Acoustic Energy AE1active

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drummerman

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One thing I have to check is if there is any hiss.

Apparently Kef's wireless are free of that as are a select few others such as Nuberts Nupro A-200 and A-300.

I hope the AE1a's fall into that category as much of my listening is at quiet volumes.
 

davedotco

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drummerman said:
One thing I have to check is if there is any hiss.

Apparently Kef's wireless are free of that as are a select few others such as Nuberts Nupro A-200 and A-300.

I hope the AE1a's fall into that category as much of my listening is at quiet volumes.

Some studio type speakers appear to be susceptable to HF noise, but in my experience it is most often system dependent. My Adam Artists are absolutely silent as in fact were all the Adam models that I have tried.

With some other brands there is just enough noise to be audible within a few inches of the tweeter, which I don't have an issue with, though anything audible at 3 ft or more is unacceptable.

Some models appear to have issues when driven by unbalanced sources but are fine when driven balanced, poor design so you need to do your homework. My ultra cheap Seiwin SN4s had XLR and TRS jacks only, a simple phono - mono jack adapter 'unbalanced' the input fine, at 3 or 4 ft in a desktop situation they could not be heard.
 

Pedro2

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Yet another very positive review from Alan Sircom. The quote is from the AE website.

It appears that the only downside is the lack of deep bass but this is no surprise from a small standmount.

Then we have Issue 160 of Hi-Fi Plus magazine, where respected reviewer Alan Sircom has this conclusion for the AE1 Active “That the Acoustic Energy AE1 Active is something of a pleasant surprise is an understatement. It’s the kind of loudspeaker you could happily listen to for hours on end without the slightest complaint. It’s fast, dynamic, yet sophisticated, very open sounding across the midrange, and extends nicely into the treble without complaint or break-up. It extends that unforced, fast and open sound down into the upper bass… and then stops relatively quickly.”
 

valkyrieorion

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Anyone using this to sit on a desk or perhaps near a desk? I am thinking of using it for gaming and music playing in the evening( my music library is mostly old CD rips in itunes that were MP3 or AAC and not the greatest format, I re did what I could to lossless a few years ago). I am considering some Adam or Focal nearfield monitors also but I somewhat want to get myself a "higher" end speaker for my birthday. I don't have a dac/pre amp yet but will get something like an iFi Neo DSD or Schiit Jotunheim that can also use headphones.
 

RoA

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This is a 3 year old thread (which I started) but the AE1 Actives are still available. Amazing they only went up in price by a few pounds.

I eventually got to listen to them and had mixed feelings about them. I much liked the look (the wood veneer) but seem to remember that I found them a little too upfront and strained (remember I like the new Audiolab sound ... ). However, at that time my Hegel journey started thanks to Rick at Musicraft and it still continues.

It would be dishonest to say I remember exactly how the Acoustic Energy AE1 Actives sounded after 3 or 4 years, that's impossible, but I did decide at the time not to pursue them after hearing them.

Having said that, who knows, I may like them now and materially they are sound compared to some other products.

I did, in the meantime, have active speakers from Kef (Meta Wireless II) and B&W (Formation Duo) but returned to separates and Linear Power Supply products as I prefer them. The AE1 Active have class AB amplifiers rated at 50W/ch by the way.

Certainly worth a go imho.
 
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Gray

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This is a 3 year old thread (which I started) but the AE1 Actives are still available. Amazing they only went up in price by a few pounds.

I eventually got to listen to them and had mixed feelings about them. I much liked the look (the wood veneer) but seem to remember that I found them a little too upfront and strained (remember I like the new Audiolab sound ... ). However, at that time my Hegel journey started thanks to Rick at Musicraft and it still continues.

It would be dishonest to say I remember exactly how the Acoustic Energy AE1 Actives sounded after 3 or 4 years, that's impossible, but I did decide at the time not to pursue them after hearing them.

Having said that, who knows, I may like them now and materially they are sound compared to some other products.

I did, in the meantime, have active speakers from Kef (Meta Wireless II) and B&W (Formation Duo) but returned to separates and Linear Power Supply products as I prefer them. The AE1 Active have class AB amplifiers rated at 50W/ch by the way.

Certainly worth a go imho.
So you were Drummerman (and still are on the Wam?)
Didn't you once say you spent £1000 a year on coffee? :eek:
(And quite a few more quid on hi-fi by the look of it).
 

valkyrieorion

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This is a 3 year old thread (which I started) but the AE1 Actives are still available. Amazing they only went up in price by a few pounds.

I eventually got to listen to them and had mixed feelings about them. I much liked the look (the wood veneer) but seem to remember that I found them a little too upfront and strained (remember I like the new Audiolab sound ... ). However, at that time my Hegel journey started thanks to Rick at Musicraft and it still continues.

It would be dishonest to say I remember exactly how the Acoustic Energy AE1 Actives sounded after 3 or 4 years, that's impossible, but I did decide at the time not to pursue them after hearing them.

Having said that, who knows, I may like them now and materially they are sound compared to some other products.

I did, in the meantime, have active speakers from Kef (Meta Wireless II) and B&W (Formation Duo) but returned to separates and Linear Power Supply products as I prefer them. The AE1 Active have class AB amplifiers rated at 50W/ch by the way.

Certainly worth a go imho.
Hey thanks for the reply. I wasn't sure if to continue the thread on or not (some forums seem to not want new topics out there). No worries on not remembering, I have the same thing trying to remember finer details about different speakers I have owned unless I wrote notes down about them. Good to honestly hear a bit about them from someone who decided not to buy them and why, thanks!
I know I didn't prefer the sound of the Kef LS50 when I bought some (probably was my amp) and Kanto TUK were both really "thin" sounding to me so just not wanting something like that.
 

RoA

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Don't dismiss them on the basis of my recollection.

You maybe really like them!

If you want something full and lush sounding I can recommend Klipsch's the Fives.

Heard them at Harrods. Amazing little boxes. They look nice too imho (as do the AE1 Actives).

Very small, very big sound.
 
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