Basic question

What is it all about...? Answer: A lot of fun! That's all it really is. This pseudo-intellectual presentation à la "delicate singing, triangle at the back right etc., pp." at fairs/exhibitions is really not helpful. It's about having as much fun as possible listening to music. Robert Andorf has been in the business since 1989 and sums it up in a few words: "Simply stereo" is his message, which he now puts into practice with his own Spatial Europe loudspeaker series. The constructions in the so-called open baffle design are all made within a radius of 15 kilometres from his company.

The loudspeakers are built within a radius of 15 kilometres from his company headquarters in Ingolstadt, also known as "Auditown" in Bavaria. The outer packaging is completely plastic-free, the inner packaging made of unbleached molton, manufactured in Germany. The components for the handmade loudspeakers also preferably come from Germany. Robert Andorf is a consistent advocate of the regional principle and so he quickly fetches his milled aluminium parts by bicycle from the manufacturer "around the corner". The carpenter of the "cabinets" is just 10 km away from the company's headquarters in Ingolstadt's old town and fulfils even the most unusual veneer requests - "short distances" is more than just a saying at MachOneClassics. Although the loudspeaker drivers come from the USA and are specially designed there for Europe, the crossovers are produced in-house and shine with the best ingredients, such as extremely low-impedance Jantzen coils, selected Mundorf Supreme resistors with copper foil coils for the midrange. The flat-pin sleeves are from Oyaide and the connectors are from WBT.

all the love for the product. The construction principle of the open baffle has many advantages. On the one hand, it is a reduced design with a clear language of form. The speaker in question is a 3-way system with a 15 inch bass, a 12 inch bass/midrange chassis (each with neodymium drive) and a 1.75 inch dipole horn tweeter. A solid 35 kg testify to the material used in the open speaker construction, which is also quite space-critical (25 sqm or more is perfect) and can be heard perfectly at a listening distance of about three and a half metres. The design allows for experimentation in the placement of the loudspeakers - just past the ear or directed

to the respective, trial and error will bring the desired success for one's own listening tastes. The No. 5 is 119 cm high and has a width/depth of 45 x 45 cm. The stated efficiency is 95 dB, which immediately attracts the attention of tube fans. No question, this also works really well with tube amplifiers of all kinds.

all the love for the product. The construction principle of the open baffle has many advantages. On the one hand, it is a reduced design with a clear language of form. The speaker in question is a 3-way system with a 15 inch bass, a 12 inch bass/midrange chassis (each with neodymium drive) and a 1.75 inch dipole horn tweeter. A solid 35 kg testify to the material used in the open speaker construction, which is also quite space-critical (25 sqm or more is perfect) and can be heard perfectly at a listening distance of about three and a half metres. The design allows for experimentation in the placement of the loudspeakers - just past the ear or directed

to the respective, trial and error will bring the desired success for one's own listening tastes. The No. 5 is 119 cm high and has a width/depth of 45 x 45 cm. The stated efficiency is 95 dB, which immediately attracts the attention of tube fans. No question, this also works really well with tube amplifiers of all kinds.

Playing partner

For this review, however, we have chosen a combination with the Electrocompaniet ECI 6 integrated amplifier, which has recently undergone a facelift and is now called the MkII version. Combining high-efficiency loudspeakers and solid-state amplifiers is nothing new, but it's like in real life - it depends on the combination! The Norwegian amplifiers are a permanent fixture on the hi-fi scene and are essentially known for their uncomplicated and reliable operation. Nevertheless, the guys from the far north have a special sound feature - they always allow an incredibly pleasant flow in the music. Anything but cosy, quite gripping where the musical material demands it (e.g. classical music), but it is always this astonishingly authentic musical flow that has long since secured the Norwegians a firm fan base. With Matthias Roth as the responsible distributor (MRV), the right man has been in the right place for over 25 years. So here, too, the product support that has become so important is assured. And so it is not surprising that the integrated amplifiers from the land of the fjords are not unknown to our editorial staff. The predecessor (ECI 6DS) was tested years ago and we remember it very positively. At that time, we were impressed by the relaxed and colourful musical reproduction, which it simply offers as a matter of course. Colleague Harald Obst attested at the time: "The reproduction is generous, with voices having flesh and body. It is wonderful how a Bösendorfer grand piano retains its power with the ECI 6DS and does not "starve". All in all, it remains to be said: Thanks to the Electrocompaniet multi-talent, the listener gets a wonderfully relaxed music reproduction that normally only very good pre/end combinations can offer".

Sound symbiosis

Now I have its successor in my listening room, the ECI 6 MkII, an integrated amplifier from the Eletrocompaniet Classic Line in its basic version. It can be upgraded to an ECI 6D (incl. DAC) or ECI 6DX (incl. DAC and streamer). The amplifier weighs 20 kg and the 45 years of experience of the Norwegians in building amplifiers (since 1973) are obvious. As befits a large EC unit, it is immediately connected symmetrically to a suitable CD player. All large EC units are built this way and it is recommended to connect them this way. Please do not do without good connection cables, this also applies to the mains connection. Four inputs (3 x Cinch, 1 XLR) offer sufficient connection possibilities. To prevent TIM distortions (transient intermodulation distortions), the input stage is equipped with a Class A amplification without negative feedback. A tight two times 200 watts at four ohms in the output amplifier are reassuring when using the possible loudspeakers. At first glance, the design distinguishes the amp as an Electrocompaniet. Only a visible volume control of the usual kind is missing on the front. Nevertheless, the display is quite cool, because when the remote control is used, a blue LED behind the acrylic front panel flashes in a clockwise direction to indicate the set volume - now that's something...!

Have fun!

Rarely has a subheading possessed more ambiguity than in this case. We had a lot of fun installing the equipment because everything just goes "bang, bang!" and right at the first sound we looked at each other with a grin, "There you go!" The laser scans Pete Alderton with "Something Smooth", the speakers move from an angled position to a straight alignment and the best listening point locks in at a distance of about two and a half metres. Consciously, the entire CD runs through and there it is again, that wonderful, casual musical reproduction that an ECI 6 MkII presents as naturally as ever. The combination with the Spatial Europe No. 5 is the perfect match. It fits perfectly without any discussion. The bass power is immediately tested with Marcus Miller's "A Night in Monte Carlo".

The typical bright tones of the steel strings of the Fender jazz bass are transmitted crisp, dry and as fast as an arrow. There is not much to say about the musician, who has played with Miles Davis, Al Jarreau and others. The special feature of this bass guitar is that it can be "boosted" and thus provides a typical, funky tone. I still know this type of bass from the old days (I used to play one myself) and I always like it. This Japanese-built four-string bass is one of the classics and is instantly recognisable with its ash body and maple neck. The first Fender Jazz basses were equipped like this. Today there is a five-string version, but it is made in the USA. That's all there is to know about this extraordinary instrument, which is quite demanding in terms of sound transmission. It can really make the strings pop and snap, and that's exactly what I want to hear on a stereo. The system under test here can produce such tones in such a first-class way that it is no wonder that the centrally placed blue LED described earlier automatically moves towards the 12 o'clock position - no bass, no fun! Well, before we really "blow our ears", we continue a little quieter. Wonderful piano music comes from Didier Squiban, the Breton jazz pianist who always manages to captivate his listeners with his piano playing. Here, the system shows another very important characteristic - it can also transmit the signals quietly without forgetting important frequencies. In this way, the listening situation of concentrated listening, which I love, can be easily realised - super!

The ACT production "Jazz at Berlin Philharmonic IX" - Pannonica gets an unconditional recommendation. Due to the musical complexity of this album, the quality of a reproducing audio chain is quickly checked and I may add that this CD ran through in its entirety and I found myself in a wonderful mood while the musicians performed flawlessly...

To the point

High efficiency and solid state amplification is not always the sonic bull's eye. In this case, however, there is no alternative! The combination of the ECI 6 MkII with the Spatial No. 5 is so ingenious that it must be considered an unconditional recommendation.

Alexander Aschenbrunner