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Elac Uni-fi 2.0 announced

Fredrickj

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Speakers are too subjective in the first place, unlike electronics where spec's are more useful, even after testing a speaker one really is not that much closer to knowing how it sounds. I did find the reviews I read or viewed about the DBR62 to be fairly accurate and am quite happy with the speaker until I pushed my 200w Rotel and discovered some cone breakup on hi intensity electronic music with sharp transients combined with tonal frequency's in the mid-range. I'm hoping the separate mid-range driver avoids this. We will see. Vocals are quite good on the DBR62 at reasonable volume levels. That said I will describe my impressions of the differences between the two and how isolating the mid-range freq's from the woofer excursions above 200 hz helped the mid-range. I will be focusing on the speakers ability to locate a singer in space, overall staging and coloration in the mid-range especially. You can take it from there.
 

lightpsycho

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I ordered a pair to A/B with my DBR62. I have a switch so I can A/B seemlessly. they are suppose to arrive Thur- I love my DBR62’s but the 3 way w the concentric driver sounds ideal for the vocals I frequently listen to. Stay tuned!

Please let us in on your impressions!! I'm on the fence right now...my local dealer will receive a pair for demo purposes this week (supposedly) and will setup an appointment for me. Don't know if they have an A/B switch though...
 

Fredrickj

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Ok... they arrived a day early. After a couple hours tonight my initial response. First the cons: less bass
How much less? My listening room is just 12x10. In that room a sub was not needed with the DBR62. (Rotel 200x2 watt amp) I would need one with the uni-fi. It’s a small difference but just at that point where one will miss the sub. Heavy bass electronic Music caused the front round port to chuff, to make a loud distinct flutter noise. I could feel the air from the port 8 ft away! Seriously, not exaggerating. The front port on the DBR62 did not make any noise in spite of the extreme driver travel.
Now the pro’s:
As I had hoped the midrange no longer has that slight coloration from the cabinet and/or expecting the 6.5” driver to produce the 1k to 2.2k Range. It’s amazing how good a job it does do but it’s bested by wide margin on some recordings by the Uni-fi 2.0. The voice range sounds much closer to the Martin Logan electrostatic speakers I use to own, but Proved to be too large for the listening room in my new home. Voices have a lot more space surrounding the singer and its noticeably tighter, with a more focus location in space. If you listen to a lot of vocals like jazz, or Nora Jones, Dylan or Leonard Cohen I.e. stuff not over produced, these are a much better choice than the DBR62. Just add a sub. If you don’t use a sub or want more rock or pop type music, definitely go with the DBR62.
 
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BN1

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Ok... they arrived a day early. After a couple hours tonight my initial response. First the cons: less bass
How much less? My listening room is just 12x10. In that room a sub was not needed with the DBR62. (Rotel 200x2 watt amp) I would need one with the uni-fi. It’s a small difference but just at that point where one will miss the sub. Heavy bass electronic Music caused the front round port to chuff, to make a loud distinct flutter noise. I could feel the air from the port 8 ft away! Seriously, not exaggerating. The front port on the DBR62 did not make any noise in spite of the extreme driver travel.
Now the pro’s:
As I had hoped the midrange no longer has that slight coloration from the cabinet and/or expecting the 6.5” driver to produce the 1k to 2.2k Range. It’s amazing how good a job it does do but it’s bested by wide margin on some recordings by the Uni-fi 2.0. The voice range sounds much closer to the Martin Logan electrostatic speakers I use to own, but Proved to be too large for the listening room in my new home. Voices have a lot more space surrounding the singer and its noticeably tighter, with a more focus location in space. If you listen to a lot of vocals like jazz, or Nora Jones, Dylan or Leonard Cohen I.e. stuff not over produced, these are a much better choice than the DBR62. Just add a sub. If you don’t use a sub or want more rock or pop type music, definitely go with the DBR62.
Thanks, appreciate the information. Any HT time ? Specifically, how does the new Uni-Fi do with HT dialogue ?
 

BN1

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Elac provided everything on my wishlist for the new Uni-Fi's except the cabinet aesthetics and they offset the cabinet looks by keeping the price down a bit. Maybe there is an update to the Uni-Fi 2.0 coming down the road at a later time if the Debut continuous improvement is an indication.
 

BN1

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Are these better than the old ones? 300 doller better since old one is discounted by half
Ha, good question. Joe n Tell did a YT comparison, new vs old, and numerous people claimed that they liked the new Uni-Fi better. Me ? Couldn't tell any difference, even through headphones. Poor test conditions at best, need to listen live. Since Elac was able to raise the nominal impedance from 4 to 6 ohms, it saves me from buying new electronics to try the new Uni-Fi's. Will likely try the center channel first and see if it does dialogue any better than my current Debut C5.2.
 

weasels

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Are these better than the old ones? 300 doller better since old one is discounted by half

I went down to Crutchfield and listened to them. IMO, yes, they are $300 better. I didn't think the old ones were particularly listenable and thought the Debut 6.2 speakers sounded better for less money than the old Uni-Fis.
 

teej

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When I first hooked the UB52's up in my main setup (2.2 home theater) and started playing my tried-and-true test tracks, I hated these things. The vocals were strange, enveloped in an echo-ey, digital-sounding shell that I just couldn't stand. They were missing the "punch" of the original UB5's, particularly in the vocal range. The bass and mids were, for the most part, very detailed and pleasant (although a little less bass-ey than their predecessors). The bizarre vocal effects were just too much.

I then tried them in my desktop (near-field) setup, and I hated them even more. Even lossless files sounded metallic like a low-bitrate mp3 and still echoed as though played in a glass coke bottle. I am allowing for the fact that I was just in a bad mood at the time (I have two boys, one aged 4 years and the other 4 months - sue me).

I even went so far as to initiate a return, boxing them up and everything.

The next day when the kiddos were at school I chilled out a bit, re-unpackaged them, and hooked them back up for another go. After 30 or so hours the vocals opened up, and now they are scary natural-sounding. It's that old speaker review trope of "it's like the singer is right there in the room" but to a level I (admittedly, a novice) have never experienced. The separation, which at first seemed artificial/simulated, has become other-worldly.

I'm not good at describing audio in words so I may not be the most qualified person to write a speaker review, but I've been trying to think of a short description for their sound. The closest I've gotten is "passively meticulous." The detail is incredible, but they aren't "punchy" and they don't "shout." It's the difference between a slap and a tickle. The 2.0's tickle.

Now I can't stop listening to them. I keep thinking of more songs I want to "experience" through these speakers.

It's not all glowing. Playing music they shine, but every now and then I don't understand what they are doing with the audio. The majority of the time we are watching movies and TV in my main setup, and in that area things sometimes get weird. For example, I had the TV on in the background yesterday while I was picking up kids' toys and shoes and such, and an American Dad rerun was on. When the opening credits began, I had to stop and listen - they sounded like they did that first time with the vocals echoing through a tunnel and the instruments overly-bright and artificial-sounding. Yes, I know the opening credits of a cartoon sitcom are not audiophile territory, but it was a shock to hear after so much enjoyment. The rest of the episode sounded great with natural-sounding dialogue and music. There are still moments here and there when I am not happy with what I am hearing. Those sporadic moments are not enough to turn me off to them in general.

Also I have noticed that they seem much more sensitive to room placement than the originals. I was expecting the opposite given the front port. I am still playing with placement and angle, but haven't found the sweet spot. I have not tried them in near-field again, but I plan to. I also have a new, more powerful amp on the way. I am genuinely excited to learn more about them and try them out with different gear.

Anyway, I have cancelled the return.

Full-disclosure: my main setup is a Sony STR-DH770 receiver (which previously drove the UB5's just fine) with dual subs. I play music mostly in either 2-channel stereo or Pure Direct mode. My desktop is a near-field 2-channel setup via a Topping PA3 (though I have an Emotiva BasX A100 en route).
 

BN1

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When I first hooked the UB52's up in my main setup (2.2 home theater) and started playing my tried-and-true test tracks, I hated these things. The vocals were strange, enveloped in an echo-ey, digital-sounding shell that I just couldn't stand. They were missing the "punch" of the original UB5's, particularly in the vocal range. The bass and mids were, for the most part, very detailed and pleasant (although a little less bass-ey than their predecessors). The bizarre vocal effects were just too much.

I then tried them in my desktop (near-field) setup, and I hated them even more. Even lossless files sounded metallic like a low-bitrate mp3 and still echoed as though played in a glass coke bottle. I am allowing for the fact that I was just in a bad mood at the time (I have two boys, one aged 4 years and the other 4 months - sue me).

I even went so far as to initiate a return, boxing them up and everything.

The next day when the kiddos were at school I chilled out a bit, re-unpackaged them, and hooked them back up for another go. After 30 or so hours the vocals opened up, and now they are scary natural-sounding. It's that old speaker review trope of "it's like the singer is right there in the room" but to a level I (admittedly, a novice) have never experienced. The separation, which at first seemed artificial/simulated, has become other-worldly.

I'm not good at describing audio in words so I may not be the most qualified person to write a speaker review, but I've been trying to think of a short description for their sound. The closest I've gotten is "passively meticulous." The detail is incredible, but they aren't "punchy" and they don't "shout." It's the difference between a slap and a tickle. The 2.0's tickle.

Now I can't stop listening to them. I keep thinking of more songs I want to "experience" through these speakers.

It's not all glowing. Playing music they shine, but every now and then I don't understand what they are doing with the audio. The majority of the time we are watching movies and TV in my main setup, and in that area things sometimes get weird. For example, I had the TV on in the background yesterday while I was picking up kids' toys and shoes and such, and an American Dad rerun was on. When the opening credits began, I had to stop and listen - they sounded like they did that first time with the vocals echoing through a tunnel and the instruments overly-bright and artificial-sounding. Yes, I know the opening credits of a cartoon sitcom are not audiophile territory, but it was a shock to hear after so much enjoyment. The rest of the episode sounded great with natural-sounding dialogue and music. There are still moments here and there when I am not happy with what I am hearing. Those sporadic moments are not enough to turn me off to them in general.

Also I have noticed that they seem much more sensitive to room placement than the originals. I was expecting the opposite given the front port. I am still playing with placement and angle, but haven't found the sweet spot. I have not tried them in near-field again, but I plan to. I also have a new, more powerful amp on the way. I am genuinely excited to learn more about them and try them out with different gear.

Anyway, I have cancelled the return.

Full-disclosure: my main setup is a Sony STR-DH770 receiver (which previously drove the UB5's just fine) with dual subs. I play music mostly in either 2-channel stereo or Pure Direct mode. My desktop is a near-field 2-channel setup via a Topping PA3 (though I have an Emotiva BasX A100 en route).
Good review, thanks. I had a similar experience with the Debut 2.0 a couple of yrs ago. Didn't like them at all, especially on old TV shows, just sounded harsh and unnatural. After a few days, no problems ... ??? I know that some people say that speaker break-in is not an event but something sure changed and it was so obvious that I don't believe that it was my ears adjusting.
 

teej

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Good review, thanks. I had a similar experience with the Debut 2.0 a couple of yrs ago. Didn't like them at all, especially on old TV shows, just sounded harsh and unnatural. After a few days, no problems ... ??? I know that some people say that speaker break-in is not an event but something sure changed and it was so obvious that I don't believe that it was my ears adjusting.
I was in the same anti-break-in camp, but something did change. It wasn't me. I'm quite gruff and stubborn.
 
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BN1

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I was in the same anti-break-in camp, but something did change. It wasn't me. I'm quite gruff and stubborn.
Damned right and we're sticking to it !
 

teej

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I have tried a few listening angles with these. It seems they were noticeably more position-sensitive at first, but somehow a few dozen hours of break-in have tamed this (I've never given much credence to "break-in" but I guess I do now). For a while I had them spread out and angled in, directed right at my listening position (which wasn't practical for my space but I did it anyway). From there I tried them towed-in, crossed the streams, towed out - just about everything. At first the differences in sound were very noticeable, but that waned. I've since moved them back to where the original Unifi won me over: flat and spaced out on either side of the TV. They are positioned just a little higher than my ears when seated - maybe 15 inches or so. There's nothing I can do about this without a complete reconfiguring of my living room furniture, including the record cabinet I custom-built myself for that specific space. Just gotta live with it for now.

In terms of HT performance I've had few of the issues I mentioned before, though I haven't watched another episode of American Dad. I've been putting them through their paces as Home Theater speakers, switching between 2-Channel Stereo and Pure Direct modes, the latter which includes the dual subwoofers located behind and below either side of the listing position. I'm spending this week watching films with "big" soundtracks to see what kind of performance I get. I watched Blade Runner: 2049 a few days ago (in the sliver of time I had the house to myself) and was pleased as punch throughout. The bass is sufficient enough, and while switching from 2-Channel to Pure Direct did add some lower frequencies to the mix, I still find the solo delivery of the 2.0's perfectly serviceable. Still, they are no replacement for my subbies for that sweet low-end rumble.

At night I play music while getting my infant to sleep, so I've been using that time to put as much music through the UB52's as possible. I generally play them in the 65-73db level, so not TOO loud, but loud enough to make some determinations about their performance. It's hard to call what is happening in the top end "suck-out" because if anything I can hear more detail through these than their predecessors; but that is the term I'd have used in the first few hours of listening. Again, that has evened out and now the vocals are clear and eerily natural-sounding. When really focusing on the vocals I keep thinking of one of those Dyson fans that's a big, empty circle. The air (somehow?) flows around the inner ring and still blows on you the same way a standard bladed fan would, but it feels different. Hard to explain, but that's how the vocals sound to me.

Separation and detail continue to blow me away. These have been really fun with live tracks and Jazz recordings, though I generally focus on music with vocals as that is the area these are the most different. Despite that I plan on playing some Skinny Puppy tonight. I'm still eager to try different sounds and genres through these speakers, even going so far as to assign them their own Spotify playlist.

I haven't tried them in near-field again, but that is still the plan. At some point I am going to swap them with the original Unifi's (my current near-fielders) and do some more listening. I still judge these new Unifi's against the originals, but they are so different.

ELAC2a.jpg
 
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Steve Dallas

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I was in the same anti-break-in camp, but something did change. It wasn't me. I'm quite gruff and stubborn.

I am also in the anti-break-in camp, but my original UB5s did change after a few days of letting them play while I was at work. They went from annoying as hell to metallic sounding shoutboxes, which I suppose could be called improvement. I tried to like them for 29 days, then returned them. I obviously did not at all understand the hype. KEF Q100s won out for living room duty in the end.
 

AnalogSteph

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I have tried a few listening angles with these. It seems they were noticeably more position-sensitive at first, but somehow a few dozen hours of break-in have tamed this (I've never given much credence to "break-in" but I guess I do now). For a while I had them spread out and angled in, directed right at my listening position (which wasn't practical for my space but I did it anyway). From there I tried them towed-in, crossed the streams, towed out - just about everything. At first the differences in sound were very noticeable, but that waned. I've since moved them back to where the original Unifi won me over: flat and spaced out on either side of the TV. They are positioned just a little higher than my ears when seated - maybe 15 inches or so. There's nothing I can do about this without a complete reconfiguring of my living room furniture, including the record cabinet I custom-built myself for that specific space. Just gotta live with it for now.
I hope the Sony's room EQ facilities are somewhat useful, 'cause I can't see this setup delivering the intended frequency response without some help. Baffle step compensation is likely to be overdoing things as effective baffle size is substantially increased, plus some symmetry issues. Proximity to back wall would also give a bass hump - good for level handling once EQ'd out.

Concerning mounting, I would look into wall mounting options, possibly articulating so speakers can be positioned and toed in as desired. (BTW - tow truck not required. :p) If you have managed to DIY all the cabinetry, making something that'll hold the speakers even given a slight negative tilt doesn't seem like a major challenge.

Taking some measurements would certainly be interesting. Do you have a laptop you could drag into the room and the budget for at least a UMIK-1 or something?

Cute baby though.
 

teej

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tow truck not required. :p
LOL dang. I picked the wrong one.

I was expecting to get an earful about the proximity of that left wall. I've considered wall-mounting, but I'm a bit of an art nut and wall space is at a premium. Once these little boys are a bit older and less prone to breaking my stuff, I will more than likely revamp this whole wall and incorporate some proper speaker stands. For now nearly all my components have to live too high up for little hands. Except the receiver - that is literally the only place for it.

I've never done audio measurements, but it's a good idea. I have a few different systems I'd like to know more about in relation to their spaces. May look into this. I am planning on running a room EQ via the Sony receiver/wired mic. It'll just have to wait until I have a silent, empty house which is pretty rare these days.
 

teej

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Last night we ended up watching The Neverending Story, and I had a realization about the occasional "weirdness" I've heard from these speakers. All the sound effects and dialogue sounded fantastic, but the opening song during the beginning credits, "The Neverending Story" by Limahl, which I've heard a thousand times and know every saccharine word to, sounded like it was coming from a speaker suspended a foot above the opposite end of a swimming pool in an echoey natatorium. JUST THAT ONE PART. Everything else was delightful. I listened to the actual song via Spotify just to be sure (through all the same inputs - AppleTV via HDMI to TV, optical cable from TV to receiver). It seems it's only music in movies and TV that are giving me this weird effect. Music performance via Spotify, Bluetooth, and CD (via Sony DVP-NS3100ES) continues to sparkle.

I am hoping this means that there is something in my system causing this. Any ideas on what it could be?

EDIT: I have a spare SMSL Sanskrit 10 I'm not using - may try running optical through that and switching to the RCA inputs on the receiver to see if it makes a difference?
 

Haint

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Last night we ended up watching The Neverending Story, and I had a realization about the occasional "weirdness" I've heard from these speakers. All the sound effects and dialogue sounded fantastic, but the opening song during the beginning credits, "The Neverending Story" by Limahl, which I've heard a thousand times and know every saccharine word to, sounded like it was coming from a speaker suspended a foot above the opposite end of a swimming pool in an echoey natatorium. JUST THAT ONE PART. Everything else was delightful. I listened to the actual song via Spotify just to be sure (through all the same inputs - AppleTV via HDMI to TV, optical cable from TV to receiver). It seems it's only music in movies and TV that are giving me this weird effect. Music performance via Spotify, Bluetooth, and CD (via Sony DVP-NS3100ES) continues to sparkle.

I am hoping this means that there is something in my system causing this. Any ideas on what it could be?

EDIT: I have a spare SMSL Sanskrit 10 I'm not using - may try running optical through that and switching to the RCA inputs on the receiver to see if it makes a difference?

What receiver do you have and what audio mode are you using? Sounds like you could be describing surround upmixing artifacts.
 

teej

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Sony STR-DH770 in Pure Direct mode, sometimes 2-Channel Stereo. It's only driving the two front speakers and a pair of subwoofers (has dual sub-outs). It previously drove a pair of original Unifi's just fine, and a pair of Boston Acoustics BA25's before that. Never had a problem before. Still, my long-term plan is to replace it with a proper 2-channel amp in the next few months.

I happen to have an Emotiva BasX A100 amp arriving tomorrow for my desktop system, but I may swap that out with the Receiver and see if I get the same effect. At least it would rule out the AVR as the issue.
 
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