Quad

The Revela Series is a striking new loudspeaker series from QUAD, the originators of "The Closest Approach To The Original Sound". The Revela 1 and Revela 2 harness highly evolved versions of classic QUAD technologies that can be traced back to 1949 and their first loudspeaker system, the Corner Ribbon. These technologies, elevated to new heights using modern materials and advanced contemporary design, have delivered two new models that are easy to accommodate and utterly beguiling to hear.

The Revela 1 is a stand mount loudspeaker ($2250 per pair plus $750 for optional stands) with a two-way driver configuration that can be used on its companion stand or on a cabinet or bookshelf. The Revela 2 ($4495 per pair) is a three-way floor stander. Both models are available in luxuriously-lacquered black or walnut finish options, the latter featuring a striking combination of wood veneer interlinked with piano black.

A critical component of both Revela models is the new QUAD True Ribbon high-frequency driver. With its origin stretching back more than 70 years, the ribbon driver has evolved over many product generations. This new version took four years to develop and is unquestionably the finest iteration yet. The Revela's True Ribbon driver delivers effortlessly extended high frequencies that are audibly superior not only to those supplied by typical dome tweeters, but also other planar driver types that are not true ribbons. It works by positioning a ribbon of thin aluminum foil in a high-strength magnetic field through which the audio signal flows. The advantage of this True Ribbon design is that the diaphragm is fully energized by the audio signal and does not suffer from the breakup modes and resonances encountered in domes and other planar types. Being driven evenly over the whole radiating surface and having a mass that is typically one-tenth that of a dome means that the precision and transient response of the ribbon yield a remarkably clean, detailed and pure output. The ribbon responds to the most subtle waveforms and correctly relays the harmonics of instruments and vocals in recordings to provide a realistic sense of space, depth, and air.

QUAD's engineers have developed a new material for the Revela loudspeakers' mid/bass diaphragms, a unique formulation of wood pulp and artificial fibers named "Reveal" because of its natural, transparent and detailed output. By adding artificial fibers like para-aramids to the pulp, the Reveal diaphragm is further damped and strengthened, providing superior bass control and smoothing upper-midrange resonances. The Reveal diaphragm is incorporated into a driver built on a cast chassis and fitted with a high-power magnet and voice coils to achieve high sensitivity. The Revela 1 features a single 6.5-inch mid/bass driver, whereas the Revela 2 dedicates two of these drivers to bass frequencies with a 5.9-inch unit handling the midrange.

The Revela loudspeakers' cabinets use optimally stressed and braced panels with generously radiused edges to reduce unwanted diffraction effects. On the back, bass reflex ports include longitudinal splines that help smooth airflow and increase the efficiency of the reflex system for deep, powerful bass performance.

For the all-black finish option, multiple layers of lacquer are applied over deep black veneer to provide a lustrous finish, protect the cabinet, and help damp unwanted acoustic radiation. The walnut finish option maintains the piano black front baffle, top and base, and adds interlocked wood veneer on the sides and rear, again generously lacquered. Not only do these loudspeakers look as good as they sound, but they are a testament to Quad's efforts to improve the field of audio reproduction since 1949!