ELAC Uni-Fi Reference - They Finally Did it!!!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 30 ก.ย. 2024
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Beautiful speakers+Joe’s excellent camera work= PERFECTION :)
*$1,000* for a vinyl wrapped speaker!? That's a hard sell for a woodworker like me. Why didn't they just bump the price up by an extra $100 and do a decent veneer?
Yep. to me the KEF Q 350 are 'good enough' to justify that, and I spent $ 50. on a 1 ft x 8 sheet of real oak veneer, a couple cutting tools & a pressure roller - presto look real good to me, first time ever doing veneer. only question, how long will the pre glued veneer stick to original cheesy vinyl ?
@@rickc661 wouldn't you want to glue to the mdf?
@@bullpup33 You mean peel the original vinyl ? this was my first attempt at veneer work. Bought real oak with a pre glued surface, just peel off a plastic covering the glue and press down. lots of how to videos on Utube. it's been about a year, so far so good. I imagine KEF had lots of committees, focus groups studying the issue over the years, as would other companies > ' would offering a real wood finish noticeably increase sales'.......
@@rickc661 good to know. I am a hobbyists and was thinking of doing this to an old pair of b&ws I have. Just for fun.👍
The Towers need to have 6 1/2, inch bass drivers at minimum. 5 2/5, isn't cutting it.
The smaller woofers gives you better directivity matching at the crossover with the tweeter. So, from ~80Hz and up it gives you better sound. The downside though is less bass; if you have a subwoofer then no problem, if you don’t then that is a problem.
Hate the vacuum cleaners look of the towers...it would be much better if they would build them with a bigger woofer and timeless looks like jbl did with the L100 ...the KLH did for the new model 5....or the elipson..the magnat transpuls etc...
Good video Joe, thanks! - Ya I have the original UF5 floor-standers. And I must admit with Dirac room correction flattening out the frequency response (raising the high frequencies) I still think they are the best sounding speakers. Here's why: Andrew designed them in the early days before giving into customer pressures to raise ohms and to port in front... His original designs came from his high-end audiophile designs costing many thousands of dollars. There's a reason to use 4 ohms (better bass) and to port in the back... Andrew was trying to impress in the early days and I think the UB5's\UF5's were the cream of the crop when powered and placed correctly... And maybe using Dirac to correct the high end and foreword midrange. They simply have elegant and sophisticated sound.
That is why I love my modded B5. A good design with some tweaks.
His best speakers are the Adante.
Yes to bookshelves vs floorstanders comparision sound demo!
Please cause at double the price it better double the performance.
Definitely do a comparison between the floor and bookshelf speakers. I was thinking floor standers but your review on the book shelf may have changed my mind. Like your new room.
Will do!
@@joentell Any chance if u know these Uni-Reference will work well as Desktop speakers? :) Thks!
I didn't know that elac is known in the U.S.
Here in Germany they are well known. A friend works for elac.
Cool to see that you guys in the US are reviewing one of our speaker company 👍
Yes, there's an ELAC Americas.
@@joentell Due to Andrew Jones, who left ELAC recently.
Will you try the Elac Carina?
Andrew Jones, please come out with a 6½" version of the towers in a painted satin black finish. If you do this, then you can take my $$$$. I don't care about cost Andrew, just do it! Also I'm 6'7" so the taller the better. Can you make me a custom set to my preference if I pony up some moola. Please message me back if this is considerable. I want an the Elac alternative to my KEF Q950's but without the vinyl wrap. I hate that about my KEF's, especially at their price point. Luckily I got them on sale, so I don't feel as bad for purchasing them.
Was looking at a pair of Dynaudio then these grabbed my attention.
Do you have plans for reviewing the ELAC Solanos or Elac Velas?
Since you’ve had the SVS Ultra Bookshelves and Ultra Center on here as well, which would you recommend on a blind test for home theater use? Paired with an SVS SB16 Ultra.
I think he would pick Elac. The Ultra is an amazing speaker. But Elac outdid them with this one.
How does this compare to the new polk reserve
It's a perfect comparison and I plan on making a follow up video putting these up on the Speaker Leaderboard.
@@joentell awesome 👍
@@joentell When you do the binaural recording, could you throw in a recording of the R200 alongside it?
@@whatthat607 ohhh that's a good head to head
@@joentell perfect
Where do they belong in your Speakerranking? I'd almoust buy the wharfdale s 85 Denton...now i think of wating for the elacs. In Germany they are Not in the Market now
You can see it there. Http://bit.ly/SpeakerLeaderboard
So I am guessing that these compete with the svs ultras? As far as the bookshelves and the towers more like the prime pinnacle? Or am I way off?
That sounds about right!
I wish you didn't use smoothing so much. And if you are going to use it then say what smoothing was applied. I would like to measure my Debut 2.0 F6.2's and F5.2's to compare against these. I know these are better but they are also twice as much. My Debut 2.0's are a steal for the money. Paired with an AV7705 and OSD Nero XA5180
I try to gear my videos to the novice as well as to folks who are a bit more advanced. Typically, my graphs are 1/48 smoothing with 5dB increments on the Y-axis which is pretty standard. I may choose to smooth 1/6 smoothing if I'm trying to show overall tonality differences between multiple measurements so it is less confusing. If you want a more detailed and accurate measurement, check out the review from my buddy Erin at Erin's Audio Corner. If you want to screenshot the measurements I took and adjust the scale to match yours using an overlay in a photo editing software, that's what I often do if I want to make a direct comparison with someone else's measurements. Hope that helps.
How is the trebel response is it sharp and clear can feel in air please tell about this also thanks
I just wish they more efficient speakers, 85dB will struggle in large rooms for HT applications.
Thats literally the only thing keeping me away from Elac.
Hey brother I have the UNI 5 original
What would you suggest as far as a AVR that can push the 4 OHM speakers without breaking the bank ?
All of the Denon stuff can handle it. Almost any new AVR can handle 4 ohms
How come when you review the old model initialy, u didnt mention about the problem of it? only now did u clear mention the issue. when you reviewing the older model of elac, everything is good and impressive back then. I bet if the uni-fi reference 2 was out, you will mention about the issue on uni-fi referernce by then.
I didn't know about the issue until after I reviewed it. If I knew prior, I would have mentioned it. Watch my initial review again, I criticized the harsh treble. I think that was caused by the issue with the trim ring.
The towers looks ugly like all towers.....make a REAL speaker look like klipsch heritage...jbl l1p0...klh model 5 etc...wuth acreal woofer and greal look
Clear, flat and ARTICULATE.
Are they at low volumes? How are Elacs in general at low volumes? I am talking late evening volumes. And how would they be as a 5.1? Or do I need Lots of Power to really make them sing, as such I suppose if this is the case then they prefer to be played loud...Thanks
These aren't my favorite speakers and probably not the best for low listening volumes due to their lower sensitivity. They are not bad, but I am uploading a video about a speaker that is much less expensive that I am much more impressed with personally.
@@joentell Thanks. Yeah, I guess if my habit is low volume/late night, I should consider a speaker with higher sensitivity, like perhaps above 90dB at least? Like Klipsch, JBL, Triangle, etc?
You did an excellent job showing us what these look like with the moving light source and changing angles, exposing the wooden texture. Very well done!
Thanks for noticing! 🙏
so.. should i replace the RP-600M with these? And also think they'd run well with an amp?
Probably a bit more accuracy with these, but I recall the Klipsch having a bit more bass extension
If you are tired of the RP-600m sound, try the GR Research crossover kit. It changes the Klipsch into an ELAC, but drops the sensitivity to the mid 80s. For $200 you get a completely different speaker. I also have the ELAC B6.2 for comparison. The Klipsch with the kit sounds like a slightly more accurate B6.2 with an extended top end. Just my 2 cents. YMMV
@@Old_Sailor85 That's awesome to know, I'm not handy with electrical but have been considering the upgrade. After scoring a pair of KEF Q150s I've noticed the subtle difference the Klipsch lacks in the mids. Altho with some tone controls and roon I was able to bring it up a bit. A lot of fun
I have the original ub5s and am looking to upgrade. I am torn between these and the Velas at 2.5 the cost (both bookshelves). Any thoughts?
Wow, now I am curious how they will compare to the Wharfedale Denton 85s...will you be adding these to the leaderboard soon?
Thanks for showing the crossovers Joe, it all helps when weighing up the options for a budget, certain other reviewers take note 😉
Having gone from older Canton speakers to a more modern Canton speaker it seems that the new version with alu drivers doesn't go so deep in the bas. There's also a certain characteristic in that it sounds both detailed but also quite distorted in some frequencies. Audiosciencereview measurements seem to point out this out too with the Elacs.
(Canton LE109 vs Canton GLE490)
Joe: A concentric design solves imaging issues
Amir: We'll see...
😉
Ha! I don't think the vertical off-axis advantages are up for debate.
Speaker sounds incredible. His opinion: Do not recommend. Total bullshit
@@raymoore8435 🤣. I think Amir would be fair
@@raymoore8435 Science has been hounding you all your life, right?
Great comprehensive review Joe! They look awesome. Interesting to see how quickly these followed the Uni-Fi 2.0's. Also interesting is the price range, curious how they stack up to the SVS Ultras at the same price.
Yes yes yes, definitely compare floorstanders to bookshelves!
About 9 months ago, I bought a 7.2.4 Debut 2.0 system and I love them. I have not felt the need to upgrade. I did upgrade the subs and atmos speakers to SVS PB1000 Pros and Polk OWM3, but my main 7 are still the Elac's!!! F6.2 and C6.2 for the front stage and F5.2 for surround and surround backs. These are one of the best deals out there. At first, I ran an SR6014, and it was good, but these do benefit from amps. Now they are on an AV7705, OSD NERO-XA5180 running the front stage, and Emotiva A-300's running the rest and they still surprise me all the time.
Thank you Elac! And thank you OSD! the NERO-XA5180 is a beast, especially in 2 and 3 ch mode!
That ring vibration on the UB52 is solved now? Maybe a binaural comparison with the UB52? Do you think it is worth the extra bucks for the reference? Btw thanks for showing the (massive) crossover!
I play mine loud, never heard a vibration
Try a test tone around 585hz
I have heard the 585 hz resonance in a video. Sounds like a voice coil issue. Hard to solve.
I would love to see a side by side Review of these floorstanders against the KEF Q750s...
I really loved the UB5 and these days I run the Kef 750 and they are also great...and I enjoy the fact that the Kefs have a mellow top end, thus they sound nice and big (warm) and I can turn them up a big more, just like you described with the older UB5s..
Hi Joe, where do these speakers go on your speaker leaderboard?
In an upcoming video
Great review Joe! How do you compare this to the Polk R200's!
I kinda like the Polks more.
When will you review the Novus 5t speakers from Aperion? Wait till you see those measurements if you want flat!😁
Haven't heard of those. If they're as awesome as you say, I would be interested.
Awesome review Joe. How does this stack to Denton 85? I am in a dilemma. Help me!
Very, Very nice looking speaker. I bought the original UB-5 because of your videos on them. I LOVED the sound, but I had an issue where I heard a rattle when I turned them up to "live" levels. Not rock concert, but classic piano, or violin...there was a particular frequency where the speaker resonated; badly. I set them aside after that and purchased some others...I need to revisit those Elacs, because I believe I may have had a speaker wire loose that was causing that. Elac, I have found, does have THAT sound that I love. They have a particular voicing that I find extremely pleasant. I just thought my amp was too much, but perhaps that wasn't the case.
I've experienced something similar on the original and it was caused by the tweeter being slightly off-center causing the midrange to rub at a certain frequency. Easy to adjust if you take off the plastic ring and midrange driver. Just a single screw to tighten on the back. Use a test tone generator and get it to make the sound. The put pressure on the tweeter and see if it stops.
@@joentell My goodness, thank you Joe! I will definitely give that a try! :)
Thanks. I have Jones' Pioneer FS52 floorstanders. Great loud, like excellent, but at low volumes meh, flat. High mids a bit boomy boxy sounding, but for the money, wow. I'll be able to sell them for more than I bought them.
Same price for floorstanders @BH. $999
Is the Yamaha intergrated amp as501 a good setup for this speaker?
I would rock it!
Joe, i don t know what better for home theater and musuc in small room - kef q350 front+q650 center ore Uni-Fi Reference UBR62 + Uni-Fi Reference center? Please your opinion
I've never tried the KEF. Sorry
Thanks for the review! Do you know if the 5.25 is new like the 6.5?
Woah
🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤
Those speakers
Heyy joe n tell how would these compare to svs prime floorstanders
Price-wise, they should be compared to the Ultra, but with 5.25" drivers maybe the Pinnacles ?
The svs ultras or wharfedale diamond 12.2s or these elac unifi reference bookshelf’s?I know there is a big $500 price difference with the wharfedale 12.0s. Which ones have better SOUNDSTAGE/clarity/detail? What would you buy for 95% music listening 5% movie watching. I don’t care about bass since I got a 18inch sub. I’m just looking for a speaker that has really well soundstage and sounds clear and you can hear the detail.
Good review! Perhaps mentioning the money went into the science and components and not the vinyl wrap that tries to look wood could have been a good call 😉 otherwise you touch on many good points (room, FR, sensitivity, price vs value, concentric drivers and so on) 👍🏼
I think these (bookshelves) are called DBR62 Reference in Europe and I'm very satisfied for the $250 I payed (hardly used). Having pretty a treated room (with double drapes, a thick rug and lots of cushions) and them cut off at 60Hz with a couple of svs subs, man, they deliver!
And I also thought bookshelfs with stands equals the floorstanding ones but I can tell you, the wife didn't agree and now, I do not agree..😁 The visual space a floorstander possess is significant more than normal (cheap NorStone Stylum) stands with these on.
Those are the debut reference, these are the uni-fi reference
It's a conscious choice to balance simplicity with the technical details. ELAC is pretty good about talking about things like cabinet bracing and other specs, so this are all already available on their website. No need for me to cover it in this video.
Thats a sexy looking speakers!
Super chocolatey review! 👍🏼
Where do they belong in your Speakerranking.. above the wharfdale s 85th aniversary?
I know that this is a kind of stupid question, but how would you say that theses compare to the Wharfedale Crystal 4.3s? lol :)
How do they compare to the Wharfedale Denton 85 in the overall sound (not just the bass) in a 2.1 configuration?
Hi Joe, what du you recommend wait for the Elac uni-fi reference or buy the Kef ls 50 Meta....in Europe still the elacs Not available...im just Starting the Hobby now....and i am a little impatient😁
Is the bass really not much better on the floor standers? I was looking into getting them vs the bookshelves, especially for more mid bass not just low extension.. but not sure. How much more bass will three 5.25' have than the 6.5 on the bookshelf?
I have to admit something to you Joe... I just found out Im not subscribed to you. I thought I was. LMAO! Maybe youtube went crazy or somethin. Resubscribed!!!
The sensitivity thing is complicated.
They are only rated 85db sensitivity, but they are 6 ohm instead of 8 ohm.
Lower ohms make most amps put out more power, and run a bit hotter.
So you have only 85db sensitivity, but your amp is putting out ~25% more wattage. Something like that.
Love the way these look. Great colorway.
You just love the way I look! 😎
You're not wrong 😏
Bro! Have you not heard/reviewed the Elac Carinas yet?
I have, at a show, and I've even made a video about them.
the bookshelfs are too damn expensive
wooooooooooooooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww
Most speakers are rated for 140W Max, I wonder how true this actually is though. They always talk about headroom and you can get a Class D with 3-400Wx2 for not too much more money than 150/200Wx2.
Good review Joe. Out of curiosity, what were you using to drive these (AVR, Amplifier, etc)?
NAD T778 connected to a Parasound A52+ power amp
@@joentell have you tried them without the amp?
@@joentell very good equipment!
@@slyfoxx8540 the measurement I did of them was using a small class d amp, the SMSL SA300.
@@joentell wasn't so much the measurements (although they do look perfect) just wondered how they'd sound just with the t778 and not the parasound.
Getting either the t778 or maybe the anthem 740.
Are these above or below the Debut Reference series in terms of general performance ?
I will make a follow up video putting these on my Speaker Leaderboard
How do the reference sound at low listening volumes? I have a 30w class a tube amp and my original unifi ub5 need to be cranked up to really sing, which doesn't always fit with the room ambiance.
5:55 please stop doing this b-roll with the speakers being driven to full excursion, it physically hurts to look at.
Did what?
I have the Elac Reference sitting next to Emotiva T1+ towers.
Plain and simple,my Elacs will be finding a new home.
I'm rocking the t2+! I'm glad you poated this because I was beginning to have buyers remorse lol
My issue with Elac is how fast they turn up so many variants in such a short time. Those that pulled the trigger earlier will feel short-changed, I could have gotten the definitive version. No thanks to the flood of rave reviews...
Hi Joe, for the next video please do comparisson ubr62 with dbr62, I'm curious to hear how much difference between two. I have dbr62 at home. Thanks
Joe has such a great delivery style . Serious and informative but still fun. I absolutely enjoy just listening to this man compare speakers. You can hear his genuine passion.
I always consider you. "I hope TJ likes this video!"
@@joentell All the details you discuss about the previous ELAC speakers both positive and negative, combined with the info about how your room impacts speakers and then tying it back to the current speakers is so comprehensive I think it really helps people make an informed buying decision. You can tell how responsible you feel about the fact that people do making purchasing decisions based upon your video reviews. Integrity is one of the first thoughts I have when hearing you speak.
This review was easier because the speakers pretty much do what they're supposed to. The only think I could criticize is the price, but that's up for people to decide whether the performance is worth the price.
Ok Joe, get the soldering iron out and replace the sandcast resistors and we are good to go. :):) Looks like a decent crossover. Shout out to Randy at CAM. Get the screwdriver out. :):)
Why not use the same size drivers from the bookshelf on the floor standers? Got to say I was expecting larger drivers on the towers. Will they have larger tower?
Love the video quality, lighting and sound. Also, great graphics, b-roll and content. Nice job
I'm in a tiny apartment but I'm trying to future proof myself (probably won't move for 5-10 years but who knows). Speakers are 8 feet from couch. Would the bookshelf speakers be what I'm going for? I won't have a sub while apartment living, so should I go for floorstanding?
Edit: of the unifi reference of course
I would recommend with a sub for either setup. There are few situations where I wouldn't recommend the bookshelves. They're excellent imo.
There isn't Andrew Jones's name at the back of the speaker?
Unrelated but Joes pretty hot.
How are they compared to SVS prime bookshelf?
Hey which bookshelves you prefer elac unfi reference ubr62 vs polk r200
Gotta go Polk on that one. I would've never thought I would say that.
@@joentell thanks for the response. Really appreciate this. I know the demo both.
Interesting, what do you like better about the Polk in regards to mids and hi's as I have dual subs for the low end? thx@@joentell
@@michaelcampbell9459 there's something about the top end of the ELAC that sounds lifeless to me. I'm sure I could find something in the measurements that would explain it, but it's been a while since I looked at those. I did listen to the ELAC's recently in a different room and I feel the same way. I like the ELAC towers from that line though.
banger videos over and over!
Thank you!!!
WOW...I was in love with the white oak Debut Reference but these are even nicer!
What's the recommended amp voltage to drive this bookshelves?
Wouldn't floorstanders sound louder with more drivers and more cabinet space? Especially in mid size or large room.
Potentially.
Hello, great review !!! Thank you. Is that plate. On the back attached to the crossover metal or plastic ?
Plastic
Joe, can you elaborate on your comment about the center channel early in the video (2:00), something like "... if you're going to use it for HT, you're going to look at that ...". I assume that you mean you'll look at the cc for HT. Pls clarify.
I was going to go over the measurements, but this video got a bit too long so I'll do it in another. Basically, the center is built to perform like the other speakers but slightly less bass
@@joentell Ok, thanks Joe. When you get into the specifics pls discuss the differences between the uni-fi 2.0 and the uni-fi reference center channels, is it only the box or has Elac modified the drivers & c/o ?
Superb
This or Kef R3?
Kudos to J/T for having the first (as far as I know) review of this new speaker !!!!
A few reviewers had a review on the first day.
Hi Joe, may I know if your measurement was done mono at 1m on-axis with the tweeter?
I doing a moving mic method within the listening window which takes into account an average of the on-axis and off-axis response
These for home theater or polk reserve? 🤔
I prefer the Polk Reserve overall, but both will do well.
What I want to know is how they compare to the 2.0. Are they worth 40% more?
same here i have the unifi uf5 and the unifi uf52 but i am considering these now are they worth the upgrade
Joe: Hey Andrew let me give you some pointers….
Ha...I wouldn't dare.
Awesome! Those towers look sweet, just wondering why he used smaller bass drivers on the towers then the one on the bookie...?
I’m sure he had his reasons. He’s the best in the business.👍🔊🔊🔊🔊
I don't think it was his decision. 😊
@@joentell ya your probably right. It is a bit odd being the towers are twice the money as the books. I’m sure they are awesome just the same. Thanks Joe!🍻
Interesting. When you do the measurements review, I'd like to know the impedance plots for the floor stander as well as the standmount. Among other factors, it helps determine if an amp can perform well with that speaker.
Let's wait till my buddy Erin's audio corner checks them out
@@joentell I'll look forward to that.
Great review!
Hmmm.....so that's why I can't find Andrew Jones Pioneer towers and bookshelves anymore...🤣🤣🤣
I got the elite atmos speakers last year for 3 hundred a pair.
Where do these end up on the leaderboard?
Upcoming video
For $1K...I'd get a pair of Wharfedale Lintons every day...Acoustic suspension sounds better. Front port, top, side, yada yada...hey I got port in my rear too!
Those Linton's are no joke
Man these look super nice 🔥
Yes please do a demo
Will do. Busy with The HiFi Summit this week.
Look amazing!