Elac Debut B4 Review
One of the best things about German manufacturer Elac is that it makes excellent speakers to suit nearly all budgets. This includes standmounters, powered (active) speakers and even floorstanders, so there are options to suit a host of different listeners and listening spaces. With this as my motivator, I finally test the littlest ELAC Debut B4 Bookshelf Speakers to complete our impressions and potential of the lauded budget-oriented lineup.
Best Buy has honest and unbiased customer reviews for ELAC - Debut 4" 2-Way Bookshelf Speaker (Pair) - Black. Read helpful reviews from our customers. I cant find that many reviews on the B4 online but have read good reviews on the the other elac debuts.
Also, if I do a centre later, Ive read that centre channel has to match, is this crucial? Andrew switched between his impressively competent Uni-Fi B5 ($500) and Debut B4 speakers, playing two minutes of Seeya by Deadmau5 for each segment. Naturally, the 2-way Uni-Fi model beat the B4s in overall quality, but not by the country mile youd expect.
Audio Advisor and others had a nice, $50 markdown on the ELAC B4 bookshelf speakers at year's end. I'd been toying with bumping up things a bit on my desktop rig - inspired by @Mikey081057 - and this looked like a good place to start. The Debut B4 harnesses the performance of Debuts larger 2-way, bass-reflex bookshelf speakers and delivers it up in a compact enclosure that will have you guessing how Andrew Jones gets so much accurate, lifelike sound from such a tiny box.
Though not much buzz in the UK, the USA press is rating these speaker well out of their price class. Slightly laid-back, clear, crisp, and detailed. A truly impressive speaker for the modest price.
I suspect these will force other companies to raise their game to match these speakers. The Debut B4 harnesses the performance of Debuts larger 2-way, bass reflex bookshelf speakers and delivers it up in a compact enclosure that will have you guessing how Andrew Jones gets so much accurate, life-like sound from such a tiny box. I might choose the BS22s if the price difference was as great as it was in that review.
However, for $13 more, you are getting a superior speaker in the B4. I have no doubt you are right since the elacs are designed by Andrew Jones and he designed the bs22 as well. I am curious though, in your opinion which set has better bass extension?
