If I look back at my show notes from 2023, a strong pattern emerges: I like what Acoustic Energy is doing with their entire range. So when I was told about a new flagship floorstanding speaker from this British manufacturer, I was obviously excited. After hearing the Acoustic Energy Corinium loudspeakers for the first time at Capitol Audiofest, I asked very nicely if I could take the show pair home for a more in-depth listen and review. After some handshakes and further conversations, I was helping the designer box up his new $8,500/pr green babies, and then loading them into my car for the long drive back to Atlanta.
Words and Photos by Marc Smazik
Once the Acoustic Energy Corinium loudspeakers were wired into my system, it was finally time to really throw some music at them and dial them into the room. I use the same ten or so tracks to test all systems when they are freshly installed. (Everyone who builds sound systems has their own special tracks that they reference.) I usually start with Madonna’s “Vogue,” and it was very apparent after the first sentence that these were going to be special.
I have a friend who has been in the hi-fi world for many years who helped me move and dial in these new speakers. With the Acoustic Energy Corinium, at about 85 lbs. per channel, it’s recommended that you have a buddy come help you get them situated. It took about three hours to get them roughed in, and we just kept looking at each other in slack-jawed amazement after note one. From there things just got better and better as we found where the Coriniums wanted to be in the room. Laughter and disbelievement were the orders of the evening.
Set Up and Sound
Reviewing this pair of Acoustic Energy speakers has given rise to what I am dubbing the “Corinium problem.” The only speakers I can compare these to are at least 50% more expensive. Some real thought was put into the design of these, and they are a game changer in this price range. They are some of the most forgiving speakers I have ever heard, and after speaking to the designers I found this was on purpose.
Forgiving can be a bit of a naughty word in hi-fi, but I use it in only the most positive way here. There is something that happens as one moves up the price brackets in hi-fi where the quest for more resolution, the sharpest highs and the tightest bass control can produce gear that gives the listener the utmost listening experience on the finest recordings, but at the same time it effectively beats the listener with all the flaws in recordings which are not the finest–which, of course, is the majority of recordings. The Acoustic Energy Corinium loudspeakers have smoothed the hard corners at the higher levels of resolution to produce something that just sounds damn good no matter what music is thrown at them.
This trick is partly accomplished with a liberal helping of very deep and controlled bass. I love bass. It is the foundation by which a mix is built and these floorstanders have what some people might say is slightly too much, but I would respectfully disagree. There is so much low end grunt here, but it is applied with control and precision. I was shocked at the levels and presence out of the bottom end, and that it did so without overpowering the rest of the mix.
Power is another place where the Acoustic Energy Corinium loudspeakers are very flexible and forgiving. I tried three different amps on these to see how they behaved.
First power source on deck was my trusty VAC Sigma 160i. This produced a shocking result. I was a little worried that this amp would underdrive these floorstanding speakers, but I was wrong. 80 watts per channel of pure tube was more than sufficient to pressurize my office. The soundstage reached outside the speakers all the way to the walls, and did not fall apart as I moved around the room. I like to use the idea of whether or not “I could listen to something all day” as a shorthand for tonal balance, edginess, and how forgiving a component is. The Acoustic Energy Corinium loudspeakers are setting a new bar in “all day” listenability.
A friend of mine was demoing the new Unison Research UNICO 150 and asked if I wanted to try it on the Coriniums. Obviously I jumped at the chance as both are imported to the US by the same distributor, Fidelity Imports. This hybrid integrated amp is priced at $7,000, a little more than half the price of the VAC, but with twice the power, and that 150 watts per channel changed the overall sound in remarkably subtle ways. The soundstage grew in width and depth, and the highs became more pronounced. This really opened up the sound, but not by leaps and bounds–perhaps a 10% improvement overall. Both of these amps powered the Acoustic Energy Corinium loudspeakers with no problem, and both combinations were a true joy to experience.
For the third option I hooked them up to my main amp, which is a VAC MusicBloc 300. This is like cramming a Lamborghini V10 into an Acura, and I fully understand that an amp that retails for 5x the cost of the speakers is not a common setup. But dear reader, let’s change that. The Acoustic Energy Corinium loudspeakers were like an entirely different set of transducers with my mainline system behind them. The highs were noticeably airier and had a level of sparkle that I was not expecting. The mids were so warm and tactile. Then there was the bass–the weight and authority of the sound this lent to the whole experience was shocking.
These are so good on anything starting at about 80 watts per channel, but if you can get them over 100, they will knock your socks off. The consistency of the sound stage is truly something I have only seen on systems reaching into the low six figures. To get into specifics I will break down a couple of my standard test tracks. All of these impressions were on the VAC MusicBlock300 and the VAC Signature Preamp.
Acoustic Energy Corinium Loudspeakers: Listening
Madonna’s “Vogue” starts with her voice in Qsound ripping across the front of the room from left to right, “What are you looking at?” On the Acoustic Energy Corinium speakers this was wall to wall, and unlike with some speakers, her voice sounded extremely natural while doing a very unnatural thing. The wood block that later joins was feet to the left of and in front of the speakers. The bass on this track is deep and easily gets out of control. Delightfully there was both depth and control.
Sticking with bass control, I like to use Michel Jonasz’s Le temps passé to really see what bass control a system has. In this track there is a perceived effect whereby, if the decay is too long on the bass the whole track seems to slow down, like it is trying to run knee deep in water. Here the Acoustic Energy Corinium speakers brought no slowness to the track, and if anything a rare speed and clarity without sacrificing any depth of sound. It is so rare for speakers to reach this low and be so controlled I cannot think of anything that costs less than about three times as much that is capable of doing so. Not to just dote on the low end, the soft dome tweeter is so smooth, there is no unnecessary edge to the track, while keeping it from feeling dark which is a problem with so much low energy running around.
Putting it all together as it were, I would be remiss for not mentioning some highlights of when I put on the MoFi release of Solti’s Beethoven’s 9th. I was in Munich helping some friends run a room when this was played on a system scratching seven figures. I was brought to tears when the chorus comes in, on a song I have heard hundreds of times. That is power and presence. I am not going to say that the Acoustic Energy Corinium loudspeakers, on a far more humble system, had the same impact, but the sort of lifting up in your chest that comes before the emotion overtakes, that was there. That is a big thing. The emotion is why we do this, and to get that close to it at over an order of magnitude less price is a hell of a thing. The lifelike sound of the chorus is as though they are standing in your room, singing to you, and just you. It is so lifelike. The sense of space and the tonal balance make sure that nothing stands between you and the orchestra.
Acoustic Energy Corinium: Conclusions
There is something special about these that has been bothering me for months and delaying the completion of the review. I can now wrap some words around it. The Acoustic Sounds Corinium loudspeakers get out of the way. By that I mean they let the rest of the components show through, and most importantly the music sounds so natural. They are forgiving enough to impress on a modest system, but can still hang on with the big boy back ends.
There was a gentleman named Pete who used to run a hi-fi shop in Atlanta, and he would counsel his customers to start with the speakers and spend as much as possible there, and then grow the back end into and past them before upgrading. The Acoustic Energy Corinium is the purest embodiment of that ethos. These could last decades through many many back end component upgrades before wanting to be upgraded. In this age of ever growing component prices, the Corinium speakers are either a glorious vestige of years and prices past, or a stern shot across the bow of the industry. I like to think the second.
Which brings me back to the “Corinium problem.” What should I compare these to? Von Scheiweikert Endeavor RE’s have more air and space, at 3x the price. Magico A5’s have cleaner mids and a bit more boogie, at 4x the price. Acora SRBs disappear in the room better at 2x the price. I have honestly been racking my brain, and putting off writing this for weeks because I do not know what to compare these to at anything less than double the price, which I think is the point that Acoustic Energy is making here. They are putting the industry on notice that big money does not always equal better. The Acoustic Energy Corinium speakers are special. Please go listen to them.
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