Elac Debut Reference DBR-62 Speaker Review

[T.T.]

It's impossible to say. Too many variables in your measurement method.

sure, I understand. I was just wondering whether the two peaks I measured were responsible for the extra crunchiness and sparkle I heard. I was able to smoothen it a bit by reducing toe-in (almost completely) and putting on grilles

 

[Reed]

So here is my take. I have gone through the following.
1. Revel m16
2. Wharfedale Evo 4.2
3. Elac dbr 62
4. Kef Meta
5. Kef Wireless 2
6. Kef lsx
And among all of them this is the best i have liked so far personally, this one is a real sleeper and hats off to @amirm for finding this!! No wonder it performs well on the technical numbers as well. The most neutral and well rounded, organic sounding i would say.

I’d like to see complete ASR review of the Wharfedale Evo4.2. That said, how did the 4.2 compare to the Elac? I’ve seen a lot of reviewers reporting a “relaxed” top end. What did you think?

 

[realdb]

I’d like to see complete ASR review of the Wharfedale Evo4.2. That said, how did the 4.2 compare to the Elac? I’ve seen a lot of reviewers reporting a “relaxed” top end. What did you think?

Yes you are right Evo's are not bright as KEFs in top end and quite relaxing, I would prefer them after dbr 62. However while listening to dbr 62 I can differentiate between instruments vocals etc, better clarity than evo 4.2. Evo 4.2 are really good quality speakers and they measure well, however for me too much bass muffles other sounds. Pulling down bass in evo make them quite similar to dbr, but still missing the ability to differentiate instruments in space. IMHO DBRs are really good reference speakers that sounds good as well

 

[thewas]

So here is my take. I have gone through the following.
1. Revel m16
2. Wharfedale Evo 4.2
3. Elac dbr 62
4. Kef Meta
5. Kef Wireless 2
6. Kef lsx

Did you buy all of these or how did you compare them?

 

[realdb]

Did you buy all of these or how did you compare them?

No i just call them up and due to covid i cannot audition in store so I request for a demo unit, usually most of the retailers have an open box unit and are willing to send.

For comparison it was purely personal and was one to one. I set two of them up in stereo and then move the sound source left and right on different songs. This gives me a real time comparison of how they sound immediately and its easy to figure and distinguish details.

 

[thetrystero]

Zreviews (

) says the dbr62 has a really bad imaging issue. Is it really as bad as he makes it out to be?

 

[thetrystero]

for the same price as the a-s501, i can get the wxa-50, which comes with streaming features. what will i lose out in terms of sound quality if i were to go for the wxa-50 instead of the a-s501. i wrote elac and they mentioned the 501 would give me more power for larger rooms. i do have quite a large living room, but i'm wondering if it'll really be discernable. here's their reply to me:

I am not too familiar with the Yamaha WXA-50 integrated amp but I read it is a good sounding unit.
It is rated at 70 watts with a 6 ohm speaker like the Debut Reference.
That much power in a very compact chassis likely will mean it runs pretty warm so you will not want to have anything stacked on top of it and also leave room to have good airflow for cooling.
If you have a small room or use the speakers near field where you are close to them then 70 watts is plenty of power,
For larger rooms or rooms with very open floor plans or tall ceilings you may want to have around 100-120 watts of power to be able to play at loud volumes and not run out of amplifier power.

The Yamaha A-S501 or 701 perform very well with the Debut Reference speakers and will do 100 watts and 120 watts power respectively with a 6 ohm speaker.

Respectfully,
ELAC Customer Service

 

[ferongr]

Zreviews (

) says the dbr62 has a really bad imaging issue. Is it really as bad as he makes it out to be?

It's a subjective review so you should not take into account any of its opinions.

 

[thetrystero]

It's a subjective review so you should not take into account any of its opinions.

have you found imaging to be an issue?

 

[ferongr]

In a nearfield environment, with the speakers forming a triangle around 60 degrees with my head, no.

 

[Livnmuskoka]

have you found imaging to be an issue?

They have very good imaging. He seems to slam Elac in all of his reviews, for whatever reason. I've had much more expensive speakers and I'm very happy with these DBR-62's.
They truly are excellent, especially for the price.

 

[Benedium]

Maybe reference speakers are for reference ears.

 

[renaudrenaud]

have you found imaging to be an issue?

I repeat again: from my first pair, the tweeter grid in one speaker was not correctly aligned, so it could be the explication. Anyway I do not care was Z is thinking about anything and for sanity I will not write what I think about this guy.

 

[thetrystero]

In a nearfield environment, with the speakers forming a triangle around 60 degrees with my head, no.

which amp are you using may i ask? do you find the dbr62s to be more difficult or easier to drive than average?

 

[ferongr]

which amp are you using may i ask? do you find the dbr62s to be more difficult or easier to drive than average?

Used to have a Yamaha as501 that I felt was not enough for listening at high volumes plus I was unhappy with its residual noise. Now I've got an NC252Mp from Audiophonics and I'm satisfied.

 

[Livnmuskoka]

I'm using 3 DBR-62's in a 3.1 system with an Anthem MRX520 receiver. It's about 100 watts per channel and I never need to turn the receiver above -20 for tv/movies or above -15 for louder music. But I also have the speakers crossed over at 80hz which really helps. I wouldn't recommend under 100 watts per channel for the DBR-62's, especially if not crossed over to a subwoofer.

 

[weasels]

I'm running mine with a 60wpc Echo Link Amp and have never felt a lack of power, so YMMV.

 

[thetrystero]

I'm using 3 DBR-62's in a 3.1 system with an Anthem MRX520 receiver. It's about 100 watts per channel and I never need to turn the receiver above -20 for tv/movies or above -15 for louder music. But I also have the speakers crossed over at 80hz which really helps. I wouldn't recommend under 100 watts per channel for the DBR-62's, especially if not crossed over to a subwoofer.

I see. So something like the wxa-50 wouldn't quite cut it correct? It costs about the same as the a-s501 but I get streaming features with it, albeit less power, around 75W at 6ohms according to leave vs the 100w of the a-s501

 

[thetrystero]

Used to have a Yamaha as501 that I felt was not enough for listening at high volumes plus I was unhappy with its residual noise. Now I've got an NC252Mp from Audiophonics and I'm satisfied.

I checked out the audio phonics. What else do you need in the chain? Will I need a dac to go with it, or is it pretty much plug and play?

 

[ferongr]

If you're using a PC as a source then a cheap DAC like the Topping D10s