Audiophilepure

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“The ATC SCM100SE is a big-boned loudspeaker, and while its SE aesthetics help it to look more classy than its ‘pro-tools’ type stablemates, it will never be the slender belle of the speaker ball. But the 100SE makes no apologies for this and neither should it. If you want to move air properly you need a box with volume and preferably a large bass driver. The SCM100SE has both and is very well put together. What makes it so appealing is the ease with which it goes about the business of reproducing not only the full bandwidth of the signal but its full dynamic envelope as well, and if you like to play at levels that approach the realistic, it is in a class of its own. ”

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“It was the R11s’ imaging that blew me away. With or without the assistance of subwoofers, the 705 S2 minimonitors are imaging monsters that can chisel out aural images on a soundstage with laser precision. Not everyone likes or wants this, but I do. Because the R11s are large tower speakers, I didn’t expect that level of imaging definition. Then I listened to “Give Me One Reason,” from Tracy Chapman’s New Beginning (16/44.1 FLAC, Elektra), a track I often play to test a speaker’s imaging abilities. It begins with plucked guitar to left of center, then Chapman’s voice dead center, then Andy Stoller’s bass drum, including his subtle cymbal work just to the right of and behind the first guitar, then a second guitar far to the right of Chapman’s voice. Then two background singers enter, behind and to the right and left of Chapman’s lead vocal. As I listened to the R11s re-create each of these images with exquisite precision, sometimes down to what seemed the size of a tennis ball floating between the speakers, I knew they’d give up nothing to the much smaller B&Ws with SVS subs. Even when instruments were panned hard right or left, their sounds didn’t seem to emerge from the R11s’ baffles, but to hover just around the edges of the speakers — just as I’m used to with my reference setup.”

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“These ears are a bit spoiled when it comes to high frequencies thanks to my long term reference Lansche 4.1 with its plasma tweeter. There is no finer tweeter that I’ve heard. No mass, just a ball of fire that expands and contracts creating sound. If that sounds like something out of science fiction, it kind of is. Its Achilles heel is found when the music gets way too loud. It compresses, and can cause failure. Typically, I’d have to spend time acclimating to a non-plasma tweeter. Even if well designed, my ears usually can hear what the tweeter is contributing. The M2!5 required no such adjustment period. The implementation of the dual compression mid band and treble drivers just lock in, and sound totally integrated. It is neither bright nor brittle. It doesn’t harden or compress at higher volume. It’s not super-fast sounding, nor is blunted. It just sails along and remains at the service of the music. Very well done.

When it comes to fleshing out a stage, the sense that an orchestra is in the room, and the scale in which it is spread across the space is uncanny. While I won’t slam any manufacturers by name, I will say another guest, a former French horn player for the Dallas Symphony, and rabid audio enthusiast, proclaimed the M2!5 trounced a very well known “modern” $110,000 speaker that he has been aspiring to own. He thought my description “constipated” described the much more expensive speaker perfectly compared to the M2!5. He also thought the M2!5 to be more enjoyable if not “better” than another contemporary $250,000 design that he is very familiar with. His wife, an accomplished classic pianist, reached the exact same conclusion.”

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“While the A3 may not sound quite as vivid as its progenitors, I think it takes the Magico sound a confident step forward. Consider “Film Credits,” the standout track of 32-year-old composer Ólafur Arnalds’s Living Room Songs (16/44.1 FLAC, Erased Tape/Tidal), recorded in the Icelander’s apartment. The string quartet played from left to right, and the recording’s raw, unfiltered sound was a joy to hear through the Magicos. The mournful first violin, to left of center, sounded sublime. There was texture and detail by the bucketful, yet the instrument sounded robust, locked in space, its aural image suspended effortlessly in space between the black monoliths. As mechanical as the A3 looks, its sound remained remarkably organic as the three other strings entered and I sat back, full of respect for the totality of its sound. If you want romance and coloration, find another speaker. Much like Alon Wolf, the A3 tells it like it is.”

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“The level of clarity and detail retrieval they provide is about as best as I have heard from a passive loudspeaker. Vocal reproduction is equally flawless and about as uncolored as I have come across. Bass response was deep, potent and detailed, especially when tempered with just the right amount of room correction in my case. Soundstage reproduction and off-axis response are equally impressive, so you don’t have to be in the sweet spot all of the time. Practically speaking, they have no real weaknesses that I can divine. That makes them a benchmark in my book when it comes to stereo speakers. I don’t know what Keven Voecks and the folks at Revel have in mind to top the F228Be when the sights turn to update the Ultima2 line. But until that fateful day, and if financial fortune should ever smile upon me, I’ll take my pair of F228Be in Walnut, please! ”

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“And so it went — with each recording, the Emma EVOlution loudspeakers either brought me to where the music was made or brought the music to my listening room. They built upon the strengths of the earlier Emma SEs and brought a new, higher level of performance and enjoyment to each listening session. And, with sincere apologies to Gertrude Stein, I heard more there, there. If I could find any fault at all with these speakers, it was that listening to music of whatever genre through them, from any source, proved so compelling and fun that I often put aside my notepad and gave way to the listening experience, playing each selection from beginning to end. With each listen, and almost without exception, as soon as the music began, I became immersed in the event and looked forward to the next. Regrettably, this recurring phenomenon led to unplanned delays in the reviewing process. Their ability to handle anything thrown at them at (even if you insist) unhealthy volume levels, coupled with the estimable quality of conveying music’s emotional essence without sacrificing its musicianship, put the Emma EVOlutions in an enviable position. Whereas the Emma SEs caressed my ears with sound beyond reproach, the EVOs grabbed me by the neck and shouted “Listen.” With the EVOs the aural experience was like walking through an open door onto the performance. They can be forceful and in-your-face when the music demands it (just like some live music) or gentle and calming (just like some live music). Their honest persona, coupled with note-grabbing authority and sense of “rightness” may not appeal to everyone, but it checked all the boxes and rang my bells. I simply heard more of the music with more clarity and dynamics than I had before. And oh, my — that bass!

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The Classic ESL 9 is not a perfect speaker but for a realistic, transparent listening experience with a truly expansive soundstage, you would be hard pressed to find a substitute at its price. And with a decent subwoofer or two for support, you will not be missing anything in terms of bass output even for the most demanding home theater applications. For anyone who understands the general character of an electrostatic speaker and gravitates toward that sound, the Classic ESL 9 is a must audition. To put my money where my mouth is, I bought my review pair.”