Oephi Transcendence 2.5 speakers
I have been on quite a journey with Oephi over the last few months. It began with meeting proprietor and designer, Joakim Juhl at a dealer event, where I had the opportunity to experience several models from the range. The Oephi journey has caused me to recalibrate how I assess and appreciate audio components and, for that matter, cables. Oephi’s slogan ‘Timing Is Everything’ means more than just PRaT (pace, rhythm and timing). The philosophy championed by Dr Joakim Juhl, to use his full title, focuses on preserving phase coherence and bandwidth. This is an ideology which flows through all of the brands’ products, including the cables, which I consider to be an essential part of the package. When these ingredients are optimised, the result is music with a level of temporal correctness that is rarely experienced. Equally, when a note or sound stops at the correct moment, the voice coils are ready for the next one, resulting in lower noise levels and accurate tonal reproduction.
There are many ways a designer can approach the concept of a speaker, or indeed any other audio product. For example, they may aim for a specific frequency response, be that flat or to complement the in-room characteristics of the typical listening environment. Another speaker designer may want their products to work well with particular types of electronics or exhibit pleasing characteristics. For Joakim, tonal and timing accuracy stems from lowering the noise floor and allowing the signal to pass through each element of the signal chain with minimal disruption to phase coherence. Such transparency places demands upon the partnering system. Still, once you get it right, you are rewarded with a degree of coherence, transparency, speed, dexterity and sheer musical honesty that is rarely matched.
As things turned out, despite its vintage, my Moon 600i turned out to be an excellent match for the Transcendence 2.5. The sensitivity of 89dB only tells part of the story, a 75 Watt integrated amplifier that worked brilliantly with Oephi’s 89.5dB Lounge 2.5 speakers was not a happy match for the Transcendence 2.5. These speakers need an amplifier that can deliver current swings without inhibiting the timing, a task that the Moon was equal to. The Vitus RI-101 MkII took things to another level, however. This Danish beast put meat on the musical bones, adding a sense of weight, authority, and resolution that led to thrilling results.
The Transcendence 2.5s also tell you more about your mains supply than any other speaker I have hosted. The use of all but the most transparent mains filter will likely produce results which are at odds with Oephi’s philosophy and throttle performance, as did my go-to mains distribution block. I had already enjoyed Oephi’s power, interconnect and speaker cables from their Ascendence range, but the Immanence cables are an altogether different proposition. These cables boast a remarkably low noise floor, enabling the Transcendence 2.5 to sound coherent and engaging even during the quietest musical passages.
All Oephi speakers, including the Transcendence 2.5, possess a rare degree of neutrality. Some audiophiles believe that a well-balanced system may contain components of opposing deviations from neutrality. Indeed, many of us may be guilty of attempting to correct a sonic imbalance by changing cables or using a speaker that is laid-back in nature to tame a forward-sounding source. During one of our many online exchanges, Joakim pointed out that tonal characteristics that differ from neutral are due to colouration and should be considered a filter to transparency. So-called complementary system matching may deliver a desired tonal balance, but in such cases, the signal is passing through two ‘filters’, creating accumulated losses in signal integrity, including time-domain information, which is then lost forever.
The same cabinets and modified SEAS tweeter are used in Oephi models across the Lounge, Ascendence, and Transcendence ranges. What changes is the internal cabling, binding posts, crossovers and, critically, the bass/mid units. Upon inquiring whether the aluminium/magnesium tweeter with titanium voice coil former, had received further modifications between the lower and higher-end models, Joakim informed me that identical tweeter units are used. However, the Purifi bass/mid drive units used in the Transcendence range have up to 20 dB lower harmonic and intermodulation distortion than those of the models below; therefore, the advantages of the improved woofer can be heard in the upper midrange. Superior components on the crossover board, including XO tech, which emulates a capacitor but produces far lower phase distortion. In the quest for speed, the 176mm Purifi units have been specified sans the standard polymer coating.
The Transcendence 2.5 is a twin rear-ported design, but I found that the speakers worked well when placed approximately 30cm (1 foot) from the rear wall. Following experimentation, I preferred them firing straight ahead, with no toe-in, and the offset tweeters on the inside. The Transcendence 2.5 sits on a loosely decoupled base, with high-quality spikes provided. I found they worked best when placed directly onto my Townshend Podium bases. Oephi recommend using the supplied spikes, so it is worth experimenting. My preference for the Townshend bases over the spikes may well be due to the necessary proximity to the rear wall in my wide, but shallow room.
Some tunes
When correctly set up and fed by a suitable source and amplifier, the Transcendence 2.5s proved capable of extracting the best from whatever recording I chose to play through them. They possess a rare combination of resolution, speed, dynamics and rhythmic grip. Take T. Rex’s Electric Warrior, which features closely miked vocals and an accentuated top-end. Lesser systems will produce an overly forward and sibilant presentation, which will have you reaching for your remote to lower the volume. This speaker’s speed and resolution inform you of the limitations of the recording, but this does not get in the way of the music.
Those ‘80s CDs that often sounded thin and harsh still sound lean through the Transcendence 2.5s, but when fed into a system of sufficient calibre, can prove utterly thrilling and deliver sufficient weight to produce a balanced presentation. I have often read that Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s Welcome To The Pleasure Dome was considered a stellar recording, but it never quite did it for me, until I heard it through these transducers. It is perhaps fair to say the real hero of this album was Trevor Horn, and maybe even Yes bass player Chris Squire, who contributed some key parts, but such was the intensity of the performance through the Transcendence 2.5s that none of that mattered. Despite the speed and incisive nature of the presentation, the result was unfatiguing, even at high volumes.
At the other end of the spectrum, great recordings, such as Tom Waits’ Swordfishtrombones, sound truly majestic and are presented in an utterly palpable soundstage. Here, calmer tracks such as Frank’s Wild Years and Soldiers Things sounded as rich and organic as one could wish for. Yet the pulverising rhythms and incisively recorded percussion on tracks, such as 16 Shells From a 30.6 or Down, Down, Down, hit hard and made it challenging to sit still. This reflects the Transcendence 2.5’s ability to get out of the way and present the character of the recording. Up until now, I hadn’t realised just how deep the soundstage was on this recording, even on the CD version. The Qobuz-streamed 24/192 version was even better, and unlike many remasters, it has a wider dynamic range (you should hear the vinyl, Ed).
Strong, electronic bass lines on tracks like Infected Mushroom’s Bliss on Mushrooms or Massive Attack’s Angel were handled with phenomenal power and control, no matter how judicious I was with the volume control. The specifications suggest an in-room frequency response starting at 30Hz, which, subjectively, seems conservative, possibly due to the way this speaker presents the lowest frequencies in such a tight, dynamic, and robust manner.
Fusion jazz/funk, such as Idris Muhammad’s Power Of Soul, sent me off on a funk-filled ride. Gary King’s bass guitar growled and grooved its way through the album, but remained completely under control throughout. The top end of this recording is a little hot, or at least it is on my CD rip, but it never became overwhelming through these speakers. This album proved to be a showcase for the Transcendence 2.5’s timing abilities. It was clear that the band was at the height of their powers and absolutely locked into the groove. The final track Loran’s Dance, on which Gary King plays his hollow-bodied Gibson bass, is a real test of low-frequency control. These speakers passed the test with ease, resolving all of the low-end resonance without smearing or losing the groove.
The editor and I tend to agree on most hi-fi-related matters, but his views on DSD recordings have not previously aligned with mine; I have almost always preferred the DSD version of a given album when it has been available, whereas he has yet to be convinced, making no secret that he considers the PCM superior in timing terms. I have some of the latest Steely Dan reissues in both 24/192 and SACD formats. The latter I have ripped and stored on my Melco N1, which consistently yields excellent results. On a whim, I compared some tracks from the first two releases, Can’t Buy a Thrill andCountdown To Ecstasy, in each format, and the 24/192 PCM versions sounded more convincing through theTranscendence 2.5s.
The DSD masters certainly had a little more air and openness, but there was also a degree of smearing to the high frequencies, which is not revealed in lesser systems. The PCM files also demonstrated superior rhythmic drive. I obtained similar results with albums I own in both formats, including Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue, which again sounded more airy and detailed in DSD, but the 24/192 PCM file proved more engaging. These results speak volumes of the speaker’s resolution, transparency and timing accuracy.
Conclusion
My time with the Oephi Transcendence 2.5 has proved enlightening, and I fear it may make it difficult to return to my usual speakers. The level of insight they have given me into familiar recordings will be hard to unhear. That they sound both tonally accurate and sonically dazzling in addition to their rarely matched musical insight marks them out as something special, and I urge readers to take a listen. Oephi speakers have a reputation for being demanding partners, but as I have attempted to explain, these speakers can work well with a lower-priced amplifier, provided it can deliver current, speed, and control. The Transcendence 2.5s can tell you more than you wish to know about your cable and mains setup, but Oephi’s knowledgeable dealer network can advise here.
Oephi speakers are not cuddly or romantic-sounding, but the models I have spent time with are certainly not overly forward or fatiguing. I have found the Transcendence 2.5 to be one of the most engaging speakers I have used. Yet, it is also one that allows me to listen to whatever music I choose, including many albums that I would avoid playing through a revealing system. Now and then a manufacturer emerges that shakes up the establishment, and I genuinely feel that Oephi is such a brand. The Transcendence 2.5 could well be the sweet spot in Oephi’s range, and it must be considered an essential audition if you are in the market for a speaker at or around its price point.