Home Theater Direct HTD Level 2 Bookshelf Speaker Review
I’ve wanted to review a Home Theater Direct product for a
while now and when a deal on them came up I couldn't resist picking up a pair
of HTD Level 2's. As one of the more popular direct internet speaker retailers,
the whole line has been well received. Their Level 3 speakers with their ribbon
tweeters being considered some of the best speakers in their price point.
So how does the comparatively Plain Jane HDT Level 2 stack
up against some of the more mass market speakers? I compared the HTD's with
both the Pioneer BS22's and the Definitive Technology SM45s. Both are easily available
speakers just above and just below the price point of the HDT Level 2.
Before we look at the graphs and talk about how they sound,
let’s take the HTD Level 2 apart and see what's it's made of.
Side by side with the Pioneer BS22
It's a bit shorter than the BS22 and
significantly heavier. Build quality is no joke on the HTD Level 2
The rear and terminals
Tweeter Removed
Not all that interesting. Uses a small neodymium magnet.
Mid range removed
Not very interesting, the driver is listed as 6 ohms.
I couldn't find anything regarding the part number
Good amount of stuffing for a budget speaker
What is this? That’s part of the port. These are
slot/transmission line ported.
The crossover
Look at all those resistors. What does it all mean!
Internal bracing
Starting to make sense as to why this is so heavy.
As you can see, construction is top notch. I don't know anything about xover building, but it is big, and bigger is better right? Maybe someone can tell us more about it.
Close Mic of Individual Drivers 1/12 Smoothing
The HTD level 2 does not appear to be ported all that low.
About 80 hz by the close mic measurements. There is also some pretty large
spikes centered at ~400hz and ~850hz. I believe that these will be seen later
in the 1m measurements.
The grill isn't too bad. It tames the output a little bit;
but at 1m or greater distances it doesn't have much effect. They are pretty
transparent overall.
Drivers @1m 1/12 smoothing
In this instance of measurements there is a deep but narrow
null at 400hz. I experienced the perfect inverse of that in a previous
measurement. I'm going to conclude that both the null and the spike are somehow
due to the spike in the port response.
The bumps at ~850hz and 1.2khz match pretty well with the
close mic measurements of the mid range.
The difference between tweeter response with and with the
grills becomes pretty negligible
Full speaker @ 1m with port overlaid 1/12 Smoothing
Trying to show if there is any relation to the point noise
and some of the peaks and dips in the 1m graphs.
The 400hz peak coming out of the port does line up with both
the peak and dip seen at 1m and the peak at ~850hz. And possibly even the peak
from ~1.2-1.8khz
As seen later, when smoothed to 1/6 db per octave these are a +/- 3db speaker. Though it's a wavy one.
Off axis Responses
Horizontal off axis response
Horizontal off axis responses, overall it stays pretty
consistent until you break past 20 degrees off axis.
Vertical off axis response
Vertical off axis responses. Getting even a little bit above
the tweeter makes things ugly right at the xover point.
Comparison With Competitors
HTD Level 2 Bookshelf speaker: Comparison 1/3 octave smoothing
Here we are comparing the HTD Level 2 with a number of other
common popular bookshelf speakers.
Level matched @ 100hz
Def Tech StudioMonitor 45 = RED
Pioneer BS22 = GREEN
Infinity Primus p153 = PURPLE
HTD Level 2 vs Pioneer BS22
HTD Level 2 vs Def Tech SM45
HTD Level 2 vs Infinity p153
TL;DR and How Do They Sound?
The HTD Level 2's are a great looking basic black speaker.
Build quality is exceptional, these are literal tanks that make music and if
matte black or any other wood grain finishes are something you like then they
will look great in your room. As far as performance is concerned, they are a
+/- 3db speaker (at 6db per octave smoothing at least) but it's a pretty inconsistent
3db's.
The HTD Level 2 is not a bad speaker (I'm looking at you Pinnacle
BD 500), there are no overtly distracting issues, and overall they are
enjoyable enough.
But they don't stand out in the crowed, I was not wowed by
either objective measured accuracy or their subjective fun.
At times they sounded very similar to the Pioneers, so if
you have Pioneers already I don't think the HTD level 2's much of an upgrade.
If you are looking between the two, the Level 2's can be a touch more exciting
if there is a lot of activity in the areas of the frequency response that are boosted
a bit, (700hz-1.5khz or anything after 8khz) but it never seemed to be a consist
difference.
I found the Definitive Technology SM45's to be both a slight
more accurate speaker for most of the spectrum, though the last octave might
not be for everyone as it is elevated though never harsh. But more importantly
the SM45 were a far more fun speaker, throwing a huge bright sound stage that
just grips you into the music.
Overall I’m not sure how the HTD Level 2 fits into anyone’s
go to recommendation of a good budget/entry level speaker. While a good speaker
itself, the Pioneers can be had for much less, and are a much smoother and
accurate speaker, though mellow in the treble area. The Definitive Technologies
can be found for just slightly more money and equal the HTD’s in construction
and IMO best them in performance in every way. And while not directly talked about here, the Infinity Primus line remains a great and my personal favorite budget option as well.
