Opinions of Quad ESL 57's

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RDSChicago

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People swear by these speakers, particularly if restored. The restored versions have protection circuits which do away with the common problem of arcing the panels.

Anyone have a pair? I'd love to hear opinions especially in comparison to modern speakers, electrostatic or otherwise.
 
Listened at the proper height (not on the floor as it's original stands will situate it), it is to me the yardstick of midrange purity and naturalness.
 
Middle of the panel at ear height. And don't spread them to far apart as the sound will thin out.
 
A friend just bought these stands from Germany to raise them up.
 

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That looks fine but I would sit low. It's really best if you can hear it cuz I've heard so many bad demos of these speakers that it left me wondering what all the fuss was all about. Until a friend of mine asked me to listen to his refurbished 57's which he had painstakingly positioned. Driven by 50w tube amps, they sounded fabulous. Made me realise that speaker designers are using drivers with all these modern cone materials ( graphene, diamond coated ceramics, aluminium, carbon fiber, etc) to replicate the midrange purity of a speaker designed before I was even born.
 
RDSChicago said:
People swear by these speakers, particularly if restored. The restored versions have protection circuits which do away with the common problem of arcing the panels.

Anyone have a pair? I'd love to hear opinions especially in comparison to modern speakers, electrostatic or otherwise.
Click to expand...


No the modifications and restorations remove the arching issues no protection circuits ..

The ESL57 sound is unique , you should hear them yourself to decide, yes it is that different to conventional speakers ...
 
Dafos said:
That looks fine but I would sit low. It's really best if you can hear it cuz I've heard so many bad demos of these speakers that it left me wondering what all the fuss was all about. Until a friend of mine asked me to listen to his refurbished 57's which he had painstakingly positioned. Driven by 50w tube amps, they sounded fabulous. Made me realise that speaker designers are using drivers with all these modern cone materials ( graphene, diamond coated ceramics, aluminium, carbon fiber, etc) to replicate the midrange purity of a speaker designed before I was even born.
Click to expand...

No dynamic driver can sound " like" an ESL , different drive type and acoustic centers makes for a totally different type of sound ..
 
RDSChicago said:
People swear by these speakers, particularly if restored. The restored versions have protection circuits which do away with the common problem of arcing the panels.

Anyone have a pair? I'd love to hear opinions especially in comparison to modern speakers, electrostatic or otherwise.
Click to expand...

Of the stats, I owned Martin Logan Summits. Heard the new Quads. If you have an extremely large room and a lot of money, buy soundlabs for the bass. Otherwise there is a speaker in Germany called audio exklusiv which is excellent, better than Logans and Quads. It does lack in the bass a bit but ML gets past that only with a hybrid woofer. The Exklusiv is more natural, and you won't miss the bass in a normal room. It comes used at 4k.euro for the smaller full range, and 8k for the bigger one (which is better than.CLX to my ears).

Maybe the PK stacked quads refurbed in Florida are better, never heard those.

Otherwise just forget all these and get a restored apogee.
 
Bonzo ,

PK modified single 57's sounds way different to standard 57's , if you have a small room modified PK57's can be very good , in a reasonable to large room then agree on SL's and others ..


regards
 
attachment.php



http://www.dagogo.com/audio-exklusiv-electrostatic-p3-1-panels-review

By: Richard H. Mak | January 2013


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bonzo said:
Of the stats, I owned Martin Logan Summits. Heard the new Quads. If you have an extremely large room and a lot of money, buy soundlabs for the bass. Otherwise there is a speaker in Germany called audio exklusiv which is excellent, better than Logans and Quads. It does lack in the bass a bit but ML gets past that only with a hybrid woofer. The Exklusiv is more natural, and you won't miss the bass in a normal room. It comes used at 4k.euro for the smaller full range, and 8k for the bigger one (which is better than.CLX to my ears).

Maybe the PK stacked quads refurbed in Florida are better, never heard those.

Otherwise just forget all these and get a restored apogee.
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Yes I have read that review. Those are the smaller ones, used price 4k euro.
 
I want to hear the 2912.

The best quads I heard were multichannel classical, 2905
 
Dafos said:
That looks fine but I would sit low. It's really best if you can hear it cuz I've heard so many bad demos of these speakers that it left me wondering what all the fuss was all about. Until a friend of mine asked me to listen to his refurbished 57's which he had painstakingly positioned. Driven by 50w tube amps, they sounded fabulous. Made me realise that speaker designers are using drivers with all these modern cone materials ( graphene, diamond coated ceramics, aluminium, carbon fiber, etc) to replicate the midrange purity of a speaker designed before I was even born.
Click to expand...
LoL

Unless you use proper HEIL drivers.
 
I've owned four pairs of 57s over the past quarter century. I presently use a restored pair by Kent McCullom and have another pair in storage restored by Sheldon Stokes. I owned ESL 63s and Crosby 63 Pros before acquiring the 57s, you'll find many owners took this same path rarely the other way around.

a few important issues to get out of the way. The don't play loud. the bass is great but the bottom octave and a half are absent. treble extension is not a strength either but the freedom of treble grain is excellent. these are one listener speakers (only one sweet spot) they have poor dispersion and if sitting at ear level that's too high or too low it will wipe out the highs. listening off axis or from another room the fidelity is no more impressive than a table top AM radio. if you heard listeners say the experience is like "putting your head in a vice" its the truth. They were known to arc with amps putting out >20 WPC, it usually results in a rebuild of the tweeter panels (this has been solved, most restorers install clamping boards). they're ugly (no way around this) with a WRF (wife rejection factor) that pegs the meters. I believe they have been the object of more than a few divorces.

Now the good. they possess a midrange purity and transparency that's unmatched. the resolving power and ability to hear very deep into the musical mix has to be heard to be believed. you'll swear not one but several veils were lifted. they don't really compare to any other 'stat on the market cuz none of them can be driven with 15 watts (for one) none from my experience are as free from the 'plasticy' coloration i hear in every other design (Martin Logan, Sound Lab, Acoustat, etc.) Ive owned all those speakers and altho' some were impressive in their own right, none struck the same balance that 57s do.

You cant compare 57s to any other Quad ESL (related in name only) when discussions like this venture into the latest Quad offerings they are by people who have never heard a proper pair of 57s otherwise the discussion is moot, 57s are in another league.

The best way to enjoy them is 18" off the floor and angled forward (tilted towards listener 12 degrees) credit for this goes to Sheldon Stokes. If you're lucky enough to own the uber rare Arcici 57 stands you have full adjustment of listening height and rake angle.
 
puroagave said:
Now the good. they possess a midrange purity and transparency that's unmatched. the resolving power and ability to hear very deep into the musical mix has to be heard to be believed. you'll swear not one but several veils were lifted. they don't really compare to any other 'stat on the market cuz none of them can be driven with 15 watts (for one) none from my experience are as free from the 'plasticy' coloration i hear in every other design (Martin Logan, Sound Lab, Acoustat, etc.) Ive owned all those speakers and altho' some were impressive in their own right, none struck the same balance that 57s do.

You cant compare 57s to any other Quad ESL (related in name only) when discussions like this venture into the latest Quad offerings they are by people who have never heard a proper pair of 57s otherwise the discussion is moot, 57s are in another league.

The best way to enjoy them is 18" off the floor and angled forward (tilted towards listener 12 degrees) credit for this goes to Sheldon Stokes. If you're lucky enough to own the uber rare Arcici 57 stands you have full adjustment of listening height and rake angle.
Click to expand...

The Kithara (28hz to 23khz and 94db sensitivity) has a killer midrange in the league of the Apogees and better highs to 23khz. Bass is very competent with the tuned port floorplate too. Additionally all Heils run perfectly in phase, so you can stack 'em (all are 2 way speakers). Very good alternative to Quads with more than just a sweet midrange. The Big Heil driver goes from 650hz to 23khz. Bass reflex from a 10 inch paper driver with port located on the bottom. Not great WAF though...

The Heil Syrinx (Sensitivity of 91db with uncompromised airy highs to 23khz) compared to the 63:

Ivor Humphreys Hi-FiNews JANUARY 2005​
.............'Polite' is a word that too easily damns with faint praise, and in the first few moments of listening to these speakers I did wonder if it was appropriate in just that way. This is a sound not unlike that of the Quad ESL-63 - so clean and seamless in the HF as to seem almost subdued, until you realise that what is missing is the artificial edge imparted by so many conventional tweeters, even today.
..........This aria for soprano, flute, lute, continuo and strings has all that is required to worry a mid/HF driver but the AMT conveyed it with a seamless grace, separating the bow on string noise from the notes themselves, responding to the 'chuff' start of each note on the baroque flute, the finger-work on the lute and to the fine, sibilant detail in the voice. There was nothing in this presentation for the ear to query. It was convincing in every regard.
​
......Here the Syrinx was conspicuously successful in its essentially 'tuneful' low frequencies, Beethoven's crucial double-bass lines appropriately purposeful and natural sounding at any pitch, and remarkably free of resonant boost.
.......Again the Syrinx gave an excellent account of itself, realising the full compass and weight of the instrument, detailing Debussy's subtle tonal inflections exquisitely, maintaining the delicate harmonic structure of sustained chords as they fade towards silence, true to the bright top end of the Steinway and entirely equal to the dynamic requirements and percussive nature of the louder passagework. Few speakers, certainly of this modest size, do all this quite so convincingly.
Rock and pop retains its propulsive attack, the sound being crisp and responsive. The plethora of busy, studio-contrived positional detail with which somany of the familiar hi-fi show demo favourites claim our attention, was always stable and true.
The Syrinx is an extremely rewarding, essentially musical speaker......... Ivor Humphreys Hi-FiNews JANUARY 2005​
 www.precide.ch
HI-FiNews verdict:
A loudspeaker with a capable, well-defined and exceptionally refined sound. What's more, it's well made nicely presented and has a modestly-sized cabinet.
 
puroagave said:
I've owned four pairs of 57s over the past quarter century. I presently use a restored pair by Kent McCullom and have another pair in storage restored by Sheldon Stokes. I owned ESL 63s and Crosby 63 Pros before acquiring the 57s, you'll find many owners took this same path rarely the other way around.

a few important issues to get out of the way. The don't play loud. the bass is great but the bottom octave and a half are absent. treble extension is not a strength either but the freedom of treble grain is excellent. these are one listener speakers (only one sweet spot) they have poor dispersion and if sitting at ear level that's too high or too low it will wipe out the highs. listening off axis or from another room the fidelity is no more impressive than a table top AM radio. if you heard listeners say the experience is like "putting your head in a vice" its the truth. They were known to arc with amps putting out >20 WPC, it usually results in a rebuild of the tweeter panels (this has been solved, most restorers install clamping boards). they're ugly (no way around this) with a WRF (wife rejection factor) that pegs the meters. I believe they have been the object of more than a few divorces.

Now the good. they possess a midrange purity and transparency that's unmatched. the resolving power and ability to hear very deep into the musical mix has to be heard to be believed. you'll swear not one but several veils were lifted. they don't really compare to any other 'stat on the market cuz none of them can be driven with 15 watts (for one) none from my experience are as free from the 'plasticy' coloration i hear in every other design (Martin Logan, Sound Lab, Acoustat, etc.) Ive owned all those speakers and altho' some were impressive in their own right, none struck the same balance that 57s do.

You cant compare 57s to any other Quad ESL (related in name only) when discussions like this venture into the latest Quad offerings they are by people who have never heard a proper pair of 57s otherwise the discussion is moot, 57s are in another league.

The best way to enjoy them is 18" off the floor and angled forward (tilted towards listener 12 degrees) credit for this goes to Sheldon Stokes. If you're lucky enough to own the uber rare Arcici 57 stands you have full adjustment of listening height and rake angle.
Click to expand...


I do agree with most of this for a stock 57, the PK Modded 57 has much better drive and arching is a thing of the past unless you get ridiculous with powering them so 50-100 watts per side is no issue, again these are small room speakers 12x12 or 12x16 is perfect for a single PK57..


Regards
 
wisnon said:
The Kithara (28hz to 23khz and 94db sensitivity) has a killer midrange in the league of the Apogees and better highs to 23khz. Bass is very competent with the tuned port floorplate too. Additionally all Heils run perfectly in phase, so you can stack 'em (all are 2 way speakers). Very good alternative to Quads with more than just a sweet midrange. The Big Heil driver goes from 650hz to 23khz. Bass reflex from a 10 inch paper driver with port located on the bottom. Not great WAF though...

The Heil Syrinx (Sensitivity of 91db with uncompromised airy highs to 23khz) compared to the 63:

Ivor Humphreys Hi-FiNews JANUARY 2005​
.............'Polite' is a word that too easily damns with faint praise, and in the first few moments of listening to these speakers I did wonder if it was appropriate in just that way. This is a sound not unlike that of the Quad ESL-63 - so clean and seamless in the HF as to seem almost subdued, until you realise that what is missing is the artificial edge imparted by so many conventional tweeters, even today.
..........This aria for soprano, flute, lute, continuo and strings has all that is required to worry a mid/HF driver but the AMT conveyed it with a seamless grace, separating the bow on string noise from the notes themselves, responding to the 'chuff' start of each note on the baroque flute, the finger-work on the lute and to the fine, sibilant detail in the voice. There was nothing in this presentation for the ear to query. It was convincing in every regard.
​
......Here the Syrinx was conspicuously successful in its essentially 'tuneful' low frequencies, Beethoven's crucial double-bass lines appropriately purposeful and natural sounding at any pitch, and remarkably free of resonant boost.
.......Again the Syrinx gave an excellent account of itself, realising the full compass and weight of the instrument, detailing Debussy's subtle tonal inflections exquisitely, maintaining the delicate harmonic structure of sustained chords as they fade towards silence, true to the bright top end of the Steinway and entirely equal to the dynamic requirements and percussive nature of the louder passagework. Few speakers, certainly of this modest size, do all this quite so convincingly.
Rock and pop retains its propulsive attack, the sound being crisp and responsive. The plethora of busy, studio-contrived positional detail with which somany of the familiar hi-fi show demo favourites claim our attention, was always stable and true.
The Syrinx is an extremely rewarding, essentially musical speaker......... Ivor Humphreys Hi-FiNews JANUARY 2005​
 www.precide.ch
HI-FiNews verdict:
A loudspeaker with a capable, well-defined and exceptionally refined sound. What's more, it's well made nicely presented and has a modestly-sized cabinet.
Click to expand...


Many moons ago we used to double/triple stack the big heil transformer drivers , that driver was a reference then as now when comparing tweeters ..

Sadly some years Later when OH made his fullrange version of the Heil Transformer i did not get to hear it , only read it had "issues" and never made it to full production ...



Regards
 
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