Epos M16 loudspeakers

 

The Epos M16  floorstanding systems

The latest in the Epos range of real-wood floor standing speakers, the M16 is all about accuracy, dynamics and poise. It will perform well in 2 channel or home theater systems.

The Epos M16 is new a floor-standing, rear-ported, two and a half way speaker finished in a polished real-wood veneer. It is supplied with a custom wooden plinth which can be used with four 6mm carpet spikes, which can be adjusted to make the cabinet tilt backwards, if required.

Two and half way means that the bass and mid-bass drivers are run in parallel at some frequencies. The bass driver is filtered with an inductor to limit its upper frequency response to about 150Hz. Below that the two drivers work as one to reinforce the power and dynamics of this relatively small speaker. This design has the mid-bass and bass drivers running in separate,

sealed chambers.

The Tweeter

Tweeter is similar to that used in all the M series products. It uses a 25mm diameter 50 micro thick aluminium dome with ferro-fluid cooling and neodymium magnet system. This improves power handling and because all Epos tweeters are designed to produce a low distortion output down to 500Hz, it creates a very wide and open sound stage in the mid-range.

 

The Midrange

The M16′s 130mm (5 1/2′′) midrange driver is an all new device, which has been evolved from the M5′s design. It features an alloy chassis for strength and a moulded polypropylene cone for fast and accurate signal handling. It has a solid phase plug and a powerful, magnetically shielded, motor system to allow it to handle high powered signals.

 

The Bass

The 130mm (5 1/2′′) bass driver is similar to the midrange but has lower impedance and also uses a dust cap to cover the voice coil former and not a phase plug. With its ventilated voice coil, it is capable handling extremely high power. It is recommended that it be partnered with an amplifier that is capable of driving a 4 Ohm load to high power levels.

 

The M16 has been evolved from the design of the M5, which means that it does have a multi-element crossover filter for the middle and high frequencies, which is positioned in the top chamber nearest to the drivers. It also has a single inductor for the bass, together with a conjugate circuit to flatten the response in the upper bass region where the mid-bass and bass driver sum their output, to remove the effect of chestiness which can be undesirable especially when listening to male

voices. The bass crossover filter is located in the bottom chamber to avoid magnetic interference with the middle and high frequency filter.

 

Connection to the M16 is tri-wirable through three pairs of metal binding posts, situated at the bottom of the cabinet to help keep speaker cabling more tidy. The internal wiring uses solid core DNM wire.

The rear port has been constructed from machined MDF trumpet shape, which has been sprayed to cosmetically match the finish of the cabinet. The tube length is adjusted to produce deep bass output down to 40 Hz. At the inside end of the port tube, another machined MDF wooden trumpet shape helps to avoid wind turbulence from interfering with the overall performance of the speaker. This turbulence can be a common problem in ported designs.

 

The M16 is perfect as a high performance 2 channel floor-standing monitor. However, it has also been engineered with home theatre application in mind. Its design improves imaging and enhances the pace, rhythm and timing characteristics that have long been the hallmark of Epos speaker systems.

If used as the front left and right speakers in a home theatre application, the choice of either M12.2 or M5 speakers for the rear together with the M8 centre channel and new M subwoofer guarantees a cinema speaker package of the highest order.

 

Specifications:

Power Handling:  150 Watts Max

Frequency Response:  48 Hz – 20 kHz

Impedance:  4 Ohms Nominal

Sensitivity:  88dB/1 watt/1 metre

Amplifier Compatibility:  25 – 150 Watt

Configuration:  2 1/2 Way

Dimensions (W x H x D):  174 x 875 x 210 mm

Weight:  15kg

Finish Type:  Real Wood Veneer

Finishes:  Light Cherry, Dark Cherry, Black Ash

Epos Elan 30 loudspeakers

The Elan 30 is the second largest floor-stand speaker in this new range. 

Its design holds true to the purist principles followed by Epos. The two woofers work together at low frequencies to provide even higher sensitivity and power handling than the bookshelf models in addition to delivering deeper and more powerful bass. We believe this design philosophy delivers the very best sound

quality and musical performance for the money.

Only the finest real-wood veneers are selected, book-matched and hand-laid. Several coats of polyurethane are applied and polished for a high-quality finish. To minimise unwanted vibration and coloration, extensive horizontal and vertical internal bracing are positioned inside the sturdy 18mm thick MDF cabinets. For optimum performance and stability, they should be fitted with the plinths

supplied, together with the adjustable spiked feet, designed to decouple unwanted energy from the cabinet into the floor.

The Elan 30 is supplied with two baffles. The standard audiophile baffle with no visible fixing screws is fitted. If required, this can easily be swapped for the alternative cloth covered version, which is designed with the same profile as the naked baffle. Both types of baffle fit snugly around the tweeter and are both gently contoured around the woofers. So, unlike a conventional grille frame, there are no obstructions or sharp edges to cause reflections and sound colorations. The sound from both types of baffle will therefore sound similar

 

Tweeter

Epos has developed a soft-dome tweeter for the Epic and Elan range. By using virtual-performance CAD simulation tools, this new tweeter has been designed to achieve the accuracy and speed of a metal dome but with smoothness associated with a soft dome. It has a low resonance frequency, high sensitivity and extended high frequency response. With its 25mm (one inch) doped-fabric dome, short horn, high-temperature Ferro-fluid cooled voice-coil and shielded neodymium magnet, it is capable of high output levels for extended periods. Its natural high sensitivity is necessary to match the much increased output from the new bass and mid-range

drivers.

 

Mid-Bass

A long-throw 8 Ohm 156mm bass/mid driver has been developed for the Elan 30. Built on to an open-frame cast-aluminium alloy chassis, with a generously ventilated spider and vented magnet pole, this driver minimises colorations and distortions while allowing greater sound pressure levels than earlier Epos drivers.

The bass/mid units feature a high-quality polypropylene cone and bullet-shaped dust cap. These form a stiff yet pliable, well-damped structure which retains its shape, even at high power. This helps the woofers to produce a dynamic sound, with a very even frequency response and naturally smooth roll-off. The lower woofer is rolled-off (filtered) above 800Hz by the crossover, allowing the top mid-woofer to play bass and mid-range smoothly. The mid-woofer is rolled-off (filtered) at 3.6 kHz by the crossover to integrate properly with the tweeter. This is essentially a true 2-1/2 way configuration.

Both woofers are loaded by a very large diameter port, flared at both ends, to reduce turbulence. Together they produce plenty of clean deep bass coupled with a clear, smooth and detailed mid-range.

A special feature of this floor-standing speaker is its high sensitive, making it suitable for use with a wide range of amplifiers, from as small as 12.5 Watts to as large as 150 watts into 4 Ohms. So, tube fans should find this amp a perfect match.

 

Crossover

In typical Epos fashion, the Elan 30 crossover is as simple as we can make it: both the woofer and tweeter networks are 2nd order filters at 800 Hz and 3.6k Hz. To ensure the highest sound quality, all the resistors are metal oxide, all the capacitors are high-quality polypropylene-foil dielectric types, and internal wiring uses proprietary solid-core wire covered in a sponge sheath. Inductors

are designed for low distortion even at high powers: air-core for the tweeter and an over-sized laminated-iron core for the woofer. All connections to drive units and crossover are hand soldered. The input terminals are bi-wiring, using a proprietary metal terminal panel with solid metal binding post equipped for 4mm plus and large spade lugs.

 

Specifications

Power Handling:  150 Watts unclipped speech and music

Frequency Response:  45 Hz – 25,000 Hz

Impedance:  4 Ω  (nominal)

Sensitivity:  92dB (2,83V/1m)

Amplifier Compatibility:  20 – 120 Watts

Positioning:  Not less than 10 cm (4′′) from rear wall

Drivers (Magnetically shielded.)

Tweeter:  1 x Epos 25 mm soft dome with high-temperature voice coil, ferrofluid cooling and neodymium magnet system.

Bass/Midrange:  2 x Epos mid bass 156 mm, with cast chassis, 25mm high-temperature voice coil and polypropylene cone.

Crossover Frequencies: 800 Hz and 3,600 Hz

Crossover:

Bass and tweeter networks both use 2nd order filters. Only metal oxide resistors and polypropylene film capacitors are used for optimum sound quality. The tweeter section has an air-cored inductor, and the woofer section features a large-core laminated-iron inductor for low distortion and high power handling, all to ensure the very highest sound quality.

Terminal Panel:  Bi-wirable. Can be single or double wired by removing shorting links provided.

Internal Wiring:  Solid-core Audiophile grade copper cable

Cabinet:  18mm MDF wrap and front baffle, extensively braced internally

Finish:  Cherry, Black Oak or Rose Wood real-wood veneer

Griless:  Removable  ‘audiophile’ grille fitted as standard, Alternative cloth-covered grilles are packed as accessories.

dimensions (W x H x D):  850 x 185 x 289 mm  (33,5" x 8,3" x 11,4")

Weight:

Single Speaker:  16,9 kg  (37,2 lb)

Shippment:  21 kg (46,2 lb)