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Motive Reviews
Motive 1
Hi FI Choice,
Best Buy Award, February 2006.
"...an impressively flat response is again confirmed under
our measurement regime. Equally remarkable is that such a compact speaker
can deliver genuinely deep bass extension, registering around 0dB at 20Hz. Given
the above findings, it's no surprise to find a very superior neutrality high on
the list of the Motive 1's positive attributes. In fact, few other
speakers can match it in this regard.
Neutral tonal balance and an unusually wide bandwidth are
and excellent start for any speaker, but are by no means the whole story here.
The midband is exceptionally expressive and coherent, bringing unusual realism
to individual voices. And, while the presence band remains beautifully open and
free from any nasal tendencies, there's no tendency for this speaker to sound
aggressive when the volume is wound up, which is an unusually clever trick.
The sound as a whole is agile and impressively free from
any boxy colourations, generating precise and well-focused stereo images that
fill the space between the speaker without betraying the Motive 1's physical
locations. This speaker has the sort of agility and freedom from enclosure
effects that one normally only associates with high-quality standmount designs.
This compact floorstander combines superb neutrality, fine open voicing, low coloration and out-of-box imaging
with surprisingly good bass extension... an outstanding example of a
top-quality compact floorstanding speaker."
Motive 2
Bristol Sound & Vision,
February 2006
Winner BFA award for Best Two Channel
Demonstration, Bristol Sound and Vision, February 2006.
Stereophile Home
Entertainment, June 2006
"Bass is listed at
35Hz and I believe it. It's kinda shocking, actually, how low and smooth
these little speakers perform. In fact, I believe the Neat/Exposure
combo to be HE2006's most important system -- killer non-audiophile
sound, suave styling and, at $4500, you get to keep both kidneys. This
is what the future of hi-fi should look like." - Josh Ray, Sonic Flare,
HE 2006.
"…the Neat Motive 2 played
music with a level of realism and authority totally out of line with the
low price of the system. If I gave out show awards, this would easily
have won for 'Best Sound Relative to Price.' It actually sounded much
better than many of the way more expensive systems on display in other
rooms. That they were playing AC/DC's Back in Black when we walked in
their room said something about their confidence in the system's ability
to play music!" - Steve Lefkowicz, Positive Feedback
"…this one was KILLER for what
it was... small and affordable and it made music... big music too!" -
Dave Clark, Positive Feedback
"This system sounded simply
wonderful. And people think I only like mega-size, mega-buck equipment."
- Paul Bolin, Stereophile
"Rein then proceeded to blow
my mind with budget magic… the system's evenly balanced, full-range
sound blew me away." - Jason Victor Serinus, Stereophile.
Motive 3
What Hi-FI
Five Star Award, March 2006.
"Rarely do we come across a pair of
speakers that deliver dynamics with such conviction. The Neats welcome the
vicious dynamics and complex orchestral arrangements with open arms. The sense
of scale and low-end authority is surprising considering the speakers' modest
dimensions - and makes most similarly sized rivals seem undernourished in this
area.
Timing and the ability to stop and start with the agility
of a highly strung collie are more major plus points. They can't fail to
please you. A sparkling sonic
presentation presses all the right buttons, these Neats are entertainers of the
highest order: buy and enjoy!"
Ultimatum Reviews
Ultimatum
MF9
Hi-Fi Choice Magazine
"Fundamentally, this speaker (MF9) just gets out of the
way and lets the musical message through unobstructed. The hallmark of the very
best loudspeakers is that they somehow manage to communicate the differences
between different sources and even recordings, and in this regard the Ultimatum
turns out to be a very good speaker indeed.
Qualitatively, the bass end is quite superb. Very few
speakers can match its ability to deliver genuinely deep in-room bass without
muddying things up with excessive and thumpy mid-bass. The bonus here is that
the bass is also exceptionally agile and lively, and cabinet colouration is
vanishingly low.
Over the long haul of several weeks, my respect for this
speaker continued to grow. Few if any can match the way it combines the
coherence and communication skills of a simple two-way with most of the
advantages of a much larger design. The Ultimatum is an exceptional achievement
in every respect."
Hi-Fi+ Magazine
"This loudspeaker (MF9) has so many very clear and obvious
strengths, it's difficult to know where to start. Above all perhaps, it combines
all the coherence and communication skills of a simple two-way, with most of the
advantages of a much larger design. There's real speed and agility here,
especially through a bass region which is exceptionally clean, clear and
powerful.
But the whole is much more than the sum of the parts, and
there's a beguiling completeness and totality which is totally satisfying,
making one very aware that the Ultimatum is a labour of love and the end result
of painstaking development and refinement. Such quality doesn't come cheap, but
Neat's Ultimatum deserves recognition as amongst the very best there is,
irrespective of price."
Ultimatum MF7
"The price is $15k, but they were one of the speakers that
absolutely would have prevented me from spending more for relatively
full range sound: allowing for one irrational attachment to an over $40k
speaker I haven’t yet addressed." Sonic Flare, HE 2006.
"One of my most memorable sounds at the show." Michael Fremer,
Stereophile. HE 2006,
Ultimatum MFS
Hi FI Choice Magazine - Winner Product of the
Year
"The MFS is a superb loudspeaker in its own right. A brilliant
musical communicator, this standmount sounds much bigger than it looks,
delivering a wonderfully spacious and informative sonic performance."
Hi-Fi+ Magazine
"The (Ultimatum MFS) speaker is capable of a very musical,
rhythmic and emotional result, achieving this with a detailed, wide bandwidth
and very low distortion character no matter what the material played on them.
Hell, they even image well. What more could you ask?"
The Inner Ear Report
"This system offered
the perfect blend of smooth highs along with great midrange information with
plenty of inner detail and powerful, full-bodied bass. The most endearing
elements of this design are the sense of space and air around each tone and the
feeling of appropriate timing resulting in that out-of-the-box sensation that
makes it very difficult to pinpoint the location of the loudspeakers. The result
will be high-resolution, high-end sound out of a small, unobtrusive, 'neat' pair
of loudspeakers that will fill a very large room with sound. They may make a
Neat freak out of you."
Hi-Fi+ Magazine
"The MFS is an excellent speaker for those who want clarity and
analysis combined with musical coherence. Its superb high frequencies and
surprising bass extension don't come with the normal downside of demanding drive
requirements. Matched to your system they may well prove addictive - I know I'll
be sorry to see them go."
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