Is Quad ESL57 most amazing speaker of all time?


Just had to try one of these as i had heard so much about it. Enjoyed a lot of old Quad stuff so thought must be good. Recently in my room passed the following speakers, Spendor BC1 spendor SP1, Harbeth 30 and 40's. Reynaud offrandes, audio physic avanti, Audio note ANE spx, Avantagrde duo's(modified subwoofers), tANNOY GOLD DUAL CONCENTRICS, ETC ETC ETC.

Within minutes i heard more from a recording than i ever had with any other speaker I have knowm. The realism and detail due to the fast transients are absolutely astonishing. Ok will not go loud bass a little monochrome, but how could you live without that midrange?? It is that good. I was using jadis JPL pre and a good old cheap Quad 606. I didnot even have the chance to drag out the megabucks Audio Note signature 300b mono's before I blew the treble on one unit. Apparently very common. Only the Audio Note speaker approaches the Quad for sound quality although the audio note gets the emotional aspects spot on, the Quad as good as it is in communicating the emotion is just so scarily intimately accurate. Accurate to the point that it is unrealistic. By that I mean that you are so intimate with the musician or vocalist its as if you got up on the stage and sat beside them to hear details you never would if you were in the audience.

Is there any body else out there who can see where i am coming from??? Or is this just a one night stand??
audiojoy4

Showing 1 response by nkj

I'll chime in here. I have a couple of pairs of ESL 57s and a pair of USA monitors. The 63 does not even come close to the transparency of the 57. The 63 is easier to place for a forgiving centre image, plays louder and deeper so might be a more suited for modern musical fare.

Even at the age of 8 or so my son identified that the 57's sounded "more clear"... The frustrating thing about the ESLs are they sound small and don't play particularly loud. The bass is very good contrary to popular belief ,particularly, if the panels have been refurbished by Wayne Piquet.

It's difficult to give up what the ESLs do .. I've been looking for several years and can't narrow down a replacement without sacrificing what the quad's do well.

Nkj