The Sound
I tested the 1000i ESLs with a Denon DVD-5900
DVD player, Theta Casablanca III SSP, Classé
CA-5200 five-channel power amplifier, and Final Sound 400i ESLs for the
center and surrounds. Cables were Nordost. I played music in Matrix
(surround sound) and in stereo (two channel). I used the Toslink output from
the Denon to the Casablanca to let the SSP handle the decoding.
I placed the speakers about 10 feet apart,
toed in towards the listening position, several feet out from the side and
rear walls. The subwoofer was placed between them against the wall.
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Handel's Water Music (Virgin 0-94639-13342-0) is some of the
greatest music ever written, and a perfect test for the
1000i.
What struck me most was not that the oboes were so distinct
from the violins, but how transparent the whole orchestra
sounded. This is characteristic of ESLs because they are
dipoles.
Also, the instruments sounded very natural, rather than
having a characteristic due to an enclosure. Remember, ESLs
don't have an enclosure as such. They are not in a box.
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Ein
Deutsches Requiem, by Brahms (EMI 0-94636-53932-0),
is very somber, as Masses tend to be. But it is
beautiful music.
What I
listened for here were the soprano voices in the choir,
against the violins.
Wow,
what a sound! So sweet. So clear and transparent. No
harshness. It filled the room. |
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Haydn's Symphony No. 88 (EMI 0-94639-42372-9; 2 disc set) is
a much different kettle of fish than the preceding two CDs.
Here the music is light, airy, powerful, and is not for
background listening.
Several octaves of violins sounded like the several octaves
rather than mush (they would have been mushy if there were a
lot of IM distortion).
The flute and oboe in among all those violins were easy to
pick out.
Bass was nice, even when the subwoofer was not on, but the
S220 added to the effect. Even though the 1000i is a full
range ESL, you definitely want a subwoofer.
200 watts per channel seemed to be quite enough. That does
not mean you should not have a bigger amplifier though, just
for special transients. |
Swan
Lake (EMI 0-94639-32432-3; 2 disc set) is not just
music, it's a ballet, and the complete ballet takes up
two CDs.
One of
my favorite pieces is the waltz in Act I. I was truly
amazed at how the 1000i was able to separate the
triangle from the flute. Sometimes, a triangle can sound
a little strange if the tweeter is not first rate. Well,
having played in an orchestra myself (OK, it was the
high school band), I know what the triangle actually
sounds like, and the 1000i reproduced it perfectly.
The
1000i sounds pretty good off axis too, and that is
difficult for a large planar speaker to do. Part of this
is due to reflections from the rear side of the ESL off
the wall.
There
was no hole in the middle. I could place each instrument
along the sound stage from one side to the other.
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All in all, I was very happy with the sound of
the 1000i ESLs, particularly with the mids and highs. Some
planar speakers have disappointed me in the past in this area,
so I really looked forward to seeing if the 1000i would perform
better in this regard. It did.
Go to Part IV.
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