E50

This review first appeared in June 2025 on HifiKnights.com. By request of the manufacturer and permission of the author, it is hereby syndicated to reach a broader audience. All images contained in this piece are the property of HifiKnights or the manufacturer – Ed.

Reviewer: Dawid Grzyb
Transport: Innuos Statement, fidata HFAS1-S10U
DAC: LampizatOr Horizon360 w. Stradi 5U4G + Psvane Art TIII 4x KT88 / 2x 6SN7
USB components: iFi audio Mercury3.0
Network: Fidelizer EtherStream, Linksys WRT160N
Preamplifier: Trilogy 915R, Thöress DFP
Amplifier: Trilogy 995R, FirstWatt F7, Enleum AMP-23R
Speakers: Boenicke Audio W11 SE+, sound|kaos Vox 3afw
Headphones: HifiMan Susvara
Interconnects: LessLoss Entropic Process C-MARC, Boenicke Audio IC3 CG
Speaker cables: Boenicke Audio S3, LessLoss C-MARC
Speaker signal conditioning: LessLoss Firewall for Loudspeakers, Boenicke ComDev
Anti-vibration conditioning: 12x Carbide Audio Carbide Base under DAC, preamp and speakers
Power delivery: Gigawatt PC-3 SE EVO+/LC-3 EVO, LessLoss C-MARC, LessLoss Entropic Process C-MARC, Boenicke Audio Power Gate, ISOL-8 Prometheus
Equipment rack: Franc Audio Accessories Wood Block Rack 1+3
Review component retail: from €3'950 – €4'100/pr depending on finish

Mad Mads, a movie from the Danish outback? My most recent Buchardt Audio review dates back to late 2020. Nearly five years later this Danish audio house continues on better than ever. To recap, it established in 2013 in Silkeborg under Mads Buchardt, a musician who with childhood friend Kasper Raun shared a hifi passion and dream of building loudspeakers. Kasper's engineering expertise landed him at Dynaudio responsible for designing their Xeo and Focus Xd ranges. The two Danes' firstborn popped in 2011 as the S300. As a proper brand to host it, Buchardt Audio launched two springs later. This first model scored a very successful debut. It allowed Mads and team to expand, contact the industry's top driver specialists and over the next dozen years release one commercial hit after another. But luck wasn't a factor. Au contraire. It's their business model which proved extremely effective. How so?

Audio manufacturers with aspirations to expand beyond their own borders often rely on international distributors and their dealers. These parties take care of clients, maintain contacts within the local press, participate in audio events, oversee marketing and sort out warranty claims. Needless to say, a product's retail price must cover these add-on services. Buchardt Audio never opted for that kind of network and odds are, never will. They do too well selling direct via an online store. While this business route may seem easy, it's not. I'm aware of quite a few audio houses who initially pursued it, failed miserably and eventually embraced distributor support to save them from collapse. Mads' operation thrives without such outsourced assist for four reasons. One, free worldwide shipping with all import duties and taxes included across the roster spells massive shopping convenience. Two, the company's large-scale production allows it to negotiate very good deals on boutique parts that effectively raise perceived value and performance. Three and four, the factory-direct MO makes Buchardt Audio very competitive so great sound quality for the money. The S400 and A500 monitors were terrific on that score.

While streamlined logistics, kosher kit and a generous price/performance ratio make up Mads Buchardt's secret sauce, Danish origins factor, too. On that note, recently he and team moved into a brand-new 1'050m² facility with all necessary machinery to keep full production on the premises. The current lineup's active division comprises the Anniversary 10 monitors, A700 LE floorstanders and SUB10 subwoofer. The passive models include the stand-mount P300, S400 MKII and today's E50. Priced at €3'950/pr, this unique speaker sets Buchardt's current performance ceiling in its monitor class. It also answers the question of what happens when Mad Mads decides to really go fancy parts while remaining fiscally sane. I can tell you already that the E50 punches significantly above its ask.

A large cardboard box delivered to my doorstep housed two thick foam cradles that locked in place two speakers in their linen bags. Four magnetized black grilles came with. The E50 is a passive 2-way of 395 x 190 x 284mm HxWxD and 8.6kg. Specs list 85dB sensitivity, 36Hz-30kHz ±3dB response, 2kHz crossover point and 6Ω nominal impedance with 4.9Ω/160Hz being the lowest so nothing unusual. There's more to this than meets the eye, however. While passive radiators are costlier than ports, arguably more difficult to implement and nowhere near as popular as they ought to be, Buchardt champions them. Even their most affordable speaker does. Two such motor-less membranes on the E50's back could shrink enclosure size by 30% versus the vented alternative with similar bass, avoid port resonances, improve in-room behaviour and maximize reach. Those are big practical wins all around which I'll cover shortly.