 One of the characteristics of the Warsaw company ESA (the company came to life in Poznan, in 1991, but resides in Warsaw for quite some time now) is the great theoretical background. Frankly speaking, I never found such a complete and first of all sensible, technical description on any other web page in the world. Please just have a look what they have to say about the loudspeaker series that includes the tested Intrada 3 – description HERE. You can learn much from it, even if you don’t deal with loudspeakers on a daily basis. The texts are interesting, sometimes controversial, because they hit many holy audiophile dogmas, but this just makes them more interesting to read. But nothing can replace practice. The best texts, theoretical background, etc, without a link with ear and taste are just worth nothing. OK, maybe I exaggerated a bit, because good theoretical background allows making a good, linear loudspeaker, always and everywhere. But in audio this is too little, the speakers have to sound right, and a flat frequency response is not enough for this. I say even more: most speakers that were designed to have a flat frequency response were dull and rejecting when listening to them for longer periods of time. I do not want to annoy anybody, but such models were also to be found at ESA. But those were the exceptions. Because listening sessions of some of the models (like Triton 1, Ostinato 2005 and Vivace 3) showed, that most are just very nice, thoroughly manufactured loudspeakers, that allow to be choosy with electronics. For the first time I listened to the model Intrada 3 during the last year’s Audio Show (2006) and I was impressed. Driven by Cyrus electronics they showed a very coherent, large sound, they owe the Sound of the Show award. This years show will be here soon, but I finally managed to get a pair for the test. SOUND )
These speakers are full of contradictions and internal tension. To really characterize them, one should write a few different tests – each based on another viewpoint. To avoid that, I will just start a few times over. Intrada 3 are speakers for large and very large rooms. Their scale of sound is impressive, regardless of the price level. Large performers, like a symphonic orchestra, but also smaller ensembles, like those from the disc KEF Ultimate Resolution Demonstration Disc (Octavia Records Inc., SACD/CD) sound in bliss and glory, not even simulating for a moment that an orchestra is able to fit in a small room. And when we deal with a nicely recorded large pipe organ like the one in the Toccata and Fugue in D Minor BEV 565 J.S. Bach from the mentioned disc, then the building is starting to shake. I am writing this without a trace of exaggeration. For classical music lover this is a real bargain – most speakers will sound as if somebody would have released air from them when compared to the ESA. You don’t like classical music? No problem – we put 10 000 Days by Tool (Sony BMG Music Entertainment, 681991, CCD) on the player and we have angry guitars for touching. The sound of the group is rich in nuances, but when needed it is pure energy. And energy is the keyword when describing the Intrada 3. Even when we deal with a slowly developing theme, like in the piece Wings for Marie Pt 1 a gong, then the ESA allows it to reverb, show the depth of the timbre and the power sleeping behind it. You know immediately that a hammer is going to hit in a moment, which will destroy this peace. I mentioned about the room size on purpose. The speakers have been tuned to allow for best convergence when positioned about 3 to 5 meters from them. Closer is not bad, but with stronger sounds we tend to turn our heads away, to not have a musician hit us witch a fiddlestick or guitar neck. That was the case with the recording opening the remaster of the disc abacab Genesis (Charisma Records/EMI, 385183, SACD/CD+DVD): a point hit and a motoric, low bass. Did I mention bass already? No? OK, the Intrada 3 sound with a fleshy, full bass, that will never and ever be thin, it will not simulate the presence of a contrabass or base guitar. The speakers are tuned in a way that the best tonal balance will be available in large rooms. In smaller rooms it will not be terrible, but sitting close or positioning them close to the rear wall will make the bass-reflex to dominate. I think, that the distance of one meter from the back wall (counting from the back plate and not the front) is a minimum. Putting them closer will not rumble the bass, but will lower its resolution. )
If I would have to define the tonal balance of those speakers, I would say, that it is warmed, shifted towards bass and midrange. If I would have to define their resolution, then I would say medium. Because if we start to analyze their aspects, then the idea of the speakers will scatter, and reading upcoming paragraphs we will not come closer knowing them, and it will have little in common with that what we actually hear. The speakers, when judged in separate areas, are not competing very well. This is the paradox I mentioned. I didn’t? Here it is: when analyzing the traditional elements of a loudspeaker sound the Intrada 3 are nice, but in no way ravishing. But when we sit down and listen, then it turns out, that their sound has the gift of convincing us, the music is reproduced in very good and natural way. The Intrada are so good, that they can be recommended to everyone, which wants to spend some money, but not too much, and wants to have something for forever. Because those are not speakers for tweakers, people that always search for something. OK, I’ll say it: those are no speakers for audiophiles, if we understand that description as somebody, that MUST change something in his system, for whom not the goal is most important, but the way to it. But if we just want to listen to music in a best possible way then we do not have to search any longer. Every kind of music sounds good on those speakers. I mentioned Tool, Genesis, but I can’t go around mentioning Tom Waits from the three disc album Orphans (Anti-/EMI 6677-2P, 3 x promo-CCD). Waits’ voice is big, warm, full, and just as we would expect it to be. If I would like to sell those speakers and did not have much time to do it, I would play the piece Bend Down The Branches, and just after it the Long way Home – sold. If somebody likes rock more then we play the title song from the mentioned Genesis album and then No Reply At All – sold. The Intrada play with an extremely energetic sound, that really moves the listener. Even more – you can listen to them really loud or really quiet and they always keep their assets. If our musical lectures are reserved to the evenings or nights, when loud listening is out of the question, or just function as the background to a good book, those loudspeakers will prove themselves perfectly, as they will not diminish the sound. )
However those are speakers absolutely not suitable for everybody. Did I write about paradoxes? Yes, I did, so I will not repeat myself. Anyway it is about the fact, that the speakers have a very clear own character. The treble and upper midrange are clearly lower than the rest of the frequency range. The bass does not reach very far down, but its mid- and upper range sounds very energetic and from time to time, it can be heard, that some input in that energy comes from the bass-reflex outputs. The resolution of the speakers is only medium. Yes, of course, the differences between the realization of the single recordings on the Waits' discs (those are rarities, demos, rejects, B-sides, etc) are clear, but we do not know immediately what is the difference between them. The strong bottom makes the dynamics somewhat equal. But when we have to deal with compression and there is a lack of dynamics, then here we get a lot of it, regardless if a quiet fagot from the piece Some Enchanted Evening from the ingenious, perfectly mastered disc Ros on Brodway in the First Impression Music (Decca/FIM, LIM XR24 016, XRCD24) re-edition, or the mighty, dynamic entrance of the brass from Bewitched is playing. Energy, the word I mentioned earlier, is always number one. The stage is full, fluent, but it is reproduced quite close. This is another element that supports the thesis, that we need to be at a distance from the speakers. Only then, the presence of the instruments will not be disturbing, and we will feel the intimacy and presence, that many people wow upon. The resolution of the stage is medium, without a clear separation of the instruments and three-dimensionality. Depth is present, but only in terms of timbre. Listening to the Intrada 3 during the Audio Show 2006 I was really impressed. Now I know why – those are speakers, that attack us on many levels of cognition, without the impression that they are squeezing in, without unpleasant intrusion. They are not universal, in the sense that they will not be fitting everybody. In many aspects they are the complete opposite of the Harpii Acoustics Marcus. In contrast to the Krakow loudspeakers, the Warsaw constructions do not provoke questions, what could be improved, but rather point us to the next records store. Because everything starts to play. It is not the objective truth, recorded on the discs, but rather subjective truth, recorded in our minds, relaying to our expectations and to the idea on how we would like to enjoy music at home. And in this aspect, those are really extraordinary and unique constructions. DESCRIPTION )
Intrada 3 from the company ESA are stand mount, two and a half way, bass-reflex loudspeakers. Three speakers were used in this design: two mid-woofers and a tweeter dome. In the Intrada and Triton series ESA uses mid-woofers from the Peerless HDS series. On the company pages you can read, that the new HDS have Nomex diaphragms – thus according to the Danish tradition based on cellulose and enriched with new additions, specifying optimal rigidity and internal dampening. The 18 cm mid-woofers HDS Exclusive (as used in the Triton 3) have magnets equipped with a system symmetrizing the magnetic field, similar to the Symmetric Drive used by Scan Speak. The tweeter in this model is the dome-ring DX (created by Vifa and now manufactured by Peerless). The choice of drivers is based not only n their price and positioning of the given models in the hierarchy, but also their fitting together – for example 18 cm Exlusive in the Triton needs a bit lower cut-off frequency and is better partnered by the XT than the DX. On the other hand, the DX with its splendid dispersion in the highest octave fits perfectly to the saturated and open sound of the Intrada mid-woofer. Information that we deal with a 4 ohm speaker is placed on the back plate. One should not be afraid of that, the company just gives test results honestly. For example the declarations from KEF, who declares 8Ω impedance, but next to this states in parentheses that the minimum lies by 3.2Ω not really look credible... ESA states the following about its way: “In the basic electrical parameters our loudspeakers are a typical, in no way problematic load for each >>healthy<< amplifier. In times, when most manufacturers claim 8 ohm nominal impedance with characteristics showing drops of impedance even below 3 ohm and that in the low frequency range, in our designs we never go below 3.5 ohm, and according to traditional and common sensual way of determining nominal impedance we describe it as 4 ohm. Also in terms of efficiency – we give its real value, determined by a measurements in open space. Just like in the case of high quality equipment, also our speakers will sound better the better amplifier and player will be attached to them. But both in terms of used transducers as in terms of the sound profiles of the complete loudspeakers, they are not very demanding – they do not need to use the one and only equipment configuration, or to buy especially expensive devices. But they do like good and well recorded music – rubbish will sound as rubbish.” )
The loudspeakers have a characteristic body with a sloped front baffle and rear plate, what makes them not overwhelming while keeping a significant internal volume. Nice looking, thoroughly applied natural veneer are a nice touch to the appearance. Because the front baffle is quite narrow – about 180mm – the speaker was placed on a pedestal to stabilize it, and nice looking messing spikes can be screwed into it. Two bass-reflex outlets were placed on the back plate and a double wire terminals. The terminals are attached t0 a specially cut plate made from MDF finished in the same veneer as the rest of the speaker instead of a standard plastic mold. The terminals are nice, gold plated, in plastic housings to prevent shorting, the same are used by Rotel, Edgar, Harpia Acoustics etc, manufactured somewhere in China or Taiwan. The internal wiring is soldered to them (and that's good). Just behind this plate the cross-over is visible, mounted on a MDF plate without the usage of a PCB. Very nice elements can be found there, like a air coil in the tweeter section, powder core coil in the woofer section and a large, very nice capacitor from the company Jantzen Audio. Not many people know, but this company produces its best components in Poland...
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