Содержание
- Castle Acoustics is back! There’s a new owner in IAG and whole new range called Knight
- Our Verdict
- Against
- Old-school UK speaker brand Castle is back with its stylish and sol >Tested at £400.00
- Our Verdict
- Against
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Castle Acoustics is back! There’s a new owner in IAG and whole new range called Knight
Our Verdict
A true resurgence for the Castle brand. The Knight 2 has a beguiling sound quality and enviable finish
- Subtle, yet engaging sound quality
- Immaculate finish
Against
- Some softening of dynamics
Castle Acoustics was a Yorkshire-based company started in the early 1970s. Best known for its rich, real wood veneers and refined acoustic, the firm soon established a following from those appreciating a warm, full-bodied sound.
As with many of the British greats, however, Castle fell upon hard times at the turn of the millennium and came under the ownership of IAG (International Audio Group).
With IAG’s impressive portfolio that includes Quad, Castle should be in safe hands and as if to prove the parent company’s commitment, the all-new Knight range is voiced by IAG’s Director of Acoustic Design, Peter Comeau – of Heybrook HB1 and Mission 780 fame.
It has to be said that neither of these speakers has the ‘Castle sound’, so the question is; have his talents been successful with tuning the Knight?
Slithers of tree
There’s nothing especially innovative with the design, but such a conservative approach should suit the targeted audience.
Crucially, the Knight range uses high-quality wood veneer and is available in eight varieties. The veneers are genuine, book-matched and mirrored slithers of tree and not reconstituted pulp.
The cabinet itself is made from 15-millimetre MDF, with bracing across both planes. A flush-mounted rear bass port is fitted with a mesh to dampen the exiting air. The drive units consist of a soft-dome tweeter and fibre woofer.
Again, very conventional, but the decision not to select a metal dome tweeter is a wise move, as their occasional edgy characteristics would not have suited the Knight 2.
The woofer chassis is an ordinary pressed steel affair, but is magnetically shielded to allow for safe placement near magnetic recordings and CRT screens.
A bi-wirable crossover, with gold-plated terminals, completes the good first impressions. And with an above average sensitivity of 90dB, we expect the Knight 2 to present an easy amplifier load.
Knight attire
Given the price, the standard of finish is exceptional. Whereas rivals such as the Mordaunt-Short Mezzo 2 (£450) and Bowers and Wilkins 685 (£380) use vinyl wraps, the Knight 2 stands out with its real-wood veneering.
The full process, including sealing and waxing, apparently takes five days and in an ideal world the veneering would be extended to the inside of the cabinet, too, as this has a beneficial effect on the sound quality.
There are no complaints with the solidity of the cabinet, in which multiple bracing adds considerable weight and rigidity to these standmounts. Items such as the basic internal speaker cable show where costs have been cut, but this is an impressively engineered speaker.
Sense and depth
Castle fans will be relieved to hear that the Knight 2 has kept all the Castle Acoustics qualities intact.
The bass response errs on the side of taut control, rather than ultimate weight and is all the better for it. Sound staging is particularly spacious with vocals being especially well portrayed. Explicit but not aggressive, the Knight 2 strikes a very fine balance.
Against the Mezzo 2, you will find the Knight lacking a defining edge with, for example, drum beats, but the smoother balance will be ample compensation for most. Acoustic music suits these speakers with vocal texture readily revealed.
With classical music the Knight is one of the best speakers in its class. A true sense of space and depth creates a tension not usually found in this type of speaker and if you enjoy unforced realism, then you’ll appreciate the Knight 2’s subtle qualities of presentation.
Subtle charms
IAG deserves praise for not only producing a new speaker that looks like a Castle, but for producing one that emphatically sounds like a Castle, too.
In fact, we’d go further by saying that this is probably the best-sounding budget Castle speaker ever made. In addition to the traditional qualities of accuracy and refinement, the Knight 2 adds unforced detail and first-class soundstaging.
Whilst it won’t be the first choice for lovers of high-octane dance music, everyone else will be more than satisfied by its subtle charms. The class-leading finish cements this as a classic Hi-Fi Choice recommendation.
Old-school UK speaker brand Castle is back with its stylish and sol >Tested at £400.00
Our Verdict
They might be faithful to the original Castle vision, but the Knight 2s aren’t as adaptable as is ideal
- Gratifying build and finish
- cogent, well organised sonic presentation
Against
- Cross the line between ‘controlled’ and ‘unexciting’ a little too often
It’s no secret that, since its founding (as Castle Acoustics Ltd) in 1973, Castle has had a bit of a time of it.
This is by no means an unheard-of experience among British speaker manufacturers, and in this instance it’s led to the brand being owned by Chinese behemoth International Audio Group.
Castle isn’t the only former UK speaker firm under the IAG umbrella, but the original company’s angle of selling hand-crafted speakers made from natural materials and having real credentials as furniture remains the same.
The new, five-strong Knight range is the initial evidence of this, and these ones are our first encounter.
Tactile and generously sized
Being able to pass as furniture is only half the battle, of course – if the Knight 2s sound poor compared to their rivals, then all the cabinetry credentials in the world won’t help them. But there’s no doubt that they’re off to a good start.
Especially tactile thanks to the extensive waxing they undergo as part of the finishing process, the finish of our review pair features an interesting gradation from black to rosewood that makes them look like they’ve been only partially cleaned.
Out in a bit of free space and securely sited on speaker stands with necessarily large top-plates (these are generously proportioned speakers. It’s amazing how a few extra centimetres in each direction makes the Knight 2s seem so much bigger than many rivals), the Castles serve up a spotlessly tidy sound.
A tight, unified soundstage
Arcade Fire’s Neighborhood #2 (Laïka) is a dense and messy recording, but the Knight 2s organise the song on a tight, unified soundstage that’s easy to follow, despite the relative lack of breathing space.
Taken in isolation, there’s not much wrong with the way the Castles go about their work. High frequencies are rapid and detailed, and the midrange is equally expressive.
Low frequencies don’t have quite the detail levels, though they offer meaningful variation in texture and tonality, and they’re every bit as fulsome as they ought to be – the Knight 2s won’t thank you for positioning them too close to a side or rear wall.
Can sound too polite
Despite the unanimity of their sound, though, the careful neutrality of the Castles can easily manifest itself as rather dour and unexciting.
A song as giddy and abandoned as The Ramones’ Sheena Is A Punk Rocker ought to gallop along with sparks flying, but under the Knight 2s’ direction it’s altogether too polite, too ordered and lacking in inspiration.
For some listeners, of course, this control-freakery will be nothing but good news and, allied to the impressive build and finish, will make the Castles a very persuasive option.
But some rivals such as the KEF Q300s are all able to slum it more effectively than the Knight 2s and, even at this relatively modest price, we think speakers should be more accomplished all-rounders than this.
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- Производитель International Audio Group
- Made in Китай
- Цена, руб. 13500
- www.castle.uk.com
Британская марка Castle, ныне входящая в международный холдинг IAG, считается сильнейшим игроком на рынке акустических систем. Модель Knight 2 — классические двухполосные мониторы фазоинверторного типа с портом на задней панели. Они выполнены в строгих традициях фирмы с применением проверенных временем технических решений. Так, для озвучивания верхнего диапазона используется дюймовый твитер с мягким тканевым куполом, солидной магнитной системой и звуковой катушкой, намотанной легким алюминиевым проводом. Особо стоит отметить, что без заметного спада воспроизводятся частоты вплоть до 24 кГц. Мембрана низкочастотного драйвера соткана из углеволокна — легкого и прочного материала, стойкого к изгибным деформациям. Калибр диффузора невелик, всего 150 мм, но мягкий эластичный подвес дает ему достаточно свободы для убедительной передачи баса.
Кратко звучание Castle Knight 2 можно описать как в меру напористое и очень прозрачное. Верхний диапазон ясный и искристый, но порой кажется, что он немного выше по уровню, чем остальной спектр. Однако в домашнем интерьере с мягкой мебелью акцент на ВЧ может даже оказаться полезным. К середине претензии минимальны, эта часть рабочей полосы отличается ясностью и предельной натуральностью. Голоса вокалистов совершенно естественны, разделение инструментов прекрасное. Охват нижнего регистра более чем достаточен для полочной акустики. Динамика при этом хотя и не слишком высока, но всё же приемлемая для большинства музыкальных жанров. Правда, иногда самые низкие частоты кажутся гулковатыми, однако удар передается достаточно резко и энергично. Пространственная картина без особых нарушений: образы телесны и верно спроецированы, но передний план слегка приближен к слушателю. Звуковая сцена не слишком глубока, но для акустики такой цены вполне адекватна.
Высокая ясность звучания, неожиданный для такого объема бас.
Акцент на высоких частотах, скромная динамика.
- Castle Knight 2 13500 руб.
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- Magnat Quantum 553 11250 руб.
- Mirage MX Speaker 11880 руб.
- Monitor Audio Bronze BR2 12000 руб.
- Mordaunt-Short Aviano 1 12250 руб.
- Quad 9L2 14500 руб.
- Yamaha NS-333 7500 руб.
- 7 раз отмерь
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