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The tweeter comes in at 3’800Hz. Here too the low-pass for the upper mid/woofer is a 1st-order filter but the HF high-pass operates at 12dB/octave to reduce excursions. The crossover relies on the minimum number of parts necessary to enable its slopes, i.e. four, and runs on Mundorf bits which enjoy a top rep in the hifi scene.

Usually I write reviews whilst the gear under scrutiny plays. With the Motive SX1 that wasn’t so easy. Take the older Rounder Records compilation which at its time arrived bundled with a magazine (if you must know, 1997’s Blue Rhythm/JazzThing). This collection spans the gamut from New Orleans, R&B and Soul to Zydeco classics which over the Neat all were great fun no matter whether a ballad by the stupendous Irma Thomas ("I count the teardrops") or an equally hip tour de force of piano compliments of Davell Crawford’s "Gumbo Piano". The real reason I peeled out this particular disc was James Booker’s piano number "Malaguena", a live cut which always helps me suss out a review loaner’s timing.

Our ‘piano prince of New Orleans’ (see here) played a regular New Orleans bar gig for years on a not particularly terrific piano but was fortunately recorded regularly to allow Rounder two full posthumous albums. "Malaguena" is a traditional but Booker plays it differently from all other versions I’ve ever heard (see here). The chorus sports a quick and driving left-handed motif over which the right hand builds the melody. A properly timed hifi soon discerns a subtle but clear tension between the hands which dissolves in the transitions only to return again. This the li’l Neat tracked really well to have me by the short hairs. The rhythm figure remained easily intelligible regardless of the right-handed shenanigans and vice versa. The tonal balance of the SX1 with a solid bass foundation served the cut proudly. In short, in the pocket. So much so that focusing on the writing task at hand was more trouble than worth. I had to literally stop the disc to input a few lines into my computer. After a short break I did no better with the next disc, LaBrassBanda’s Übersee.


In a nutshell that captured the core virtue of the Neat. This is a boogie machine which draws the listener in and enforces attention. For background ambiance I’d look elsewhere. But let’s start at the beginning. The Motive SX1 sounds different than its physical stature suggests. As small and unobtrusive as she slid into the room, I expected an equally ‘small’ sound. Poppycock. Bob Surgeoner spliced some extra reserves onto the bass to lead to a somewhat warm but potent reading. Usually that has me suspicious at once. Even a mild bass prominence tends to obscure HF definition and timing. Not here. Bill Laswell’s bass solo from Tabla Beat Science’s "Magnetic Dub" was easily followed. The same held for the rippling but swinging bass line of Terakraft’s "Awa Adouina" from their disc Kel Talasheq. This clocked in with so much joie de vivre and power but also brisk timing that resistance was futile. Ditto for percussion. Smog’s "Bloodflow" from Dongs of Sevotion has moments where the beat retards to have one impatiently wait for the next bass drum kick which occurs a tick quicker than expected whilst the next one gets delayed more… and then the overall timing picks up again to rejoin the opening tempo. And all that percussive chicanery the SX1 rendered with clarity beyond any doubt. Definitely green, not red.