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Elac Uni-Fi 2.0 Review (bookshelf speaker)

Robot

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So after much listening for several weeks, I went with the UniFi UB52s.

This morning I see the announcement for the Uni-Fi Reference, and can't help but wonder if it'll be that blend I was really wanting when auditioning the UB52s vs. the DBR62. Obviously I have no data on these new speakers other to know they exist, but wishing I'd waiting just a bit longer before making my purchase (I'm just outside the return window). If these end up performing well and providing that blend I was wanting, I'll REALLY wish I'd waited.

Oh well, such is life :)
 

Shazb0t

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So after much listening for several weeks, I went with the UniFi UB52s.

This morning I see the announcement for the Uni-Fi Reference, and can't help but wonder if it'll be that blend I was really wanting when auditioning the UB52s vs. the DBR62. Obviously I have no data on these new speakers other to know they exist, but wishing I'd waiting just a bit longer before making my purchase (I'm just outside the return window). If these end up performing well and providing that blend I was wanting, I'll REALLY wish I'd waited.

Oh well, such is life :)
Return window!
 

BN1

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I wish! I'm approximately 40 days in with their 30 day return window. So close, yet so far away ;)
Elac now has specs for the Reference Uni-Fi on their website. Now it'll be interesting to see if they addressed the issue at high volume that arose in the ASR test.
 

Robot

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Elac now has specs for the Reference Uni-Fi on their website. Now it'll be interesting to see if they addressed the issue at high volume that arose in the ASR test.
Interesting. As I'd expect the frequency response claims extend lower with the new woofer and porting, and the the crossover frequencies appear to be slightly shifted down as well. Might be time to start a new thread on this one, and hopefully a unit will be sent to Amir for review.
 

escape2

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Interesting. As I'd expect the frequency response claims extend lower with the new woofer and porting,
Looking at Joe'nTell's measurements, that 41 Hz low end response is wishful thinking - not sure at what -dB level this is quoted by Elac. Alas, it's typical for an average sized bookshelf speaker.
 

randysta

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I'm not sure if this is just a coincidence, but I had a similar squeak issue with Uni-Fi 2.0s.
I have a Dolby Atmos setup using all Uni-Fi 2.0s now, a UF52 pair, a UC52 and UB52s for surround chans. I heard a squeak coming out of one of the UF52s, always at the same point in a song. It drove me crazy, had me thinking it was the resonance Amir found. I was outside of my UF52 return window too, so I was sweating bullets...
However, I finally ran a test with a tone generator app to try and isolate the squeak resonance. I found it somewhere between 500 and 600 Hz. With it squeaking away, I traced it to a loose screw terminal post at the back under one of the banana plugs. I wasn't using it since my cables used bananas. After tightening it down, the squeaking resonance disappeared. In my entire set of Uni-Fi 2.0's, I can't hear one squeak!
I tried the original song I had issues with plus the Eva Cassidy Ain't No Sunshine, no problems.

Now my only problem is lamenting the fact the Uni-Fi Reference series just came out, which has the 6.5" bass drivers, magnetic grills and the nicer look of the Debut Reference line that I really wanted. ;-)
 

BN1

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Wow, quite a few differences with the new Uni-Fi Reference line from the 2.0. Looks like Elac followed the Debut continuous improvement model with the Uni-Fi's (i.e. improved aesthetics, structural improvements to the drivers, improved c/o) but the 6.5" woofer on the bookshelf model is a surprise while keeping the 5.25" woofers on the towers plus the box size change on the center channel but the size of the drivers are the same. Have there also been other changes to the drivers ?
 

BN1

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Some more details about this new Elac line (uni-fi reference) is coming out. Per their website, "entirely new midrange driver" and "newly designed cast chassis" (drivers ?) plus the new 6.5" woofer on the bookshelf are some surprises. With the recent 2.0 uni-fi release so new to the market these changes seem a bit odd. More redesign than was done on the Debut line iterations ... ?
 

Kachda

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Wtf, only a 90 day warranty on the uni-fi speakers? That’s really bad !
 

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MZKM

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usafa77

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Found this thread trying to find info on the Elac UC52 center channel. I just ordered a pair to stand on end and do an A-B with my UB52 pair (that I've been using for a few months) for possible use as front speakers in a multi-channel setup. Of course, after reading most of the 28 pages of comments, I absolutely had to check for the mystery "squeak" on my UB52's. Nothing on the referenced song, from as many sources as I could muster. Also nothing using my Heathkit audio signal generator in the area of the offending frequency. Nothing.

I had a pair of KEF Q150's before the ELACs, and ended up sending them back to Crutchfield at the 56-day mark because I DID uncover an issue with them around 2100 Hz...chuffing between the tweeter & midrange (and almost no musical output when the chuffing was active). Both speakers. Similar phenomenon that @amirm described in his UB52 test sample. Wierdness. Some folks said that I was crazy (which has nothing to do with measurements, of course).

Since I'm relatively new to this forum, I want to express how fascinating many of the discussions are. Reminds me of 30 years ago in the "Loudspeaker Design" special interest group on CompuServe. Except there's a lot more science readily available to the public now to investigate stuff like design and engineering. Thanks, y'all!
 

sacredcheese

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As a side-note. I've heard similar "metallic" sounds in the range of 400-600 Hz in speakers with resonances in the cabinet. It is a hardening of the sound related to distortion. I made two cabinets, one standard, and one with a constrained layer/damping glue and where the distorted sound virtually disappeared. One song where resonances where heard quite easily was the below one. I am very sensitive to distortions in this voice range:

I did hear audible distortion from this song in the 0:16-0:17 region with a high volume. It became less severe with an eq correction of -15db at 585hz.
 
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