Most shoppers used to classic speakers won't consider the odd open-baffle/ported-bass-bin hybrid very stylish. But there's actually nothing wrong with seeing a thin wall atop far deeper boxes as Qualio have executed it. When I spend hifi coin, I also want something nice to look at. Qualio's thick acrylic window adds personality to their host box and makes the resultant combo look shorter than it is. I found the result interesting and appealing not weird or silly but you be the judge. I couldn't fault the local newcomer on build quality or finish either. Solid paint, precisely cut baffles, tightly fit drivers all spoke of an outfit well past its early days. Boutique filter parts, recessed binding posts, minimal assembly hassle and adjustable tweeter balance all felt thoughtfully planned and smartly implemented. The standard satin white/black version priced at €5'500/pr includes two resistor values while three more for a set of five add €140. Gloss finish is €400 extra, your color of choice €200. Natural veneers (oak, walnut, ash and Indian maple/rosewood) are €300/650 respectively. The most kitted-out IQ thus wants €7'090/pr, still a bargain given pedigree and performance. Onto the latter.

The IQ proved as easy to set up as had all Cube Audio types before it. Barely toed in and off the front wall by about a meter, it already produced sound as spatially focused as it was sorted on bass. Very. This instant result was solid enough to not bother with the included port bungs. The positioning described was in line with my preferences. Wherever speakers allow, I move them as far away from my brick wall and its large QRD deflectors as I can. The two critical gains are maximized soundstage depth and more direct than reflected sound to prevent blur and improve imaging. The IQ was all about that and more. Truth told, I'm a sucker for dipoles. Their boxless kind free from internal compression moves air in a particularly direct fashion that to my ears is quite unrivalled. OB loading translates to expanded dynamics and liberated staging unrestrained by box talk while 'figure 8' dispersion eliminates typical sidewall reflections. I also find them to excel at image size, overall impact and contrast ratio. Meanwhile good implementations of widebanders ace articulation, expressiveness, clarity while images possess a particular sensuality hard to find elsewhere. As it turns out, today's Qualio has a very high IQ largely because it combines these two breeds with all their associated virtues into one. It behaves like a widebander on speed and immediacy then adds perks specific to dipoles yet remains smaller than most. In that sense Qualio's firstborn is truly ingenious. Although it's not the first such hybrid, they're rare and mostly nowhere near this handsome.

Manufacturers who opt for ported bass can get away with small woofers because the resonant pipe delays roll-off to add reach and output. Since full-range dipoles must do without ported assistance, their woofers enlarge and often double up to make up and combat out-of-phase cancellation at low frequencies. [For example, Joachim Gerhard's new open-baffle design for Thorens runs 12 x 15" dipole woofers per channel. That's equivalent to a single 52" woofer yet specs to 'only' 30Hz. – Ed.] The upshot are from large to extra-large virtual room dividers aka freestanding doors with open-backed drivers. Qualio's founders wanted something for average living rooms which explains bass reflex. One could mistakenly think that an afterthought slapped onto an otherwise intriguing project but not so. Classic widebanders on the wrong amp are known to veer into prickly thin glassy sound. Today's woofer overlays its 6.5-inch companion with a shallow slope and high hinge frequency to augment a juicy fully developed mid and lower midrange. It's what makes the IQ sound as open, majestic, articulated and radiant as it is also meaty and enjoyably saturated. There's still more. Its line-of-sight woofer far above the floor dug remarkably deep to create one of the very best overall performances I've heard here to date. The sensation was tectonic at times yet the IQ was perfectly collected and controlled no matter SPL. Its bass remained squeaky clean and my room's well-known zones of turbulence quiet. Although vented, it sounded more like highly capable sealed bass: elastic, nimble, texturally infused, powerful, articulate and visceral. It pleased with guttural massages whenever I wanted yet not for a second overstayed its welcome to introduce blur, bloat or other unpleasantness. I hadn't seen that coming from a ported speaker. Color me thoroughly impressed. Hot damn!

Qualio's IQ proved very easy to enjoy and rather sooner than later adore. Across the board it did everything without question: monstrous bass, saturated midrange, acres of fill in all directions, cubits of air, intensity, energy, quickness, heft, precision, boldness, easy detail, illumination, textural generosity, finely sketched images, the sensation of here and now… the list goes on. The IQ trivialized each challenge on my playlist and had me constantly smile from ear to ear. For the price I couldn't ask for more or fault this €5'500 specimen for anything. True, here it played in a carefully curated system worth significantly more. But not for a second did I feel that it didn't belong. Quite the contrary. As a pedigreed transparent type, the IQ brilliantly presented my system's core voice with just one demand. High current and damping factor are all it wants to perform its very best. That's not a tall order by any stretch. It's the very first speaker which sounded far better with my Trilogy 995R monos in high-power class AB mode. No contest. In low-power class A, all the shove, grip, traction, impact, contour, radiance and snap essentially halved to make room for a rather lazier, bloomier, somewhat hooded warm and significantly less exciting sound. Although this shift wasn't shocking, no other speaker I've hosted in recent years responded to this amplifier's operational mode change this strongly. I appreciated how clearly the IQ showed off that difference. So this time around class AB/D amps seem to be the ticket to bliss. Qualio also recommend IsoAcoustics decouplers. Upon using three Carbide Audio isolators beneath each IQ cab, it was apparent why. More body, higher imaging precision and tighter bass were sufficient reasons. Since the difference with/without isolators was clearly demonstrable, I only agree that Qualio's IQ deserves that extra expense.

Let's wrap. One year ago Cube Audio's Jazzon fronted by an Enleum AMP-23R fared so well that I saw this combo as my ideal retirement kit. Now Qualio's IQ with a muscular class AB/D amp would make me even happier; and most likely for significantly less coin for the combo. So make no mistake, this modestly dressed direct-selling hybrid stunner offers far more than meets the eye. It's a high-performance fiend with just the arsenal of clever means to effortlessly compete in leagues well above its price bracket and feel most comfortable there. That makes it a terrific bargain to boot. It's worth every penny. I sincerely recommend it to one and all. Kudos to Grzegorz and Marek for landing such a winner.