nice component set, the X are better in detail than the R's and true to the sound. IMO the R's emphasize the midbass a little too much. Depending on the price you could get would determine if i'd get them or not.
I heard they wern't so hot, as the X-overs on them are HUGE thats becuase they need them so big to correct the sound so much. X-overs are there to make your speakers sound better and the reason they are so large is because the sound has to be "tweaked" alot..this was explained to me by 2 dealers, and one of them is my sponsor. Also I talked to the 2nd dealer while keeping the brand (Alpine) generic, so I was refering to X-overs in general so I didn't get a biased response
i haven't heard the new ones, but i wasn't impressed with the old ones at all. swaped them out for a set of boston rally's. bostons sounded so much better! and were way cheaper. (store prices)
actually crossovers are bigger because they use high grade components usually. They have large inductors with low resistance to send the most power to the speakers without losing it through the crossover. So size has nothing to do with how much tweaking they need. Lets see, the MB Quarts are big, the Focals are big, the Polk Sigs are pretty big too....I think your dealer is slightly off or biased.
They aren't hard to correct really, the set uses modified Vifa XT drivers. Pretty easy drivers to work with actually.
The Alpine crossovers offer level and axis compensation, which is a big bonus in the car environment. And they use some respectable componentry. That's why they're so large.