QuadESL-2905usedQuad ESL-2905I've been in the audio business for 30 years and feel Quad electrostatics are one of the most musically accurate loudspeakers regardless of price. The quad family of electrostatics are probably th...4495.00

Quad ESL-2905

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Ships fromFairport, NY, 14450
Ships toUnited States
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I've been in the audio business for 30 years and feel Quad electrostatics are one of the most musically accurate loudspeakers regardless of price. The quad family of electrostatics are probably the most highly reviewed speakers and reproduce inner detail, imaging and the timbre of music better than any other loudspeakers in my opinion. I have a mint condition of 2905 quads that are in excellent physical condition and sound lovely. The Cary audio preamp and power amp listed below sound fantastic with the Quads and have compared the Cary 200.2 ES power amp to several premium tube amplifiers and preferred the Cary.

Absolute Sound:

Paul Seydor’s reviews of the newer Quad ESLs had captured my attention, and I was looking for a pair of ribbon or electrostatic speakers to serve as a sonic contrast to the Vandersteen 5As I use as a reference. I was also looking for speakers light enough to make moving them practical when I had to adjust a system to review new components. (A problem that made me give up on the massive—but otherwise superb—TAD-1s).

I started by listening to ribbons and taller planers and electrostatics, but height and listening room characteristics made the room a difficult one for the Magneplanar 20.1s and other “tall” planar speakers. I’d been impressed by Jonathan and Paul’s reviews of the new electrostatics, and I’d been impressed by my own earlier listening. As a result, I moved on to the Quad 2905s.

I’m more than glad that I did. I won’t repeat all the details of Jonathan’s excellent review here (TAS, issue 186, November 2008). I would, however, like to reinforce some of his comments and add several notes about how to use the Quad 2905s.

First, let me reinforce the fact that the Quad 2905 is an extraordinarily accurate and realistic speaker with superb midrange performance, very good highs, and extremely accurate bass down to something approaching the deep bass (flat to below 45Hz with pink noise even at average levels of 90dB and useful response to around 31Hz). In fact, I was surprised to find that I could raise the volume to levels louder than I want to hear with the strongest and deepest organ passages on a truly demanding recording like the Jean Guillou performance of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition [Dorian Dor-90117]. A lot of large cone woofers give out or distort sharply on this recording long before the Quad 2905s do.

But, the 2905 is not a “rock speaker,” if rock means super-loud. I don’t want to call it an “acoustic” speaker because it does just fine with reasonable electronic recordings, but ultra-loud is not its natural forte. I also did encounter times when the protection circuits kicked for reasons I could not initially understand, although it turned out that the speakers were actually functioning perfectly. The 2905s sometimes shut down in passages with average listening levels be well below their design limits, which equates to around 103dB in my listening room.

The problem turned out to be that if a recording has massive amounts of deep electronic bass at frequencies you can’t hear, or other really quick peaks that go well above 103dB, the protection circuits will kick in. Be aware that a standard analog Radio Shack SPL meter does not show this. It takes much more professional piece of equipment like the Phonic PM2 to show the real SPL level.

I would note, however, that the Quad 2905 is so clean a speaker that like its very best competition, you can find yourself underestimating the average SPL level. This works well with some music, but not with most acoustic music with significant highs and upper midrange energy. Be careful to keep the music at natural listening levels if you want the most realistic experience. Too little volume and the bass and upper octaves get lost. Too much, and the whole character of brass, woodwinds, and strings tends to brighten in the upper midrange. Second, dipoles are no harder to place than other speakers. As Roy Allison pointed out in some pioneering room measurements back in the 1960s, all reasonable listening rooms present serious speaker placement problems for all types of truly full-range speakers. In fact, I found the Quad 2905s surprisingly easy to place, and two to three feet of distance from the rear and sidewalls worked out quite well. I would, however, strongly suggest that you use at least a quarter-octave spectrum analyzer, pink noise, and bass warble tones to place them where they measure well, and then tweak by ear.

No one can hear the size and frequency of the peaks and valleys in the lowest octaves. You have to measure them to know what is happening, and inches can matter in getting rid of the worst of them in the range of positions where you listen. This is a concern with all speakers, but your experience with “boxes” may well be misleading with dipoles. You should start with some level of measurement. I use a combination of the Tact 2.2x and the Phonic PM2, but there are many programs that will work on a laptop.

I also would recommend that you try wider spacing and much sharper degrees of toe-in with the 2905s than you would with box speakers, even to the point of aiming the 2905s so each main axis crosses in front of the listening position. These are not yesterday’s Quads. Unlike the Quad 57s that I used in my first real high-end system, the 2905s do a good job of dispersing even the highest frequencies in the real world musical spectrum. Unlike both the Quad 57s and Quad 63s, they don’t need to be raised or stacked to get good vertical dispersion or limit floor and rug effects.

As is the case with most modern and flat speakers, however, their on-axis response can produce too much upper-octave energy if the speaker is aimed directly at the listening position (measures better, sounds worse). Moreover, diploes generally sound better if they are at an angle to the corners, rather than parallel to them, or have some damping to reduce back and side reflections. (This may explain Jonathan’s comments about the occasional spotlighting of female voice. I certainly found it eliminated some emphasis on the upper voice, flute, clarinet, strings, etc.)

The 2905s also proved to be capable of a remarkably realistic three-dimensional sound stage without forcing the listener into a single spot with an unmoving head if they are toed in enough. The realism on a wide range of naturally miked, naturally positioned jazz and chamber music recordings was both extraordinary and stable. Finding the best room location is always is going to be room-specific, but do keep experimenting until you get at least very good results. The 2905s are good with all forms of music, including the most overblown and overproduced opera staging of Wagner, but they can be truly extraordinary in reproducing the soundstage you expect from the kind of solo instrument and small musical ensemble that could actually perform in your home. Don’t waste their capabilities.

Third, the 2905s don’t really need a subwoofer, but don’t be afraid of adding one if you really need the deepest bass or want to push the envelope in terms of listening levels. Using a subwoofer will have costs as well as advantages. Adding cables, using crossover components, and introducing different (i.e., non-electrostatic) drivers does have a slight sonic impact. Ideally, use a preamp with a processor loop. But, be aware that these sonic costs will only have a limited impact on the apparent realism of even the most demanding recordings if you use good subwoofers and associated equipment.

Experimenting with an advanced electronic crossover like the Tact 2.2X is probably the best way to go. However, a REL subwoofer used as a supplement to the 2905s worked fine. So did using the built-in crossovers in Velodyne DD-18, an Outlaw LFM-1, and Definitive Technology Supercube 1 subwoofer.

I got very good results in extending the bass and slightly increasing power handling using such subwoofers. I could push the deepest organ passages to their limits with both, as well as increased realism with deep electronic bass and Kodo drum recordings. I still preferred the Quad 2905s without a subwoofer for music without very deep, high-energy bass content—but not by much. Today’s subwoofers are one hell of a lot better than they have been in the past.

I also found that I could get relatively seamless and nearly flat bass down to around 28Hz using a combination of the 2905s, a Definitive Technology Supercube 1 and the manual adjustments and measurement capabilities of the Velodyne SMS-1 electronic bass unit.5 The SMS-1 is a badly neglected unit in my opinion, and if you have a serious room problem or want flatter bass with minimum grief, it really merits your attention.


I just sold my home and decided to relocate to a much smaller condo and will be selling my entire system including Martin Logan expression 11 A's, Quad 2905's, Cary Audio SLP 98-($2750 Retail $4500) preamp, Cary Audio 200.2 ES power amp ($2750 Retail $4500.00 with a three-year warranty.
Please call John Warren at 585-750-1600
Additional Information:
Feb 20, 19 11:55am
I prefer local pickup but have custom double box (box within a box) built of reinforced double-walled corrugated cardboard. The boxes will have foam inserts on all sides and the bottom and top to secure the speakers.

Questions for the seller
Would you be interested in a trade. Totem Element Metal for the Martin Logans
Yes, John Warren [filtered]

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