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Old Quad ESL's - worth a listen ?

S

steveinspain

pfm Member
I know they have a big reputation but are they difficult to live with, to use/maintain etc? I guess they need space to work well?
There is a pair fairly local to me and I'm just wondering - what sort of money should an un-serviced pair go for that are described as crackle-free and look to be in good condition?
 
Sound great.
Better as a set of 4.
Impossible to live with. But if you want them, you want them and to hell with it.
More bass than you think but they don't do bump-thump like a disco speaker.
Maintenance is OK, you can buy replacements cheap if necessary. I had mine for 13 years without trouble.
£400+ a pair unserviced.
 
stevec67 said:
Sound great.
Better as a set of 4.
Impossible to live with. But if you want them, you want them and to hell with it.
More bass than you think but they don't do bump-thump like a disco speaker.
Maintenance is OK, you can buy replacements cheap if necessary. I had mine for 13 years without trouble.
£400+ a pair unserviced.
Click to expand...
Why impossible to live with..?
I had a feeling that I'd heard something about this but have no idea why.
To be honest I've only just finished building some cabinets for a pair of 15" Tannoys so another pair of speakers is the last thing I want, but we all know how it is...
 
My '57s' needed spiked stands lifting them off the floor and tilting them upright with plenty of space behind them. They will analyse the squeaking of a drum pedal like no other but IME are only totally satisfying with old live FM radio. I had a pair from new for 14 years with no maintenance required., I think they were too analytical for digital systems so do not really miss them now,
 
steveinspain said:
I know they have a big reputation but are they difficult to live with, to use/maintain etc? I guess they need space to work well?
There is a pair fairly local to me and I'm just wondering - what sort of money should an un-serviced pair go for that are described as crackle-free and look to be in good condition?
Click to expand...

63s really should have space behind them, and really benefit from being raised. They are OK with, for example, a quad 606 or even a 303 or 306. They don't present an annoyingly small sweet spot. IMO the key to reliability with ESL 63s is to avoid moving them.

63s are real monitors - they are very revealing. They are good at timbre and when set up well, the image is impressive. They sound effortless, and for that reason, I appreciate them most with large scale music. They can easily move a lot of air, so the sound has "presence." But they are also special in solo piano, where there can be a huge dynamic range - ESLs sound great in quiet music!

Now that I've written all of that, you're going to tell me that you want 57s!
 
57's sound sublime and go louder and lower than you might expect. A much smaller sweetspot than conventional speakers. They can get congested with busier programme material. the more space you can put behind them, the better, IME.

£400 for a working pair with no service history or mods would be a bit steep, unless they have spotless woodwork and black grilles. I would be tempted to offer £250-£350.

They are surprisingly unfussy about amplification, but I've never heard them with vintage valves. Ugraded PSUs are well worth it.

63's go louder and lower, lose a tiny bit of midrange presence and have a wider sweetspot.

A good working pair in nice condition has to be worth £400 of anyone's money.
 
Over the last 45 years I've had the 57s, 63s and I now have 2805. Of the three I was least impressed with the 63s. I think because the build quality wasn't that great and they bounced about a bit. Both the others were superb and I only got rid of the 57s because I didn't have space for 2 sets of ELS. The 2805 is pretty much a revamped updated 63 but very solidly built.
Steve you have to ignore the 'impossible to live with' comments. Most people are impossible to live with....
My ESL have been very reliable so no issues there. Use your common sense when getting a demo - if they are battered or don't sound good then avoid. There will be others. If they look and sound cared for then go for it.
Oh and space... they do need at least a couple of feet behind them and to be not parallel to back or side wall but if you put acoustic panelling behind that will also help.
I sold my 57 and 63 for £500 a pair unserviced after a good demo and both buyers were very pleased.
I've used Lecson and Meridian amplification with them.
 
Ran them as main speakers for several years before going back to Tannoys. That comparison is chalk and cheese and I adore my big Tannoys, but I get the itch now and again for ESLs. I've never been convinced that later models than the 63 - while more 'complete' in many ways, positively addressing those aspects where the smaller speakers are lacking - have quite the same magic as the originals. If I had room for a third system (a holiday home for example - which sadly I don't possess) it would likely have 63s. Or 57s. Most definitely worth checking out. As it happens original 57s (as they weren't called then - they were just Quad ESLs) were what introduced me to hifi, my high school maths teacher had a set back in the mid-70s. With Garrard 401/SME arm and cartridge, Sony tape deck and Quad II amps. Hard to beat even today.
 
Thank you all for your replies, very helpful and my itch may be subsiding, maybe not.
I'd so love to hear them sometime, but right now I need to sell at least one pair of big speakers which will be posted up here soon.
My room is too small to have any space behind anything as the back wall is full of (currently) 2 big pairs of Tannoys and even when one pair has gone the other pair can't go anywhere else aside from the garden...
Time to confess - the pair I've seen are on ebay, and in Dorset, which isn't too local to me in Cornwall, but I could pass by on my way to London soon. They come complete with a 303 which I'm currently wondering about buying anyway and a 33 and FM3 tuner. At the right price I could buy the lot and sell on the 33 and FM3, try the speakers, get the amp serviced and then sell on the speakers once I've experienced them. The current price is silly-low.
Years ago I had a pair of Magnaplanars which were lovely and did certain stuff so well on the end of a Beard valve pre and power amp. Even then the ESL's were said to be better than those...

www.ebay.co.uk

quad esl 57 speakers 303 power amp 33 pre amp fm3 tuner | eBay

Quad fm3 tuner powers up but can't test as have no Ariel. Quad esl 57 speakers very good condition. Working as should with no rustle or crackling.
www.ebay.co.uk
 
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57's great speakers, I've a pair of OTA full refurbished from many years ago. Why not try as a MONO speaker, sounds just as good.
 
steveinspain said:
Years ago I had a pair of Magnaplanars which were lovely and did certain stuff so well on the end of a Beard valve pre and power amp. Even then the ESL's were said to be better than those...
Click to expand...

I had Maggie SMGs which I drove with a Leak Stereo 20, and I liked that sound. The SMGs eventually needed repairing since the wires were coming off the membranes. Then I had Apogee Caliper Sigs which were a good bit better - full length ribbons. I'd really recommend those or Duettas even more - they're jaw-droppingly good. But BIG. Way back I had stacked Quad 57s which were awesome but VERY BIG. The stacked 57s and Apogees are absolutely high end - not the slightest doubt about that. And can be had very good value. But with age they start to need maintenance.
 
Worth a listen absolutely.......
Personally prefer the 57s over 63s.
63s have glue and build issues.
Have stacked 57s and a single pair...
Started with a single pair on wheeled stands which are a must if u ask me, and easy to diy.
They need to be into the room to breathe from the rear.

Single pair-
When listening to Nina Simone especially with these speakers they,make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up!
They pick up the plucking of strings and the breathing of a singer in a way that i have not heard in any other speaker i own.
The realism on vocals and detail retrieval is just amazing,so unique.
Limited in bass extension and top end,due to this it can limit your choice of music.
The bits they do well are excellent and believe everyone should try a electrostatic speaker at some point in their speaker journey.

Stacked -which u will want to do eventually anyway...
I started with a single pair loved them and just wanted a spare set
A full rebuild is silly money and the original panels sound the best.
A stacked pair turned up and were local,there is a huge difference in my opinion both in size and sound......

Amps -x2 303s is really nice stacked as is a single 303 on a single pair.
Leak stereo 20 is the best sound i have had on a single pair
Radford sta25 and quad II are nice and swap em in and out..

Grill condition gives u an indicator of how they have been kept ie moved a lot or just bashed in and out of storage.
All mine have mint grills and after removing the backs and cleaning the dust covers and inspecting everything is fine and discovered the quad service stickers on all of them(usually on the transformers) .

You are in a great position as u have Tannoys for the heavier stuff..(until u go stacked:)
Stacked do volume and scale on a bigger scale ....

I have a friend who services them and has been doing it for a very longtime.
Stacked especially can run a big amps.....
He has stacked and is of the opinion original panels are better.....

Anyway feel free to pm if i can help.
 
Quad74 said:
Stacked -which u will want to do eventually anyway...
I started with a single pair loved them and just wanted a spare set
A full rebuild is silly money and the original panels sound the best.
A stacked pair turned up and were local,there is a huge difference in my opinion both in size and sound......
Click to expand...

Agree completely - there is a huge difference when you stack 2 pairs. Ideally you take the fronts and backs off leaving the naked membranes, but since they have high voltages on them you're then stuck with the challenge of protecting them. I took the fronts and backs off and was just "careful" but that's absolutely NOT recommended....! I was young and foolish.
 
les24preludes said:
Agree completely - there is a huge difference when you stack 2 pairs. Ideally you take the fronts and backs off leaving the naked membranes, but since they have high voltages on them you're then stuck with the challenge of protecting them. I took the fronts and backs off and was just "careful" but that's absolutely NOT recommended....! I was young and foolish.
Click to expand...
Some hefty voltages,in have a probe to test but dot feel the need as they are all singing....
my stacked set came without the rear sound absorption panel backing,which meant they breathed from the back (dipole)even more.
in my installation i went back to what peter walker thought was best and it improved things...
 
I first heard one mono Quad ESL at the Radio Show at Olympia in 1956 the demonstration was head & shoulders above anything I heard that day. They were subsequently re-voiced for stereo & are now known as 57's in 1979 I replaced a Quadraphonic set up of Sansui QS/SQ receiver & JVC discreet unit 2 x KLH 5's 2 x KLH 6's for domestic harmony/lack of space their sale financed a new pair of Quad ESL (57's). My wife since 1979 has decorated with care leaving the end 1/3 rd. of the lounge to the Quads & system.

After purchase I then spent decades finding the correct amplifier I tried Quad 2's, 303, 306,405's also leak, Radford, Mullard & Heathkit most borrowed I did own for years a Meridian 101,103,104 set up the 103 was modified by Meridian with a hand wound choke to make it more stable,,, a massively powerful Chinese B.O.M power amp, when it died in 2013 I bought from a forum a 100 wpc Rogue Titan Atlas Magnum using 4 x KT120's, there was immediate synergy with my then recently purchased One Thing Audio Quad 57's on Rupert stands, after careful alignment in my almost perfectly proportioned room, given that bass is the Achilles heel of 57's, Peter Walker (designer) said "They will produce bass with the right amplifier" which is very true the Atlas Magnum gives similar bass to stacked Quad 57's that I have heard surprisingly from a single pair in my lounge. Recently my son who uses floor standing speakers was surprised when after I re-valve from noval 9 pin to octal 8 pin The OTA Quad 57's were able to play Deadmau5 convincingly admittedly not at very high volume.

My friend Mark Manwaring-White of Malvern Audio Research who uses giant 6' plus horns & transmission line speakers in his demo system on first hearing them said "No bass! I'd have them in a heart beat" I do use super tweeters above the centre of the middle high frequency line source panel.
 
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