CES 2007

Hansen Audio needed a speaker that wasn't quite as, um, lordly as its $65,000/pair King floorstanders, so Lars Hansen designed the $49,000/pair Emperors. The four driver three-ways are constructed of Hansen's composite matrix material in an enclosure that employs Sound Wave Refraction Distortion Elimination technology. The midrange (7.2") and bass (10.6") drivers are all multilayer composite sandwiches.

Driven by an Audio Aero SACD player and the Convergent Audio Technology's SL1 Ultimate Mk. II preamp and JL2 Signature power amps, the Emperors sounded quite regal. We suspect they need a lot more breathing space than a hotel room provides, so we can't say much more than that for now.