Three’s a charm!
By Roy Gregory
Shoot-outs and comparative reviews, bake-offs or show visits, the inevitable goal always seems to be declaring a ‘best’, a winner, a champion or state-of-the-art. Yet in audio, things are seldom so simple, not least because it’s almost impossible to listen to a component: you inevitably end up listening to a system. Even comparing one review to another is fraught with difficulties, unless those reviews share a context and a reviewer. It’s the rarest of circumstances where you get to have all three of something in the same place, at the same time and, with the time to dig a little deeper. Yet sometimes the opportunity does present itself and (within certain organisational limitations) conclusions can be drawn. This is one of those situations – although photographing all three together was a stretch too far and, to some, the conclusions will still be frustrating…
The last few months have offered the opportunity to spend serious side-by-side time with three of the leading speakers in the hotly contended, sub-100K market. Between them, the recently arrived Peak Consult El Diablo (€65,000), the latest Göbel Divin model, the compact Comtesse (€60,000) and the established but recently upgraded Stenheim Alumine 5-SX (€81,100) represent the class of the field, at least as far as box speakers that most audiophiles could both afford and actually accommodate goes. There will always be the outliers – ribbon or electrostatic panels, or high-efficiency (often part- or wholly-active) systems: think Clarisys or Avantgarde. But for the vast majority of dealers and their customers, this is where the action is. So, with three such august options in-house, wouldn’t it be remiss to avoid some direct comparisons and conclusions, if only to illuminate all three models? That’s especially true when you consider just how much all three have in common.
- All three speakers are relatively compact, three-way floor-standers.
- All three are phase-conscious designs (in which phase coherence is a major design priority).
- All three are reflex loaded.
- All three have much bigger, highly respected siblings with which they share considerable design and technological DNA (the Divin Noblesse, Stenheim Ultime 2-SX and Peak Consult Dragon Legacy).
- Both the El Diablo and the A5-SX sport the classic ‘soft-dome tweeter and twin bass units’ line-up that has become the dominant topology for compact speakers with high-end aspirations, ever since Wilson added the Puppy to their two-way WATT.
- All three pay considerable (albeit different) attention to cabinet materials and design – at once a similarity and one of the really big distinctions between them.
The details are all contained in the individual reviews:
https://gy8.eu/review/gobel-divin-comtesse-loudspeaker/
https://gy8.eu/review/the-devil-is-in-the-detail/
https://gy8.eu/review/heavy-metal/
But as far as this exercise goes, it’s worth summing up the broad differences, at least on paper.
| Stenheim Alumine 5-SX | Peak Consult El Diablo | Göbel Divin Comptesse | |
| Nominal Impedance | 8Ω | 5Ω | 4Ω |
| Minimum Impedance | 3Ω | 5Ω (impedance controlled) | 3.3Ω |
| Sensitivity | 94db | 90dB | 89dB |
| Dimensions (HxWxD) | 127 x 28 x 38 (width of foot, 48) | 115 x 30 x 45 | 100 x 30.5 x 45 |
| Bandwidth | 28Hz – 35kHz | None stated | 28Hz – 28kHz |
| Weight | 139kg (including the SX base) | 90kg each. | 75kg |
Looking at the numbers is interesting, especially having listened to the speakers. On paper, the Göbel and Stenheim speakers have the same -3dB bass extension. In terms of information that might be true. In terms of bass weight, power and impact, not so much. The cabinet footprint is similar in all three cases, but the three speakers vary pretty considerably in height, especially when you add the Stenheim’s SX base into the equation. There’s around 4” between each of them, making the Göbel noticeably smaller and more visually discrete than the Stenheim. But the real distinction lies in their relative sensitivities and what they tell you about each speaker’s sound and construction. Lose the SX base and the A5 is roughly the same size as the El Diablo – yet it claims to be a whopping 4dB more sensitive. Either it’s got considerably more internal volume, or a lot less bass extension. In practice it’s a bit of both. Both the Göbel and the Peak use substantial, thick wall cabinet construction. In both cases the cabinets are constructed from material roughly 5cm thick. In contrast, the Alumine 5’s cabinet walls are nearer to 15mm thick, machined from aluminium plates with low volume damping pads attached to control their behaviour. That might not seem like a massive difference, but as pointed out in the A5 review, it amounts to a little over 60% of additional volume – and that is significant. Yes, the El Diablo goes deeper, but the Stenheim is an awful lot more willing. In the case of the Göbel, the A5 has almost twice the internal volume – for the same nominal bandwidth. Suddenly that 5dB difference in sensitivity between the two makes a whole lot of sense.
