Archos Open Baffle Features

The Archos Open Baffle cabinets are 15" wide, 13" deep and 42" tall (not including spikes). The front baffle is a full 2" thick and the remainder of the cabinet walls are 1" thick. It is a very substantial cabinet.

The tweeter is a high-efficiency G2 pure ribbon tweeter. This extremely low mass driver has excellent horizontal and vertical dispersion characteristics. It is flat to within 1 1/2 db to 25KHz and is only down 3db at 40KHz. The result is an extremely detailed and transparent top end that is like a crystal clear window into the sound. If you want music reproduction that sounds like the musicians are in the room with you, the G2 is a good driver to build upon.

The midrange employed is a 6.5” PHL unit. The PHL is a high-end professional driver with high efficiency and high output capability, yet it has enough linear travel to remain linear through its entire operating range at high power levels keeping midrange distortion very low. As with any open baffle design there is a null in the response 90 degrees off axis to the sides of the speaker. This means there is little to no midrange energy to the sides of the speaker that can reflect back to the on-axis first arrival sound. This helps to maintain purity in the midrange that must be experienced. The midrange’s rear radiation is much stronger than a conventional monopole mid, but if the speaker is at least a couple of feet from the wall behind it this only adds a sense of depth and openness to the presentation.

The woofer section is a traditional monopole vented box with a large 4” flared rear-mounted port. The woofer is a custom-made 12” Lambda woofer implementing a damped paper cone, large cast frame and massive motor assembly which weighs in at 27 pounds. The motor has a copper Faraday sleeve which runs the entire length of the voice coil. This sleeve significantly reduces voice coil inductance and associated distortion making this driver one of the lowest distortion 12” woofers available today, and an inductance normally associated with a 4” driver. The motor also provides the voice coil with a very long linear travel as well, which allows for rather high bass output capability. This is a woofer that can support the lower midrange with clarity and authority and at the same time provide true deep bass with high output.

Check out the Archos specifications/cost.

the sound

So, how do they sound?

• - The top end is lush and detailed - just what you'd expect from the G2
• - Imaging is pinpoint
• - The soundstage is deep and wide with instruments and vocals precisely located.
• - Midrange is detailed and accurate. Voices are rendered with realism
• - The open baffle nature of the speaker results in a open, airy presentation with a great deal of ambience.
• - The Lambda woofer provides a solid foundation to the sound with a good deal of mid-bass "slam."

In short, we feel the Archos Open Baffle speakers represent a new performance standard in a system priced under $4000. Hearing them, we think you'll agree.