Short answer: the Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 for better sound quality, the Dynaudio Emit 20 for the lower price. The Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 ranks #38 of 130 bookshelf speakers at $1748. The Dynaudio Emit 20 ranks #75 at $1049, $699 cheaper.
What the Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 offers: A RAAL true ribbon tweeter is paired with a custom SEAS Excel Curv woofer, with the crossover optimized against Klippel NFS measurement data. Listening window smoothness measures 0.45, a moderate but usable figure for a compact standmount. Pairs are hand matched within +/-1.5dB and shipped with their own individual frequency response printout, backed by a 7 year parts and labor warranty from direct USA assembly in Orange County, California. Watch for: On axis deviation (measured average absolute deviation 0.454) is the roughest of any speaker in this batch, meaning a listener sitting dead center may notice more on axis unevenness than the smoother AsciLab or Ascend tower models nearby. Bass extension is modest for the price class at a measured 51.3Hz at -6dB. Ascend sells direct only, with no dealer network or third party retailers for an in person audition.
What the Dynaudio Emit 20 offers: Two-way design with a 28mm Esotar soft dome tweeter (Hexis-damped) and an 18cm mid-woofer, using a first-order crossover on the tweeter and second-order on the woofer. Exceptional bass extension for a bookshelf speaker - reaches a clean, authoritative 40Hz in-room, rare enough that the reviewer says most listeners could skip a subwoofer for typical music. Very low distortion across the board, staying below 1% THD down to 40Hz at 86dB and below 3% even at 96dB - unusually clean bass performance where most two-way bookshelf speakers start rising in distortion around 80Hz. Wide, remarkably consistent horizontal directivity (about ±50-60°) that holds steady up to roughly 13kHz - rare for a speaker in this format, thanks to a beveled tweeter edge that acts as a mild waveguide. Excellent compression and dynamic-range linearity at the frequency extremes, actually showing slight bass enhancement rather than the sharp low-end compression common in similarly-sized bookshelf speakers. Watch for: A resonance around 600-800Hz gives snares and similar percussion a muffled, flat quality lacking impact - confirmed as originating in the woofer itself (isolated via measurements of the raw driver out of the cabinet), and attempts at constrained-layer damping didn’t resolve it. A peak around 4kHz adds a sharp, edgy quality to some male vocals. A roughly 5dB boost above 10kHz gives cymbals and hi-hats excess shimmer that can sound unnatural, especially pointed directly on-axis. Vertical dispersion shows two separate crossover-related notches (above and below the tweeter reference line around 5kHz) rather than the usual single one, a direct consequence of the shallow crossover slopes used on both drivers. Multitone distortion is elevated in the midrange, possibly due to the woofer’s magnet structure lacking a shorting ring. Best aimed slightly off-axis (about 10-15° of toe-out) to tame the excess high-frequency shimmer, rather than pointed straight at the listener.
Buy the Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 if sound quality matters more than the price. Buy the Dynaudio Emit 20 if the price matters more than sound quality.
Still deciding? The full Passive Home rankings cover every ranked option.
Specifications Side By Side
| Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 | Dynaudio Emit 20 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1,748 per pair | $1,049.00 per pair |
| Ranked | #38 of 130 in Large Size Bookshelf Speakers | #75 of 130 in Large Size Bookshelf Speakers |
| Enclosure | ported | - |
| Drivers | RAAL 10mm true ribbon tweeter, 6" SEAS Excel Curv cone woofer | 7.1" Magnesium Silicate Polymer woofer, 1.1" Cerotar soft dome with Hexis tweeter |
| Dimensions | 14.3"H x 7.5"W x 10.5"D (362 x 190 x 267 mm) | 14.6"H x 8.1"W x 12.3"D (370.0 x 205.0 x 312.0 mm) |
| Weight | 20.1 lbs (9.1 kg) each | 12.8 lbs (5.8 kg) |
| Sensitivity | 85dB @ 2.83V/1m anechoic (manufacturer) | 83.5dB (measured, Erin's Audio Corner; 86dB manufacturer specified) |
| Impedance | 8 ohms nominal | 6 ohms nominal (5.5 ohms minimum above 80Hz, measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
| Power Handling | 150W continuous, 300W peak | - |
| Frequency Response | 51-27,000Hz +/-3dB (manufacturer) | - |
| Bass Extension (-6dB) | 51.3Hz (measured, spinorama.org vendor data) | - |
| Bass Extension (-3dB) | 58.6Hz (measured, spinorama.org vendor data) | 54Hz (measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
| Bass Extension (-10dB) | 42.4Hz (measured, spinorama.org vendor data) | 33Hz (measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
| Warranty | 7 years parts and labor | - |
| Country | United States | - |
| Spinorama Preference Score | 5.14 | 3.35 |
| Spinorama Preference Score with Perfect Sub | 7.22 | 5.05 |
| Woofer Cabinet | - | ported, rear |
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Prices on this page were last checked September 16, 2026 at 12:41 AM UTC. Product prices and availability are accurate as of that date/time and are subject to change; the price and availability shown on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
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The Two Speakers In Full
Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2: $1,748 per pair Ascend Acoustics eBay
Pros: A RAAL true ribbon tweeter is paired with a custom SEAS Excel Curv woofer, with the crossover optimized against Klippel NFS measurement data. Listening window smoothness measures 0.45, a moderate but usable figure for a compact standmount. Pairs are hand matched within +/-1.5dB and shipped with their own individual frequency response printout, backed by a 7 year parts and labor warranty from direct USA assembly in Orange County, California. Measured bass extension of 58.6Hz (-3dB).
Cons: On axis deviation (measured average absolute deviation 0.454) is the roughest of any speaker in this batch, meaning a listener sitting dead center may notice more on axis unevenness than the smoother AsciLab or Ascend tower models nearby. Bass extension is modest for the price class at a measured 51.3Hz at -6dB. Ascend sells direct only, with no dealer network or third party retailers for an in person audition.
Full Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 review and specifications →
| Bass Extension (-10dB) | 42.4Hz (measured, spinorama.org vendor data) |
|---|---|
| Bass Extension (-3dB) | 58.6Hz (measured, spinorama.org vendor data) |
| Bass Extension (-6dB) | 51.3Hz (measured, spinorama.org vendor data) |
| Country | United States |
| Dimensions | 14.3"H x 7.5"W x 10.5"D (362 x 190 x 267 mm) |
| Drivers | RAAL 10mm true ribbon tweeter, 6" SEAS Excel Curv cone woofer |
| Enclosure | ported |
| Frequency Response | 51-27,000Hz +/-3dB (manufacturer) |
| Impedance | 8 ohms nominal |
| Power Handling | 150W continuous, 300W peak |
| Sensitivity | 85dB @ 2.83V/1m anechoic (manufacturer) |
| Spinorama Preference Score | 5.14 |
| Spinorama Preference Score with Perfect Sub | 7.22 |
| Warranty | 7 years parts and labor |
| Weight | 20.1 lbs (9.1 kg) each |
- Links
- Reviews, Comparisons and Sound Samples
- Head-to-Head Comparisons
- Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 vs Selah Audio Integrity
- Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 vs Emotiva Airmotiv XB2
- Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 vs Philharmonic BMR (v1)
- Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 vs ELAC Debut 3.0 DB63
- Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 vs Ascend Acoustics Sierra-LX
- Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 vs Perlisten A3m
- Ascend Acoustics Sierra-2EX V2 vs Wharfedale Linton 85
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Dynaudio Emit 20: $1,049.00 per pair Amazon eBay
Pros: Two-way design with a 28mm Esotar soft dome tweeter (Hexis-damped) and an 18cm mid-woofer, using a first-order crossover on the tweeter and second-order on the woofer. Exceptional bass extension for a bookshelf speaker - reaches a clean, authoritative 40Hz in-room, rare enough that the reviewer says most listeners could skip a subwoofer for typical music. Very low distortion across the board, staying below 1% THD down to 40Hz at 86dB and below 3% even at 96dB - unusually clean bass performance where most two-way bookshelf speakers start rising in distortion around 80Hz. Wide, remarkably consistent horizontal directivity (about ±50-60°) that holds steady up to roughly 13kHz - rare for a speaker in this format, thanks to a beveled tweeter edge that acts as a mild waveguide. Excellent compression and dynamic-range linearity at the frequency extremes, actually showing slight bass enhancement rather than the sharp low-end compression common in similarly-sized bookshelf speakers. Measured bass extension of 54Hz (-3dB), with a measured sensitivity of 83.5dB.
Cons: A resonance around 600-800Hz gives snares and similar percussion a muffled, flat quality lacking impact - confirmed as originating in the woofer itself (isolated via measurements of the raw driver out of the cabinet), and attempts at constrained-layer damping didn’t resolve it. A peak around 4kHz adds a sharp, edgy quality to some male vocals. A roughly 5dB boost above 10kHz gives cymbals and hi-hats excess shimmer that can sound unnatural, especially pointed directly on-axis. Vertical dispersion shows two separate crossover-related notches (above and below the tweeter reference line around 5kHz) rather than the usual single one, a direct consequence of the shallow crossover slopes used on both drivers. Multitone distortion is elevated in the midrange, possibly due to the woofer’s magnet structure lacking a shorting ring. Best aimed slightly off-axis (about 10-15° of toe-out) to tame the excess high-frequency shimmer, rather than pointed straight at the listener.
Full Dynaudio Emit 20 review and specifications →
| Bass Extension (-10dB) | 33Hz (measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
|---|---|
| Bass Extension (-3dB) | 54Hz (measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
| Dimensions | 14.6"H x 8.1"W x 12.3"D (370.0 x 205.0 x 312.0 mm) |
| Drivers | 7.1" Magnesium Silicate Polymer woofer, 1.1" Cerotar soft dome with Hexis tweeter |
| Impedance | 6 ohms nominal (5.5 ohms minimum above 80Hz, measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
| Sensitivity | 83.5dB (measured, Erin's Audio Corner; 86dB manufacturer specified) |
| Spinorama Preference Score | 3.35 |
| Spinorama Preference Score with Perfect Sub | 5.05 |
| Weight | 12.8 lbs (5.8 kg) |
| Woofer Cabinet | ported, rear |
- Links
- Reviews, Comparisons and Sound Samples
- Head-to-Head Comparisons
- Dynaudio Emit 20 vs Klipsch RP-600M II
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