AirPulse A100 2.0 Speaker Review

1. Introduction2. Unboxing & First Look3. Testing4. Conclusion5. View All Pages

In recent years, Edifier has had great success in the 2.0 speaker market. To spread its reach further, Edifier has begun launching new HiFi speakers as part of the AirPulse brand. We had a look at the AirPulse A200 earlier this year, coming in at a whopping £799. Today we turn our attention to the smaller A100 speakers – priced at up to £659, are these a better deal?

The AirPulse A100 are smaller ‘bookshelf' class speakers with a glossy finish. It comes in both black and red variants – and as you can see above, our review unit is red. Designed in partnership with audio legend Phil Jones, the AirPulse A100 packs a signature 5″ cast frame under-hung coil woofer with a hard anodised aluminium cone. It also packs a proprietary horn-loaded aluminium ribbon tweeter. On paper, these are already shaping up to be quite impressive.

Specifications:

• Tweeter: Horn Loaded Ribbon Tweeter
• Mid-Woofer: 5″ Aluminum Cone Underhung Design Neo. Power Mid-Woofer
• Amplifier System: Digital Amplifier With Xmos Processor
• Power Output: L/R(Treble):10W+10W, L/R(Woofer): 40W+40W
• Frequency Range: 52Hz-40KHz
• Signal-Noise Ratio: L/R:≥90dB(A)
• Input Mode: AUX, PC, USB, Optical, Bluetooth.
• Up to 192KHz Input Sample Rate on USB and Optical.
• Input Sensitivity: AUX- 450±50mV PC- 550±50mV, USB- 400±50mFFs, Optical- 400±50mFFs, Bluetooth- 500±50mFFs
• Sub Out: 800mV(max)
• Mains Voltage :100-240 V AC/50-60 Hz
• Cabinet Size (WxHxD): 160x283x255mm
• Net Weight: 11 Kg(24.2lbs)
• Gross Weight: 13.4 Kg(29.5lbs)
• Packing Size(HxWxD): 387x489x353mm

To kick off the unboxing section of this review, we'll start off with a rundown of what comes in the box, starting with cables/accessories and then moving on to the speakers themselves.

The box itself is quite heavy, these aren't cheap/light speakers after all. On the accessories front, you are immediately greeted with everything you'll need. This includes a thick and long left-right speaker connection cable, an optical cable, a USB cable, a standard power connector and two different AUX cables, one 3.5mm to dual RCA and another 3.5mm to quad RCA for maximum compatibility across different devices. There is also a handy remote so you can adjust audio settings without fumbling around the back of the speakers once they are set up.

Finally, you also get a handy pair of foam monitor stands. If you are using these at a desk, then these will be perfect for eliminating unwanted vibrations.

The speakers themselves are built to last. Each A100 cabinet is built with 18mm thick high-strength MDF. Under the hood, the speaker cabinet is lined with waved sound absorption foam in an effort to reduce any ‘coloration' of the audio. There is even an oval shaped vent tube to minimise wind noise – clearly, very close attention has been paid to fine tuning the acoustics.

On the back of one speaker you will find your controls for volume, bass and treble, with the latter two giving you +3db and -3db control for those who like to play around with their own EQ.

The AirPulse A100 comes in black and red options. Both are coated in a Piano Lacquer, so expect lots of gloss. You can see in the images above, I did have to battle a bit with reflections while trying to take pictures. I happen to like the glossy look, although I would worry about smudges creeping up over time. If you are after a non-coated speaker, then you'll need to look towards the A200, which comes with a Cherry Wood veneer.

The ribbon tweeters are protected by a metal grill covering them, while the mid-woofer cone has a rather solid aluminium centre. So if you are concerned about someone coming along and damaging your speakers by prodding them in, then you should have some peace of mind.

On paper, the AirPulse A100s are great speakers. The ribbon tweeters should provide better transient response and extended frequency range compared to a traditional tweeter setup. In addition to that, the A100's mid-woofer is designed with a hard anodised aluminium alloy cone, suspended in a rigid cast magnesium alloy frame. The 35mm voice coil is said to be larger than most speakers in this size-range, which will provide a boost to dynamic range. Of course, that is all without mentioning the XMOS XU216 chip, which shapes the audio signal to remove distortion as it is fed through.

The A100 uses two Class-D amplifiers, one for the horn-loaded ribbon tweeter and another for the mid-woofer. These amps support up to 192KHz input sample rates and can output even higher, making these very suitable for the highly sensitive ribbon tweeters. Clearly, a lot of thought has gone into the design of these speakers and tuning them correctly but how are they in practise?

For my listening tests, I used a few different high-quality tracks chosen to really push the speakers. The list includes:

• Times of Grace – The Forgotten One: This is one of my favourite acoustic songs. It is wonderfully produced and builds up nicely over the course of the track, resulting in a wonderful final chorus with different vocal layers, harmonies and layered guitars.
• London Grammar – Stay Awake: This song was chosen for its balance of piano, acoustic guitars and drums. There is a great range of high and low frequencies all coming together, which can be tough for some speakers to keep up with.
• Jah Wobble's Invaders of the Heart – God In The Beginning: This is the most obscure track in the list but it acts as a good torture track, particularly where bass is concerned.

Once properly set up with the speakers around 1-metre away from the wall and spread just over 1 metre apart, the A100s really shine. Throughout listening tests, I found the speakers offer an extremely clear, bright sound while not getting too brittle or fatiguing at the top-end.

The ribbon tweeters in particular are worth pointing out. These provide fine details at the top-end, which is especially noticeable in acoustic tracks. The mid-woofers provide a full, warm sound without allowing bass to become overpowering. The crossover to the tweeter is smooth too, creating an excellent balance across frequencies.

Ideally, you want a good amount of space between a pair of stereo speakers but the AirPulse A100s are shaped in a way that allows for a wide sound without the need to space them apart that far. High frequencies are dispersed well, which increases the listening angle, meaning you don't have to be dead in the centre to fully appreciate them. This is a symptom of good design, with the internal amp processing audio in a way that accommodates for the small cabinet enclosures, allowing the AirPulse A100s to compete with speakers outside of its bookshelf size-class.

In terms of volume, the AirPulse A100s can get very loud, to the point where you could easily fill a large room. In fact, at higher volumes, I could feel the vibrations even without a subwoofer, which is a sure way to annoy the neighbours!

These speakers were primarily tested over an aux cable and hooked up to a PC. However, I did also test out the optical connection. Switching over to an optical cable will enhance quality further with support for 192KHz but you'll need high-quality lossless tracks to really appreciate this. If you were going to have these set up full time for serious listening, or as part of a home theatre set up, then optical would be the way to go in order to get the most out of them.

In all, the AirPulse A100 speakers are exceptionally well made, especially for their size. The decision to go with ribbon tweeters is welcome and you would be hard pressed to find similar quality in bookshelf sized speakers at this price point.

If you are spending £600+ on a pair of speakers, then you would expect high quality. The AirPulse A100s deliver on that front, from the hardware down to the construction. Even the accessory box is a solid offering, containing a plethora of well-shielded quality cables for each output for maximum support across devices and different preferences.

The ribbon tweeters offer a ton of detail in the high-end and the mid-woofers offer plenty of bass without being over powering or boomy. There is the option to hook up a subwoofer to these speakers but I'm not convinced you would ever need to.

The glossy coating won't be to everyone's liking but you do get a pair of gloves in the box, so if you are worried about smudges while moving the speakers around, then you'll be able to use those instead. Our review unit was red, which comes in at the £659.99 mark. However, a black version is available for £619.99 on Amazon.

If you are really into high-end audio gear and are looking for a small (ish) pair of speakers in the £600 to £700 range, then the AirPulse A100s deserve some serious consideration. If you aren't already a HiFi enthusiast, then these obviously aren't for you!

As mentioned, you can buy the A100 from Amazon for £659 HERE.

Pros: 

• Ribbon tweeters.
• Exceptionally clear sound.
• Great sound balance.
• Solid construction.

Cons:

• Glossy coating could be unappealing to some.

KitGuru Says: The AirPulse A100s are well designed, offer great sound and punch above their size-class.

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