tion are superb. But if you truly desire
that sense of hall volume and the low
lows, then you’ll need a subwoofer
(Thiel’s got a dandy). The CS1.6 cap-
tured the rolling violence of the tym-
pani in Berlioz’ “The March to the
Scaffold”
[Symphonie Fantastique
; Telarc
CD-80271], but it could not convey
the sheer force of the instrument, nor
could it recreate the shudder issuing
from yet another infamous Telarc
bass drum. Nevertheless, the CS1.6
has just enough bass extension and
power to be musically satisfying on
most music.
So often we scratch and claw for
the ability to play really loud. But
what we really need is a speaker that
can resolve dynamic differences into
the lowest noise floor and confident-
ly reach undistorted peaks that con-
vey a realistic range. The CS1.6 will
not rise at light speed to skull-crush-
ing levels as will the behemoths that
inhabit the $50,000 strata. And yet,
its low-level resolution is so sublime,
I never found the speaker con-
strained on peaks. Indeed, I was
tickled to hear it handle Wilhelm
Kempff ’s piano on Bach’s
Choral
Preludes
[DG 439 672] in a dynami-
cally credible fashion. A real piano
can fill a room with sound that no
speaker system can hope to match,
yet the CS1.6 conveyed the sensa-
tion of powerful clarity that defines
the instrument.
Jim Thiel and his designs have
been at the front of one of audio’s
most difficult debates: What is accu-
rate treble? One side maintains it is
necessary to roll off the treble to
replicate the sound of live treble.
The other camp, in which Thiel
resides, holds the position that the
speaker should be neutral, that is flat,
at all frequencies, including the tre-
ble. I have long preferred speakers
that roll off the high treble, but I’m
not sure that is technically correct.
What I have learned over the years is
that treble distortions are the most
pernicious and difficult to root out of
a system. In distorted circumstances,
flat treble response will be harder to
take than reduced response.
What I hear in the CS1.6 is a
continuation of Thiel’s adherence to
flat treble. And I also hear a signifi-
cantly cleaner presentation of that
treble. Consequently, the higher fre-
quencies integrate better and are
easier to listen to. It is still a little
strong on top, but there’s no denying
how informative the treble’s har-
monic contribution is to defining
instrumental timbre. The CS1.6
exhibits enough improvement in this
area that I’m leaning toward the side
of flat treble, especially since I’ve
heard several new-generation power
amps that radically reduce treble dis-
tortions (I’ll be getting several with
which to test this theory).
Regardless of the argument, the
CS1.6 has treble performance char-
acteristics rarely heard at any price.
When orchestral bells or chimes are
struck, the CS1.6 cleanly reproduces
the first wave and then, in the sustain-
ing decay, the sound floats through
and above the soundstage and propa-
gates throughout the room, just as it
would in the concert hall.
Finally, the CS1.6 soundstage
transcends the usual limitations of
small speakers. Probably because of
the lowered diffraction from the
rounded baffle, its expansive sound-
stage sounds much larger than the
speakers. And within that stage
resides the signature Thiel image-
focus and separation. If you want
more than this in a soundstage,
you’ll need to add the subwoofer
and go surround.
Certainly, the Thiel CS1.6 is not
a perfect loudspeaker. But its imper-
fections are more in the nature of
limitations. It won’t plumb the bot-
tom octave or scale the highest
dynamic peaks.
But with its
increased sensitivity comes effortless,
natural resolution. I have not heard
a speaker anywhere near this price
that possessed such a low noise floor.
I just don’t see the point in spending
more than $2,390 if this is what you
get—unless you invest in a state-of-
the-art woofer that will elevate the
entire system into the performance
stratosphere. My advice: Buy the
CS1.6 and spend your money on the
best sources and electronics you can
afford. The Thiel CS1.6 is an
instant classic.
&
M A N U F A C T U R E R I N F O R M A T I O N
T H I E L A U D I O
1026 Nandino Blvd.
Lexington, Kentucky 40511
Phone: (859) 254-9427
www.thielaudio.com
Price: $2,390 per pair
S P E C S
Recommended power: 50–300 watts
Sensitivity: 90dB @ 2.8V/1m
Phase response: M/-10 degrees
Impedance: 4 ohms (3 ohms minimum)
Bandwidth: 48Hz–20kHz (-3dB)
Dimensions: 9 x 11.5 x 35.5 inches
Weight: 38 lbs.
A S S O C I AT E D E Q U I P M E N T
Onkyo SR-D2.0 DVD player; Theta Casanova
Processor/Preamp; Bryston 9B-ST power
amplifier; BEL The Wire and The Cable inter-
connects and speaker cable
1026 Nandino Boulevard • Lexington, Kentucky 40511 • USA
Telephone: 859-254-9427 • Fax: 859-254-0075 • E-mail: [email protected] • Web: www.thielaudio.com
