Little did we know that when the original Acoustic Energy AE1 bookshelf speakers launched back in 1987, they would become one of the debut products that defined hi-fi history.
They’re regarded in such high esteem that Acoustic Energy is bringing the compact boxes back with its AE1 40th Anniversary Edition model, which is a “reimagined version” which aims to bring together a classic design with modern engineering, "while preserving the sonic character that made the original a legend”.
"We had to examine where we could improve upon the original while retaining the character which made it such a big hit for decades. The AE1 40th is a faithful evolution, not a simple reissue,” says Mat Spandl, Managing Director.
Obviously, Acoustic Energy couldn’t just build the new model using old components, but it did strip down the original to cast an eye over the design and see where potential improvements could be made.
The results have been significant revisions to both drivers.
Firstly, there’s an all-new aluminium tweeter with a larger voice coil (29mm versus 25mm on the original AE1) and the addition of a large rear chamber to absorb the rearward energy and keep vibrations low.
Secondly, the bass driver gets a slightly larger 12.5cm spun and hard-anodised cone with an aluminium shorting ring to reduce distortion.
Each cabinet features 10 layers of gloss paint and uses an HDF version of Acoustic Energy’s RSC technology, which has been “tuned to mimic the acoustic characteristics of the original cabinet”.
A knock-on effect of the cabinet construction is that the company has been able to free up half a litre of internal volume to complement the larger bass driver.
With that larger driver, you’d be forgiven for thinking the speakers have been beefed up in terms of size, but actually, the dimensions of the new speaker remain the same as the old model: 29.5 x 18 x 24cm (HWD).
The new Acoustic Energy AE1 40th Anniversary Edition speakers cost £1499 per pair and are available in a High Gloss Black or Walnut veneer. And we can’t wait to take a pair for a spin in our test rooms…
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