Wharfedale E.Fifty (E50) revisited...

[kfa888]

So a while back i acquired some Wharfedale E.Fifty's Cool speakers in nice shape but mine had issues with one of the mids that had been "repaired" incorrectly. It was a nasty rainy day around here and the wife and kids gone most the day and I was messing around. I have been wanting to hear these so i decided to just start slapping mid range drivers in that fit until i got some sound I could live with. I found 2 pairs i liked and after settling on a 30w set of Pioneer mids I buttoned them up all the way from testing condition and hooked them up right for an audition. Well I'll be, these sound VERY good. Seemed bass shy at first but ether my ears adjusted after a few songs or the woofers suddenly woke up. these have been sitting quite a while so who knows.

Overall a "bright" speaker. Similar in sound to my JBL L100's with better bass integration IMHO. Horn loaded tweeter is bright but sharp and detailed. Symbols ring out and are crisp. I played a huge variety of music and it became more engaging as i went on. They love modern hiphop, do great on rock, handle jazz and blue very well. Actually sound great on most anything. Piano is clear as a bell, vocals come through smooth and refined.

I'm going to have both original mids reconed but I am not in a hurry to do so now. I lucked out on the mids. A very good speaker with bright highs, well blended mids and tight accurate, not bloated sounding bass.

The 10" woofer hardly moves to make a lot of bass. The cab ports are huge and short. Seems like a very odd setup but seems to work very well.

- My original post on these with nudes and original mids... http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=197559

Thought I would add some pix showing the substitute mid...

and with cool metal mess grills that have openings for the adjuster knobs...

 

[hifi_nut]

The 50´s were probably the more well balanced of the whole E series.

If you have a chance try them with some EL-34 or KT-88 based tube amp. I bet you´ll be pleasantly surprised.

Curiously when they were launched in the UK they were not very well received. The market only had eyes for low efficiency, low colouration speakers in the BBC tradition.

 

[kfa888]

I have 2 tube amps a very old Fisher that is supposed to be VERY good but needs repair and a fully working Sansui 1000a which is actually kind of on the bright side and might not be a good match. I switched them over to my Pioneer SX-1010 and they sound great on that.

 

[cableguy]

Kelly they are really excellent monitors....like Jorge said earlier, very tube friendly.

 

[kfa888]

I really need to get this sorted...

 

[ianai]

I have had a pair of E50s for over 25 years now and have never found any speakers I was happier with. Due to their size they ended up getting moved from my living room to my small music studio up stairs where they now act as my main monitor speakers powered by a Grundig V1700 amplifier which is a marriage made in heaven. The sheer clarity, transparency and projection is what make these speakers great and coupled with the V1700 the bass is rich and full (although I have found the slight lack of bass drive an issue with other amplifiers). The only criticism is the stereo imaging is not great but compared to the speakers other strengths I can live with that. I play CDs through them using a Grundig CD7550 which has a very analogue sound and again great transparency and this combination leaves people stunned when they hear it for the first time.

Speakers are a very personal thing but I couldn't recommend these more. Just make sure you get the right amplifier combination as they can sound very harsh with the wrong amp!

 

[superdog]

I wish I had given my pair a better chance before moving them out.As I said in a previous post the paper woofers became separated from the backing on both of mine so I had to glue them back.

 

[ianai]

That seems to be a common problem with the woffers. I had to re-glue an area of one of mine when it started to exhibit a buzz on strong bass lines. I seem to remember Wharfedale offered a reconing service in the past, I don't know if they still do.

Shame you let them go as you say. I bought mine new but had to hunt the UK for a shop that had some as they were becoming hard to get even then. I occationally see pairs come up for sale.

 

[SaSi]

I also had to repair the surrounds for both woofers for my uncle's E70s. The surrounds were partially unglued from the basket rim.

His daughter was of the opinion he should scrap the speakers and get a pair of brand new Sonys. I was quick to counter that.

My loss, his gain.

 

[IanT417]

 

[IanT417]

View attachment 2244655

Here are mine I scored at a flea market for $50 if I member right. I bought a few sets of random speakers that day.