Big, clear sound.

none

I bought these used speakers few months back when I heard them at the shop and immediately felt in love with their sound.
Compared with my Sonus Faber Concertino, AE2 got more masculine and thicker sound yet its tonal is still extremely natural and large. It poscess very own sound that makes me keep these speakers (may be forever) with me though I already own Concertino. Classical music sound best on them.
In short, you can't make any comparison out of it, just judge them with your heart.

Similar Products Used:

Sonus Faber Concertino, B&W CDM1.

I've owned the AE2's for two years: they are an excellent speaker. They are not the best under $5,000, but worth every penny at $2850 (what I paid with the stands). The Sonus Fabers are also good, but I prefer the sound of the AE's -- and yes I auditioned them both. The AE's are more true to the music, and the bass is exceptional and the mid-range is true and clear -- far superior to the Sonus Fabers. I advise you to do your own comparison, as obviously taste is the deciding factor. If you are looking for a speaker in the $3,000 range, you would be cheating yourself not to consider the AE2's.

I am not an 'audiophile' but have always spent a lot of time listening to good music. I recently purchased a sound system that would last me for the next decade, after having pretty average stuff in the past.I spent a lot of time listening to the whole Sonus faber range and was about to purchase the Electras when the salesman suggested the AE2s. When I put on Schubert Lieder (baritone with solo piano) and got goosebumps - the sound was so real and personal. I put on a Saint Saens Organ Symphony and heard instruments that I hadn't noticed before - the detail is incredible. I listened to 'The Brand New Heavies' and got enough bass to keep any party rocking. However, when I listened to a very highly produced recording of 'Beautiful South' it sounded bright, harsh and pretty lousy. This was exactly the sound I was looking for but I'd have to ditch a few bad recordings.

I drive the speakers with a Bryston 3B-ST and NAD 512 CD. While a previous review warned agaist this combination, I love it. I also drive go-karts for fun, and compare this speaker / amp combination with a tightly sprung sports car as opposed to the more refined (limousine) quality of the Sonus Faber.

Anybody who buys the Sonus Faber will be happy - they really are remarkable, and cannot be faulted. The AE1 / Bryston gives me a lot more pleasure than my old junk, and leaves me wanting for nothing (I tried a subwoofer - it didn't help).

Let's remeber that the music is the point of spending all of this time and money, and for the next decade or so, I'll be spending my spare cash on CDs and my time enjoying what I have - I shouldn't even be reading this web site or I'll probably want to buy something new!

Great build, excellent rosewood finish, superb soundstage, imaging and great bass for its size. It is also a very dynamic speaker that is great with jazz, classical and rock.

Does not enjoy "bass-heavy" dance music or electronic/ techno music with a lot of low synthesized bass.

A very refined mini-monitor that exhibits large speaker characteristics with regards to dynamics and bass. As a mini-monitor, it has world class imaging, soundstage and has the ability to portray the musical presentation as "full-size" opposed to some monitors that shrink the presentation and make it seem as if the performers are all 3 feet tall! They really benefit from a solidly built stand which is filled with sand or shot! Also, make sure the stand puts the tweeter at ear-level. The tweeter is located half-way up the baffle - not at the top like most monitors and is mirror-imaged (tweeter is inset for awesome imaging) so the speaker needs to be up a little higher so the tweeter is at ear-level - thus I have them on 27" stands, however, this height will vary depending on how high/low your listening chair is.

Similar Products Used:

Proac 1SC, Dynaudio 1.3, KEF Ref.2, Voce Divina Soprano

I am the person who got Carl Shaw's pair of AE2. At first I was quite disappointed. But after getting the complementary pieces together. I am in a rare state of being able to just enjoy the music without wondering which strength my stereo has. Now, the most important: THE SYSTEM

AE2 sign. ser.2
Target R5 stands
Harmonic Tech Pro-11 speaker cable 10ft, Cardas jumper
Monarchy SE100 delux monos
Harmonic Tech Truthlink XRL 3m
Monarchy 33 with piggyback upgrade, HT power cord
Monarchy DIP2
Harmonic T. digital cables 2x
Marantz DV18

The next upgrade: AC cords for the monos, maybe the ones from Monarchy.

Over the time, I have heard quite some systems where things like VSR VR8, Audio Physics Calderra etc were featured at various dealers. But none has come close to my system when playing big orchestra music or piano. The whole sound picture is rock solid yet with all the fine layers revealed without any strains. With Rock and Jazz and all kind of vocals and chamber music, it's equally great. Well it can't reproduce the lowest octave under 40hz so well due to physical limits. But it's definitely among the most "complete" small speakers. Yet, you may get a little better and different result if the AE2 be replaced by Sonus Faber E. Amator 2, for more ease and beauty in the mid to high with also quite solid bass but a little bit less authority and definition. I heard them hooked on my Monarchy's with Maridian 508.24 w/o the HT cables. It's an alternative I'd love too if I could get SF Amator2 used.

Some caution when using AE2: Have a solid stand! I couldn't stand the sound when I first tried them on a pair of $100 stands. Also, the HT Pro11+ are quite essential to my above listening experience. I used Audiodyne and the HF was sometimes quite annoying and bass was a bit too tight. With HT Pro11+, everything got much better to a level I never thought of possible form speaker cable changes. Everything seems at ease now with gentler highs and more extended bass. And fine details come through NATURALLY without attention being caught to any part of the tone. At first, it felt as if they were less dynamic, but in truth after getting used you will find their reproduction sounds 'righter' and the perceived lack of dynamic is actually due to the removal of 'wrong' noise associated with other cables. Sorry, it's getting too long. It's just to say that AE2 might be picky as to the complementary pieces in your system. To be safe, I'd recommend tune amps to embelish the sound a bit, if you don't have my system.

I have a set of Acoustic Energy AE2 Ref. speakers($5K) and have owned the standard AE2's($2K) in the past. The things I love about AE2's are that they have an incredibly tight detailed base and a very life-like mid-range. Also they are a sensible size so are ideal for the average house.
The AE2's are a very revealing speaker and will show up any faults in the source components/recordings. In real terms those recordings don't sound any better through less-revealing speakers, you just know that the AE2's can deliver far better! Also you need a fairly big amp to drive them, they have a low(ish) impedance and love to be driven hard.

Also at high volumes a slight harshness of sound can occur, expecially on the standard series speakers. Most users won't find this a problem unless you are planning to get rid of your neighbours!! Also fork out and buy the proper stands for them, I used to run a pair on some old Target stands and there is no comparison.

The AE2 Ref. is a great speaker and I would highly recommend it for anyone looking for a small reference hifi speaker. Make sure that the rest of your kit is up to delivering the goods though as crap in will really be heard as crap out!

Happy listening!

Excellent Speaker! Auditioned it next to Sonus Faber Concerto and Electas. Though the AE2 was a tad more expensive, it was well worth it! Much tighter, deeper bass than the Fabers, and the Fabers sounded too bright in my room.

Bass drum hits (at about 32hz) are nice and solid with these speakers in my listening room.

The two bass units have about 1 inch excursion, and it really shows on low ORGAN music! Be careful not to wreck the drivers with LOUD LOW BASS (low as in under 20hz)...

Excellent Speakers. If you are looking for speakers in the $1k to $4k range, check out these speakers!

Hi-Fi presentation

musacality

Owned AE2 ser.2 for several months. Below my expectation. Too much Hi-Fi, not enough musical. Fatigue after 2 hours of listening. Definitely not comparable with Sonus Faber Electa Amator 1; hard to say if compared with Electa Amator 2. Would trade for more "musical" speakers. Maybe Ensemble Animata.

Similar Products Used:

Sonus Faber Electa Amator I

Transperent and fine detail

alittle forward sound, too lean and no deep bass

I like the appearance of its but what about sound well, to my ear it alittle too forward and lean sound. I was imprees by detail and transperent when i first hear them. After a couple of cds, i find it too lean and dose not have the bass that i like. So i would rate it 3 for the sound, 5 for the look and 4 for value.

No active discussions in this forum. I only want to say: I love my AE2's. Enjoy the music. Superb for Jazz and classical.