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Reprinted with permission
from Audio © 1994 Hachette
Filipacchi, Inc.
A U R I C L E
THIEL CS1.5
SPEAKER
THE EQUIPMENT AUTHORITY
AUDIO/NOVEMBER 1994
NOVEMBER 1994
T
he current trend in loudspeakers is to
make them as small as possible, hide
them in walls, or have a system that
consists of small left and right satellites
with a separate woofer or subwoofer.
There are, however, practical limits to
how small you can make a really good speaker
and to how well you can hide one. Trying to get
full-range performance from a small speaker
always means a sacrifice in bass capability. Build-
ing a speaker into a wall virtually always means
a major sacrifice in soundstage performance and
often in frequency response as well. Using a
separate woofer or subwoofer almost always
means audible problems in the crossover re-
gion—unless the crossover frequency is well
below 100 Hz.
Thiel takes a different approach in the CS1.5,
a full-range floor-standing loudspeaker clearly
designed to be kept several feet away from the
side and rear walls. At the same time, it is rela-
tively compact, measuring 8
1
inches deep, and 33 inches high. Its low visual
profile and sloping front, together with the fact
that it is deeper than it is wide, make it seem
smaller than it is.
I'd much rather live with the visual image of
a small floor-standing loudspeaker like this Thiel
than with the more obtrusive look of a box
speaker placed on many of the stands I've seen
recently. And while the Thiel CS1.5 is, at $1,990
per pair, not inexpensive, a true price compari-
son with small shoe-box sized speakers must
include the cost of stands. You will never get
top performance by locating any loudspeaker
worthy of the name on a piece of furniture or
in a bookshelf.
The Thiel's cabinet is very well finished, with
an attractive grille that does not have to be re-
moved for best performance. The cabinet walls
are an inch thick and have extensive internal
bracing to reduce vibration. The baffle is sloped
to provide proper phase alignment and transient
⁄
inches wide, 11
2
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Summary of Contents for Thiel CS1.5
- Page 1 I’ve seen recently. And while the Thiel CS1.5 is, at $1,990 per pair, not inexpensive, a true price compari- son with small shoe-box sized speakers must include the cost of stands.
- Page 2 Coupled to the speaker’s flat and extend treble, this lack of added bass warmth or boost can make the CS1.5 seem a bit lean and lacking in bass energy. This is likely if you place the cabinet 3 feet from a rear wall and 5 feet from a side wall, as called for in Thiel’s instructions.
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