A pair of library speakers, guided by the larger Esprit Ez series, try to bring the corresponding performance to a lower cost and size. Does it finally manage to reach the level it promises while maintaining the company’s signature sound?
According to Renaud De Vergnette, when the french Triangle was founded in 1981, his main driving force was his love for music and the need to perform it with the liveliness and emotion that a real concert exudes. Renaud De Vergnette tried to give a characteristic sound to the creations of the company that would be based on the dynamism and precision that such a venture requires. One of the newest efforts of this project is the Triangle Borea BR03. A pair of library speakers, guided by the larger Esprit Ez series, try to bring the corresponding performance to a lower cost and size. Does it finally manage to reach the level it promises while maintaining the company’s signature sound?
French beauty
The BR03 is a speaker that can be placed either on the bookshelf of your library or on bases set up in your living room, as evidenced by its dimensions, with a width of just over 20 and a height of close to 40 cm and a weight of 7 kg. The placement of the speakers should not create any difficulties and their appearance, which we found beautiful, also helps. At the front stands out the silk dome tweeter EFS (Efficient Flow System as the company calls it) with a diameter of 25 mm, accompanied by the white mid/woofer of 160 mm, with a cone of natural paper (cellulose) and bass reflex charging with two expansion holes forward. For anyone who wants a more conservative look, the placement of the magnetic grille with the triangular logo of the company will not be a difficult case at all. At the back, the connectors look very high quality and solid, they tighten very easily by hand and accept either bare cable or banana plugs. The design and the feel of the construction are quite careful and although we had the walnut finish in our hands, the versions in black and especially in white look equally charming.
In terms of driving, Triangle Audio reports that the BR03 has a sensitivity of 90db and a nominal resistance of 8ohm with the ability to manage power up to 100W. This makes the speakers, at least in theory, easy to manage and flexible in the choice of amplifier.
Clear and immediate
For the purposes of the test, we chose to combine the BR03 with the CXA61 amplifirer of the British Cambridge Audio which delivery 60W per channel at 8Ω loads. The amplifier was more than enough to drive them to high levels with no signs of distortion, and our sense is that even lower power and cost amplifiers could produce a corresponding positive result. So if the amplifier has the basic required power specifications (which are not very high) and if – subjectively preferred – it offers a balanced and full musical character then we will have an excellent match. The reason why is done is obvious when one listens to BR03 carefully.
Starting with the bass, we observe a fairly realistic volume/control balance with good performance of gravity and low imposingness without it covering the other frequencies. Interesting in this part, despite the advantage of the front expansion holes, was the requirement of the speaker for the existence of some distance (ideally more than 50 cm) from nearby walls of surfaces in order to deliver this balance. Respectively, the range at the lower frequencies was judged to be relatively satisfactory given the speaker category, with demanding tracks like James Blake’s “Limit to your love» not seem to bring the speaker to its… limits.
During the transition from low to medium frequencies, there may be an immersion with a reverse emphasis on the upper medium to high frequencies. This gives slightly more aggressive and stringed instruments in front of the stage, female voices and percussion like the drums. By no means, this behaviour was annoying or tedious but rather it gave more of the lively character that the company and the audience seek. Our only objection is a slight lack of body in the middle area, although this is probably a matter of personal taste and of course matching the corresponding extra, as mentioned above. Understandably, we are not dealing with a completely neutral speaker of a “studio” character, but clearly not with a speaker that seeks intense colours. The main aim of BR03 – based on the company’s philosophy – is the transparent representation of a live musical experience, where the listener will have a sense of immediacy as to what is happening on stage. And this, the BR03 achieves exceptionally well as the music scene focuses close to the listener, offering an impression of closeness, but – at the same time – reproduces in a natural way the stratification of the instruments while maintaining realistic distances that can fill a small or medium space (15 to 30 square meters, as the company states).
In short, the BR03 is a speaker that you will love., Not only for its ability to represent the liveliness of music with clarity, but also because of the dynamism it can impose without exceeding the limits of the realistic reproduction. Good job from Triangle!
Overview
Triangle Borea BR03
Description: Bookshelf/Base Speakers
Speakers: , 1x tweeter 25mm (silk dome EFS), 1x mid/woofer 160mm (cone made of natural paper)
Sensitivity: 90dBSPL/1W/1m
Rated resistance: 8Ω, minimum 4,2Ω
Frequency response: 46Hz-22kHz (+/-3dB)
Maximum power: 100W
Other features: Available with walnut finish, black, white
Dimension: 206x380x314mm (wxhxd)
Weight: 7kg
Price: €449
info: Orpheus Audio, tel.: 210-5221.524.
Τhe article was published in the third issue of YELLOWBOX from Manos Mastrantonakis._ΥΒ
