News

It's no secret that Wharfedale has been planning to launch a new flagship speaker range, named Elysian. The Brit brand has been teasing it at hi-fi shows around the world for the last year, and even launched another series – Evo – featuring trickle-down technology from the as-yet-unreleased range.

Now, though, Wharfedale has announced two Elysian models, with availability promised this month.

The Elysian 4 floorstander and Elysian 2 standmount are, we're told, the result of a three-year 'special' R&D project, and 'conceived to deliver blissful sonic reward to music lovers seeking heavenly respite from the rigours of daily life.'

Both three-way models feature bespoke AMT (Air Motion Transformer) units for high-frequency delivery; pleated diaphragms preferred to traditional dome designs for their efficiency, accuracy, speed, detail, and low distortion.

Joining these high-end HF drivers in the Elysian speakers is a dedicated 6in mid-range unit, using a proprietary woven glass fibre material, and sporting a phase plug to improve off-axis performance.

For bass, the Elysians feature 8.5in woofers (two on the Elysian 4 floorstander), aided by a newly concocted slot-loaded port. The low-frequency response claimed by the Elysian 4 is 30Hz (at +/-3dB), and 24Hz (-6dB).

For its new flagship models, Wharfedale has given the large cabinets an eye-catching aesthetic, with hand-polished 'true piano finish laquers' and a choice of walnut, black or white. The cabinets themselves employ something Wharfedale describes as a Panel Resonance Optimisation System (PNOS), a multilayered sandwich of different density woods to reduce unwanted resonance and limit driver damping.

Pricing will be £6,500-per-pair for the Elysian 4, and £4,500-per-pair for the Elysian 2, which will come with matching stands.

No word yet on any Elysian centre or surround models (options offered by the Evo range) but we live in hope...