Hmm.. don't know - perhaps it hadn't 'gone off' sufficiently. I did find the cladding made quite a worthwhile improvement (was very fiddly to do neatly though and the tiles were, by far, the hardest I have ever cut).
I'm sorry I haven't contributed to your thread earlier but, as appearers to be the case here, the subject is either a well trodden path or the opportunity for idiots to troll.
Your cabinet looks interesting but, if I may, there a couple of things I would have done differently. I see the tweeter is behind quite a thick ply baffle -I would not have done that and would have used much the same construction that Epos used. There is also the opportunity to time-align the drive units by bringing the woofer forward on a thicker section of baffle; this would, potentially, create a diffraction issue for the tweeter, but carefully cut and applied foam could resolve that.
The problem with ES14's is that, price wise, their natural home is in systems that are below the required performance level (even more so now). In many cases, absolute conclusions have been drawn about their performance within systems where the actual 'blame' lies elsewhere. The fact is that ES14's are significantly more transparent to that which proceeds them than the majority of their contemporaries (hugely more in some cases). In addition, whilst (unlike some speakers) they will sound OK if plonked down pretty much anywhere in the room, they will only sound really good if very carefully positioned (and experimented with).
The reason that opinions vary so widely regarding treble and bass quality is not because of sample variation; it is mostly due to variations in the quality and experience of the opinion itself; many opinions are stated on forums (and often with apparent authority) - however, these stated 'facts' of opinion are often utter bollocks. The bass can sound poor, the answer is to position them better and use better amplification and source. The treble can sound spitty, the answer is to use better amplification and source.
