Elac Debut B5.2 £249
Elac changed almost everything about its second generation of Debut speakers. These, the range’s entry-level offering, represent quite stunning value for money, and the B5.2s take this Award for an impressive third time.
The cabinets are a similar volume to before, but they’re now taller, narrower and deeper in a bid to look smarter and be less visually obtrusive. The 13cm mid/bass unit is thoroughly revised too, using a new blend of aramid fibres for the cone, combined with a different shape to improve stiffness and damping. That the dust cap is now convex rather than concave will strike most as a minor detail, but it has benefits at the top end of the driver’s operating range and helps integration with the tweeter.
That tweeter is a wide-surround design with improved dispersion, and a top-end response that extends to a claimed 35khz. The reflex port has moved to the front to make the speakers less sensitive to their proximity to the rear wall, which makes placement easier.
The B5.2s have no trouble coping with dense instrumentation or complex rhythms. Expressive performers, they have a precision and cohesion that’s rare for this level. Tonally, they are evenhanded and admirably balanced in the way they deal with poorer, more aggressive recordings, also pulling ahead of rivals for insight and composure.
You can enjoy a wide range of music, through these speakers, too. They have the dynamic expression, detail resolution and tonal sophistication to handle it all, and enough stretch in their abilities to get better even when the rest of the system is upgraded.
These speakers are still one of Elac’s finest efforts, and once again we’re only too pleased to award a category-best Buy to the Debut B5.2s.