Thoughts on these speakers?

falcoron

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Anyone own or  auditioned
Elac vela 704 speakers? 
Been reading up on them and they are really well received in reviews. Highly recommended on a few.

https://www.hifinews.com/content/elac-vela-fs-407-loudspeaker

I like the slim cabinets and the folded tweeter is supposed to be exceptional, they have a slightly warmer presentation to previous Elac’s of similar elk apparently.

if you own them what’s the verdict and what did they replace?

cheers Ron

 

Pedro2

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I have long been intrigued by the Elac brand and especially their ribbon tweeter. I actually came close to buying a pair of their active Navis speakers on sale or return basis but bottled out. I believe that a guy called Andrew Jones ( ex KEF designer) now works for them and the great reviews keep rolling in.

Haven’t come across anyone here who’s owned any, however.

 

falcoron

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Yeah me too Peter, trying to get a listen to a pair in my room as the Audio physic classic 15 here now on demo although good they are just not floating my boat and I really don’t know why, it’s frustrating. 

 

Pedro2

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Good luck with your Elac quest. I will  appreciate reading your findings although it might set me back on a path that I’ve left well alone for some time now. You might also want to consider the Acoustic Energy AE509 which is also gaining very positive reviews. I’ve not heard them myself but can vouch for the brand (I own their active stand mounts and they’re superb).

 
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Non-Smoking Man

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Hi Ron - Ive never owned any Elac speakers but its a brand I have a certain amount of respect for. The 'ribbon' is a Heil Air Motion transformer and the membrane (?) diaphram ?) is folded, thus doubling or trebling the surface area and increasing its frequency range whilst remaining compact.

Ribbons dont go low so the trick is to 'reach' them gracefully without compromising your bass/mid. Therefore with an AMT tweeter I look to the designer to provide 2 more drivers and not make do with one. And that's what you have here.

I read the HFN review and it didnt mention the 'ohmage'. I suspect 4 ohms but dont kw.

I'm sure you already know all I've said but I answered the question as best I could in case.

BTW, I still have the 401 you kindly repainted for me in gunmetal grey - its the one that is pictured against my name.

Be lucky..

Jack NSM

 

falcoron

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Hi Jack, 

great to hear from you again, I’ve not been active here for a while.

Yes these are 4 ohm and 88db.

I think they look great and the reviews are positive. 
my Gato Di400s NMP won’t struggle with 500w into 8ohm and 800 into 4 (according to the spec blurb).

It certainly is superb, I love it. 
I will keep you posted if I get a pair for home demo.

Also on my list is spendor D7, Dali Rubicon 6 and haven’t ruled out Gato’s own FM30.

 
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Pedro2

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Just out of interest, a guy from another forum had this to say about a range of speakers:

‘Before settling on the AE509s I home demoed many different speakers over a couple of months.
All speakers were used with a Naim Nait XS2 Integrated and chord qutest DAC

DALI RUBICON 6 - Good bottom end and superb treble, Big open soundstage, Weak recessed midrange, nicely finished cabinets.
SPENDOR D7 - Thin unengaging Sound, analytical, excessive treble, bland and plain designed cabinets.
SPENDOR A7 - More musical, better dynamics than D7 and better integrated treble but same thin sound, bland and plain designed cabinets.
WHARFEDALE EVO 4.4 - Smooth warm airy, but a little dull with some loss of finer details, issues with cabinet finish. Forgiving the minor defect, not bad for the price really
FOCAL ARIA 926 - Bright forward, sibilance with tweeter, gave me a headache, defects in cabinet finish.

I also demoed many others at dealers including ProAc DT8s and Monitor Audio Silvers.’

Enjoy your search 👍

 

falcoron

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Just been reading that myself. He has demoed the speakers on my wish list.

been reading the reviews too and they seem well received indeed  

 

greengoblin

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Elac has always gone down well in other parts of the world. Just not se much representation in the UK I feel

funny to see your post because I’ve been eyeing up a couple of elac standmount of eBay like the carina...intriguing 

 

falcoron

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Just out of interest, a guy from another forum had this to say about a range of speakers:

‘Before settling on the AE509s I home demoed many different speakers over a couple of months.
All speakers were used with a Naim Nait XS2 Integrated and chord qutest DAC

DALI RUBICON 6 - Good bottom end and superb treble, Big open soundstage, Weak recessed midrange, nicely finished cabinets.
SPENDOR D7 - Thin unengaging Sound, analytical, excessive treble, bland and plain designed cabinets.
SPENDOR A7 - More musical, better dynamics than D7 and better integrated treble but same thin sound, bland and plain designed cabinets.
WHARFEDALE EVO 4.4 - Smooth warm airy, but a little dull with some loss of finer details, issues with cabinet finish. Forgiving the minor defect, not bad for the price really
FOCAL ARIA 926 - Bright forward, sibilance with tweeter, gave me a headache, defects in cabinet finish.

I also demoed many others at dealers including ProAc DT8s and Monitor Audio Silvers.’

Enjoy your search 👍
Been really intrigued by these speaker s and have read nothing but very positive reviews.

AE509 Archives - Acoustic Energy Loudspeakers (acoustic-energy.co.uk) 

Deffo one i will try.

 
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falcoron

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Well I tried the AE509 and they are exactly like all the reviews say. They do not impress on first audition with no wow factor you get with a lot of speakers on first demo, then start to annoy  later on. 
These are very understated with a really nice smooth “Goldie locks” sound ( not to bright not too warm etc) that is just right.

From the get go i played my usual test tracks that sound superb, horrible and sibilance annoying. 
These speakers just sailed through everything I played, the superbly recorded stuff was just that, the horrible stuff was rendered a fair bit smoother without loosing detail and the bass was a lot better. The tracks that are very sibilant were less so reducing these annoying highs, still there but less annoying,  the treble was sweet as a nut and detail still really good.

As the reviews all state with enthusiasm, the bass is simply glorious in every way. Derp, tight and musical.
They play well at low volume and go really loud when you want, the small carbon drivers barely break sweat, even when pushed hard they don’t loose it, staying composed and detailed and smooth.

The sound stage is exceptional too going well beyond the speakers, really well separated and placed just so. 
the sweet spot is a little tighter than the audio physic classic 15 I had on demo before but that in no way takes away the fantastic sound I’m getting here now, when innit it is simply wonderful.

So after a long slog and a lot of demo’s I can whole heartily recommend these lovely speakers. 
Also of note, these were £2300 so a fair bit cheaper that the others I had on my list.

Fit and finish us superb too, I got the gloss white and it’s flawless, with heavy aluminium speaker bars that hold the very substantial spikes. 
Needless to say these have been bought and are now mine 😁

very  happy!

 

Pedro2

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Well I tried the AE509 and they are exactly like all the reviews say. They do not impress on first audition with no wow factor you get with a lot of speakers on first demo, then start to annoy  later on. 
These are very understated with a really nice smooth “Goldie locks” sound ( not to bright not too warm etc) that is just right.

From the get go i played my usual test tracks that sound superb, horrible and sibilance annoying. 
These speakers just sailed through everything I played, the superbly recorded stuff was just that, the horrible stuff was rendered a fair bit smoother without loosing detail and the bass was a lot better. The tracks that are very sibilant were less so reducing these annoying highs, still there but less annoying,  the treble was sweet as a nut and detail still really good.

As the reviews all state with enthusiasm, the bass is simply glorious in every way. Derp, tight and musical.
They play well at low volume and go really loud when you want, the small carbon drivers barely break sweat, even when pushed hard they don’t loose it, staying composed and detailed and smooth.

The sound stage is exceptional too going well beyond the speakers, really well separated and placed just so. 
the sweet spot is a little tighter than the audio physic classic 15 I had on demo before but that in no way takes away the fantastic sound I’m getting here now, when innit it is simply wonderful.

So after a long slog and a lot of demo’s I can whole heartily recommend these lovely speakers. 
Also of note, these were £2300 so a fair bit cheaper that the others I had on my list.

Fit and finish us superb too, I got the gloss white and it’s flawless, with heavy aluminium speaker bars that hold the very substantial spikes. 
Needless to say these have been bought and are now mine 😁

very  happy!
Hi Ron,

I’m presuming from your post that you’ve bought the AE509 and it sounds like the great reviews are pretty much spot on.

As I posted some days back, I’ve not heard these speakers, but can only vouch for their stand mount actives, which are superb. The company seem to be banging out some fine speakers at the moment and if the 509s are anything like their actives, they just get on with the job of presenting music without fuss or fanfare (and at very reasonable prices). Have fun and enjoy! 👍

 

Nativebon

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Got the AE509's up and running. Initial impression is just how much low-end these speakers kick out. They really dig deep. Can be a bit over powering sometimes with bass heavy music. Having say that, the bass is tight and no boominess or overhang. Glad I returned the Audio Physic Avanti 35's which I bought a few months ago. The 35's lacked the ability to convey mid-range properly, especially fast music without notes tripping over each other. That's not even taking into account  the 35's cost a hefty 6k.

My only criticism at this moment, is the midrange of the 509's could do with a Littlemore richness and body. Only an hour or so of playing music through em. Hopefully this should fill out with time. The finish and  build quality is very good for the price. They look Fab!.

 

falcoron

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I’ve just stop trying to dissect the system now and just relax and listen to the music. Something I’ve not been able to do fir a very long time. I’m really happy with them. 

As you say the finish is stunning too.

In 40 years the most I’ve ever got from the wife regarding my hifi was yeah sounds good, or Jesus they are big!
the other day she asked me to play Andrea Botticelli ( first time ever getting a request) 

she sat there listened and said “my god that is bloody amazing, the hairs on the back of my neck are standing!”

job done me thinks 

 

Nativebon

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Just got home now to have a listen and the AE509's sounding much better than this morning. Got about 5hrs on em. Much better integration between high-frequency mid-range and bass. I'm getting a feeling these are not going back.

 

falcoron

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Yes very underwhelming at first as they are a bit different from the fare I auditioned, one could easily dismiss them on first listen. 
only took a few days to come on song. 

 

Pedro2

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I believe that the AE509s have garnered even more positive comments, judging by the Acoustic Energy Facebook page. Newest review appears in the latest edition of HiFi+ magazine 👍

 
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