerous prototypes and many misses we finally have a design that gives us the scale and presence of the larger line array systems with great clarity and focus in a very compact floor standing package."
Each speaker features sixteen 4" full range drivers along with a robust ribbon super tweeter and two 12" side mounted passive radiators. Eight of the full ranges and the super tweeter face forwards and the other eight full ranges are rearward facing. This provides a listening experience similar to the very best planar systems with dynamics and a presence that the panel speakers can only dream of. Combine this with 100 db efficiency and easy 8 ohm impedance and they can be powered by the best low powered tube and solid state amps and still provide that "big speaker" experience or with their 240 watt power handling can handle the big muscle amps as well but you won't need all that power for more than satisfactory listening levels of even the largest scale music.
Early in my audio journey I fell in love with dipole panels, owning Acoustats, Quads, Martin Logans, Magnepans, Apogees etc.. The open, clear sound along with natural sound staging was a cut above box speakers of the day. Unfortunately, there was always that compromise of limited dynamics and bass power along with their thirst for big power and current that would not allow me to use my preferred lower-powered tube amplifiers. Finally the Cabernet Line Array (Cabernet II) combined with two subwoofers were able to give me everything I was looking for in one package.
High efficiency, easy impedance, great micro and macro dynamics, transparency, openness, and the big dense soundstage of the best dipole planars speakers. Finally I could have my cake and eat it too! If your tastes run along the same vein give the Line Array Major a listen, you'll be glad you did!
"I had always loved the resolution and presence of the line array speaker systems however they always ended up having a loss of focus that was distracting over time. After 8 years of numerous prototypes and many misses we finally have a design that gives us the scale and presence of the larger line array systems with great clarity and focus in a very compact floor standing package.
Each speaker features sixteen 4" full range drivers along with a robust ribbon super tweeter and two 12" side mounted passive radiators. Eight of the full ranges and the super tweeter face forwards and the other eight full ranges are rearward facing. This provides a listening experience similar to the very best planar systems with dynamics and a presence that the panel speakers can only dream of. Combine this with their 100 db efficiency and easy 16 ohm impedance and they can be powered by the best low powered tube and solid state amps and still provide that "big speaker" experience or with their 240 watt power handling can handle the big muscle amps as well but you won't need all that power for more than satisfactory listening levels of even the largest scale music."
Early in my audio journey I fell in love with dipole panels, owning Acoustats, Quads, Martin Logans, Magnepans, Apogees etc.. The open, clear sound along with natural sound staging was a cut above box speakers of the day. Unfortunately there was always that compromise of limited dynamics and bass power along with their thirst for big power and current wouldn't allow me to use my preferred lower powered tube amplifiers. Finally the Cabernet II combined with two subwoofers were able to give me everything I was looking for in one package. High efficiency, easy impedance, great micro and macro dynamics, transparency, openness, and the big dense soundstage of the best dipole planars speakers. Finally I could have my cake and eat it too! If your tastes run along the same vein give the Cabernet LA a listen, you'll be glad you did!
Line Array Minor
The new Line Array Minor is a downsized version of the Line Array Major but is nonetheless a big, powerful sounding speaker. With nine 4” wide range drivers, 7 facing forward and one to the rear mated to an amazing AMT tweeter it provides a visceral and powerful presentation. Each driver is not working hard due to the large combined radiating area so clarity and detail are maximized while distortion is minimized. With just 1 rear facing driver you get a bit of the big bipolar sound but with a more focused presentation. Which is right is all up to the listener which is why we make all types of speakers to suit differing tastes. The AMT tweeter compliments the speed of the 8 drivers perfectly and extends response out to 30,000 hz. The first order crossover provides seamless transition so the Line Array minor sounds like the biggest baddest, single driver speaker available. It is comfortable playing big loud power music, small scale jazz or anything in between. Because the bass is limited it will want a quality subwoofer such as an MJ Acoustics to provide full range response. Being able to separate the bass from a big line array is even more beneficial to get the most out of it’s placement without regard to where the bass sounds best.
The Triode Jr Line Array is the most cost effective way to get into the Vaughn bi-polar line array sound. No room was wasted in getting the big bi-polar sound into a small package. Despite its diminutive stand-mount stature, the sound is big, bold and dynamic with a sweetness that often surprises listeners. Voices and midrange instruments are presented in a warm, natural way without coloration, like so many other “musical speakers”. The eight 4” drivers offer power, speed, and control beyond the reach of a single or dual midrange driver in this price range. It is a revelation to hear such a big sound coming from such a small enclosure.
To cover the extreme low end, we recommend using the Triode Jr Line Array with a quality subwoofer or two like the MJ Acoustics subwoofers we have begun importing. With an MJ sub bass system filling out the Triode Jr the sound truly turns world class. From top to bottom the sound is clean, clear, coherent, and supremely musical. A realistic soundstage will fill the rear of your room with performers laid out as intended by the recording. Size, scope and scale will surprise those that are even used to listening to large systems.
PLASMA LINE ARRAY
Line Array Monitor
In early 2013 I was able to hear a pair of the Dukane Plasma tweeters from the 1960's and it was one of those revelatory audio moments. I heard percussion and high frequencies as never before. Surprisingly, the plasmas also dramatically improved the midrange and bass frequencies while expanding the soundstage to truly expansive proportions. I sat mesmerized in front of the speakers with thoughts quickly moving to,"I have to build a speaker to show off the wonders of this magical device." I found a used set on Ebay and working together with a "plasma guru", who has been working with these tweeters since the 1960s, rebuilt them completely with our own significantly improved power supply.
The plasma tweeters turned out to be a rousing success when mated to our Triode speaker. So here we present the Plasma Line Array, a bi-polar line array speaker built specifically to seamlessly mate with the incredible plasma tweeter. The Plasma LA also includes a powered 10" bass driver for full range performance. The speaker also sounds incredible with the Alnico horn, and AMT tweeters. The Horn or AMT tweeters provide a more affordable entry into this level of speaker performance and also allows for a future upgrade path to the plasma tweeter.
PLASMA TWEETER
In early 2013 I was able to hear a pair of the Dukane Plasma tweeters from the 1960's and it was one of those revelatory audio moments. I heard percussion and high frequencies as never before. Surprisingly, the plasmas also dramatically improved the midrange and bass frequencies while expanding the soundstage to truly expansive proportions. I sat mesmerized in front of the speakers with thoughts quickly moving to,"I have to build a speaker to show off the wonders of this magical device."
I found a used set on Ebay and working together with a "plasma guru", who has been working with these tweeters since the 1960s, rebuilt them completely and now offer them with our own significantly improved power supply or completely rebuilt original power supplies. WwwwWe now have them with rebuilt original power supplies or
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Massless design starts instantly, stops instantly, and has no diaphragm resonances.
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140 degree horizontal dispersion, 60 degree vertical dispersion
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Built in the 1960's and still the best tweeter ever made.
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Updated new rebuilt original power supply or rebuilt original power supply with crossover and volume pot.
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Minimal ozone production unlike many other plasma tweeter designs. These can be run all day in small rooms like at audio shows with no ozone odors.
Cabernet III
The new Vaughn Cabernet III is an all new design and dramatically updated version of the original Cabernet that won Stereo Mojo’s speaker of the year award in 2009. We replaced the originals excellent Accuton 6.5” midrange driver with a much improved Accuton 7’ driver featuring the latest Direct Drive Dome technology. This drives the cone on the outer edge of the cone by the surround which allows for perfected pistonic action. This driver is used in a number of speakers costing upwards of $100,000!
Like all the Accutons this driver is extremely fast with amazing resolution of even the finest most subdued music details. When combined with our new true ribbon tweeter, improved binding posts (WBT Nextgen), internal wire (Duelund), and crossover parts (V-Cap) you get an even more coherent, warmer, fuller and even more transparent sound than our award winning original Cabernet speaker. We didn’t just stop there we added a much improved 10” sub bass driver with a 12” passive radiator powered by a 300 watt amplifier that allows for adjustments to both crossover and volume of the woofer. This makes placement of the speaker much easier as the bass can be adjusted to where the the speaker sounds and images best. All of this comes at just $500.00 more than the original back in 2009! Read the old review and imagine the significant performance gain and you’ll have an idea of how the Cabernet III offers an unprecedented value.
Cabernet Monitor
The New Cabernet Monitor is identical to the top section of the Cabernet III although we use a similar but lower efficiency Accuton woofer/midrange ceramic cell with a resistive vent rather than passive radiator for use without a woofer. We can make the higher efficiency version but you will need to use a subwoofer in all but the smallest of rooms. The woofer/midrange rather than the more efficient midrange allows for for solid bass response down to 40 hz, rolling off from there. This small speaker with lower efficiency is still very easy to drive delivering full, rich and extremely transparent sound in my larger 19' x 27' room with a 15 watt 211 SET amplifier. For smaller amplifiers consider the 93 db version with an MJ Acoustic subwoofer. This allows for the subwoofer or multiples to be placed where they sound best and the monitor speaker where it sounds and images best. Plus you get the benefits of biamping. This speaker truly does disappear leaving a wonderfully detailed, coherent and natural picture of the musical event. We recommend placing on 24” stands for best results. Either way this is one fabulous speaker with the sound only available from the new Accuton Cell Direct Drive Dome technology and true ribbon tweeter. Speed, transparency, imaging, resolution, and natural sounding, no wonder these drivers are in many speakers costing $30,000 to $300,000!
Pinot Monitor
The Pinot Monitor is a very high performance but lower cost version of the Cabernet Monitor. It is virtually identical with the change of midrange driver to a banana pulp/paper driver, binding posts (WBT knockoff) and internal wire (cotton covered solid core copper). Performance is not quite up to the level of the Cabernet Monitor but is much better than anything in it’s price range and can be upgraded to a Cabernet Monitor anytime in the future. Most music lovers will be thrilled with the performance of the Pinot Monitor and will never wish for more performance, it is that good.
Unfortunately higher efficiency in a small cabinet comes at the cost of deep bass response so unless the speakers will be used in a small room and/or close to the back wall we recommend using s quality subwoofer like MJ Acoustics. Paired with an appropriate subwoofer or two the Pinot Monitor will provide performance similar or better than many much larger and more expensive full range speakers.
VAUGHN SIGNATURE SUBWOOFER
Available separately for $3000.00 each
One 12” woofer, two 12” Passive Radiators, 500 watt amplifier
18”-14”w x 15.5”d x 18” high
Use Plasma Signature, Triode Jr. or Cabernet II with 1,2, 3, or 4 woofers for even better results