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Summary. Expensive speakers usually offer very sophisticated sound. Occasionally less costly ones like the Sonus Faber Amator, the Harbeth M40.1 or the Amphion Krypton³ approach similarly elevated sound which most of us could spend the rest of our lives with, taking huge pleasure from our music regardless of the storage medium. But Estelon’s XA has you think. Yes they cost a lot more but they also pay back more. They are capable of proper sizing even at the rear, they differentiate complex bass, integrate all the sonic aspects into a cohesive whole… to get all of that will set you back.
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Your first impression will tell you that their expression is somewhat restrained, perhaps even that they’re rolled off a bit but always follow the signature of a given recording regardless. They also seem a bit warm but it's not really a ‘warmed up’ sound. This quasi warmth comes from very low levels of distortions. I get this from time to time with amplifiers or speakers where it usually means great resolution despite not equally good selectivity. The latter must come from somewhere else.
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These speakers are huge and look it. Their elegantly curvy shape might save you from feeling intimidated but when I placed them next to the Harbeth M40.1, they completely dominated the British speakers despite the fact that the Harbeth are very oversized monitors. To be honest, I'm not a huge fan of ceramic diaphragms. I'm aware of their virtues which are apparent each time when driven from proper amplification yet I personally do prefer a more expressive sound even if, objectively, it’ll be a bit more colored. That’s my personal view/choice and many readers will disagree. That's what our hobby is all about. That said, the Estelons were the first speakers that allowed me to fully enjoy the virtues of ceramic drivers. I expect that the even costlier Avalon models would do the same thing but I never had a chance to hear those in my room, just at certain fairs and exhibits. But I did have a chance to experience the Estelon XA in my room to know that they’re worth every penny one needs to part with to acquire them.
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Test methodology. The XA speakers are truly large and heavy - much larger that my Harbeth M40.1 which I compared them to. They reminded me rather of Amphion’s Krypton³ which I tested just before the XA arrived. Despite their size the same placement that had worked for Hansen’s Prince v2 and before that Avantgarde Acoustic’s Uno Pico and since my Harbeth also proved optimal for the Estonians. There were no issues with either bass or soundstaging. I spent time to select the best amplification. Estelon states a minimum power requirement of 20 watts since their impedance is flat and their sensitivity high. I tend to disagree. The XA loves power, the more the better. Of course it’s not just about raw power but also quality. If you most care about ultimate neutrality, Soulution’s 710 would make a perfect choice. Still solid-state but a bit more creamy would be Vitus Audio which in Poland is represented by the same importer as Estelon. For something less neutral and with greater personality, you should try the McIntosh Mc275 whose ‘Anniversary’ edition I had at my disposal. Other tubes amps would do too but not some low-power SET variant. Another good option would be the best version of the ASR Emitter II. This review was an A/B comparison with both A and B known but not a quick direct comparison as moving such huge speakers was quite challenging. Musical samples were 2 minutes long but after the official sessions I also listened to full albums.
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Design. The Estonian Estelon XA is a 3-way bass-reflex floorstanding speaker. Its unique shape was designed to eliminate edge refractions and to isolate mid/woofer and tweeter from the woofer. The enclosures are made from an undisclosed composite containing crushed marble to be available in many colors. At 140mm tall and 640mm deep, the XA is massive and weighs in at around 85kg each or 140kg in the shipping crate. That’s why Polish importer RCM opted for hiring professional movers to deliver these speakers to my upstairs flat. They were thrilled that I wasn’t testing a 5.1 system.
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The drivers are sourced from Accuton and a 30mm/1.2” inverted ceramic dome tweeter with protective grill; a 180mm/17” ceramic mid/woofer with metal grill and rubber suspension; and a 280mm/11” sandwich cone woofer with outer ceramic layer. The crossover is located at the foot of the enclosure which needs to be removed to gain access. Expensive internal wiring is from Kubala-Sosna. The binding posts are pure copper and Nextgen 0705 from WBT. You can roll the XA into your space on convenient casters but for serious listening they need to sit on spikes which arrive in a very nice box with the owner’s manual, white globes and some cabinet polish. The provided spikes are from German company Viablue.
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Technical specs from the maker:
Frequency response: 25-28.000Hz
Power rating: 200W
Nominal impedance: 6Ω (min. 3.5Ω at 60Hz)
Sensitivity: 89dB/2.83 V
Min. amplification power: 20W
Dimensions (HxWxD): 1370 x 450 x 640 mm
Weight (piece): 85kg |
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opinia @ highfidelity.pl
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