at suppressing digital power supply noise. The system’s noise floor is very low. With
each speaker, I listened to an assortment of familiar, well-produced music recordings
and movie soundtracks.
Angstrom Ambienti AV-6.5
Approximately 13 inches tall by 9 inches wide, the Ambienti AV-6.5 is a two way speaker with a 1-inch soft-dome tweeter
and a 6.5-inch woofer. The woofer’s cone is Vectran, a high-tech woven material similar to carbon fiber or Kevlar, bonded to
what Angstrom describes as a “linear long-throw butyl rubber edge surround.” The baffle is vertically ribbed for rigidity.
High- and mid-frequency controls on the baffle allow some tailoring of the speaker’s output—making it brighter and more
forward in over-damped rooms or taming its upper end in rooms that are too reverberant. I did all my listening with the
controls set at their neutral position.
Installing the AV-6.5 is easy-cut out a rectangle in the wall, insert the paintable frame, clamp it down, insert your speaker
wires in the springloaded gold-plated connectors, and screw the baffle to the frame. For final finish installation, the
perforated metal grille pops into place. Angstrom includes a handy hook tool with each Ambienti for easy removal of the
grille.
Sonically, these speakers were a surprise and a delight. Crisp and punchy, with excellent dynamics, they revealed
tremendous amounts of detail without sounding edgy, and didn’t change tonality as they got louder.
The manufacturer recommends using the Ambientis with amplifiers having a power-handling capacity of 50–100 watts. I do
know that whatever amp you use, they can play loudly without distorting. I pushed them hard with Tab Benoit’s superb
version of “I Put a Spell on You,” from his Nice and Warm CD [Vanguard], and they responded with aplomb. Heavy rock, like
Radiohead’s “Creep,” also had a reach-out-and-grab-you quality—rare for in-walls. Angstrom rates the AV-6.5’s frequency
response as 42Hz–21kHz. Even though the speakers can’t reach the bottom octave, the bass they produce is quite
respectable. Augmenting the bottom end with a powered sub helps tremendously, as it has with every pair of in-walls I’ve
tried. No one would seriously expect huge bass from a 6.5-inch woofer—one that’s also doing an admirable job of
delivering most of the midrange information. On complex material such as “Coracol,” the first track on Strunz & Farah’s CD
Americas [Mesa], the Ambienti AV-6.5s clearly separated individual voices and instruments, and with equal adeptness
separated foreground from background of movie soundtracks. Plowing through many familiar recordings, I was pleased to
discover that the Angstroms introduced very little coloration and even delivered a pretty good semblance of imaging. The
owner’s manual says the speakers’ crossover networks are designed for maximum high fidelity. Apparently the philosophy
was applied to the entire product. The Angstroms were fun and exciting to listen to; I heartily recommend them for both
music and home theater use. High performance needn’t be sacrificed simply because floor space is tight.
AVguide publisher and TPV Audio editor Chris Martens has mentioned that Angstrom does well in the Canadian
market but hasn’t made a big dent south of the border. That miscarriage of marketplace justice should change as
custom installers and home-theater fans discover how great these speakers really are.
Revel I20
Larger than the Angstrom, the Revel I20 sports a 7.5-inch woofer and a 1inch titanium dome tweeter vertically bisected by a
molded phase splitter. Controls on the baffle enable a high degree of tweaking: high-frequency level, high-frequency tilt,
low-frequency boundary, listener axis—everything short of a parametric equalizer. Such adjustments should allow
installers to make this speaker sound good almost anywhere. As with the Angstroms, I didall my listening with these
controls in their neutral positions. The installation procedure is almost identical to Angstrom’s, but the Revel
has more clamps and screws. Manufacturing quality and materials are first rate. The owner’s manual goes on at length
about the depth of research and development behind this Revel product— no mere hype, as anyone who has toured the
Northridge, CA, factory or spent any time listening to the company’s Ultima or Performance series loudspeakers will affirm.
(I’ve long thought the Performa F30 was a great, affordable loudspeaker.) The manual also describes the engineering
prowess exerted in making every aspect of the I20 as close to state-of-the- art as design parameters and ultimate
street pricing allow. Reading the following induces great expectations—“natural tonal balance over a wide operating range .
. . constant linear voice coil inductance with forward and backward motion . . . smooth octave-to-octave balance and timbral
accuracy.” Great engineering is admirable. While the I20 fulfilled its promise of tonal purity—Kathleen Battle's Carnegie
Hall performance of “Summertime” sounded wonderful [Kathleen Battle at Carnegie Hall, Deutsche Grammophon]—the
I20 generally failed to generate excitement. Recordings that came into the room with the Angstroms, like Katy Moffatt’s “The
Evangeline Hotel,” from her CD The Greatest Show on Earth [Rounder], seemed inexplicably distant and uninvolving
through the Revels. Thetonal balance was right, but the warmth and ache of Moffatt’s vocal was absent. Although the I20
claims a smoother response than the AV-6.5, its treble was softer and more “splashy.” The overall sonic presentation was
clean and refined, but less dynamic. I couldn’t seem to get the same degree of dynamic contrast that the AV-6.5 had
delivered, regardless of recording or volume—perhaps evidence of a bit of dynamic compression? Unlike the Angstroms,
through the Revels, the Benoit cut didn’t induce any involuntary urge to dance. The upper midrange sounded a tad veiled,
and the soundstage was shallow. Background vocals sounded more homogenous than they did with the Angstroms.
Harry James’ big band (Sheffield Labs’ The King James Version) wasn’t as big as it had seemed with the Angstroms,
despite subjectively equivalent volume.
The Revel I20 is a bit like a superbly engineered German automobile whose high technology somehow isolates you
from the soul of the open road. What the speaker does is pleasant, but not sumptuous. It won’t make you want to ransack
your music library for long-forgotten guilty pleasures. Its presentation is civilized and polite and probably closer to an
engineering ideal, but it lacks a compelling musical hook. If emotional involvement is the primary appeal of music and
movies, the I20 probably isn’t the speaker for you. The Angstrom would be a better choice.
The bright side for Revel and for Revel dealers is that there is a big market for a loudspeaker like this. It’s perfect for
installation in trendy upscale offices and in whole-house audio systems where its primary duty is delivering light classical
and smooth jazz without the intrusion of provoking real responses.
each speaker, I listened to an assortment of familiar, well-produced music recordings
and movie soundtracks.
Angstrom Ambienti AV-6.5
Approximately 13 inches tall by 9 inches wide, the Ambienti AV-6.5 is a two way speaker with a 1-inch soft-dome tweeter
and a 6.5-inch woofer. The woofer’s cone is Vectran, a high-tech woven material similar to carbon fiber or Kevlar, bonded to
what Angstrom describes as a “linear long-throw butyl rubber edge surround.” The baffle is vertically ribbed for rigidity.
High- and mid-frequency controls on the baffle allow some tailoring of the speaker’s output—making it brighter and more
forward in over-damped rooms or taming its upper end in rooms that are too reverberant. I did all my listening with the
controls set at their neutral position.
Installing the AV-6.5 is easy-cut out a rectangle in the wall, insert the paintable frame, clamp it down, insert your speaker
wires in the springloaded gold-plated connectors, and screw the baffle to the frame. For final finish installation, the
perforated metal grille pops into place. Angstrom includes a handy hook tool with each Ambienti for easy removal of the
grille.
Sonically, these speakers were a surprise and a delight. Crisp and punchy, with excellent dynamics, they revealed
tremendous amounts of detail without sounding edgy, and didn’t change tonality as they got louder.
The manufacturer recommends using the Ambientis with amplifiers having a power-handling capacity of 50–100 watts. I do
know that whatever amp you use, they can play loudly without distorting. I pushed them hard with Tab Benoit’s superb
version of “I Put a Spell on You,” from his Nice and Warm CD [Vanguard], and they responded with aplomb. Heavy rock, like
Radiohead’s “Creep,” also had a reach-out-and-grab-you quality—rare for in-walls. Angstrom rates the AV-6.5’s frequency
response as 42Hz–21kHz. Even though the speakers can’t reach the bottom octave, the bass they produce is quite
respectable. Augmenting the bottom end with a powered sub helps tremendously, as it has with every pair of in-walls I’ve
tried. No one would seriously expect huge bass from a 6.5-inch woofer—one that’s also doing an admirable job of
delivering most of the midrange information. On complex material such as “Coracol,” the first track on Strunz & Farah’s CD
Americas [Mesa], the Ambienti AV-6.5s clearly separated individual voices and instruments, and with equal adeptness
separated foreground from background of movie soundtracks. Plowing through many familiar recordings, I was pleased to
discover that the Angstroms introduced very little coloration and even delivered a pretty good semblance of imaging. The
owner’s manual says the speakers’ crossover networks are designed for maximum high fidelity. Apparently the philosophy
was applied to the entire product. The Angstroms were fun and exciting to listen to; I heartily recommend them for both
music and home theater use. High performance needn’t be sacrificed simply because floor space is tight.
AVguide publisher and TPV Audio editor Chris Martens has mentioned that Angstrom does well in the Canadian
market but hasn’t made a big dent south of the border. That miscarriage of marketplace justice should change as
custom installers and home-theater fans discover how great these speakers really are.
Revel I20
Larger than the Angstrom, the Revel I20 sports a 7.5-inch woofer and a 1inch titanium dome tweeter vertically bisected by a
molded phase splitter. Controls on the baffle enable a high degree of tweaking: high-frequency level, high-frequency tilt,
low-frequency boundary, listener axis—everything short of a parametric equalizer. Such adjustments should allow
installers to make this speaker sound good almost anywhere. As with the Angstroms, I didall my listening with these
controls in their neutral positions. The installation procedure is almost identical to Angstrom’s, but the Revel
has more clamps and screws. Manufacturing quality and materials are first rate. The owner’s manual goes on at length
about the depth of research and development behind this Revel product— no mere hype, as anyone who has toured the
Northridge, CA, factory or spent any time listening to the company’s Ultima or Performance series loudspeakers will affirm.
(I’ve long thought the Performa F30 was a great, affordable loudspeaker.) The manual also describes the engineering
prowess exerted in making every aspect of the I20 as close to state-of-the- art as design parameters and ultimate
street pricing allow. Reading the following induces great expectations—“natural tonal balance over a wide operating range .
. . constant linear voice coil inductance with forward and backward motion . . . smooth octave-to-octave balance and timbral
accuracy.” Great engineering is admirable. While the I20 fulfilled its promise of tonal purity—Kathleen Battle's Carnegie
Hall performance of “Summertime” sounded wonderful [Kathleen Battle at Carnegie Hall, Deutsche Grammophon]—the
I20 generally failed to generate excitement. Recordings that came into the room with the Angstroms, like Katy Moffatt’s “The
Evangeline Hotel,” from her CD The Greatest Show on Earth [Rounder], seemed inexplicably distant and uninvolving
through the Revels. Thetonal balance was right, but the warmth and ache of Moffatt’s vocal was absent. Although the I20
claims a smoother response than the AV-6.5, its treble was softer and more “splashy.” The overall sonic presentation was
clean and refined, but less dynamic. I couldn’t seem to get the same degree of dynamic contrast that the AV-6.5 had
delivered, regardless of recording or volume—perhaps evidence of a bit of dynamic compression? Unlike the Angstroms,
through the Revels, the Benoit cut didn’t induce any involuntary urge to dance. The upper midrange sounded a tad veiled,
and the soundstage was shallow. Background vocals sounded more homogenous than they did with the Angstroms.
Harry James’ big band (Sheffield Labs’ The King James Version) wasn’t as big as it had seemed with the Angstroms,
despite subjectively equivalent volume.
The Revel I20 is a bit like a superbly engineered German automobile whose high technology somehow isolates you
from the soul of the open road. What the speaker does is pleasant, but not sumptuous. It won’t make you want to ransack
your music library for long-forgotten guilty pleasures. Its presentation is civilized and polite and probably closer to an
engineering ideal, but it lacks a compelling musical hook. If emotional involvement is the primary appeal of music and
movies, the I20 probably isn’t the speaker for you. The Angstrom would be a better choice.
The bright side for Revel and for Revel dealers is that there is a big market for a loudspeaker like this. It’s perfect for
installation in trendy upscale offices and in whole-house audio systems where its primary duty is delivering light classical
and smooth jazz without the intrusion of provoking real responses.
Product Review
I continue my ongoing survey of inwall loudspeakers with models from Angstrom,
Revel, and Bowers & Wilkins. All three—the Angstrom Ambienti AV-6.5, the B&W
CWM LCR8 and the Revel I20, respectively—are open-back models with separate
frames and baffles. The Angstroms and Revels are two-way speakers of similar size
and appearance. The B&Ws are narrow two-and-a-half-way systems with midrange
and bass drivers arrayed around a central tweeter. I installed each pair of speakers
in 8 foot-tall stud bays—these are freestanding mockups of sections of wall as found
in most North American homes. Made of 2x4-inch wood framing with 1/2-inch
sheetrock on both sides, the bays are partially filled with fiberglass insulation. A
length of Red Rose 336 speaker cable exits each for connection to a power amp—in
my case, the Parasound Halo A51. My other electronics include a Parasound Halo
C2 pre-amp/controller and an Integra DPC 8.5 universal disc changer. The Integra’s
digital audio output feeds Perpetual Technologies P-1A/P-3A outboard processors,
and the P-3A’s analog output feeds a Margules Audio Magenta ADE-24 harmonic
sweetener. Cabling is a combination of Kimber Hero and Nordost Quattro-fil;power
conditioning is via an American Power Conversions S 15, plugged into a double-
grounded 20-ampere dedicated outlet. The C2, Integra disc player, and other digital
gear are also hooked up via Kimber Palladian power cords, phenomenally effective
Revel, and Bowers & Wilkins. All three—the Angstrom Ambienti AV-6.5, the B&W
CWM LCR8 and the Revel I20, respectively—are open-back models with separate
frames and baffles. The Angstroms and Revels are two-way speakers of similar size
and appearance. The B&Ws are narrow two-and-a-half-way systems with midrange
and bass drivers arrayed around a central tweeter. I installed each pair of speakers
in 8 foot-tall stud bays—these are freestanding mockups of sections of wall as found
in most North American homes. Made of 2x4-inch wood framing with 1/2-inch
sheetrock on both sides, the bays are partially filled with fiberglass insulation. A
length of Red Rose 336 speaker cable exits each for connection to a power amp—in
my case, the Parasound Halo A51. My other electronics include a Parasound Halo
C2 pre-amp/controller and an Integra DPC 8.5 universal disc changer. The Integra’s
digital audio output feeds Perpetual Technologies P-1A/P-3A outboard processors,
and the P-3A’s analog output feeds a Margules Audio Magenta ADE-24 harmonic
sweetener. Cabling is a combination of Kimber Hero and Nordost Quattro-fil;power
conditioning is via an American Power Conversions S 15, plugged into a double-
grounded 20-ampere dedicated outlet. The C2, Integra disc player, and other digital
gear are also hooked up via Kimber Palladian power cords, phenomenally effective
In Wall Speakers from Angstrom, B&W, and Revel
High-performance in-walls: Out of sight in more ways than one.
High-performance in-walls: Out of sight in more ways than one.
Click here to download original review
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