Final-Audio New Series electrostatics

@madtrader The 2+2's could produce bass but the quality of the bass was poor and unnatural.  In addition to a deeper, more nuanced and precise soundstage one of the key positives of the M35 is the quality of the bass they produce where they excel compared to my 20.7s which were no slouch in that department.  

Tim de Paravicini may have the Title the Godfather of Direct Drive ESL's, especially relating the Quad 57's?

I was to hear DD 57's in the early 90's and become smitten, I have been an ESL user shortly after the TdP experience, and had purpose designed Power Amp's produced to drive the ESL's, both remain in use today.   

In relation to DD ESL's, Emia Audio have their design for a stacked Quad 57 ESL.

The person who was the first to demonstrate to me stacked 57's, and who was totally adept at refurbishing the 57 Speaker, was informing me of their design for the stacked 57, which from recollection would share similar design used by Emia. 

Friends who own and use daily Quad 2812' and Stacked 57's, as well as a Friend who has owned 63's of which one pair was a model from the first 200 produced and another 63, which were a pair much later production models.

These Friends have recently been invited to a Quad X demo' at an Audio Dealers Premises not too far from their homes. 

On the initial visit and demo' there was a SS System in use and the Upstream devices were unfamiliar to my friends.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJkdXHMw-YU&t=7s 

The Following are extract from the email reports offered

Initial Visit and Demo'  

The 2912Xs are slightly narrower in width compared to their predecessors although the 'all-black' finish may prove unpalatable to some potential buyers aiming to achieve domestic harmony. Despite their slimmer profile, by most people's measure, they remain very large speakers.  A  close-up inspection confirmed that the product finish was excellent.

My listening impressions of the system closely mirrored those of Peter. I think that the main problem here was the quality of the streaming files used for the demonstration. Solid-state amplification is not my favoured partner for electrostatics but with 200 watts on tap, the Platina was clearly not short of power.  It was also stated to be a 'high-current ' amp. The tracks selected by Peter Comeu produced some very pleasing sounds but judged against the group's familiar electrostatic systems, did indeed, seem to be lacking the 'X' factor ( pun intended ! ).
 
When the attendees split into two groups, I remained for a further listen to the 2912X system and was able to select 3 familiar tracks that I use regularly at home as reference recordings  viz. Joan Osborne's  ' Under a Dracula Moon '  , Lorena McKennitt's  'Lady of Shalott' (live) and The Commodores'  'Nightshift'.
 
It was clear from the outset, with the first recording, that the system was not producing the visceral, raw  energy that this track should convey to the listener. It all seemed too polite to me with no punch and drive and a palpable lack  of emotion in Ms. Osborne's voice.
Track two, although well received by my listening companion, lacked that extra degree of ambience that I am used to hearing.    .  

THE QUAD 2912X REVISITED

Hi all,

Following on from the Quad demonstration held at Martins last month, I thought that it might be of interest to update those who did not attend with some thoughts on a second audition , kindly arranged by Peter, which took place a few days ago.  This time around, we were able to hear the 2912X  speakers using a source component and amplification familiar to the group viz. my E.A.R. Acute Classic CD player / DAC  and John's EAR 861 power amplifier.

Having after the initial demonstration left rather underwhelmed with the performance of the 2912Xs using SS Quad equipment previously auditioned, I am pleased to say that this 'revised' audition did not disappoint.

It literally took just a matter of seconds listening to Radka Toneff singing 'The moon's a harsh mistress' to realise that we were back in familiar electrostatic listening territory. As we played a succession of well-known tracks , the profound contrast in presentation between the initial and second sessions became more apparent,  almost 'chalk and cheese ' if you like. It seemed as if every aspect of the listening experience had been elevated and enhanced.

Based on what I heard over the course of our 90 minute session , I would say that the new ESL 2912X does indeed, as claimed, offer  improved dynamics compared with its predecessor(s) The treble performance is outstanding - in my opinion. the best achieved by any Quad 'stat , to date. The retrieval of ultra-fine H.F. detail is hugely impressive. It's almost as if the listener is hearing detail within the detail, so to speak. I also got the impression that the transient response was marginally improved - lightning-fast and truly startling at times.

I couldn't really say that I found the improvements made by Quad to the 'X' range has made the mid-range more open' than previously, but it remains outstanding, by any measure.

My only caveat, in this brief review, would be regarding bass performance. Compared with John's smaller 2812s, the lower register still sounded a bit 'thin'  and lacking in weight. Mick Fleetwood's kick-drum intro on ' The Chain' , for example, sounded more 'semi-skimmed' than 'full-fat'.  The tonal quality of double- bass strings on jazz recordings also seemed to be lacking something in comparison to previous renditions that the group has auditioned though John's home system. I did note that the space behind the 2912X s,  as demoed to Peter, John and myself was filled with various piles of equipment and a large subwoofer ( not connected b.t.w. ) so far from  ideal. However, I'm just wondering if Quad have carried out some modifications to the crossover circuitry, which may have had some  bearing on matters. This however, is pure conjecture on my part

Overall then, a big thumbs-up for the 2912X, when partnered with alternative  components, in the audio-chain.  I think it fair to say that we were all highly impressed with what Quad has achieved with the latest iteration of  their electrostatic transducer being used with the familiar EAR Source and Amplification.