| ELAC 518 LOUDSPEAKER by Constantine Soo June 24, 2002 |
Specifications
Type: 3-way, bass reflex Tweeter: 1 × JET Tweeter Midrange: 1 × 115 mm cone
Woofer: 2 × 180 mm cone Frequency Range: 28 Hz – 35k Hz
Crossover Frequencies: 500 Hz/3800 Hz
Normal Power Handling: 200 W/250 W Peak
Sensitivity: 89 dB/2.83 V/m
Nominal Impedance: 4 Ohm
Minimal Impedance: 3 Ohm/120 Hz
Recommended Power: 30 – 400 W/channel
Dimensions: 44.5” × 7.9” × 12.6” (H×W×D)
Gross Volume: 7 Liter
Weight: 68 lb each
Price: $4,118 a pair
Finishes: cherry veneer, black lacquer, silver shadow
Warranty: 10 years for all drive units
Address:
USA Distributor
Q-USA
462 N Baldwin St,
Madison, WI 53703
voice: 608-237-1726
fax: 608-237-1728
Email: info@q-usa.com
Website: www.q-usa.com
Type: 3-way, bass reflex Tweeter: 1 × JET Tweeter Midrange: 1 × 115 mm cone
Woofer: 2 × 180 mm cone Frequency Range: 28 Hz – 35k Hz
Crossover Frequencies: 500 Hz/3800 Hz
Normal Power Handling: 200 W/250 W Peak
Sensitivity: 89 dB/2.83 V/m
Nominal Impedance: 4 Ohm
Minimal Impedance: 3 Ohm/120 Hz
Recommended Power: 30 – 400 W/channel
Dimensions: 44.5” × 7.9” × 12.6” (H×W×D)
Gross Volume: 7 Liter
Weight: 68 lb each
Price: $4,118 a pair
Finishes: cherry veneer, black lacquer, silver shadow
Warranty: 10 years for all drive units
Address:
USA Distributor
Q-USA
462 N Baldwin St,
Madison, WI 53703
voice: 608-237-1726
fax: 608-237-1728
Email: info@q-usa.com
Website: www.q-usa.com
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
ELAC is a German speaker company that offers eight series of speakers,
ranging from the most affordable 1 Series through the more affluent 5 Series,
with the 4 Series representing the company’s finest efforts, culminating in the
$12,000 pair of Spirit Of Music. The company also offers the infamous NXT
technology in the Imago Series, as well as a Subwoofer series. The 518 is ELAC’
s finest effort next to the 4 Series.
Seldom heard in the U.S. high-end circle, the German company ELAC has a
distinguished background in the field of audio. According to ELAC’s website, in
the mid-1940’s, it produced its first cartridge, the KST 1, which featured a screw-
in sapphire stylus on a special magnesium alloy. By 1956, ELAC and two other
German companies, Dual and Perpetuum Ebner, had dominated 90% of the
world market share in turntable sales collectively.
Today’s Moving-Magnet Systems originated from a series of ELAC patents. On
30 October 1957, ELAC patented the Moving-Magnet “electro-magnetic pick-up
for two-channel record modulation” technology, licenses for which were issued
to companies like Shure. Van den Hul’s first stylus, the famous ESG 796 H
stylus, was also introduced by ELAC in September 1981, followed by the
historic patenting of the Moving-Coil cartridge and the subsequent mass
production of the EMC-1 in the next few years.
ELAC also had its roots in sound technology when its co-founder, Dr. Phil
Heinrich Hecht, started work in underwater sound technology on 15 April 1908.
After World War I, Dr. Hecht and a few others pioneered underwater and air
signal sound location technology and founded the Electroacustic GmbH on 1
September 1926. Numerous divestitures and organizational changes in the
following decades continued until the fateful date of 8 July 1981, when ELAC’s
distributor, John & Partner, took over sales of ELAC’s hi-fi products, and
founded today’s ELAC Electroacustic on 1 January 1982.
1984 was another pivotal year, as it marked ELAC’s official entrance into the
loudspeaker-manufacturing arena with its acquisition of the loudspeaker
company, AXIOM Elektroakustik GmbH. Shortly afterwards, it began research in
micro and macro acoustics, namely the variables that constitute the working
loudspeaker and its interaction with the surroundings in which it will be used.
At that time, ELAC provided complimentary optimal speaker placement
calculations to its customers.
TECHNOLOGY
ELAC’s JET tweeter stands out among the 518’s compliment of twin 7-inch
woofers and one 4.5-inch midrange. Said to be capable of a frequency
extension of 35 kHz for SACD’s and DVD-A’s high bandwidth playback, the JET
tweeter utilizes a 0.84 mm thick folded foil membrane, said to possess a
radiating surface area much larger than a conventional tweeter of the same
size.
A technique pioneered by Dr. Oskar Heil, whose research results ELAC acquired
in its 1993 takeover of speaker maker A.R.E.S., the “Air Motion Transformer”
technology of the JET energizes the concertina-like membrane using a
patented, strong neodymium (NeFeB) rod magnet system. Claimed to be
capable of above-average dynamics and high in sensitivity, the JET tweeter’s
motor is said to drive the air faster than the pistonic technique of a
conventional cone while occupying only 60% of the weight and volume of
conventional magnetic induction ferrite iron magnets. According to ELAC, the
NeFeB is also capable of superior mechanical stress endurance.
Dubbed “TT 180”, each of the 518’s twin woofers is made of composite fiber
bonded to a 0.2 mm layer of aluminum foil in ELAC’s proprietary “Aluminium
(aluminum) Sandwich Technology”, combining rigidity with low mass, and is
then propelled by a pair of larger, very powerful double magnets. ELAC claims
their TT 180 has a 14-mm excursion capacity given its double asymmetrical
(DAS) wide rubber surround. Each of the high-performance woofers is mounted
in a custom basket constructed in-house using fiber-reinforced polyamide,
chosen for its rigidity against torsion.
The 518’s 4.5-inch midrange, also bonded to a layer of aluminum foil, is driven
by a smaller neodymium magnet system that ELAC claims is capable of
producing natural, undistorted midrange. Furthermore, ELAC claims the special
chamber designed for housing this midrange serves the multiple purpose of
stiffening and stabilizing the speaker’s upper cabinet.
Inside the heavily braced and damped cabinet, the woofers are designed to
work through two rear proprietary ELAC bass ports. Employing similar fiber-
reinforced polyamide, the rigid bass ports are used to augment bass volume
with minimum ventilation noise and low frictional losses.
In the rear, acrylic terminals accept banana connectors, a predominant
standard in Europe. At I write this, I was told all American models would be
shipped with WBT 5-way posts. Lastly, mounted internally on the rear cabinet,
the 3-way crossover utilizes silver wire and MKP capacitors and supports both
biamping and biwiring.
CONFIGURATIONS & AUDITION
I did a good deal of experimentation with amplification, and found the Audio
Note M3/DNA1 Deluxe’s spatial definition was less profound and possessed a
somewhat metallic-sounding interaction with the JET. The M3 paired with the 47
Lab Gaincard yielded the most optimal balance in instrument tonalities, dynamic
transients and spectral coherency. The M3/RM9 II had a softer rendition that
did not serve as well as the M3/Gaincard combination.
Moderate room treatment included 8 ASC flat traps positioned along both sides
of the room, with two bass tube traps at the corners behind the speakers. The
Genesis VI’s were used and were 6 feet apart and 3 feet away from the side
wall. Placed 4 feet into the listening room, the 518’s were toed-in slightly.
Distance between the speakers and the listening position was about 13 feet.
Although speakers are inevitably the most visually imposing member of the
audio system, the 518’s, when installed on their included plinth in my carpeted
listening room, were complimentary of interior decor with their slender cherry
veneer. They were a few inches taller than my Genesis VIs but shorter than my
Klipschorns. Firing straight ahead, the 518’s tweeters were far above ear level,
lending the sound a rich midrange but with a slightly detached top-end. To
attain a more optimal integration, I tilted the speakers downward slightly by
lowering the front and raising the rear spikes. Realigning the tweeter and
midrange vastly improved the tonal clarity and drivers integration.
The 1998 DMP Further Adventures of Film & the BB’s [DMP CD-462] is a
rhythmic, relaxing compilation carrying impressively
proportioned images and timbral clarity even by today’s
recording standards and techniques. There is the inevitable
audiophile background instrumentation that calls too much
attention to itself at times. The Audio Note/47 Lab-driven
ELAC iterated wholesome dynamic immediacy, full of the
splendor of the tenor sax, the surrealism of the synthesizer and the sweetness
and swiftness of the piano with “Five On The Floor.”
JVC’s 1989 K2-processed release of trumpeter Tiger Okoshi’s
Face to Face [JVC VDJ-1198] sounded the best with the ELAC
JET, as the bite and sheen of the trumpet was infused with a
realism atypical of speakers of horn (Klipschorn), circular
ribbon (Genesis VI) and aluminum dome (Celestion SL700)
designs. In place of the common, intermittent trumpet
jaggedness and excessiveness, the JET took the same sound
and played it with a superior linearity, unleashing unprecedented definition of
the trumpet sound and its unrestrained airiness and realism.
With track 5 of the Ring-Orchestral Hit [London 410 137-2], titled “Orchestral
Excerpts from Siegfried’s Funeral March
(Gotterdammerung),” the 518s portrayed the contrasting
dynamics competently, as the weeping strings and the
mighty brass of the Vienna Philharmonic alternated the
center stage role in outstanding sonority. The ELAC JET
also excelled at the differentiation of substantial
instrument overtones amidst the overwhelming orchestration. At the same time
it was exhibiting the CD’s dimensionality with a convincing fore and aft
soundstaging, within the confinement of the speaker’s soundstaging width, a
superb delineation of spatial specificity and onstage imaging emerged from the
wealth of microdynamics. A reenactment of the daunting hammering of a rail
bar on Track 2 of the same CD, titled “Orchestral Excerpts from Entry of The
Gods Into Valhalla (Das Rheingold),” reproduced the metallic clash in definitive
tonality and full-blown dynamics. The ELAC JET also conveyed a wealth of airy
extension and reverberation, satisfying an audiophile’s craving for effects and
realism. This CD breathed fire through the ELAC.
Seemingly an impossible prospect, the ELAC 518 outperformed its previous
best when the Sony SCD-777ES got into the action, playing
of Sony Classical’s DSD remastered Great Orchestral
Highlights from the Ring of the Nibelungs SACD
[SS 89035]. While the remastered sound reflected its
vintage with its mild coarseness, I was surprised by the
ELAC’s capacity to churn out the SACD’s full-blown dynamics,
highly resolute mid to top-end information, a fittingly forceful
rollout of bottom-end contents and a harmonious, seamless integration of drive
units. Though the soundstage width was less spectacular than that from my
Genesis VIs, such performance will easily mute any contest to ELAC’s asking
price for the 518s.
Playing another SACD, Mahler Symphony No. 6 [San Francisco Symphony
821936-0001-2], was also exceedingly satisfying. Recorded live in September
2001 at the SFS’ headquarters, Davies Symphony Hall, this
DSD recording is a jewel both in the freshness of the
performance and in the captured sonics. For instance, the
JET tweeter consistently yielded subtle, extended top-end
response with no distortions, achieving clarity and scale
befitting the SACD. Although I did not attend this noted
concert, through the ELACs I was witness to some of the most beautiful,
heartfelt music making I’ve heard. The twin 7-inch woofers developed
impacting, riveting bass drum hammer-blows without the faintest break-up
distortions. Such exemplary bottom-end performance hardly needs subwoofer
supplement.
The CD reading by Sir Colin Davis and the London Symphony
Orchestra of Les Troyens [LSO 0010 CD], captured in DSD,
came satisfyingly close to the sound of SACD in its resolution
and tonality. Subdued moments carried clarity that was as
involving and riveting as the orchestration soared in climatic
passages. Take the beginning of the Fourth Act (first track,
disc 4), titled “Vallon Sonore.” Here the M3/Gaincard-driven
ELAC transcribed the tenor’s meticulous, inspiring articulation while responding
to the orchestra’s imposing demands undauntedly.
The 518’s transient response was excellent, capable of portraying the delicate
subtleties of a piano’s transient attacks while preserving the gentleness. For
SUMMARY
The ELAC’s folded-foil-membrane JET tweeter was capable of ribbon-like clarity
and transparency, while outflanking ribbons with its dynamic supremacy. Its
ability for high frequency reproduction and sustenance was reminiscent of the
very best Ferro fluid cooled dome tweeters. Finally, its ability to output
breathtakingly complex signals was unprecedented for its size.
The double-flared, low-mass, high-rigidity twin woofers, with their massive
magnets and reinforcing ribbed baskets, produced a bottom end that was
capable of amazing demand and are a powerful testimonial for small-diameter,
high-rigidity, lightweight, high-excursion, multiple-woofer designs. As for the
single 4.5-inch large-magnet midrange, its rendition of signals blended
harmoniously with the tweeter’s output, striking a most exquisite balance
between acoustical and instrumental truthfulness.
Wholly, the 3-way speaker exhibited seamless driver-integration and
spectacular spectral coherency, creating the illusion that it was an unimaginably
light and rigid singular cone unit radiating all frequencies without a crossover.
The soundness of the 518’s highly refined design and execution makes a
strong statement even in the presence of more complex and much costlier
implementation, such as my Genesis VI.
In the rendition of different soundstaging characteristics, the 518 consistently
proved to be less vulnerable to discrepancies among varying recordings than
the Genesis VI, which was far more sensitive to such changes. Far from being a
detriment to music making, the ELAC 518s were also less dynamic than the
Genesis VI in the conveyance of contrast in transients, as the 518 had
everything in control in a convincing, systematic manner while the Genesis
simply let loose with dynamic swings and changes.
In amplification, although the 50 Wpc 47 Lab Gaincard was able to extol the
same degree of dynamics from the ELAC as the 350 Wpc McCormack DNA1
Deluxe, the JET tweeter was more sensitive to characteristics of incoming
signals than the polished midrange. In my case, the incidentally more powerful
DNA1 Deluxe induced an excessive metallic touch for my taste, while the
Gaincard’s finer rendition stroke a satisfying balance between sheen and
warmth, and mated with the JET most spectacularly. Therefore, I must caution
readers that mating the ELACs to lesser amplifiers will likely be very
unrewarding. However, I am can also state that if you posses an amplifier of
superior caliber that the ELACs are for you.
My Music Reference RM9 II tube amplifier created a subdued potency in high
frequency realism and bottom-end definition. With that said, it was able to
induce complex tonalities and superb imaging. That should convince many
readers that the ELAC JET’s is ideal for coupling with high-powered SET
amplifiers.
CONCLUSION
The $4,118 ELAC 518’s possess two traits usually found only in much more
expensive speakers, extended upward frequency response and a rare
refinement in top-to-bottom spectral coherency. These traits reinforce their
impression of seamless driver integration. Adding to the list the 518’s dynamic,
soundstaging and tonal shading competencies, investment-wise, I doubt that
there are other speakers that can compete in the same areas for the same
price. The fact that progressive amplifier changes elevated the 518’s sound
quality indicated that I have yet to experience the best from these
contemporarily decorative speakers.
ELAC poured a tremendously disproportionate amount of engineering into the
518’s. Its asking price and the 10-year warranty commitment reflect the
confidence and pride of the company. The 518’s are a well-researched,
professionally finished product from a technically advanced company with a
proven industrial background that will withstand the test of time.
Associated Equipment:
Digital Front End
47 Laboratory 4713 Flatfish CD Transport/4705 Progression DAC
Audio Note DAC One 1.1x Signature
CEC TL1 CD transport
Sony SCD-777ES SACD/CD player
Wadia 27 Decoding Computer
Amplification
47 Laboratory 4706 Gaincard with 2 Power Humpties "S"
Audio Note M3 preamplifier
Decware SE84C
McCormack DNA-1 Deluxe
Music Reference RM9 II
Loudspeakers
Apogee Duetta Signature
Celestion SL700
Genesis VI
Klipschorn
Cabling
Audio Note AN-La (8 feet, bi-wired)
Audio Note AN-V silver cables (RCA 1m, 2 pairs)
Aural Symphonics AS-One (RCA 1m pair, 0.5m pair)
Canare L-5CFB 75-ohm digital cable (RCA, 1.5m)
Canare D206 110 ohm digital cable (AES/EBU, 1.5m)
Cardas Quadlink 5C (8feet)
Granite Audio #470 silver cables (RCA 1m, 2 pairs)
Granite Audio #560 AC Mains
Illuminations Orchid (1.5m, AES/EBU XLR)
Illuminations D-60 75 Ohm digital cable (1.5m, RCA)
Van den Hul MCD-352 (8feet)
Virtual Dynamics Nite Series complete cable system
Accessories
Salamander Synergy 20 (2)
ASC Tube Traps
Flat Traps
ELAC is a German speaker company that offers eight series of speakers,
ranging from the most affordable 1 Series through the more affluent 5 Series,
with the 4 Series representing the company’s finest efforts, culminating in the
$12,000 pair of Spirit Of Music. The company also offers the infamous NXT
technology in the Imago Series, as well as a Subwoofer series. The 518 is ELAC’
s finest effort next to the 4 Series.
Seldom heard in the U.S. high-end circle, the German company ELAC has a
distinguished background in the field of audio. According to ELAC’s website, in
the mid-1940’s, it produced its first cartridge, the KST 1, which featured a screw-
in sapphire stylus on a special magnesium alloy. By 1956, ELAC and two other
German companies, Dual and Perpetuum Ebner, had dominated 90% of the
world market share in turntable sales collectively.
Today’s Moving-Magnet Systems originated from a series of ELAC patents. On
30 October 1957, ELAC patented the Moving-Magnet “electro-magnetic pick-up
for two-channel record modulation” technology, licenses for which were issued
to companies like Shure. Van den Hul’s first stylus, the famous ESG 796 H
stylus, was also introduced by ELAC in September 1981, followed by the
historic patenting of the Moving-Coil cartridge and the subsequent mass
production of the EMC-1 in the next few years.
ELAC also had its roots in sound technology when its co-founder, Dr. Phil
Heinrich Hecht, started work in underwater sound technology on 15 April 1908.
After World War I, Dr. Hecht and a few others pioneered underwater and air
signal sound location technology and founded the Electroacustic GmbH on 1
September 1926. Numerous divestitures and organizational changes in the
following decades continued until the fateful date of 8 July 1981, when ELAC’s
distributor, John & Partner, took over sales of ELAC’s hi-fi products, and
founded today’s ELAC Electroacustic on 1 January 1982.
1984 was another pivotal year, as it marked ELAC’s official entrance into the
loudspeaker-manufacturing arena with its acquisition of the loudspeaker
company, AXIOM Elektroakustik GmbH. Shortly afterwards, it began research in
micro and macro acoustics, namely the variables that constitute the working
loudspeaker and its interaction with the surroundings in which it will be used.
At that time, ELAC provided complimentary optimal speaker placement
calculations to its customers.
TECHNOLOGY
ELAC’s JET tweeter stands out among the 518’s compliment of twin 7-inch
woofers and one 4.5-inch midrange. Said to be capable of a frequency
extension of 35 kHz for SACD’s and DVD-A’s high bandwidth playback, the JET
tweeter utilizes a 0.84 mm thick folded foil membrane, said to possess a
radiating surface area much larger than a conventional tweeter of the same
size.
A technique pioneered by Dr. Oskar Heil, whose research results ELAC acquired
in its 1993 takeover of speaker maker A.R.E.S., the “Air Motion Transformer”
technology of the JET energizes the concertina-like membrane using a
patented, strong neodymium (NeFeB) rod magnet system. Claimed to be
capable of above-average dynamics and high in sensitivity, the JET tweeter’s
motor is said to drive the air faster than the pistonic technique of a
conventional cone while occupying only 60% of the weight and volume of
conventional magnetic induction ferrite iron magnets. According to ELAC, the
NeFeB is also capable of superior mechanical stress endurance.
Dubbed “TT 180”, each of the 518’s twin woofers is made of composite fiber
bonded to a 0.2 mm layer of aluminum foil in ELAC’s proprietary “Aluminium
(aluminum) Sandwich Technology”, combining rigidity with low mass, and is
then propelled by a pair of larger, very powerful double magnets. ELAC claims
their TT 180 has a 14-mm excursion capacity given its double asymmetrical
(DAS) wide rubber surround. Each of the high-performance woofers is mounted
in a custom basket constructed in-house using fiber-reinforced polyamide,
chosen for its rigidity against torsion.
The 518’s 4.5-inch midrange, also bonded to a layer of aluminum foil, is driven
by a smaller neodymium magnet system that ELAC claims is capable of
producing natural, undistorted midrange. Furthermore, ELAC claims the special
chamber designed for housing this midrange serves the multiple purpose of
stiffening and stabilizing the speaker’s upper cabinet.
Inside the heavily braced and damped cabinet, the woofers are designed to
work through two rear proprietary ELAC bass ports. Employing similar fiber-
reinforced polyamide, the rigid bass ports are used to augment bass volume
with minimum ventilation noise and low frictional losses.
In the rear, acrylic terminals accept banana connectors, a predominant
standard in Europe. At I write this, I was told all American models would be
shipped with WBT 5-way posts. Lastly, mounted internally on the rear cabinet,
the 3-way crossover utilizes silver wire and MKP capacitors and supports both
biamping and biwiring.
CONFIGURATIONS & AUDITION
I did a good deal of experimentation with amplification, and found the Audio
Note M3/DNA1 Deluxe’s spatial definition was less profound and possessed a
somewhat metallic-sounding interaction with the JET. The M3 paired with the 47
Lab Gaincard yielded the most optimal balance in instrument tonalities, dynamic
transients and spectral coherency. The M3/RM9 II had a softer rendition that
did not serve as well as the M3/Gaincard combination.
Moderate room treatment included 8 ASC flat traps positioned along both sides
of the room, with two bass tube traps at the corners behind the speakers. The
Genesis VI’s were used and were 6 feet apart and 3 feet away from the side
wall. Placed 4 feet into the listening room, the 518’s were toed-in slightly.
Distance between the speakers and the listening position was about 13 feet.
Although speakers are inevitably the most visually imposing member of the
audio system, the 518’s, when installed on their included plinth in my carpeted
listening room, were complimentary of interior decor with their slender cherry
veneer. They were a few inches taller than my Genesis VIs but shorter than my
Klipschorns. Firing straight ahead, the 518’s tweeters were far above ear level,
lending the sound a rich midrange but with a slightly detached top-end. To
attain a more optimal integration, I tilted the speakers downward slightly by
lowering the front and raising the rear spikes. Realigning the tweeter and
midrange vastly improved the tonal clarity and drivers integration.
The 1998 DMP Further Adventures of Film & the BB’s [DMP CD-462] is a
rhythmic, relaxing compilation carrying impressively
proportioned images and timbral clarity even by today’s
recording standards and techniques. There is the inevitable
audiophile background instrumentation that calls too much
attention to itself at times. The Audio Note/47 Lab-driven
ELAC iterated wholesome dynamic immediacy, full of the
splendor of the tenor sax, the surrealism of the synthesizer and the sweetness
and swiftness of the piano with “Five On The Floor.”
JVC’s 1989 K2-processed release of trumpeter Tiger Okoshi’s
Face to Face [JVC VDJ-1198] sounded the best with the ELAC
JET, as the bite and sheen of the trumpet was infused with a
realism atypical of speakers of horn (Klipschorn), circular
ribbon (Genesis VI) and aluminum dome (Celestion SL700)
designs. In place of the common, intermittent trumpet
jaggedness and excessiveness, the JET took the same sound
and played it with a superior linearity, unleashing unprecedented definition of
the trumpet sound and its unrestrained airiness and realism.
With track 5 of the Ring-Orchestral Hit [London 410 137-2], titled “Orchestral
Excerpts from Siegfried’s Funeral March
(Gotterdammerung),” the 518s portrayed the contrasting
dynamics competently, as the weeping strings and the
mighty brass of the Vienna Philharmonic alternated the
center stage role in outstanding sonority. The ELAC JET
also excelled at the differentiation of substantial
instrument overtones amidst the overwhelming orchestration. At the same time
it was exhibiting the CD’s dimensionality with a convincing fore and aft
soundstaging, within the confinement of the speaker’s soundstaging width, a
superb delineation of spatial specificity and onstage imaging emerged from the
wealth of microdynamics. A reenactment of the daunting hammering of a rail
bar on Track 2 of the same CD, titled “Orchestral Excerpts from Entry of The
Gods Into Valhalla (Das Rheingold),” reproduced the metallic clash in definitive
tonality and full-blown dynamics. The ELAC JET also conveyed a wealth of airy
extension and reverberation, satisfying an audiophile’s craving for effects and
realism. This CD breathed fire through the ELAC.
Seemingly an impossible prospect, the ELAC 518 outperformed its previous
best when the Sony SCD-777ES got into the action, playing
of Sony Classical’s DSD remastered Great Orchestral
Highlights from the Ring of the Nibelungs SACD
[SS 89035]. While the remastered sound reflected its
vintage with its mild coarseness, I was surprised by the
ELAC’s capacity to churn out the SACD’s full-blown dynamics,
highly resolute mid to top-end information, a fittingly forceful
rollout of bottom-end contents and a harmonious, seamless integration of drive
units. Though the soundstage width was less spectacular than that from my
Genesis VIs, such performance will easily mute any contest to ELAC’s asking
price for the 518s.
Playing another SACD, Mahler Symphony No. 6 [San Francisco Symphony
821936-0001-2], was also exceedingly satisfying. Recorded live in September
2001 at the SFS’ headquarters, Davies Symphony Hall, this
DSD recording is a jewel both in the freshness of the
performance and in the captured sonics. For instance, the
JET tweeter consistently yielded subtle, extended top-end
response with no distortions, achieving clarity and scale
befitting the SACD. Although I did not attend this noted
concert, through the ELACs I was witness to some of the most beautiful,
heartfelt music making I’ve heard. The twin 7-inch woofers developed
impacting, riveting bass drum hammer-blows without the faintest break-up
distortions. Such exemplary bottom-end performance hardly needs subwoofer
supplement.
The CD reading by Sir Colin Davis and the London Symphony
Orchestra of Les Troyens [LSO 0010 CD], captured in DSD,
came satisfyingly close to the sound of SACD in its resolution
and tonality. Subdued moments carried clarity that was as
involving and riveting as the orchestration soared in climatic
passages. Take the beginning of the Fourth Act (first track,
disc 4), titled “Vallon Sonore.” Here the M3/Gaincard-driven
ELAC transcribed the tenor’s meticulous, inspiring articulation while responding
to the orchestra’s imposing demands undauntedly.
The 518’s transient response was excellent, capable of portraying the delicate
subtleties of a piano’s transient attacks while preserving the gentleness. For
SUMMARY
The ELAC’s folded-foil-membrane JET tweeter was capable of ribbon-like clarity
and transparency, while outflanking ribbons with its dynamic supremacy. Its
ability for high frequency reproduction and sustenance was reminiscent of the
very best Ferro fluid cooled dome tweeters. Finally, its ability to output
breathtakingly complex signals was unprecedented for its size.
The double-flared, low-mass, high-rigidity twin woofers, with their massive
magnets and reinforcing ribbed baskets, produced a bottom end that was
capable of amazing demand and are a powerful testimonial for small-diameter,
high-rigidity, lightweight, high-excursion, multiple-woofer designs. As for the
single 4.5-inch large-magnet midrange, its rendition of signals blended
harmoniously with the tweeter’s output, striking a most exquisite balance
between acoustical and instrumental truthfulness.
Wholly, the 3-way speaker exhibited seamless driver-integration and
spectacular spectral coherency, creating the illusion that it was an unimaginably
light and rigid singular cone unit radiating all frequencies without a crossover.
The soundness of the 518’s highly refined design and execution makes a
strong statement even in the presence of more complex and much costlier
implementation, such as my Genesis VI.
In the rendition of different soundstaging characteristics, the 518 consistently
proved to be less vulnerable to discrepancies among varying recordings than
the Genesis VI, which was far more sensitive to such changes. Far from being a
detriment to music making, the ELAC 518s were also less dynamic than the
Genesis VI in the conveyance of contrast in transients, as the 518 had
everything in control in a convincing, systematic manner while the Genesis
simply let loose with dynamic swings and changes.
In amplification, although the 50 Wpc 47 Lab Gaincard was able to extol the
same degree of dynamics from the ELAC as the 350 Wpc McCormack DNA1
Deluxe, the JET tweeter was more sensitive to characteristics of incoming
signals than the polished midrange. In my case, the incidentally more powerful
DNA1 Deluxe induced an excessive metallic touch for my taste, while the
Gaincard’s finer rendition stroke a satisfying balance between sheen and
warmth, and mated with the JET most spectacularly. Therefore, I must caution
readers that mating the ELACs to lesser amplifiers will likely be very
unrewarding. However, I am can also state that if you posses an amplifier of
superior caliber that the ELACs are for you.
My Music Reference RM9 II tube amplifier created a subdued potency in high
frequency realism and bottom-end definition. With that said, it was able to
induce complex tonalities and superb imaging. That should convince many
readers that the ELAC JET’s is ideal for coupling with high-powered SET
amplifiers.
CONCLUSION
The $4,118 ELAC 518’s possess two traits usually found only in much more
expensive speakers, extended upward frequency response and a rare
refinement in top-to-bottom spectral coherency. These traits reinforce their
impression of seamless driver integration. Adding to the list the 518’s dynamic,
soundstaging and tonal shading competencies, investment-wise, I doubt that
there are other speakers that can compete in the same areas for the same
price. The fact that progressive amplifier changes elevated the 518’s sound
quality indicated that I have yet to experience the best from these
contemporarily decorative speakers.
ELAC poured a tremendously disproportionate amount of engineering into the
518’s. Its asking price and the 10-year warranty commitment reflect the
confidence and pride of the company. The 518’s are a well-researched,
professionally finished product from a technically advanced company with a
proven industrial background that will withstand the test of time.
Associated Equipment:
Digital Front End
47 Laboratory 4713 Flatfish CD Transport/4705 Progression DAC
Audio Note DAC One 1.1x Signature
CEC TL1 CD transport
Sony SCD-777ES SACD/CD player
Wadia 27 Decoding Computer
Amplification
47 Laboratory 4706 Gaincard with 2 Power Humpties "S"
Audio Note M3 preamplifier
Decware SE84C
McCormack DNA-1 Deluxe
Music Reference RM9 II
Loudspeakers
Apogee Duetta Signature
Celestion SL700
Genesis VI
Klipschorn
Cabling
Audio Note AN-La (8 feet, bi-wired)
Audio Note AN-V silver cables (RCA 1m, 2 pairs)
Aural Symphonics AS-One (RCA 1m pair, 0.5m pair)
Canare L-5CFB 75-ohm digital cable (RCA, 1.5m)
Canare D206 110 ohm digital cable (AES/EBU, 1.5m)
Cardas Quadlink 5C (8feet)
Granite Audio #470 silver cables (RCA 1m, 2 pairs)
Granite Audio #560 AC Mains
Illuminations Orchid (1.5m, AES/EBU XLR)
Illuminations D-60 75 Ohm digital cable (1.5m, RCA)
Van den Hul MCD-352 (8feet)
Virtual Dynamics Nite Series complete cable system
Accessories
Salamander Synergy 20 (2)
ASC Tube Traps
Flat Traps
example, in Murray Perahia’s recent Sony Classical SACD release of
Bach’s Goldenberg Variations [SS 89243], the 518s reproduced the
abrupt release and hammering of keys convincingly, endowing the
performance with an increased sense of realism. The supple
tonalities accorded by the Direct Stream Digital process came
through the ELAC's in their awe-inspiring entirety, a sparkling
Bach’s Goldenberg Variations [SS 89243], the 518s reproduced the
abrupt release and hammering of keys convincingly, endowing the
performance with an increased sense of realism. The supple
tonalities accorded by the Direct Stream Digital process came
through the ELAC's in their awe-inspiring entirety, a sparkling
testimony to the finesse of the crossover and the resultant seamless
integration of the 518’s individual drivers.
integration of the 518’s individual drivers.
