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Every speaker is different. Believe us we know. We have tested dozens of them and they all sound different. And that, of course, is what makes this hobby so fascinating. Sure, anyone can put a tweeter and a woofer in a cabinet, but whether the music will touch you… that question still remains. Whether the Elac Uni-Fi Reference UBR62 succeeds…? Please read on. There are only a few people who really know how to put together a speaker and one of them is Andrew Jones. The man is a genius or at least a craftsman. We have already tested several of his speakers and have his excellent Elac Carina BS243.4 on long-term loan. Thanks Servi-Q (Dutch importer for Elac).
Also today we have a speaker from his hand in the listening room. To be exact, the Elac Uni-Fi Reference UBR62. This series will be Jones’ last achievement for Elac. What is so special about the UBR62 (we shorten it from here) and how it sounds we like to tell in the story below. Enjoy!
The Elac UBR62
The Elac Uni-Fi Reference UBR62 is quite a large bookshelf (h36xd30xb21) made of MDF with rounded corners and is neatly finished. The walnut version is not really our thing although it is the best selling version in many countries. We’d rather see the the oak version with white front; that looks much more modern and will fit into any contemporary interior.
Attention to positioning and providing a solid stand delivers a lot of profit with the UBR62. In any case, our IsoAcoustics Aperta’s made quite a difference.Â
The Elac UBR62 is not a statement product but a further development of the popular Uni-Fi series. The term Uni-Fi not only refers to the name but also to the system itself. The UBR62 uses the principle of a point source that by means of a so-called dual concentric system houses both the tweeter and the mid-driver.
Immediately below this is a 16.5 cm aluminum woofer. A three-way speaker and we do not see that often in this price range. Personally we prefer a two-way system but we are going to see. And of course listen carefully to Andrew Jones’ design. The elongated bass port where the air can leave from both outside and inside, completes the front of this special speaker
Innovative
At the back we see two pairs of speaker terminals for bi-wiring or bi-amping. With this three-way system, we can imagine something about that. Still, we think few people will bi-wire or bi-amp these speakers. However, the drive is an important fact because with a sensitivity of 85db in 6 ohms this speaker requires a decent and mostly, a stable amplifier. So saving on your amplifier is not an option.
Furthermore, a frequency range of 41Hz to 35kHz is indicated which seems a bit on the optimistic side to us at the bass-end. This speaker weighs almost 11 kg which is mainly due to the numerous reinforcements inside and the use of a new magnet. All in all, then, there are quite a few adjustments in this new Uni-Fi Reference series.
