MattHooper
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Hey folks,
I'm curious about your opinions on Peter Walker's ESLs - from the original ESL 57 to the Quad ESL 63.
Not much needs to be said by way of introduction to those speakers. Quad's Peter Walker was known as a no-nonsense engineer, and the ESL 57 was, as I understand it, the first commercial electrostatic speaker. As we all know it went on to be a classic, still highly lauded in the audiophile world. In fact for many years there was a sort of theme that "every audiophile should own, or at least hear, a pair of Quads at some point."
A fairly classic trajectory for many audiophiles is to have owned Quads, and those that didn't stick with them move on to other speakers, but usually sort of "haunted" by the Quad's clarity/midrange, so the speaker quest takes on a "looking for a speaker that can match the qualities of the Quads...but MORE "(e.g. dynamic speakers moving more air, wider frequency response, etc).
So I'm curious about people's experience or opinions of the Walker's Wonders - the 57 and 63. Any formative experiences? What esteem do you hold them in...or not...these days? Certainly technical discussion of their merits and liabilities are welcome as well.
FWIW: It was hearing Quad ESL 63s at a friend's place that shook my world, the clarity and sense of sound occurring without coming from a box. I ended up buying a pair of 63s, later pairing them with dipole Gradient Subwoofers (made for the 63s), then moved on to dynamic speakers. My friend eventually traded his 63s for 57s, which I found curious - why the backward-in-time step? When I heard the 57s I understood. I too actually preferred the tone of the 57s to my 63s (IIRC the 57s are actually a bit more forward in the upper mids/lower treble).
Nice old article by a writer hearing the Quad ESL 57s for the first time:
www.itishifi.com
I'm curious about your opinions on Peter Walker's ESLs - from the original ESL 57 to the Quad ESL 63.
Not much needs to be said by way of introduction to those speakers. Quad's Peter Walker was known as a no-nonsense engineer, and the ESL 57 was, as I understand it, the first commercial electrostatic speaker. As we all know it went on to be a classic, still highly lauded in the audiophile world. In fact for many years there was a sort of theme that "every audiophile should own, or at least hear, a pair of Quads at some point."
A fairly classic trajectory for many audiophiles is to have owned Quads, and those that didn't stick with them move on to other speakers, but usually sort of "haunted" by the Quad's clarity/midrange, so the speaker quest takes on a "looking for a speaker that can match the qualities of the Quads...but MORE "(e.g. dynamic speakers moving more air, wider frequency response, etc).
So I'm curious about people's experience or opinions of the Walker's Wonders - the 57 and 63. Any formative experiences? What esteem do you hold them in...or not...these days? Certainly technical discussion of their merits and liabilities are welcome as well.
FWIW: It was hearing Quad ESL 63s at a friend's place that shook my world, the clarity and sense of sound occurring without coming from a box. I ended up buying a pair of 63s, later pairing them with dipole Gradient Subwoofers (made for the 63s), then moved on to dynamic speakers. My friend eventually traded his 63s for 57s, which I found curious - why the backward-in-time step? When I heard the 57s I understood. I too actually preferred the tone of the 57s to my 63s (IIRC the 57s are actually a bit more forward in the upper mids/lower treble).
Nice old article by a writer hearing the Quad ESL 57s for the first time:
Peter Walker's Little Wonder 1956 — Retro Vintage Modern Hi-Fi
I've always been a fan of the Quad ESL speakers but I've never owned a pair. Maybe I'll find a pair local someday. I do have one room left that needs speakers.... Kitchen...