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Positive Feedback ISSUE 62
Bill Firebaugh's Tesla
ESL – A Follow-up
My thanks go out to both my niece and Clark Johnsen for creating an opportunity to visit Bill Firebaugh and hear his fabulous new full-range electrostatic loudspeaker, for now christened the Tesla ESL. Having read what Clark had to say about this fascinating development a few issues ago, I knew I just had to hear this speaker for myself. Clark, in my experience, is very conservative about the things that get him excited audio-wise. So, when I read how impressed he was with the Tesla ESL at Bill's place, I needed to get to LA. And here's where my niece comes in. Yes, I knew she had met "The Man" for her and, yes, they did have a baby already. What I did not know that they had decided to tie the knot and that they were going ahead with that plan this past September. I now had a real reason to go to LA. I proceeded to call Bill and we reacquainted ourselves. We had not been in touch for quite some time and were due for a reunion. It just so happens that Bill Firebaugh is one of my hi-fi heroes. Ever since he came out with his Well Tempered Tonearm, I have had great admiration for him. That design was so inventive, so fresh, and so functional that I was completely overcome with admiration which has not died down to this day. When he subsequently released his WT Turntable I went and made that sucker (with the WT arm) a part of my system. I used that combo for many years in my work as a Stereophile writer. After spending a few days in California the appointed time had arrived. I met up with Nila Sagadevan who proceeded take me to Bill's place. As we entered Bill's apartment, I was greeted by a beaming Bill right in front of his Tesla ESLs. We took some time to do the social thing and found our comfort zone in no time. I was pleasantly reminded just how friendly and charming Bill is. He is a true gentleman and a genial man through and through. The Tesla ESL loudspeaker appears to be close to 6' tall and roughly 2' wide. Truth be told, there was nothing obviously apparent that would lead one to suspect something out of the ordinary. It had an ordinary presence in the sense that a planar dipole in prototype form would exhibit. But then, the sound! Wow! Just astonishing! It took me a while to get over marveling at the transparency. Not having listened to electrostatics for quite some time, I was really taken by the open, see-through presentation. It is common knowledge that ESLs have ability to present the midrange in an other-worldly manner. They are just in another world when it comes to immediacy and presence. And the Tesla ESL met this demanding standard with the greatest of ease. But it also excelled all the way to the top frequencies with equal aplomb. But as they say in infomercials, but that's not all! This Tesla thing could do bass. We all know that to expect is one thing, but to experience, another. Sure, I had read Clark's piece. I knew what was likely to come. But what I heard, sitting right there in Bill's living room, was something beyond my expectations. This was exceptional. I have owned the Quad ESL-57s, ESL-63s, Acoustat IIIs, and Koss 1A full range electrostatic loudspeakers. I have heard at shows and in showrooms the Martin Logan CLS, the big ESL, and some of the larger Quads in the 8000 and 9000 series. But the Tesla was special. It went significantly lower than any of the full-range ESLs that I heard previously. Lower than the M-L CLS, the ESL-63, the Acoustat III. The huge M-L does not count—it uses dynamic woofers for the bass. It was a pleasure to hear sound emanate from a single diaphragm sans any crossovers or any other network such as a delay line. There was nothing in the Tesla network-wise to introduce phase anomalies and/or other aberrations. Bill did not play the speaker at ridiculously loud levels because he was still searching to find an amplifier comfortable with an ESL load. And I do know that his front end could be bettered The bass I heard had a distinguishing quality to it—it was clearly clean. It had a natural sense of the pristine and exceptionally resolved. Talk about rosinous when a double bass was playing. Bass drum blasts had a great sense of power and drive. It was compelling and awesome. Later I analyzed why I was so taken by the Tesla. I realized that it had to be the single-driver concept. All frequencies get equal treatment and, as a result, are presented with great coherence. Some time after my visit, I was told that the Tesla ESL has been significantly improved. The radiating area has been increased by 170% with an attendant 3dB increase in output. To me that's not a surprise since this is Bill Firebaugh's baby. I sure am glad my niece decided to get married. Now I am hoping for another smile from fate so I can get out to Bill's place and hear this ESL marvel in its latest incarnation. http://www.welltemperedlab.net
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