Friday, April 2 -- Part 2

All prices are quoted in US dollars unless otherwise noted.

Cain & Cain's improved Abby ($2300 CDN/pair) and matching subwoofer ($2300 CDN) looked great in a new custom finish that's reminiscent of that on a vintage guitar. Upgrades include more internal damping material and different hook-up wire.

Another finish option. The Oscar Heil Aulos ($2500 CDN/pair) is not new, but the silver/veneer finish option is. We thought it looked terrific.

ALI Acoustic's unnamed speaker ($4000-$4500 CDN/pair) features a handmade horn for the tweeter/midrange. Around back are a pair of passive radiators.

James Loudspeakers creates mostly products for the custom-install market, but in Montreal the company was showing the new EMB-62 ($999/pair)...,

...which features a Presence control around back. This adjusts the output of a separate 6" driver that's mounted directly behind the tweeter.

The James Loudspeakers 1000-PP subwoofer ($2200) was designed specifically for mounting in the ceiling. PP in the sub's name stands for Power Pipe.

StudioLAB's newest speaker is the Protege ($2000 CDN/pair; $2600 CDN in finish shown), which is similar to the Reference One Doug Schneider recently reviewed but includes a second woofer mounted near the speaker's base. The Protege proved to us that a pair of 4" drivers can certainly deliver bass.