Can you use the Colibri C2 as a standalone speaker? Absolutely. Just don’t expect thunderous bass. What you should expect is remarkable clarity, articulation, rhythmic agility and musical connection. Choose your amp and the C2s will love you for it – and there are any number of affordable options to go for, new or secondhand. Although I ran the system with a sub permanently installed, I actually listened both with and without the additional bass unit. Depending on the choice of music and the matching amp, the C2s can do a very nice job on their own. Just understand that using them in this way, just like using any sub-compact speaker, has an editorial affect on your listening: acoustic music, small scale pieces, anything intimate and especially anything with exposed vocals and the C2s will lap it up – but we’re getting ahead of ourselves here…
The Colibri concept in the flesh…
A pair of Colibri C2 speakers and stands arrives in three, large cartons. Don’t be alarmed: the packaging is definitely a case of safety first – which is just as well, because the speakers themselves are really beautifully executed. Each cabinet has roughly the same frontal area as a traditional speaker like the Spendor BC1. The flared cabinet narrows towards the rear, the midrange horn nestled centrally in the front-facing valley. The enclosure walls are constructed of MDF, but that’s as far as conventional materials extend. The spherical horn is a flawless, fibre-glass trumpet. The end-caps are complex aluminium die-castings that incorporate fixing bosses to allow angular adjustment in horizontal disposition. Along with handles that add to the slightly ‘Pro/PA’ aesthetic. The twin bass drivers flank the midrange trumpet, nestled between extruded aluminium horn flares. The finished article is 66cm tall, 32 wide and 52cm deep. It is as reassuringly solid as it is beautifully finished. At €7,970/pr (including stands) the Colibri C2 ain’t cheap, but it certainly looks the money, an impression that is only heightened by the quality engineering and elegance of the curved chrome stand. No speaker has looked this stylish since the Gale 401 – and that’s saying something! Throw in the provision of a low-level, horizontal stand (for centre-channel) and wall brackets and you’ve got a ready made multi-channel solution too…
Next question is the provision of a sub-woofer. The Colibri range does include the C18, an impressive, 18” sub that weighs in at €4,500 a piece. Part of the Colibri concept is the idea of pairing the C2 speakers with a matching pair of C18 subs, the C2s held horizontally above the large, square frontage of the sub in a home-audio facsimile of a classic guitar combi – adding to the Pro/PA aesthetic. It’s all very New York loft, but the addition of the subs takes the Colibri system into quite another price bracket. Instead, I opted for a more modest solution, the Focal Sub 1000F (€1,000) a 12”/305mm flax-coned driver mounted in a compact, 400mm cubic box. I even curbed my audiophile tendencies to a single sub – although it took considerable self-restraint! With interest in AV and serious expertise in ICE, Focal know a thing or two about subs, and the Sub 1000 is a remarkably impressive beast that pairs perfectly with the high-level dynamic demands and articulation of the C2. Its gloss black finish is a perfect match too, while the absence of a speaker level input is further evidence that the company actually knows what it is doing.
