About The Wharfedale Elysian 2 Speakers
The Wharfedale Elysian 2 is a large 3-way stand mount speaker that comes into its own when used with its matching Elysian 2 speaker stands. Wharfedale have basically used every trick in their extensive speaker designing handbook to make these possibly the best stand mount speakers they have ever made. They have been created to reproduce all types of music in any reasonable size room and deserve to be on your short list if you are considering a top tier stand mount speaker system.
Wharfedale Wireless Works was founded by Gilbert Briggs in 1932, soon after he built his very first loudspeaker in the cellar of his home in Ilkley, Yorkshire. This sleepy little market town was located in the valley of the river "Wharfe" – an area known to this day as 'Wharfedale'. This unlikely location would see the birth of a brand that has become recognized all over the world, synonymous with quality in high-fidelity reproduction.
In 1981 the first Wharfedale Diamond speaker was born. The rather unassuming small box took the industry by storm. Small cabinets and the stiff, yet light polypropylene driver meant a very fast, tight sound and compact, accurate two-way drivers produced a fantastic stereo image. It quickly became a best seller and the Diamond range has continued to this day as a staple in the Wharfedale catalogue.
Now, with more than 75 years of setting the standards in perfecting loudspeaker performance, Wharfedale, in order to remain at the forefront of audio, has dedicated 1.5 million square feet to design & manufacturing in which every single product and process takes place in-house. With this ability to control every single part of the process, Wharfedale's speakers achieve a harmony in performance and design rarely seen elsewhere.
3-Way Driver Design: The Wharfedale Elysian 2 stand mount loudspeaker employs a 3-way driver design with finely balanced driver selection, expertly designed crossover network, and finely-tuned ported cabinet. The Elysian 2 houses a 3.5" (89mm) AMT (Air Motion Transformer) tweeter, one 6" (152mm) coated fiberglass midrange driver, and one 8.5" (216mm) coated fiberglass cone bass woofer for full-range sound that is natural, transparent, and realistic.
Air Motion Transformer Tweeter: The AMT (Air Motion Transformer) is a radically different way of moving air. A large, pleated, lightweight diaphragm is driven across its surface by rows of strategically placed metallic strips immersed in a strong magnetic field. Under the influence of the musical drive the pleats in the diaphragm contract and expand, squeezing the air between them to form the desired waveform. Not only is this an efficient way of moving air but it is also very accurate as the diaphragm is under close control of the motor system at all times. In addition the AMT is a velocity, rather than pressure, transducer, capable of producing extremely fast transients and dynamics. The result is a wide bandwidth device that achieves low distortion naturally and delivers wonderful musical detail.
Fibre Cone Midrange & Bass Drivers: Determined to match the sensitivity and accuracy of the AMT, Wharfedale settled on a unique woven glass fibre matrix for the cone material of the midrange and bass drivers, which gives a wonderful combination of low mass and strength, and then gave this a coating of high plasticity to control its acoustic behaviour. With such a low mass only a low-damping, foamed rubber-like material would match for the surround, again coated for durability. A central phase plug is specially shaped to linearize the output across a wide bandwidth, even well off-axis, enhancing a natural response to the music which can be heard anywhere you wish to sit. You'll hear vocal and instruments that sound natural and real.
Expertly Designed Advanced Crossover: Combining the outputs of the drivers is an advanced computer modelled crossover that has been developed over hundreds of hours of listening tests, fine-tuned to make sure that the blend between the drive units is seamless. Of particular note is the phase consistency across the drive unit output, allowing a wide range of seating positions and encouraging the power response to be highly linear throughout your listening room. Wharfedale has only used the highest grade, acoustically transparent components throughout the crossover construction, ensuring that you hear all the musical detail. You'll hear the full body of instruments without straining to enjoy the complete dynamics of your music. Whether you are listening to solo piano, a full orchestra, a jazz trio or multi-instrument rock performance, Elysian is more than capable of bringing the thrill and excitement of the performance into your home.
SLPP (Slot Loaded Profiled Port): Elysian utilizes Wharfedale's most advance version of their slot port technology, SLPP (Slot Loaded Profiled Port). The lowest frequency energy from the bass woofers are vented to a slot at the base of the speaker, specially profiled to equalize the high internal pressure to the low pressure in the room. Overall system sensitivity is high at 89dB (2.83V @1m) allowing your amplifier to reveal the full dynamic range of the music fed to it without any strain or limitation. In combination the bass woofers and SLPP bass reflex system provide the massive foundation on which the rest of the musical performance sits, letting you feel as well as hear the full impact of low frequency information.
Dual Binding Posts: The Elysian 2 stand mount loudspeaker has two sets of binding posts connected by jumper-straps. The binding posts will accept bare wire (up to 10AWG), pin connectors, spade connectors, & banana plugs (single only). Using these dual binding posts, you can bi-amp or bi-wire the speakers. Bi-wiring or bi-amping the speaker can provide improved bass & treble performance.
- Bi-Wiring: Bi-wiring can provide noticeable improvements in the overall transparency of your loudspeakers. Run separate speaker wires to the low & high frequency drivers from a single amplifier (the upper set of binding posts are for the high frequency drivers; the lower set of binding posts are for the low frequency drivers).
- Bi-Amping: Bi-amping allows you to use separate amplifiers for the high & low frequency sections of your loudspeaker for greater dynamic range & lower distortion. We recommend that your separate amplifiers have identical gain to preserve the speaker's voicing balance.
- Note: If you decide to bi-wire or bi-amp, you must remove the jumpers between the terminal posts (failure to do this could result in damage to your amplifier and loudspeakers).
Mounting & Placement Options: If you are sitting within 2 metres of a pair of Elysian Series speakers, the distance between the speakers should be the same as between you and the speakers. Otherwise sit the speakers between 1.5 and 2 metres apart, clear of rear walls and room corners. If the loudspeakers are placed too close to the walls the bass will increase but may be boomy and indistinct. If the loudspeakers are placed further away from the walls, the inward angle ("toe-in") may be increased by up to 30%. As personal taste and room acoustics play a large role, experiment with different configurations and play a wide range of music before finalizing the position of the speakers.
The optimum listening position is in an area between the speakers broadly known as the "sweet spot". The more extreme the angle of toe-in the narrower the sweet spot. Wharfedale loudspeakers are designed to cover a wide sonic perspective so there should be no need for extreme settings. A mild angle inwards will cover a wide range of seating positions. The grilles are provided to protect the loudspeaker drive units from accidental damage. For critical listening, please remove the grilles.
Main Features & Specifications
- 3-Wriver, 3-Way Stand Mount Design
- Stand: Optional Elysian 2 Speaker Stands available
- 27 x 89mm (1.06 x 3.5") Air Motion Transformer (AMT) tweeter
- 152mm (6") coated fiberglass matrix midrange driver
- 216mm (8.5") coated fiberglass matrix woofer
- Frequency response: 35-22,000 Hz (±3dB)
- Bass Extension (-6dB): 28Hz
- Recommended amplifier power: 25-250 watts
- Sensitivity: 89 dB (2.83V @1m)
- Nominal impedance: 4 ohms
- Bass reflex design with port on the underside of the enclosure
- Two sets of binding post speaker terminals allow bi-amping or bi-wiring
- Removable magnetic grille
- Finishes: Piano Black, Piano Walnut, Piano White
- Dimensions (WxHxD): 334 x 700 x 462mm
- Weight: 30.5 kg each
- Manufacturer's Warranty: 5 Years
Note: Features & Specifications Subject To Change Without Notice. E&OE: Records Shown Sold Separately