Triangle Borea BR08 £899

There’s no shortage of talented rivals at this level, with something of quality available from pretty much every serious manufacturer out there. Yet having spent some time in the company of the BR08, we feel they offer something special.

Their 102cm-tall cabinets might look basic but they are solid, well made, neatly finished and carefully braced internally to aid rigidity. It’s clear that a large chunk of the engineering budget has gone on the drive unit array – a three-way design with two 16cm fibreglass-coned bass units and a 25mm silk-dome tweeter, aided by a front-firing reflex port to augment low frequency output. The 16cm midrange driver, taken from the more premium Esprit EZ range, uses Triangle’s favoured cellulose paper cone material. The tweeter has the same unusual two-pronged phase plug as others in the Borea range, claimed to aid tonal evenness and dispersion. There’s an element of horn loading of the dome, due to the dished tweeter surround.

Positioned with care and partnered with suitably talented electronics, the BR08 sound very good indeed, delivering a thrill ride with appropriate material. We play Nirvana’s Nevermind and they punch hard, combining high levels of detail with an enviable ability to tie it all together to produce a cohesive and musical whole. Those twin large drivers dig deep but remain agile and articulate too – while, when it comes to rhythmic drive, these towers charge at full throttle, communicating the energy and momentum of the music brilliantly.

We switch to Stravinsky’s The Rite Of Spring and the BR08S present with huge scale and authority. These are speakers that prefer to be played loudly. Push up the volume and they come alive with a vigour that makes most rivals seem sedate in comparison.

These Triangles are exceptional and entertaining, and certainly good enough to win their price class.