I have some apologies to make, I wasn't able to perform as in-depth review as I would have liked. I should have planned this for a non-Holiday weekend and when there would have been better weather for some outdoor measurements. Both points are duly noted for any future reviews.
Next up, several "Thank You!"'s need to be mentioned:
Silas Pradetto for loaning me a Crown Itech HD5000
Stephen Siegel, Dave Gunness from Fulcrum Acoustics for loaning me a Soundweb London
Lienau AV Associates for providing the Fulcrum and Danley boxes
Fulcrum Acoustics DX1295
The Fulcrum Acoustics DX1295 is a very nicely constructed, dual 12" co-axial 2-way loudspeaker. It's low/mid frequency drivers are both front loaded in what appears to be a separately tuned bass reflex configurations (i.e. the lower 12" driver has differently sized/tuned ports than the upper 12" co-ax driver). With dimensions of 28.0 x 18.0 x 16.0 in and weighing in at only 63 LBS, it is a fairly compact and portable enclosure. With that said, this model is currently geared for installations so it did not have handles, corner protectors, or a more robust cabinet finish (it's painted). From what I have read, it does sound like you can order the cabinet with optional handles and a pole cup. This speaker is designed to be bi-amped with "Level1" or "Level2" Digital Signal Processing applied.
Danley Sound Labs SM60F
The Danley SM60F takes the Synergy Horn technology and shrinks it down to fairly compact cabinet. The trapezoidal cabinet is 20.6 x 20.6 x 16.3 in and weighs in at 50LBs. The internal speaker components are a 5" co-axial driver and dual 8" low-frequency drivers all loaded/time aligned onto the same Synergy Horn. This cabinet was built for portable use with handles along the top edges and a truck bedliner like exterior finish. This speaker is configured as a passive 3-way design without any manufacturer requirements for processing other than a 50Hz HPF.
The Setup
Due to reduced time and poor weather I was only able to conduct indoor listening comparing these two cabinets directly. I listened to them over several days with a variety of music genres and sources. The final listening configuration, and what I gave the most credence to, was the following:
Macbook Pro used as playback source (using .Wavs and high bit-rate MP3s)
RME FireFace 800 serving as the DAC
Soundweb London providing manufacturer recommended processing/routing
QSC PL380 amplifiers (Two channels used for the DX1295 in bi-amp mode, One channel of a second PL380 to power the SM60F)
Care was taken to try to match the sound levels between the two cabinets during the listening session.
My Thoughts
What initially drew me to wanting to review these two cabinets was that they were both fairly small/portable, around the same cost, and were likely candidates as an upgrade from our existing inventory of FBT HiMaxx40A multi-purpose speakers. After handling and listening to both cabinets, I realized that this was more of an apples to oranges comparison.
I want to make the following disclaimer before I share my opinion on these products, the following conclusions were drawn from fairly limited testing in an indoor environment. If you're seriously interested in either of these cabinets, arrange for your own demo and try to take them out on a gig.
If you fire up either of these cabinets and start listening, I think that you'll be fairly impressed with how they sound. The tuning of the SM60F isn't necessarily ideal out of the box but with some slight EQ, I feel that it sounds pretty good and would probably work extremely well for our SR gigs (primarily bluegrass and acoustic music events). The DX1295 seemed slightly sharp in the midrange area to me but was otherwise almost ruler flat from the midrange up (actually measured in the listening room with SMAART) and sounds VERY good.
In a room with decent acoustics and a short throw, the Fulcrum box would be ideal and offer very hi-fi sound quality. Obviously, this fits in with the original intent for the model to be an installation box.
The SM60F offers a more controlled pattern and would offer increased performance in areas with poorer room acoustics and/or where the need for increased gain before feedback is required.
DX1295 Summary
Pros:
-Excellent sound quality
-Fairly compact & lightweight
-Reasonable price
Cons:
-Requires Bi-amping and Level 1 processing to reach full potential
-Doesn't offer significant pattern control due to lack of horn loading
SM60F Summary
Pros:
-Very small and compact
-Good sound quality
-Reasonable Price
-Good pattern control
Cons:
-Not impressed with the out of the box tuning
Final verdict
Which model am I going to buy? In the end, I've decided to hold off on purchasing either cabinet. I could see either model working out very well for us but have decided to wait to see what develops next year as some of our annual events might fall through. In the mean time, the FBT's will have to continue to earn their keep (which they do admirably).
One last note to this review, we are Danley dealers and I have been a Danley fan for a few years now. I tried to stay as impartial as possible in this review but caveat emptor.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you,
Jeff