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LOUDSPEAKERS: Does the Totem Mani-2 still rate as one of the ...

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Elac 204<br />

Mention ELAC and we<br />

think <strong>of</strong> turntables <strong>of</strong> long<br />

ago, or more recently <strong>of</strong><br />

phono cartridges. Indeed, ELAC (<strong>the</strong><br />

name is a contraction <strong>of</strong> Electroacustic)<br />

w<strong>as</strong> <strong>the</strong> first to make a relatively inexpensive<br />

phono cartridge with a Van den<br />

Hul pr<strong>of</strong>iled stylus. That turned out not<br />

to be a great idea, but its heart w<strong>as</strong> in <strong>the</strong><br />

right place.<br />

And now ELAC h<strong>as</strong> brought out <strong>the</strong><br />

first inexpensive speaker with a Heil<br />

tweeter. Not all <strong>the</strong> company’s speakers<br />

are this size or this price ei<strong>the</strong>r, but once<br />

again its heart is in <strong>the</strong> right place. Oskar<br />

Heil’s famous tweeter h<strong>as</strong> long been<br />

admired for its exemplary smoothness,<br />

and indeed for <strong>the</strong> lack <strong>of</strong> peakiness<br />

that is found in nearly all conventional<br />

tweeters.<br />

So where have we seen it before?<br />

Well, <strong>the</strong> Oskar Aulos, a smallish<br />

speaker with a similar tweeter w<strong>as</strong> on<br />

<strong>the</strong> cover <strong>of</strong> UHF No. 57. And its larger<br />

bro<strong>the</strong>r, <strong>the</strong> Kithara, w<strong>as</strong> reviewed in<br />

issue No. 59. Subsequently Albert purch<strong>as</strong>ed<br />

it. But n<strong>one</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>se speakers cost<br />

<strong>as</strong> little <strong>as</strong> this <strong>one</strong>. The finish, designed<br />

for modern decors, belies <strong>the</strong> cost, <strong>as</strong> do<br />

<strong>of</strong> course <strong>the</strong> drivers used. The wo<strong>of</strong>er<br />

is a sandwich <strong>of</strong> paper and aluminum.<br />

And <strong>the</strong> “JET” tweeter is ELAC’s own<br />

Listening Room <strong>Does</strong> <strong>the</strong> name ring a bell?<br />

34 ULTRA HIGH FIDELITY Magazine<br />

version <strong>of</strong> Oskar Heil’s “Air Motion<br />

Transformer.” From 2.8 kHz up it does<br />

<strong>the</strong> heavy lifting.<br />

We set <strong>the</strong> speakers up on our Foundation<br />

stands and connected <strong>the</strong>m to our<br />

Alpha system. It took very little fiddling<br />

with <strong>the</strong> placement before we were happy<br />

with <strong>the</strong> image and <strong>the</strong> balance. The<br />

speakers come with foam “muffs” that<br />

can be placed in <strong>the</strong> rear port for placement<br />

close to a wall, but we didn’t use<br />

<strong>the</strong>m.<br />

We opened <strong>the</strong> session with <strong>the</strong><br />

SACD version <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> famed Proprius<br />

choral recording, Now <strong>the</strong> Green Blade<br />

Riseth (PRSACD9093). We’ve heard<br />

both <strong>the</strong> male and female voices sound<br />

hideous on speakers far more expensive<br />

than <strong>the</strong>se, and we were ple<strong>as</strong>ed<br />

Summing it up…<br />

Brand/model: ELAC 204.2<br />

Price: C$1650<br />

Size (HWD): 33 x 20 x 28.5 cm<br />

Sensitivity: 88 dB<br />

Impedance (claimed): 4 ohms<br />

Most liked: Deliciously smooth highs<br />

Le<strong>as</strong>t liked: It’s a little speaker,<br />

remember?<br />

Verdict: A high end that’s really high<br />

end<br />

to note that <strong>the</strong> ELACs reproduced<br />

<strong>the</strong>m ple<strong>as</strong>antly. We were hoping for<br />

great smoothness in <strong>the</strong> highs from <strong>the</strong><br />

famous tweeter, and we got it, except<br />

for…<br />

Except for what? Do check out <strong>the</strong><br />

full version <strong>of</strong> this review in <strong>the</strong> print<br />

or electronic version.<br />

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