LIKE IT!
Quad II options
- Thread starter awl
- Start date
Radfordman
pfm Member
Bass?
A lot will depend upon the condition of the ESL57
A lot will depend upon the condition of the ESL57
Sorry to dig up this somewhat old thread, I only discovered it just now.
I'd like to comment on the 'no bass below 200 Hz' comment. As the measurements show this is clearly not true. And a proper Quad ESL does not sound like that either.
So how did the Quad ESL earn it's no bass reputation? Like Radfordman said, a lot depends on the condition of the speakers. What happens is that with age the resonance frequency of the bass panels creeps upward to around 100Hz. For the sound it makes a lot of difference if the speaker goes down to 50Hz or 100Hz. A huge difference in perception! Once you realize that the last Quad ESL left the factory over 30 years ago, it is not hard to imagine that most speakers that seem to be OK in fact suffer from the ill effects of old age.
So the reality is that most people only know what a word down, old and tired Quad ESL sounds like. Which is a shame because a proper functioning Quad is actually a rather nice speaker.
I'd like to comment on the 'no bass below 200 Hz' comment. As the measurements show this is clearly not true. And a proper Quad ESL does not sound like that either.
So how did the Quad ESL earn it's no bass reputation? Like Radfordman said, a lot depends on the condition of the speakers. What happens is that with age the resonance frequency of the bass panels creeps upward to around 100Hz. For the sound it makes a lot of difference if the speaker goes down to 50Hz or 100Hz. A huge difference in perception! Once you realize that the last Quad ESL left the factory over 30 years ago, it is not hard to imagine that most speakers that seem to be OK in fact suffer from the ill effects of old age.
So the reality is that most people only know what a word down, old and tired Quad ESL sounds like. Which is a shame because a proper functioning Quad is actually a rather nice speaker.