BRAND: Accusound    MODEL: DL-690    CATEGORY: Speakers    PRICE: $1400 (AUD)    WARRANTY: 5 years    DISTRIBUTOR:    Australian Speaker Manufacturers    Unit 3, 17-19 Marshall Road    Kirrawee NSW 2233    PHONE: (02) 9545 3905

ACCUSOUND  DL-690 Speakers

Equipment
The latest Accusound series is the eight-member Delta Range which includes the three 600 Delta Series speakers,  of which DL-690 is the flagship.  The other 600 Delta Series models are the bookshelf-style DL-600 and the floorstanding,  two-way DL-660.

The DL-690 is a tall and relatively slim tower speaker standing 946 mm tall on a black MDF plinth base measuring 221 x 312 mm (W x D),  and weighing a hefty but manageable 20 kg.

The low-frequency section of the DL-690's comprises two woofers with effective cone diameters of 125 mm,  giving them a total effective 'piston' area of 245 cm²  within their durable-looking rubber roll surrounds.  And while this is the arithmetical equivalent of a single woofer cone with an effective diameter of 177 mm,  some argue that smaller woofers respond more quickly,  and others argue they can't match the authority of a big woofer.  The cones themselves are made from Accusound's special micra-filled compound designed for optimum lightness and rigidity.

Mounted in its own sealed compartment - to prevent interference from the woofers' internal pressure waves - the single midrange driver resembles the twin bass drivers but is spared by the crossover the arduous job of reproducing the lowest frequencies and everything above 3.5 kHz,  giving it the crucial vocal zone pretty much to itself.

The soft-dome tweeter is centred vertically and horizontally between the midrange driver and top-most woofer,  and the twin bass-reflex ports are centred low in the front baffle.  The port sleeves of the front-firing ports are dense ABS plastic,  snugly fitted to avoid rattles and with flared ducts to minimise 'chuffing' where the pressurised air piston of the wwofer meets air in your room.  All drivers are routed into the front baffle to minimise edge turbulence that can create dispersion anomalies.

Like all 600 Delta Series models,  the DL-690's emplo a five-element,  3.5 kHz second-order Butterworth crossover mounted on its own sturdy circuit board fixed to,  but separated from,  the inside of the terminal plate.  It features three large air-cored inductor coils and sexy-looking gold-plated, bi-wireable terminals. These will let you use two different amplifiers,  or at least two different cable runs,  to handle low and high frequencies. The impeccable logic is that electrical back-flow from the energetic back pulse of a woofer's cone/coil assembly can wreak havoc with delicate, low-level high frequencies travelling in the opposite 'direction' in the same conductor.  Try it for yourself.  It can really sharpen up imaging precision.

As a system,  the DL-690's are deemed efficient enough to be powered by a 25 watt amplifier.  Their stated frequency response is between 40 Hz and 21 kHz, though no decibel limits are given;  sensitivity is quoted at 90dB (1 W, 1 m) and nominal impedance at 6 ohms.

The DL-690's sturdy enclosures are built from 19 mm MDF (not chipboard).  Inside,  they're extensively braced from side to side with horizontal MDF cross-members and generously damped with thick,  felt-like material.  Outside,  only the side panels are finished in black or Rosewood wood-grain.  Front,  back and top panels are in a more-durable and quite attractive black stipple vinyl finish.  Drivers are fitted to the front baffle using gold-plated Allen screws,  an attractive touch if you prefer to leave your grilles off. Don't worry,  the tweeter dome is protected from jammy fingers by a rigid,  steel-mesh grille of its own.  Like all other Delta Series floorstanding models,  the DL-690's come with screw-in carpet-piercing spikes for additional stability and bass de-coupling.

If you're looking to make the DL-690's the front mains for a complete home theatre system,  there are Accusound Delta Series centre and rear effects speakers available to match;  the DLC-130 centre (RRP $350 AUD) and the DLR-420 rears (RRP $390 AUD).

Listening
we first set up the DL-690's as subwoofer-less stereo speakers and put them through an eclectic barrage of stereo music from the late,  great Challender with SSO,  via James Taylor,  Rickie Lee Jones,  Brook Williams,  John Williams,  Counting Crows to Oscar Peterson.  The panel members were immediately and unanimously impressed with a performance that made them question the DL-690's $1400 price tag,  or the sanity of ASM's accountants.

Bass was deeply extended and physically moving,  even at relatively low volume levels.  On a typical electric bass track,  the response was quick and danceable,  the 'shape' well-rounded and never boomy,  and the pitch always musical and sharply defined.  Acoustic basses felt a little 'small' but acoustic guitar sounds were bright and upfront,  with just a hint of boxiness that is really a matter of personal taste.

Percussion was also well formed,  with a silvery splash to cymbals and an incredible ability to project a delicate and dramatic triangle 'ting' through a complex,  multi-timbral orchestral mix.  Vocals were also spotlighted,  and a little forward of the mix,  which on some material,  resulted in a slightly 'crowded' feel to the stage. String timbres were reproduced admirably consistantly across the range from the chocolate double basses to frenetic violin obbligatos to sweetly sweeping section work,  though the price of preserving this characteristic 'edge' may be an irritating harshness on some of your favourite but not-so-well-recorded discs.

The bous with all this detail is a lively and involving sense of space,  which translates to an exciting sense of occasion on good live recordings.  The stage was wide and stable and ambience never exaggerated at the expense of detail and precision.

Installed as alternate front mains for a pair of complete home theatre systems,  the DL-690's added movie star to its role of musician.  Its ability to 'mime' deep bass wherever it finds it makes a subwoofer redundant in most domestic viewing situations.  Its imaging ability and unfatiguing deliver of detail proved excellent home theatre traits,  and its respect for the human voice came through as optimum intelligibility;  the luxury of being able to sit back and soak up the action instead of continually straining to keep up with the plot.

Conclusion
Given a fair demontration against all-comers within at least $200 of its recommended retail price of $1400 AUD,  the Accusound DL-690's could become one of Australia's most popular floorstanding loudspeakers.  Impeccable finish,  destinctive styling and a lot more acoustic finess than we've come to expect at this, admittedly competative price point.