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But I did reach deep into my grab bin and hit pay dirt with the NuForce Icon 2 DAC/integrated and Nubert’s nuBox 101 reviewed in the past. This €600 combo is just a bit pricier than the C-Box 2 but rather more fairly matched and these particular speakers are routinely strapped to my Clavia Nord piano. This now made for a distinctive A/B. The NuForce/Nubert pairing still in the living room had noticeably greater attack and though it didn’t add the proverbial octave, it was good for about a half octave more. In the midband the Abacus box felt more mature i.e. more natural however. The duo emphasized the lower midrange a bit which I felt was due more to the NuForce than speakers.


Up on high the C-Box enjoyed the clear lead with both more detail and finer resolution. The nuBox tended to tilt into the crisp. On staging the Abacus mini cast greater depth, the NuForce/Nubert combo greater width. This was matter of taste and also dependent on music. A broader perspective can be exciting particularly with sparsely arranged music whilst expansive depth layering gets tasty with audiophile records and/or orchestral works.

As promised, at the end the C-Box 2 got intimate with my digital piano. And here I’d have loved to leave her for good because she sounded a clear tick more natural than the Nubert/NuForce duo. Hearing the quality of one’s piano strongly influences the degree of enjoyment whilst playing it. At such a close distance the C-Box 2 was again capable of sufficient bass and with amplification so neatly built in, I thought it a most suitable active solution both as keyboard monitor and home studio appliance. Particularly for more complex mixes such as wind ensembles the good stage depth of the Abacus goes the extra mile which a recording engineer would appreciate.

To be clear, on the desktop the C-Box 2 was the best I’ve yet hosted. She combined de rigueur nearfield monitor virtues of neutral tonal balance, high resolving power and focused image localization with an involving feel and good dynamics both micro and macro. She’d thus serve equally well in a home-based recording studio or as an instrumental speaker where depending on playback level, listener distance and musical style the addition of a subwoofer can become sensible. In larger living rooms the bass energy developed will be insufficient without a sub but then such free-standing usage facing big spaces was distinctly not part of this design brief. To put it short and sweet, the C-Box 2 is a fully grown speaker in youthful guise that’s fun but can get dead serious when required.
redaktion @ fairaudio.de

Psych profile:
  • Nearfield monitor-typical neutral tonal balance which in the bass is true only for the extreme nearfield outside of which the small physical dimensions diminish bass power and reach.
  • Clearly resolved midband where the small Abacus manages the tricky tightrope walk between monitor speaker and blandness.
  • Relative to price far above average treble which is exceptionally resolved, airy and sophisticated to never get spiky or veiled.
  • Natural soundstaging with good image fix and astonishing depth which is true for both nearfield and greater listener distances. Good decorrelation of sound from drivers.
  • Brilliant microdynamics. The same applies to macro dynamics in the nearfield where increasing distances diminish and limit the low bass.

Facts:
  • Concept: Sealed active two-way monitor
  • Dimensions & weight: 132 x 132 x 202mm, 2.2kg
  • Finish: Deep black, traffic white, silver grey, traffic red, yellow-green, water blue, melon yellow
  • Built-in power: 25 watts rms
  • Input: RCA
  • Power consumption: 1.8w standby, 30 watts max
  • Other: Adjustable bass EQ
  • Website