Rega Ela

Hello everyone,

Does anyone know anything about the Rega Ela speakers, I have seen some second hand for quite cheap and was wondering how they would compare to my Mission 702e's (probably a stupid question)

I am using a Rotel RA-01 amp and Supra Rondo Biwire cable

Thanks

Andrew

 

Hi Andrew

I have two pairs of Rega Elas. I was thinking of setting one of them up for a second system but haven't got round to it yet.

I bought them because I was quite impressed when I heard them (briefly) and I was doing some buying and selling at that time.

You'd be welcome to bring some kit down and check them out if you wanted.

 

They are rather nice, they are better I am sure than a pair of 702e's. They have a very similair balance to Rega Kytes and Alya's but they provide more bass. Their piece de resistance is the wonderfully natural mid and top. They do do bass but they won't shake the floor.
I don't know how much they are but they will wipe the floor with a set of budget speakers. They should be a good load for the Rotel.
Rega speakers rock:MILD:

 

Thanks for the replies.

Sorry Steve, as much as I would love to I am up in Northumberland so it is a bit of a distance to travel.

How much do you think they should cost second hand, just so I can haggle with the dealer?

Thanks

Andrew

 

Average price is around £250 from a dealer or £175 second hand (for Mk1s - the best type of Ela). Bear in mind that the original round-basket woofers are no longer available - so audition with care and don't blow them up!

I paid £50 for mine in 2002 - some cosmetic flaws and they need retweetering, but they ROCK!

They are very fast - have good soundstaging, and the bass is bass-right rather than really deep. They rock with my NAIT3. Those scanspeak tweeters (even my slightly knackered ones) are very nice indeed.

If they're under £150 they're a no brainer - and they are FAR superior to the 702e's - my mate's pair (702e) sound scratchy and thumpy in comparison to my Elas and I couldn't live with them.

They'll boogie like the proverbial on that Rotel

 

How would these speakers compare to the Castle Servern speakers which I have seen for a similar price?

Andrew

 

I guess (I've NEVER heard Castles!) that the Castles will be warmer, more cuddly, and "slower" sounding; the Regas are not cute 'n cuddly - but fast and exciting

 

There is a good discussion of the virtues of Elas here.

As dom says, Castles are a rather different creature. Pipe and slippers anyone? The old style Ela Mk 1and 2, ie pre Ela 2000, are better sounding than any new speaker under £2000 I can think of. The recent models are rather different sounding. The originals are fast, have the most fabulous treble and mid-range (vocals are wonderful) and have realistic bass rather than the artificially 'impressive' boosted mid-bass of so many modern ported speakers. They are easy to drive with a small integrated. Dom's Nait/Ela combination is a classic and you have to spend about x5-10 more to get a really significant improvement. They are a lot like mini-SBLs without being so fussy or ruthlessly revealing (and they give a better sound-stage if that's important to you!). They are not going to plumb the ultimate depths - this is a 5" woofer - so look elsewhere if you like 19th century organ music. For the same reason they also struggle to create a completely convincing big orchestral sound but so do most 99% of systems. They are just great fun to listen to and I lived happily with mine for 10 years.

 

Better than any speaker under £2k??? They are good speakers, but not that good, I mean come on!

Anyway, I dont have much to say, as I did say it all on my post over at HFC, but I would have to concur they are fun and fast with a good treble and plenty detailed without being analytical. Good for dance music IMO, if that kind of stuff floats your boat.

 

The Elas are great speakers, but I have to admit I'd not say they were THAT good either Maybe £1500??

The bass is fast rather than earth shattering - if you want to hear amazing drum sounds Paul, you should hear Infected Mushroom's BP Empire on my Naim/Rega Ela combo

 

I've recently replaced mine and found I needed buy a pair that would have been £2500 new to get a significant improvement. I listened to a fair few models in the course of changing them and I stand by what I said. This isn't an attempt to talk up the s/h market BTW as I am certainly NOT selling mine!

 

This seems like very good news from my point of view!

I am going to listen to and more than likely collect the Rega's on Monday, managed to get them for £215.

I will let you all know what I think

Andrew