I recently purchased a pair of Celestion A2 speakers. The A2s fall betweenthe A1 (small bookshelf 2-way) and the A3 (large floorstanding tower 3-way).
The A2s are a small tower (35.5x9.5x15", 65 lbs), and I have them elevated about
2.5 feet off the ground, 3 feet away from the back walls. The A2 is described
as a two and a half way speaker. They have two 7 inch woofers and a metal dome
tweeter sandwiched in-between them. They may be bi-wired or bi-amped, but I do
not have them set up that way. The A2s are ported in the back.

I have them hooked up to a fully-restored Pioneer SX-1250 receiver, with standard
14 gauge speaker wire, a Sony CDP-608ESD CD player, and Monster Cable interconnects.
The receiver is set to bypass all tone controls.

These speakers reveal a lot of detail in any musical material. Bass is there easily
down to 40 Hz, but not boomy. Midrange is crystal clear and effortlessly reproduced.
The treble is a bit forward compared to my other speakers (Advent Heritage) but it is
not at all irritating or distracting to me. The speakers image very well, but at
garden-level, I am getting some reflections from my room which detracts from the effect.
The Celestion A2s make it very easy to pick out instruments, as well as creating one
of the best sound-stage presentations I've heard. On some material (Michael Hedges,
Watching My Life Go By; Sarah MacLachlan, Surfacing) the live performance feel is
astonishing. Voices sound natural and wonderfully present.

I think these speakers need a bigger room than what I can give them - they
can play at very loud levels without sounding harsh - but I do notice substantial
wall reflections at those volumes - a large room with a vaulted ceiling rising away from
the speakers would be the ideal set up. Cement walls are always a challenge.

The craftsmanship of the A2s is second-to-none. I have them with the rosewood
finish (all 6 sides). Build quality is the best I've ever seen.

I have yet to hear the A3s. Sources tell me the sound is similar to the A2, but with
much more pronounced bass - which would probably totally overwhelm my small room. If
you are looking for speakers that produce a finely-detailed presentation, and your
music preferences tend more toward acoustic, traditional jazz, and classical - these
speakers may be your cup of tea. For rock, these speakers may be overkill in midrange
and treble - and come up a little short in bass. As always, listen before you buy.

For more details and photos of the A2 and other Celestion speakers, check out:

http://www.hk.super.net/~khapg/celestion.htm

--Michael Bishop

I am at the point of buying new speakers. The last couple of years I had a pair of Driade 9 speakers, which look superb, but the sound of it never really engaged me.
The CDM-7 SE's are high on my list, although I am also still considering other B&W's (P4/5; CDM-1 SE)
and even speakers from other manufacturers, like the
Dali 450/850,
Celestion A1/2,
Mission 753,
KEF Q55/65,
Castle Avon/Harlech,
Acoustic Energy 109/120,
Monitor Audio MA 70# PMC,
Ruark Acoustic Scepter
So, it's obvious I still have quite a lot of listening to do.

My amp and CD are from Harman/Kardon (6500 and 730, resp.) wired with Van Den Hul cables and interlink. At this moment the CDM-7 SE's have my preference but I don't know how they hook up with my amp and CD. Your experience on any of these speakers or suggestions are highly welcome.

I purchased the Celestion A2 speakers after owning a pair of Celestion 7's from the old "units series" and loving those speakers sweet, clear midrange presentation and tight, controlled bass. The A2's are better speakers of course (and much more expensive) but I am well satisfied. These speakers are very even handed, with an unforced, natural sound that is unfatiguing. Bass is extended and powerful without the exaggeration I hear in so many others. Vocals in particular are beautifully handled. Fit and finish are outstanding.

Very tight and controlled base. Warm and musical mids. Good seperation of voices and soundstage.

Not a speaker for the avid classical music lover.

I auditioned these at a friends house and compared them to a pair of home built speakers of similar MTM design. I was very impressed. Even at the retail cost these are great speakers. As many have noted, they have fantasic base response for a smaller (but heavy at 70# each!) pair of towers that are good looking to boot. These will easily make it past the wife factor. The warm tone of these speakers combined with the solid base response makes them a natural for jazz and rock/popular. Chamber music seemed to get a little muddy in the low mids and perhapse a touch trebely as well. Still, these flaws were minor in magnitude.

Similar Products Used:

NHT, Maggies(?not quite the same?), Vifa homebuilt MTMs, Kestrels, B&W, Monitor Audio

phenomenal bass

tweeter can sound bright

l like most types of music except barber shop singing! the A2s are happy enough being close to a back wall which reinforces the bass but not in an unpleasant way. they go very loud with even a small amp but need the benefit of an amp with a fairly high current output, much more important than pure watts. their midband is not outstanding but dynamics are. the boxes are very heavy and they are very well built.

Similar Products Used:

castle howard

I bought a pair of celestion A2 about a month ago. This pair of speakers really blow me away from simple music to home theatre there's not one area that the speakers can't and doesn't excel. Bass is deep and powerful without overbearing. Music sound sweet without tinny effect that you hear from most speakers. In short, reference quality.

Previously mentioned

Previously mentioned

Just a follow-up to my previous review and to correct a pricing error. I demoed both the A1s and A2s before ultimately deciding upon the A2s. The A1s were at half price but I kept the A2s because the midrange was smoother, more articulate and the lower end was more extended for my 2-channel listening needs. The A1s, however, would work beautifully as rear speakers in a surround set-up and in 5.1 stereo. Both the A1s & A2s are video shielded, as are the A3s.

Similar Products Used:

Infinity RS-5s, Celestion A1s

Crisp Highs, Silky Midrange, Controlled Bass, Tonality, Bi-Wireable...Everything.

None

After finally deciding to step up into entry-level hifi, the first thing I purchased was the amazing A2s. Hifi.com (terrific to work with) was closing them out at half price last December so I snatched up a pair sight unseen, sound unheard.

Even right out of the box, they sounded, well just right. My old RS-4s, albiet a descent floorstander, sound colored (though they work well in my home theater rig now) and "forced." The Celestions, in word, sound natural. It emits such beautiful, smooth sound, and handles anything I throw it at with poise and finesse.

The best thing I might be able to say about these incredibly well-built, heavy floorstanders, is what they did to my old, cheap Sony STR DE845 DD Receiver and Sony XA1ES CD Player. The A2s actually tamed the tinniness and brought these lower level components to life, even with run-of-the-mill interconnects. You can't image how well my Celestions sound now that I've brought home new additions to the family: Rotel's 1060a Integrated Amp and Cambridge Audio's D300SE CD Player.

If you can find these English beauties, don't hesitate to buy them.

Similar Products Used:

Infinity RS-4s

I bought a pair of Celestion A2's and the matching 4Ac center channel for my home theater set-up about a year ago. From sound to cabinet finish I could'nt be more impressed. Unlike the other review here I do not have them elevated. My primary seating position is a reclined La-Z-Boy and that puts me ear level with them. The detail they give on all recorded music as well as movie soundtracks is amazing. I have a Dolby Digital 5.1 system and use two subs, a 10 inch M&K and a 12 in. AR so very low bass is not an issue in my use of the A2's. If I had been familiar with Celestion quality at the time I purhased the subs, however, I would have gone with the Celestion sub. Voice and piano are probable the most striking. The new detail you can here on music you've heard many times befor is always the sign you've made a move up. I use a pair of monopole Snell speakers for the rear surrounds but am so pleased with the Celestions I am about to purchase a pair of A1's to replace them. Yes, I'm one of those people that prefers a direct radiating speaker on surrounds as opposed to a di of tri-pole.I happen to have the cherry finish (several hundred cheaper than the rose). The finish is immaculate. The A series are well worth checking out. A little pricey for some of us at MSRP, about $2500 for the A2s but I shopped and found them for $1300, a real bargin. The A1's run about $900 if you shop around and I would recommend using them with a subwoofer even though they produce usable bass down to around 30Hz. Give them a listen! You won't regret it!

Very good bass,midrange, Plays all music very well

Needs to be elevated ...the tweeter is below listening level

I had a pair of JM Lab 905's for about 2 months and found them to be an excellent speaker. They matched up, I thought, very well with my system which consists of a Copland Integrated,Classe' CD 1, Cardas Golden Cross interconnects and Cardas Neutral Reference biwired speaker cables. When I was at the audio store in Windsor I saw these speakers and thought they sounded pretty good. So I took them home to try and I was astounded. (so were 2 other audio friends) They played ALL music very well, something that the JM Labs didn't do. Some of the Christian rock cd's I have I found that I wasn't playing as much because they sounded a little harsh on the Labs, but everything I played just sounded fantastic. I have had the local cabinet maker make me a solid cherry box filled with lead shot and sand and spiked on the bottom.
These are by far the best speaker I have owned and have taken home to try out.

Similar Products Used:

JM Lab 905,Totem Tabu,Mission 754, Mission 753,Linn Helix, Linn Kelidh,