Acoustic Energy AE2 40th Anniversary Standmount Speakers High Gloss Black (Pair)

The AE2 40th Anniversary Edition is the larger of Acoustic Energy's two anniversary loudspeakers, picking up where the AE1 40th Anniversary leaves off in terms of output. Produced for a limited time only, it revives the AE2 in full 40th Anniversary specification and draws on the legacy of the highly renowned flagship AE2 Signature of the 1990s. It suits rooms larger than around 25m2, offering the scale and authority of a small floorstanding loudspeaker with the very low cabinet colouration, three-dimensional imaging and ease of placement of a standmount.

Drive Units Shared With The AE1 40th Anniversary

The AE2 uses the same newly developed woofer and tweeter as the AE1 40th Anniversary, arranged here in an offset mid-tweeter-mid array. The 29mm anodised aluminium dome tweeter is built on a larger voice coil, supporting a slightly larger dome than the more usual 25mm design and lowering distortion through a greater radiating area. Its dome profile is ultra-shallow to provide excellent bandwidth, while a large rear chamber keeps the fundamental resonance low and helps absorb rearward energy. Like the original, the tweeter is ferrofluid cooled and damped for greater power handling, improved dynamics and lower thermal compression.

The twin 125mm mid/bass drivers use a straight-sided aluminium cone formed by spinning rather than the more usual pressing method, then strengthened with a thick, hard anodised ceramic layer on both sides to create a sandwich structure. Beneath the trademark aluminium dust cap sits a thermally conductive aluminium voice coil in a powerful motor, with an aluminium shorting ring and a copper cap added to reduce the distortion caused by variation in the voice coil's inductance. Acoustic Energy specified this woofer to the original 7 Ohm standard rather than the 5 Ohm unit used in the AE1, keeping the overall impedance at sensible levels.

Minimalist Crossover Inspired By The Signature

The crossover draws on the Signature edition of the original AE2 and on the AE1 40th Anniversary, using low order filters and high-quality components to achieve a natural, live and dynamic sound; the AE2 goes further still with just a single capacitor on the tweeter. The drivers hand over at 2.2kHz. Acoustic Energy has balanced this version to be enjoyed in a typical domestic listening room rather than the studio monitor duties of the original, giving a warm natural midrange, extremely good bass weight for a standmount, forgiving high frequencies and exceptional punch throughout the operating range.

RSC Cabinet With Steel Plate Reinforcement

The enclosure is built from 18 to 32mm RSC (Resonance Suppression Composite) constrained layer HDF and bitumen panels, braced internally and strategically lined with 3mm steel plates. Where the original AE2 was lined with concrete and plaster, the steel plates reinforce specific areas of the cabinet to reproduce the low colouration of the Signature design and of the AE1 40th Anniversary, while keeping the finished weight to a manageable 14.5kg each. The three front-mounted reflex ports are retooled versions of the originals, with an internal flare added to reduce distortion and allow more bass output.

The High Gloss Black finish is built up from ten layers of high gloss paint. Gold-coloured drive unit bolts are a nod to the later AE2 Signature, and magnetic cloth grilles are supplied as standard.

Placement And Amplification

The AE2 40th Anniversary is intended to be used on speaker floor-stands, relatively clear of room boundaries and with the tweeters uppermost. Acoustic Energy recommends a direct coupled pillared stand with a top plate 160 to 180mm wide and 220 to 240mm deep, set so that the top panel of the speaker sits just below head height when seated. Each cabinet is fitted with a pair of binding posts that accept stripped wire, spade connectors or 4mm plugs. This is a medium sensitivity design, so a relatively powerful amplifier is needed: between 50 and 200 Watts per channel into 8 Ohms is recommended. The loudspeakers are not magnetically shielded and should be kept away from magnetically sensitive equipment or media.