Intro
Contents
Nice stuff. Who doesn’t like it. A beautiful lamp, a nice painting or a cool chair. We like to surround ourselves with beautiful objects, but until recently our hi-fi stuff seriously cursed with our interior. In recent years, however, audio manufacturers have paid more attention to the appearance of their products. Think of the colorful Focal Kanta, the industrial Ps Audio Stellar series or the stylish Sonus Faber Sonetto I to name a few. We now look at something from Germany: the Audio Physic Classic 5
A manufacturer that for years is committed to pure lines and sleek looks is the German Audio Physic. They develop and build their loudspeakers integrally in Germany. Each speaker is meticulously checked before leaving the Brilon factory. The company has been building up a loyal client base for 25 years now. Their new budget-friendly Audio Physic Classic 5 fully meets the requirements of the modern buyer looking for a compact, affordable floorstander that can be perfectly integrated into the living room.
Of course the sound has to be at the same level, but that doesn’t seem to be a real issue anymore in recent years. Over the past year, we’ve had dozens of items on the floor and none of them are underperforming. On the contrary, a lot of things perform excellently for the money and sometimes even above their price range. The main thing now is to find the sound that suits your preference and space or to see which functions you want. In addition, all components must get along well with each other so that the sound is balanced. Let’s see what the Audio Physic Classic 5 all in store for us.
Construction method
We can be brief about appearances. The white (Satin White) version is very handsome and fits perfectly in our listening room. So good, in fact, that throughout the review period we get a lot of positive comments about this slim, compact loudspeaker. The black elements, such as the tweeter, woofer and base, contrast nicely with the white cabinet and blend seamlessly into each other. The proportions are good and nowhere do we see a disturbing element. This loudspeaker looks contemporary and is in reality even more beautiful than in the pictures. If you prefer a different version, you can choose between Black Ash, Cherry or Walnut.
This two-way speaker has a classic construction with a silkdome tweeter and a fiberglass woofer. No exotic materials, but both components have been specially developed for the Classic 5 and each has its own interpretation. For example, the tweeter sits a little deeper in its separate housing, like a horn loudspeaker, in order to keep the cooperation with the woofer optimal and also reduce reflections. A proven recipe at Audio Physic.
The motor (magnet) on the woofer is based on a kind of Piston system, similar to our Audio Vectors, giving the woofer more space to move back and forth. This system should ensure a faster response and better control of the music signal. In any case, the system works very well on our Audio Vectors and we are therefore very curious whether this floorstander will also play fast and tight.
Rank and slim
You can leave this speaker on its base, put it on spikes or add the optional VCF feet that Audio Physic has specially developed to reduce vibrations. At the back we see a small bass port at the top and one pair of quality speaker connections at the bottom. The Audio Physic Classic 5 is only 95cm high, 17cm wide and 23cm deep.
The previously tested Monitor Audio Silver 300 was only a little higher and wider but still the Classic 5 seems a lot slimmer. An ideal loudspeaker for a modern, smaller listening room.
The small bass port means you don’t have to place this speaker too far from the rear wall. A trend we see more often lately. With a sensitivity of 89db, this loudspeaker is not really difficult to drive and the Bryston B60r keeps it tight in line without any problems. But yeah, that’s Bryston’s strength. Yet the Classic 5 likes quality watts to perform well. For example, the Primare I15, which we recently tested, is also doing fine.
