ELAC CINEMA 2 SAT Review — A German Desktop-Sized Satellite Speaker

This is a German-made desktop mini monitor speaker that forms the centrepiece of my boxed pure PC audio setup. It won the VGP Visual Grand Prix in 2009. I introduced it in 2008 and have been using it ever since without replacement. The CINEMA 2 SAT was not, in fact, originally developed as a mini speaker for desktop PCs — it was designed as a satellite speaker for 5.1ch surround sound, as part of the CINEMA Line.

I am always rather surprised to see people using fairly large speakers (small by Hi-Fi standards, but still) sitting on either side of their monitors for PC audio purposes. The main reason I have kept using the CINEMA 2 SAT is its ultra-compact depth of 10cm, which allows it to be positioned in the gap between the back of my PC monitor and the wall. And on top of that, it actually delivers the sound of German ELAC — which is no small thing.

Nominal specifications: W 88mm × H 138mm × D 102mm, weight 0.95kg, frequency response 90Hz–21,000kHz, sealed enclosure, magnetically shielded. 2-way: 80mm woofer + 19mm neodymium ring dome tweeter (crossover frequency 3,800Hz), impedance 6Ω, rated input 45W / maximum 65W, sound pressure level 85dB (2.83V/1m).

My CINEMA 2 SAT is the first-generation model released in 2005, finished in aluminium silver. The successor released in 2008 is the ELAC CINEMA 2 SAT HG. The HG shares the same appearance and specifications as the original, but is available only in black. Since I have never compared them directly, I cannot say whether there is any audible difference before and after the minor revision. On the manufacturer’s product page, neither the silver nor the black version is explicitly labelled HG, so perhaps it really is just a colour variant with the same internals. In any case, when the HG was released in Japan and I realised it only came in black, I hurriedly tried to order the previous silver model online — only to find it was no longer available. I ended up hunting down shop-floor stock and eventually managed to get hold of one at a certain shop in the old Radio Kaikan building in Akihabara.

The cabinet is 3mm-thick aluminium. The build quality is exceptional — very much in the spirit of German craftsmanship — and it does a good job of satisfying one’s sense of ownership. The front grille is perforated metal and unfortunately cannot be removed. I was already a fan of the ELAC CL310JET and introduced this expecting something like a miniature version of that sound, but the sonic character turned out to be entirely different from the moist, lush quality of the CL310 to BS312 line. There is little in the way of deliberate beauty or sensuous colouration; contrary to what the appearance might suggest, it is accurate and monitor-like. With a crossover frequency sitting at a slightly high 3,800Hz, it has something of the quality of a small full-range driver. From a monitor-like midrange, the soundstage opens up wide and flat, thinning out gradually towards the upper and lower extremes.

Given the aluminium enclosure and what appears to be a whitish aluminium-coloured cone, I had imagined it would have that pleasantly aluminium-flavoured sound — full of resonance in the best sense — like the ELAC CL310 to BS312 line. But the woofer’s character is more paper-cone-like and somewhat dry. Since I personally prefer tonal warmth and a certain moistness, that came as a mild surprise. Any tendency towards an aluminium-ish colouration in the sound is kept to an absolute minimum, presumably thanks to the high rigidity of the cabinet, and there is none of the deliberate box-resonance character you hear from the aluminium enclosures of the BOSE Computer Music Monitor or Micro Music Monitor — it is thoroughly suppressed here.

There is also none of the warmth or pleasant coarseness characteristic of a typical wooden cabinet, so the overall sound is inorganic, monitor-like, and neutral in tendency. The neodymium tweeter never draws attention to itself; it is restrained and naturally blended in, to the point where, if you did not know better, you might suspect it was a full-range driver. What surprised me was that despite being a satellite speaker, the cone has a clean, well-defined attack and the tuning avoids letting reverberation linger unnecessarily.

Musicality: neutral. The CINEMA 2 SAT itself does not possess the tonal personality or high musicality of other ELAC speakers, but neither does it have the kind of dull earnestness that spoils the vitality, rhythm, and musical character that an amplifier or digital source might bring. Its manner of articulation is German in quality. Temperature-wise it is neither warm nor cold — neutral. The tonal spectrum is not particularly vivid; it inhabits a monochrome world. Its weakness is that it is solid and dependable but lacking in sensuous charm.

For better or worse, it is a monitor-like sound that avoids excess, with just a hint of German atmosphere and articulation worked into it. The tweeter’s high frequencies maintain a moderate degree of resolution while remaining extremely natural and never fatiguing, which makes it well suited to long listening sessions in the nearfield. That said, for reproducing recent high-resolution material it is a touch on the gentle side, and I do occasionally find myself tempted to add a super-tweeter. In the bass, the sealed enclosure keeps things lean, but the transient response is punchy — the complete opposite of the slow, blooming low end you get from a ported design. The midrange, however, has enough density that it never sounds bright or top-heavy.

I use it on my desktop day to day, but because it tends towards low sensitivity and is both sealed and low in added colouration, it is actually not ideally suited to very low volume listening — it sounds better, with a welcome increase in weight and presence, when the volume is brought up to a moderate level. The imaging is not the miniature, pinpoint kind either; there is a thickness to the soundstage, and this is a speaker that comes into its own when placed in a larger space. Conversely, it does not sound strained or distorted even at higher volumes. So it is perhaps unexpectedly good with orchestral music. When paired with a decent amplifier it can produce a remarkably full and rich sound, suggesting considerable potential. On the other hand, with a poorly made Chinese Class D amplifier or the integrated amplifier in a mini component system, the drive is insufficient and the sound becomes thin and hollow.

To put it bluntly: I am the sort of person who is inevitably drawn to the more eccentric end of the speaker world, with a taste for distinctive tonal characters that make the most of the material’s own voice. The CINEMA 2 SAT is the only speaker in regular use here that leans towards a monitor-type sound. I will not deny that its lack of sensuous charm leaves me feeling slightly unsatisfied — but then again, perhaps that very quality fits the modern, monochrome aesthetic of PC audio rather well. Since it reflects the potential of whatever source, amplifier, or cables are connected to it — for better or worse, and quite directly — its perceived quality will vary considerably depending on the system it is used with.

The enclosure has rubber feet (non-removable), which means conventional Hi-Fi insulators cannot be used. Instead, I place it on a 3cm-thick block of granite purchased from Beads & Audio Mukai. Placing it directly on the desk puts the drive units a little too low relative to the listening position, but too tall a granite block would cause the woofer to disappear entirely behind the LCD monitor.

In the current desktop setup, the woofer’s sound reaches my ears directly, but the tweeter is hidden behind the monitor, and the cheap plastic vibration from the LCD frame inevitably clings to the reproduced sound — which is something of a headache. The acoustic benefit of the granite is that it adds a degree of resonance and warmth to the CINEMA 2 SAT, which is inherently dry. It does not do much for musical expressiveness, though. If I did not need the extra height, it would be wonderful to treat it to the ELAC LS CUBE 6 — but the price of that is rather beyond me.

In terms of getting the best from it: there is nothing to be done about the lack of deep bass given the sealed enclosure and this size, and since the tonal character leans strongly towards monochrome, you really do feel the need to compensate with a more colourful sound from the amplifier, DAC, cables, and so on — otherwise the soundstage ends up looking like a black-and-white film. Probably not a concern for most people who cannot actually see sound as colour, but there it is.

The speaker terminals on the rear are solid but clamp-type rather than screw-type. I have tried various speaker cables over the years, but have settled on the NORDOST Wyrewizard Spellbinder — phase-accurate, fast, and characterised by a simple, straightforward presentation. However, the Spellbinder uses unplated 7N copper, which does nothing to address the CINEMA 2 SAT’s monochrome tendency. I seem to recall there was a silver-plated variant called the Wyrewizard Dreamcaster available in the US at some point, but it does not appear to be made any more. In any case, ideally I would like to upgrade to a silver-coated speaker cable — something along the lines of the Nordost White Lightning Anniversary.

In conclusion, the ELAC CINEMA 2 SAT is by no means the ultimate desktop PC speaker, but it is a well-balanced speaker that invites an overall score of around 80 out of 100. As a nearfield monitor for desktop use it is cohesive and well put-together, and after eight years of use for music playback I find it genuinely difficult to point to any serious shortcoming. It has no single outstanding virtue to speak of, which is perhaps what leaves one feeling slightly unsatisfied — but it is what it is, and it works. One thing worth noting: because the tonal character is dry in a paper-cone sort of way, it is not well suited to YouTube videos or anime. High-pitched female voice acting does not bloom with the kind of beautiful shimmer you want, while synthesised sound effects and male voices in BGM tracks take on an oddly beefy quality. Surprising, given that it was originally designed as a surround speaker.

So much for the ELAC CINEMA 2 SAT — but if you are genuinely after a serious sound from a desktop PC audio setup, I honestly think the BS302 from the 300 Line would be the more appropriate choice. Its depth of 12cm is much the same as the CINEMA 2 SAT’s. The trouble is, there is no silver model at the moment — really, ELAC lately. If it came in anything other than black, I would order one without hesitation.

If budget were no object for a desktop PC audio setup and I could choose freely, Kripton speakers would also be an interesting option. I have long felt that anime music in particular tends to suit Japanese-designed speakers using Kurtsmuller cones (German-made, formerly associated with Victor), and I think Kripton speakers deserve to be the first choice for anyone seriously looking for a high-quality Japanese-made speaker. The KS-1HQM and the more affordable KRIPTON KS-3HQM are powered speakers with a built-in digital amplifier, fitted with a full-range driver unit from Denmark’s Tymphany.