A main factor for me is that I am a single ended triode guy. Ever since I started using the magic of 1 1/2 to 8 watts of amp power I have been limited to highly efficient speakers. Fortunately, I finally found a great speaker that works great with my 8 watts of 300B-Tetra 506s. (worth checking out their website and the major musicians who use them!). They are 90db and a very flat 8 ohms impedance. However, I still do miss the ‘57s. Did speak with Kent at Electrostatic Solutions. I believe he has made significant improvements over the original design. Heard that his improved version has way improved dynamics, bass and treble. Does anyone know about this?
I sure miss my Quad ‘57s!
I owned Quad ‘57s and joyfully listened to them for 10 years! Still questioning my decision to pass them on to another music lover. But I do sadly remember the multiple times I blew up amps because of them and the sickening feelings of the many times I arched them before I had them rebuilt.
I did eventually opt for more bass and treble but have missed their incredible mids now for decades.
Guess there are some new rebuilders who have been able to get more bass and treble? But I now have evolved the feeling that good enough is good enough. And man, were they good enough!
I did eventually opt for more bass and treble but have missed their incredible mids now for decades.
Guess there are some new rebuilders who have been able to get more bass and treble? But I now have evolved the feeling that good enough is good enough. And man, were they good enough!
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I had Martin Logan CLSIIs with upgraded ladders, much later Magnepan 3.5Rs (I know not stats),but, both were frustrating in there own ways DFor 3+ years now I have enjoyed Emerald Physics KCIIs (open baffle) with WireWorld and Clarity cap upgrades. They are very easy to drive, super efficient, glorious mid-range plus very good bass, seamless from top to bottom. My main nit pics are both easy fixes * the speaker face and base should have anchor bolts especially since the concentric driver at the top is so heavy * the rear tilted face angle that EP chose is too extreme. I am using a hockey puck in the rear of the base and small Machina Dynamica springs in the front hth |
I bought my first pair of 57's back in '81. Along with a pair of Futterman H3aa OTL amps. And around that time a Bedini 25/25 class A amp. I alternated between those two amps. In 2001 I stupidly sold the Quads and the Futtermans. This I soon regretted! Now thanks to good fortune in the past few years I've acquired two pairs of 57's and three Futterman amps! |
I find tube amps that only have 8ohm taps usually sound a bit soft and rolled off in the highs with the 57's, as they are a 2.5ohm load already at 10khz and falling to 1ohm at 20khz. This is why I prefer a good stable 30-40w Class-A solid state that can do the doubling, I built quite a few of these for 57 owners based on the Nelson Pass A40 and they loved them. http://www.firstwatt.com/pdf/art_a40.pdf This is why they say they best amp ever for the 57's, was the Mark Levinson ML2 25w Class-A monoblocks, that could double down to 1ohm. https://img.ukaudiomart.com/uploads/large/2229206-mark-levinson-ml2.jpg Cheers George |
I can’t say whether the rebuilders get more bass and treble from the speaker, but there have been improvements to the power supply and the Zener clamp boards allow you to use a wider selection of amps without the fear of arcing the panels. As previously mentioned Electrostatic Solutions is a good resource to learn about some of the design improvements. As for the RM10 and the ESL 57 well it was somewhat by accident that the amp was designed with that speaker in mind. It just so happened that was the speaker Roger was using at the time so he certainly wanted an amp that could play well with it (actually right to the very end Roger had his ESL 57 running in the shop for our music pleasure). The RM10 is very balanced with the ESL 57, but most amps will have trouble keeping up with the rise in the bass frequencies and the RM-10 could be perceived to be a bit lean there, but overall it’s one of the best tube amps to use with that speaker. OTL amps can deal with that rise in the bass, and along with the RM10 I have used the Atma-Sphere M60 with these speakers and even though their output impedance is much higher than the RM10, it plays quite well. |
Two of the ESL's major limitations---low bass and maximum SPL capability, now have a common solution (okay, not complete, but significant): the GR Research/Rythmik OB/Dipole Subwoofer. The ESL has long been known to be impossible to integrate with a sub to a degree acceptable with perfectionists. That is no longer the case: the OB sub is finding favour amongst owners of not just QUADS, but also Maggies, Martin Logans, Acoustats, Eminent Technology LFT's, even horn loudspeakers. Oh yeah, and dynamic/cone/box designs. Taking the low bass out of the ESL panels (and the power amp driving them) allows them to play louder (okay, still not that loud) and cleaner. Read all about the sub on the AudioCircle GR Research Forum. |
True George, and the lower the tap, the lower the output impedance, a very good thing with the ESL (it's impedance swing is brutal, insane). Interestingly, in my last email with Roger, he recommended I use the 8 ohm tap on the RM-10 with the ESL, not the 4 ohm. I asked about his "light loading", and he said yeah, but the ESL is mostly a 16 ohm load, so the 8 ohm tap IS light loading with that speaker. When I get my Quads up here I'll try both amps (RM-10 Mk.2, RM-200 Mk.2), and all taps. |