Endeavor Audio E-3 Mk2 Tower Speakers Preview

The brand new Endeavor Audio E-3 Mk2 speakers do not have as flashy appearance or exotic design as many of the other high-end speakers at the 2016 AXPONA show.  What they do have is a simple form factor and great sound. Their relatively plain but tasteful appearance is more than made up for the fantastic sonic imaging they can produce. After all, great speakers make you forget you are listening to speakers in a room and instead transport you to an auditory landscape determined by the sound engineer.

The E-3 Mk2 accomplishes its goal of high-fidelity sound by paying close attention to every aspect of speaker design. To start with, the cabinet uses a trapezoidal shape in an effort to tame the standing waves normally seen in enclosures with parallel sidewalls. A dual ring radiator tweeter permits a high dynamic range with superior dispersion compared to conventional dome tweeters and brings a linear frequency response well into the ultrasonic range above human hearing. A 6.5” Kevlar midrange driver takes the range from 220 Hz to 1.8 kHz and uses a shorting ring and phase plug for reduced distortion. It is also backed by a tapered transmission line for precise control of backwave acoustic radiation from the woofer. Two 7” bass drivers with anodized aluminum cones also use shorting rings and phase plugs for tightly controlled bass. They are set in a vented cabinet that is critically damped to a Q of 0.7 while maintaining low frequency extension down to 30 Hz, +/- 2 dB. A Linkwitz-Riley crossover keeps all drivers phase coherent and time-aligned for the resultant sound to act as a simple reproducer of the recording, and not a stack of disparate sources of noise. For those readers who may not be technically savvy enough to understand all of the speaker jargon in the above description, be assured that it all adds up to a superb sound as I discovered first hand during my listening demos at the show.

The price of admission to the world of high-fidelity of a pair of Endeavor Audio E-3 Mk2s will set you back $8k. These are not the most expensive speaker at Axpona nor are they the least, but it is a safe investment for anyone looking for a great sound out of a modestly sized and conservatively styled speaker which can fit in any decor without worries of aesthetic clashing. One advantage of the E-3 Mk2s that might help offset their cost is that they have a steady 4 ohm impedance with no dips below that, so nearly any amp can be used to drive them.

Endeavor Audio speakers can be purchased at dealers covering North America, Europe, and Asia, and to find out where you can demo or purchase the E-3 Mk2, here is Endeavor’s dealer list.

Unless otherwise indicated, this is a preview article for the featured product. A formal review may or may not follow in the future.