XTZ 99.25: A Review. UK First MkII.

After a bit of kafuffle, I finally managed to pick up my 99.25s from the depot, hats off to XTZ who has been very helpful with my queries. The box appeared a little worn but upon opening it up I'm glad to say everything was intact. Initial impressions, the speakers are smaller than expected but are deep and feel reassuringly weighty. I could see them fitting in with the room nicely. My only gripe at the moment, after a quick inspection I noticed lots of fine hair line scratches on some parts of the speakers, especially prominent on one of the sides. Also unlike Russell's speakers, my ones shipped with the treble tuning links in -2db setting. My question to Russell and others that have bought these speakers, is this and those fine hair line scratches on the piano gloss finish normal? Being honest, I do get the feeling that these have had some use.

Putting that aside, it’s too early to play at reference level, but having heard them so far my initial impression is wow! Nuff said for now… :D
 
After a bit of kafuffle, I finally managed to pick up my 99.25s from the depot, hats off to XTZ who has been very helpful with my queries. The box appeared a little worn but upon opening it up I'm glad to say everything was intact. Initial impressions, the speakers are smaller than expected but are deep and feel reassuringly weighty. I could see them fitting in with the room nicely. My only gripe at the moment, after a quick inspection I noticed lots of fine hair line scratches on some parts of the speakers, especially prominent on one of the sides. Also unlike Russell's speakers, my ones shipped with the treble tuning links in -2db setting. My question to Russell and others that have bought these speakers, is this and those fine hair line scratches on the piano gloss finish normal? Being honest, I do get the feeling that these have had some use.

Putting that aside, it’s too early to play at reference level, but having heard them so far my initial impression is wow! Nuff said for now… :D

Sounds like you have been sent returns, speak to Rikard as I am pretty sure they come with the links in a bag with the manual. They should look mint as well.

Adam
 
Thanks very much Adam, just what I feared.

Oh dear, I gotta go through the whole process of re-delivery again. :(
 
To be honest I wouldn't mind the links being shipped in place or even if they had some use but my main concern is the cosmetics at the moment.
 
the links are in place upon shipping....and both room tuning prongs in each speaker - thus set at the -2 you describe

However...the speakers were in nice little individual cloth bags and staple sealed outer packaging.
 
Mine came with the links in bag with the manual. The speaker themselves were in cloth bags inside the box.
 
Thanks guys, mine came in those nice cloth bags too although not stapled box.

Anyway, I've sent Rikard a PM, just waiting on a response now to see what he says.

Regarding the audio, initial impressions well what can I say, since 11 I've been playing them at moderate level and I can't seem to get myself off the sofa, these speakers are blooming hypnotic. Who needs surrounds and pseudo surround bars when these can produce such an immersive and 3D like sound from two channels? The bass isn't something that stands out at the moment, I guess they might still need to be run in and calibrated with the sub. Transparency was what I was really after and that's exactly what I got. Fixed at -2db I am amazed at the level of clarity without a hint of harshness or over emphasisd treble. No sibilance either. I'm not kidding when I say these really do sound high end. I'll leave it there for now...

BTW Andy, I wouldn't worry about it mate, put that order through if you're ready ;)
 
After a bit of kafuffle, I finally managed to pick up my 99.25s from the depot, hats off to XTZ who has been very helpful with my queries. The box appeared a little worn but upon opening it up I'm glad to say everything was intact. Initial impressions, the speakers are smaller than expected but are deep and feel reassuringly weighty. I could see them fitting in with the room nicely. My only gripe at the moment, after a quick inspection I noticed lots of fine hair line scratches on some parts of the speakers, especially prominent on one of the sides. Also unlike Russell's speakers, my ones shipped with the treble tuning links in -2db setting. My question to Russell and others that have bought these speakers, is this and those fine hair line scratches on the piano gloss finish normal? Being honest, I do get the feeling that these have had some use.

Putting that aside, it's too early to play at reference level, but having heard them so far my initial impression is wow! Nuff said for now… :D

The speakers should absolutely be brand new. No return speakers are sold outside our shop in Sweden. Final assembly takes place here so it could be down to which one of our guys did the final polish/packing. Do you have any possibility to email a photo? Very, very fine hairline marks are common, but they should be polished away before packing. It could be as simple as final assembly not having done a proper job this time, which would of course be annoying.

/Rikard
 
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Ok Rikard, I'll try and get a couple of shots, won't be till this evening though as I've gotta go out now. Cheers
 
Mi55ion: So you've had them for about a week.. what are your impression now? :)

I love to read all i can about this speakers, even if i have decided i will go for a 5.1 or possibly a 7.1(2x 99.36, 3x99.26 and possibly 2x 99.21 for height -> DPL IIz), though still awaiting for the release of Denon AVR-4310 and September.. :p
 
Hopefully I will do a review soon, just awaiting delivery of the XTZ Room Analyzer, I am very curious to see what it can do.

Nice combination of speakers you are going for, I have 2 99.25's as the fronts and 93wmt's as the rears. They work well together.
 
reaper12: by 'work well' you mean there is little to no difference in sound using 99wmt as surround speakers?
Could i possibly change all surround speakers to 99.21 and don't notice any huge difference in sound?
 
Mi55ion: So you've had them for about a week.. what are your impression now? :)

I love to read all i can about this speakers, even if i have decided i will go for a 5.1 or possibly a 7.1(2x 99.36, 3x99.26 and possibly 2x 99.21 for height -> DPL IIz), though still awaiting for the release of Denon AVR-4310 and September.. :p

Hi,

Not done much serious listening tbh. I would say however the bass is solid and not lacking as I had first thought, found this out after I changed the settings on my processor. These speakers are wonderfully revealing and I could listen to them for hours on end without fatigue even though the sound is slightly more forward than what I'm used to and erring to the bright side, not sure bi-amping with my Rotel 1075s helps much here. With regards to the treble, I find that applying -2db helps although I may settle down on -4db. Haven't decided yet. Can not comment on movie performance as I don't have the centre speaker yet, however based on the 2 channel performance I am confident it will be something special.
 
reaper12: by 'work well' you mean there is little to no difference in sound using 99wmt as surround speakers?
Could i possibly change all surround speakers to 99.21 and don't notice any huge difference in sound?

If I had the money I would have had got 99.25's all the way around.

The 99.21's should be better than the 93WMT's.
 
reaper12: Ok, good to know. :)

edit: just ordered my speakers, i will wait with speakers for more than 5.1, better to use the money on a sub. :)

edit2: Postal office have fu%¤#% up, at least i've got my reciever (avr-4310) today, now i only want my speakers and the cables(which are two different packages...), with some luck i'll have it tomorrow.

edit3: This is partly the wrong thread since my primary ones is 99.36, and the 99.26 is my surround and center speaker, but what i can say for shure is that i am impressed by the build quality(like all others also are saying..) and the fact that the 99.26 is bigger than i imagined.

Since i still haven't got the right cables and are only using really! thin cables i can't say too much about sound quality(and the fact that i have only used them for 2-3 hours), but i can still say i am at least not dissapointed! :)

My only reference from earlier on were a Rotel system (rc995, 980bx poweramp) and 2 PSB 800 speakers that i was quite happy with.
 
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I just read Russell.Williams review of the XTZ 99.25's and they look like a good choice for my upcoming 5.1 setup. My question is regarding his speaker stands. They look like "temporary/diy' stands. Did you make these or have someone make them for you? They look like simple top and bottom boards with a 2x4 upright which would work well for me to determine the proper height i need to position my speakers. Can you tell me the dimensions?
 
If i recall correctly, the temporary stands were about 500-550mm high. In practice, the 99.25s proved to be better suited to something 600mm high with my seated ear height of about 90cm. This put the ear spot on the listening axis, which is between the tweeter and mid-bass unit. I use some Sound Organization/Soundstyle Z1s that I mass loaded to 14kg each and the XTZs seem to like a heavier stand. The dimensions on the website don't include the spike height.

The much more recent review of the 99.26 MkIIs, is probably a lot closer to what the 99.25s would sound like now. It's only the cabinet that's different and the new MkII crossover makes a much larger difference.

Russell
 
Hello to all first jump in here as I have just bought a 5.1 setup and am thinking about putting an Anthem MRX 300 amp with them; just wondering if anyone has listened to this combination before, or indeed able to comment on the continual power output (quoted 80 whats (sic) per channel:rolleyes:) being suitable to drive these speakers
2 x 99.26
1 x 99.25
2 x 93.21
In fact any input would be appreciated, many thanks :smashin:
 
I don't think it will have any problem at all driving the XTZs to high levels as the Anthems are pretty sturdy with real world speaker loads. That does assume you're not trying to fill a vast room.

Russell
 
System Design/Details:
Yamaha – DSP-Z9 ( 170W-RMS x 7 + 50W-RMS x 2) ( Non HDMI AV Amp) Only Audio Duty assigned.
Oppo BDP-95 (Connected to above Z9 via Analog MCH -8nos + Coax(Digital)) – Bluray/3D/DVD/SACD
Marantz – SA7003 ( CD/SACD) – Connected to 2CH Pure Direct of Z9 + Coax
Panasonic PT-AE7000/5000 ( 3D-HD Projector) ( 3HDMI inputs)
Room Size is 3.8W x 5D x 3.6H in meters
Usage – Music / Movies – 50/50
Music Types – Soft rock, trance, blues, classical and fusion.

Reading the XTZ various threads I am very impressed with the XTZ range of speakers especially 99.36 and 99.26 ( Both MK11 Versions) and would like to set up a 9.1 system utilizing all the Z9 channels. Following are my options from the various threads I have read ;

Option -1
LCR – 3 x XTZ 99.36MKII ( Bi-wired)( To be installed below the projector screen)
Surround and Rear Surround – 4 x XTZ 93.21
Front Presence – 2 x XTZ 70.12
Subs – 1 x BK-XXLS400

Option -2
LCR – 3 x XTZ 99.26MKII ( Bi-wired) ( To be installed below the projector screen)
Surround and Rear Surround – 4 x XTZ 93.21
Front Presence – 2 x XTZ 70.12
Subs – 1 x BK-XXLS400

My Thoughts:
In option 1 I have selected 99.36 for music purpose because in pure direct mode on Z9 the subs are not functional so I have to depend on the main speakers to bring about the extended bass. Further, I get an impression from the XTZ threads that 99.36s are better for music due to their clarity and extended lows.

However, with the 99.36s there is the risk of excessive bass given my room size and power matching of Z9 with 99.36s. Z9 ( 170W) wherein 99.36 has 200W and 500W for long term and short term correspondingly. Therefore I have the option 2.

Finally a speaker placement question. According to all the 5.1/7.1 formats, the surround speakers ( 2nos main surround + 2Nos rear surround) are supposed to be installed 2 feet above ear level when sitting to create the ambience effect and not to distract the listener. However when it comes to MCH audio like SACD/DVD-A the surrounds are expected to be at ear levels. Please share your experiences on this topic.

I request XTZ and other experts/professionals in this thread to throw some light on the above scenario.
Thanks v much.
 
I can understand the idea of matching stand mounts 99.26s across the front three, but would there be any benefit for three 99.36s?*

*unless XTZ are going to make a dedicated 99.36 centre (I think someone on this forum was going to DIY one). Also, not an expert, just an XTZ owner
 
Thanks for your reply. I really would like to go in for the 99.36 for L/R but then there is the question of the center. According to russell and many others, the front stage L-C-R speakers have to be identical to get the pefect sonic advantage and seamless sound panning from L to R without a dip in the center. Well, how do i achieve this with 99.36s playing the L and R.?
Am i right in assuming that its a technical benefit versus cost?
Please correct me if im wrong, i would like to learn from the experiences of all you guys.
 
Alot depends on your room, associated kit, subwoofer etc...but given the choice, I would generally go for identical 3 across the front. But that's personal preference :)
 
I think what decides the center speaker placement and choice is the way the screen is positioned with respect to the floor. There should be a min space of 1m below the projection screen or monitor to have identical LCR in the vertical design layout which is the best as compared to a horizontal center (2nd best).
 

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