Hi folks,
this is my review of the new Elis8 Speakers by Red Sound.
Since I'm a Axe Fx user, I started with the I and I had nearly ever unit and on Facebook and here, allwas FRFR speakers came up and everyone is on the search to what could fit best, so maybe this is intersting for everyone who hasn't find the right solution yet.
First I have to say that I'm not related or payed by any of the companies. I bought and payed of course the speakers by myself.
This review is my honest opinion, please keep in mind that sound always is subjective and I do not want to bother anyone or any other company etc.
And I waited until the honymoon was over to keep my review as neutral as possible.
oh and please, I'm german, so english is not my native language but I will do my best ;-)
Let's start first withe the backstory.
When I'm ordering my Axe Fx III I did ask Jacques from G66 which FRFR speaker solution he would reccommend to me.
I had the Axe I and II before and also the Atomic Reactor Wedges.
Jacques answered that if I could hold on, he maybe will have something that I would really like.
He told me that there are a new FRFR speaker solution is comming in, which he really likes and that they not only sound great, they are also handmade in Italy and Marco Fanton (Ciao Marco) had an impact on the developmend because he have a signature speaker too.
Jacques also said that he can send me a Elis 8 and/or Mf10 for testing.
But I first trusted in Jacques, he has never dissapoint me and the G66 Support is stellar and second, I'm a father since december and my little daughter needs all my attention.
So that was late december...
in the meantime I grabed my Axe III and visited many many friends and musicians (as long as I could because of the pandemic) and all of them doin music for over 25 years. And many of them are also Fractal users, I tested the Axe III over P.A Systems, FRFR Speakers, studio monitors etc. etc.
I'm a studio and live musician by myself for over 25 years, so I think that I have some experience when it comes to sound.
And now the speakers
I did order the stereo bundle of the Elis 8, so there is one active (right) and one passive (left) cabinet.
The active cab has a stereo amp built in and powers also the passive cab.
The cabinets are fited with a custom made 8 inch ceramic coaxial speaker by sica
The 2 way power amp has nominal180 and maximal 360 w
They are super light weight and from what I can say now, the finish seems very durable.
The left cabinet can be connected via Speakon or TRS cable
the Axe can be connected via XLR or TRS
you can use the speaker straight or tilt back
What are so special about them? in my personal opinion!
I tested many many speakers over the last years but honestly I have to say that they are stellar!!!
You would never ever expect that a 8 inch speaker can have that amount of punch and can produce that kind of huge pressure.
They have really smooth and silky highs (most speakers that I have tested are ice picky etc.) and the 8 inch produces a big but very tight bass.
This is something I complain about most 12 Inch FRFR Speakers, they produce a big sound no doubt but in comparrison or band context, they are not in the middle they are everywhere and this is when the Elis 8 comes in. They sit perfectly in the mix, they fill out the middle section of a sound/room exactly where a guitarist would put a guitar in the mix.
Second thing is, there are many many presets in the Axe III I didn' care before but now...holy moly they are all blooming up and I'm discovering the whole unit new, I play presets that I never liked. They don't need any tweeking or at least just a small tweek at the amp EQ and they sound glorious.
The stereo image is imense and I have no daubt that these are fully stage usable, even with loud drums and bass.
I imidiately tried the Deluxe Reverb, AC 30 (we have a original from the sixties in the studio) Bandmaster and Matchless 30 and I'm just speachless.
The Plexi models sound so dynamic, raw and juicy.
Honestly for everyone who is in the mood of a good FRFR speaker or has't find the right solution yet, please do yourself a favor and check them out if possible.
Meanwhile I contacted Mirko Cascio Gioia (founder and CEO of Red Sound) because I just want knwo if I had to a speaker break in period etc. or anything else for I should looking for.
Mirko anwsered diretly that I have only one thing to do because h do test ever single speaker by himself for 10 to 20 minutes, I should just plug them, crank them up and rock them hard \m/
Thanks to Jacques, G66 and Mirko for outstanding support!
And of course Marco Fanton for input and experince on them, thank you!
Cheers
Sash
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Edit:
After testing the speakers on full volume I‘m excited that there is absolutely no noise, no hiss or hum etc.
That did impressed me even more.
