CES 2016

I've been variously enamored and critical of the sound of Acapella loudspeakers and electronics on previous occasions, but here, in a space I would have considered too narrow to be optimal, the German-handmade Acapella Cellini ($55,000/pair) sounded excellent. Never before shown at a US show, the Cellini stands out due to its hyper-spherical midrange horn. (The Acapella Violin, for example, has a spherical horn.) It also has Acappella's TW1 ion tweeter, and claims an overall frequency range of 28Hz–40kHz , and a sensitivity of approx. 91dB/W/m.

The hyper-spherical shape, I was told, makes the Cellini easier to place in a room, and can deliver smoother response. That was certainly the case on the very different music of Dire Straits and Maria Callas (singing "Caro Nome" from Rigoletto), both of whom were sourced from The Beast music server. The showing was a total success.