Loudspeakers of the Year $2000-$10,000

Loudspeakers of the Year $2000-$10,000

Revel is a dedicated high-end brand founded by Harman International in 1996, and the F208s were designed by Kevin Voeks, Director of Engineering at Revel since that time, previously the head designer at Snell, and before that at Mirage. The heritage shines through here in the $9995 F208 floorstanders, first introduced in 2014. How come we’re awarding a product that’s four years old? This happens sometimes when an existing model comes in for review, or gets new distribution in Australia, and then so impresses us that we can’t help but give it the recognition it deserves.

These gorgeous floorstanders were just such a pair — energy without aggression, so accurate, so musical, so natural-sounding that we were captivated. Revel’s Performa3 Series falls exactly in the middle of Revel’s five different series (not counting its architectural speakers), yet the curvy cabinets are similar to those used for the company’s flagship Ultima2 Series, being formed with contiguous wood layers and finished in high-gloss piano black or genuine American walnut using a process Revel says: “is developed and overseen by Italian luxury cabinet-makers and exceeds automotive finish quality”. But it’s their sound that wins the award — the sonic purity of the treble, an incredibly realistic stereo image, neutral midrange, deep bass and the ability for the drivers to ‘stop’ when required. It’s all here. More info: www.convoy.com.au

JUDGES’ COMMENT “These Revels are gorgeous loudspeakers to look at, but it’s their sound that wins the award — energy without aggression, so accurate, so musical, so natural-sounding. We were captivated.”