CES 2016

Andrew Jones speaker demos have been reliable crowdpleasers at CESes going back many years. Having decamped from TAD and Pioneer to the German company ELAC, he continues to impress.

Without a doubt the best and most surprising sound of the show (so far) is a prototype monitor in the new Uni-fi range, which could not only do a convincing string bass, but even a room-filling electric bass, both supporting a vocally adept midrange. It was an amazing performance for a speaker with a five-inch woofer, four-inch midrange, and one-inch tweeter. The product will be out in March or April pending further fine-tuning. The UB5 monitor ($499/pair) will be joined by the UC5 center ($349) and UF5 tower ($499/each).

ELAC also showed the Jones-designed four-inch B4 monitor ($179/pair) and 6.5-inch F6 tower ($379/each), both shipping in April. They're part of the eight-model Debut budget line introduced last year. In addition to these Chinese-made mass market products, ELAC also has a higher-end range, featuring ribbon tweeters, manufactured in Germany.