henever I tell someone that I have heard YG ACOUSTICS loudspeakers and that I liked them a lot, I see my interlocutors’ rounded eyes. The better someone knows my taste in sound and knows what equipment I use to listen to music every day, the more rounded their eyes are. Then I can be sure of one thing: my interlocutors have never before heard such loudspeakers in good conditions, they do not know the technology behind them or the effects that we can achieve with them.

What is the point and where do such reactions come from? They are almost always connected with the material that the company uses both to make loudspeaker cabinets, as well as midwoofer and woofer membranes – i.e. aluminum. I wrote about technologies used by YG Acoustics and the career path of the company owner – Mr Yoav Geva when I reviewed their cheapest loudspeakers – Carmel 2.

Looking at this from a time perspective and observing how the company has been developing, I can say something that I rarely have a chance to say: it is one of the companies that are natural heirs of the technical thought and design method rooted in three decades of the 20th century (1920-1940), in an engineering approach to the problem, supported by musical sensitivity.

It is obvious that every business, big or small, will write something like that in their company materials and refer to that tradition, as it is good to be part of something so prestigious. In reality, however, almost all companies only “consume” discoveries from that period which witnessed a breakthrough in audio technology, marked by Bell Labs and other laboratories’ inventions, supported by research from 1950s and 1960s, most often associated with the BBC in the area of loudspeaker technology.

Making use of other people’s research work is nothing bad. It can even be said that it is a good sign, as too many manufacturers lack sufficient knowledge, which is only compensated with enthusiasm. However, to use and to develop are two different things. Mr Yoav Geva and his company YG Acoustics belong to a small group of manufacturers who rely on the achievements of previous generations, develop them and bring them to a new level – one that had not been possible to achieve before, either due to imperfect measurement techniques, imperfect technologies, or specific views on what is important in reproduced sound and what is not.

As for me, the company loudspeakers are like the thought of BBC moved to the 21st century.

YOAV GEVA
Owner, constructor

WOJCIECH PACULA: Could you tell us about idea behind Hailey?

YOAV GEVA: The idea with Hailey was to provide a sound-quality as close as possible to our flagship speakers, for a price that (while still clearly ultra-high-end) is accessible to a wider range of audiophiles than Sonja XV and Sonja 2.

To do so, I decided to stick with the same exact made-in-house BilletCore cone-drivers as the flagship, but reduce their number from two 15 cm midrange drivers in Sonja 2, to a single larger 18.5 cm midrange driver in Hailey. The woofer remains identical to Sonja. For more details about BilletCore please see HERE.

I also decided to use the same quality crossover - our proprietary DualCoherent circuit which combines a flat frequency-response with near-zero relative phase, rather than optimize one at the expense of the other as competitors typically do. For more details about DualCoherent please see HERE.

I decided to still use a fully CNC-machined aluminum cabinet, with extremely thick walls up to 35 mm (Sonja XV and Sonja 2 are even thicker - up to 45 mm). In order to keep the price more accessible, I decided to use a single-layer CNC-machined aluminum cabinet, instead of the "box in a box" dual-layer construction of the flagship. Each driver gets its own cavity, but unlike Sonja XV and Sonja 2 - crossovers don't get their own compartment.

Finally, the tweeter uses our in-house CNC-machined ForgeCore motor system. However, it's not the same "crazy-expensive" BilletDome tweeter of Sonja XV and Sonja 2, which would be cost-prohibitive. For more details about ForgeCore please see. Overall, the result is about 85% of the sound-quality of Sonja 2.2 and Sonja 2.3, at around half the price.

What main differences are between Hailey 1.2 and Carmel 2?

Differences between Hailey and Carmel 2:
- Hailey is a 3-way speaker with a 26 cm BilletCore woofer, 18.5 cm BilletCore midrange and a ForgeCore tweeter. In comparison, Carmel 2 omits the large woofer of Hailey, as it is a 2-way speaker with the same exact mid-woofer and tweeter as Hailey.
- Hailey uses a two-piece cabinet (like Sonja 2.2), whereby each module's enclosure is optimized for the specific frequency-range that it plays. In Carmel 2, since the mid-woofer has to also play low frequencies, it's a one-piece cabinet which can't be separately optimized for midrange or bass.
- Finally, while both Hailey and Carmel 2 use a fully CNC-machined aluminum cabinet with a front baffle thickness of 35 mm, Hailey's rear and side panels are thicker than those of Carmel 2.

How about Hailey 2.2 – is it possible?

Hailey 2.2 doesn't exist yet, so it's difficult to talk about future hypothetical speakers. Hailey 1.2 is fully up-to-date, and no upgrades exist at this time. Here's what I can tell you in general, though: when YG Acoustics launches future speakers, we work hard to make sure that almost always our current speakers will be upgradeable to future technologies, without the need to replace the speakers. While I'm not entirely sure yet what a future Hailey 2.2 may incorporate, I can see "far enough" into the future to tell you that Hailey 1.2 will be upgradeable to Hailey 2.2 technology.

| Hailey 1.2

YG Acoustics offers only three models: the Carmel 2 (HF | No. 148), Hailey and Sonja. The Hailey may have the form of a compact speaker and then it is labeled as 1.1, or a floorstander (1.2), while the flagship Sonja has two faces: Sonja 2 in a few versions and Sonja XV. What is instantly noticeable, is the scalability of these constructions.

Apart from the Carmel 2, all the remaining loudspeakers are based on the same idea: these are systems consisting of a few subsystems each. However the heart of all YG’s loudspeakers is the crossover. This is what Cezariusz Andrejczuk talked about when the Avatar Audio Numer 3 Bamboo loudspeakers were tested, I regularly hear it from other manufacturers and the best example which illustrates this statement is the company that this article is about. Its owner is a software specialist, scientist and technician who used to deal with digital signal processing techniques. Having completed his service in the army, he received a grant thanks to which he transferred his experience to the field of audio technology.

The most important target that he has managed to achieve was to optimize the crossover response, not only in the frequency domain, but also when it comes to phase. In the Hailey 1.2 model, deviation is less than 1 dB in the audible band, while phase deviation equals+/- 5º. It is an incredible achievement. The solution is called DualCoherent.

In order for the crossover to be useful for something, one needs suitable loudspeakers. The company buys the soft tweeter dome with a thick suspension fold from Scan-Speak and it is probably the only element of the construction (apart from cables, perhaps) that is produced outside the YG factory, also including spikes, clamps and bolts. It is modified anyway, as YG manufactures metal elements of its driving system. The woofer is the same as in the larger Sonja model, while the midrange driver with ø 185 mm diameter has been created especially for this loudspeaker. These drivers are made by the company using CNC machines and cut out from aircraft grade aluminum slabs. The technology is called BilletCore.

Next, in order to work in comfortable conditions, drivers needed a suitable cabinet. It is made entirely of aluminum slabs, also using CNC machines, at a YG factory. The cabinets are assembled in a way which makes it possible to obtain the best possible structure insulation and that is why there is no damping inside. One cannot see any fastening screws anywhere, either. Visually, the loudspeaker consists of two parts: the upper mini-monitor and the lower subwoofer, assembled together to constitute one rigid whole. They are narrow at the top and become wider towards the floor where the bass driver is located. They are deep, but look lightweight and serious, simply amazing. These loudspeakers are an example of a sealed design.

The tested model is the second from the bottom and third from the top – the first loudspeaker on the offer are small two-way Carmel 2 loudspeakers that cost 125,643 PLN per pair and the last product on offer are the four-piece Sonja XV loudspeakers which have ten drivers and weigh 840 kg. They were created to celebrate the 15th company anniversary and cost 1,370,183 PLN (price per pair in Poland). Each model offered by the company is simply perfectly made.

When Tomek, one of the hosts of the Krakow Sonic Society meetings, an expert in expensive watches and their fan, saw the loudspeakers standing at my place, he instantly paid attention to the fact that the idea behind such constructions resembles what small Swiss manufactures that construct watches do. Ultra high precision craftsmanship, small production volume and the resulting high price – these are the things that came to his mind right away. Add their form to that – in the Hailey 1.2 vertical and horizontal lines connect in such a way that they look like the designs of sophisticated watches. However, let me repeat myself, only in this way can one transfer the experience of the BBC Research Department and everyone who had dealt with audio before, to the place where we are now. As usual, we are standing on giants’ shoulders. Thanks to that, however, we can see more…

Location | The loudspeakers stood at the same place where the Harbeth M40.1 loudspeakers normally stand. It appears that this is the best place for loudspeakers in my room – both for standmount and floorstanding ones. As the constructions of YG Acoustics are quite deep, the bass module was a bit closer to me. However, the midrange-tweeter section was at exactly the same place as the front Harbeth panel. The loudspeakers were twisted towards the inside and their axes were directed towards a spot slightly in front of the listening location.

Accompanying equipment | Amplification was provided by the well-proven power amplifier Soulution 710 and Siltech Triple Crown speaker cables. The signal source was the SACD Ayon Audio CD-35 High Fidelity Edition player, but apart from that I also listened to LPs on the Bergmann Audio Galder 4-arm T.T. turntable with the tangential Odin arm and the Miyajima Labs Madake cartridge.

Room | When it comes to such large loudspeakers, with such low bass, people always ask about room size and the distance that should separate us from the loudspeakers. When it comes to the former problem, as regards YG Acoustics constructions, YG Acoustics speakers are sealed, and therefore can be used in a wider range of room-sizes than ported designs.

The large Hailey loudspeakers seem to generate little excitation, as if somehow they controlled not only themselves, but also anything that is happening in the room. Their bass is compact and disciplined, so I have never got the impression that these constructions are too large for my room. Anyway, it is enough to see what it is like, looking at the room of an editor of the Japanese magazine “Stereo Sound”- his room covers the area of, roughly, several square meters, his loudspeakers are placed at a wall, the armchair is located next to another wall and the distance between the walls is 4 meters, perhaps. A few years ago, I saw a photo of the same room with the Sonja 1.2 model.

| Disappearance

These are loudspeakers that completely disappear from our field of vision. They are black, which proves helpful and they have a narrow panel that makes them look slender and shapely. However, the point is that they disappear like planes equipped with the stealth technology from radars, without even leaving any afterglow. Sound comes from between them, it is born in real space generated in our room and we do not get the impression that it is “generated” by something, it simply “appears”.

It was especially easy to hear with monophonic recordings, from the Ella and Louis album (a fantastic First Impression Music edition), for example. It is normal, as mono recordings reproduced as well as in this case impress us the most. However, also stereophonic recordings, e.g. the extremely good recordings of Madrigals by Gesualdo, released some time ago by Naxos in a nice box, Mario Suzuki’s Masterpiece II in the XRCD24 version and other albums – all of them reproduced the spatial aspect of sound in such a way that it seemed that sound spontaneously originated in front of us and the loudspeakers had nothing to do with that.

In order to confirm that, I listened to a few “mainstream” albums, such as Serge Gainsbourg’s Histoire de Melody Nelson and Michael Jackson’s Thriller. And again there was the same trick with disappearing, but, this time, events occurring on the axis were the most important, as they were the most engaging. What was heard on the sides, was some kind of a comment which enriched the whole thing, but was subordinate to the main text. If the elements of a recording were placed at extremities, which was often the case on the Jackson’s album, they came exactly from the place where the loudspeakers stood. These are constructions that generate an incredibly broad panorama. However, it was exactly like that – sound came from the place where they stood and not from the loudspeakers.

| The basics, i.e. the top and the bottom, the bottom and the top

When I listened to the last two albums, it was interesting for me to observe how such large loudspeakers show the “low end” – not only “bass”, but the whole range and how this connects with the midrange. It appears that the sound of the Hailey 1.2 is completely different than the sound of the Harbeth M40.1 and all other loudspeakers “by the BBC” (JBL, etc.) in this respect. In my Harbeth loudspeakers that I have been using for many years, the whole musical message is set quite low and it has an effect both on the way the sound stage is shown, volume (size in 3D) and tone. Here these elements are kept separately and separately differentiated.

When it comes to tone, the Hailey sound like high-end studio monitors for most of the time – that is right, like monitors. They focus on the midrange and do not burn down its low range, reacting by going down more strongly only to what is found on the album. Only when bass appears in a recording, sound develops. We can additionally hear how many recordings have vocals cut at the bottom, probably in order to make it “sit” better in the mix. The Harbeth loudspeakers make everything warmer and everything sounds more pleasant and fuller with them. With the tested loudspeakers, we get deeper and we are closer to the truth that a recording contains – for good and bad.

The treble also comes across as very interesting. Each time I have mentioned how strongly I was impressed with such loudspeakers as the AudioMachina Pure NSE and YG Acoustics Carmel 2, people would always react with disbelief and always asked if the loudspeakers “sound bright”. And although I know where this may come from, I never know what to say, as “bright” is the last thing I would say about these loudspeakers.

The treble is characterized by much higher resolution than in the case of the Harbeth loudspeakers, but not because the detailed character of sound is emphasized, but due to the fact that more information makes it possible to build a more credible musical message. It is sound that is more faithful and real. Most classic loudspeakers will seem noisy compared to the Hailey model. Its sound has amazing depth and care is taken of detail, but only in the overall context – the treble is built in a continuous way and it will never be possible to force the loudspeakers to sound too selective.

| Be like a monitor

However, I think it is not that important – everything that I have written here is true, this is what I heard, but my words still cannot describe what these loudspeakers are. And they are simply monitors, in a full meaning of the word. So, on the one hand, their sound is incredibly similar to what I have experienced with my Harbeth loudspeakers – and BBC loudspeakers constitute the archetype of a studio monitor. It is an idiom of approach to sound and to how it should be reproduced in home conditions that ideally suits them. At the same time, these are completely different constructions and one can hear what has changed in the way we think about sound, however.

The Hailey loudspeakers perfectly differentiate colors. I am attached to how BBC constructions do it, I love my M40.1 loudspeakers and I respect them. A comparison with the American loudspeakers shows, however, that each sound of the Harbeth loudspeakers is shown with some kind of an envelope, some suspension, because of which sound is larger and has more content. The dynamics of the British monitors is outstanding and the tested loudspeakers do not show anything new in this respect. But due to the fact that their sound is – I have no other word to describe that – clearer, it is more open, more accurate sound.

At the same time, it is not “detailed” at all, even though loudspeakers having metal membranes and (God forbid!) metal casings are accused of exaggeration in this field, right after being criticized with respect to the treble. It is bullshit, total stupidity and misunderstanding of what a musical message is to be like. The Hailey loudspeakers are perfectly smooth and creamy, and I would even say that one gets the impression that the treble is withdrawn, as the midrange is the most important here. It is just an impression, as here we have everything that is necessary, but this is still the flavor that remains in our mouth after yet another track or album.

The most interesting thing is how tone is shaped here. The first impression is that it is a little withdrawn, that these are speakers that show the world from a distance. But when we listen to something like Laurie Anderson’s Homeland or perfect albums made by Okihiko Sugano from Audio Lab. Record, this impression also turns upside down because the sound becomes incredibly intimate, concentrated and close to us. However, this is how incredible resolution manifests itself and the tested loudspeakers are incredible in this respect.

We also get fantastic imaging with that. The loudspeakers differentiate recordings better than anything that I have heard before, including the best loudspeakers that I have heard in recording and mastering studios. It is not that they precisely and faithfully show instruments – this is kindergarten, but that they build real space with air, instruments, reverberation and – if an album has been recorded in this way – effects. If sounds are recorded out of phase, like on the abovementioned Anderson’s album, they are shown in a stable manner behind our heads, at the sides – everywhere we only get an impression of sound with other good loudspeakers; with the Hailey 1.2 these are real, dense sources.

| Vinyl

Everything that I am talking about is true both for a digital and an analog source, though in this case the term “digital” needs to be written in inverted commas, as the Ayon in the ‘High Fidelity’ version sounds more like analog tape than a CD. Anyway, vinyl has demonstrated the basic feature of these loudspeakers, i.e. perfect transparency, even better than optical discs. The perfect Bergmann turntable contributed to achieving this effect, but the loudspeakers demonstrated the change instantly.

It was confirmed that the treble is outstanding here due to its creamy character and a lack of colorings. Crackling and hum were virtually absent and it was more like listening to an analog tape than to an LP. Hans Theessink’s vocal was fantastic in its naturalness. And I know it quite well, as “High Fidelity” visited the Audio Show exhibition a few years ago, where Hans gave a great concert. I also know his recordings straight from a master tape played from a tape recorder at Dirk Sommer’s studio.

On the one hand, the American loudspeakers showed that in a beautiful manner, as in a saturated and interesting way, but on the other hand, they were more open than anything I have heard at my home before, except for one case – the Kyara Lumen White loudspeakers. And, to be honest, I do not remember hearing something like that anywhere else.

| What the Hailey 1.2 loudspeakers cannot give us

Nothing is “for free” and we always pay something for something else, no matter what manufacturers and constructors tell us. Music reproduction is an art which combines physics and psychoacoustics and often appropriately chosen and applied deviations from perfection, i.e. intended imperfection, give us something that cannot be achieved using other means. This is the case when it comes to the Harbeth M40.1. In these loudspeakers, range from the region of 45 Hz is a little raised with respect to 1 kHz, which results in deep dense sound with beautiful bass.

The Hailey 1.2 neither goes deeper than the Harbeth loudspeakers at the bottom of the range, nor produces higher sound. It sounds cleaner and more accurate, but equally dense. The difference is that the Harbeth loudspeakers turn every event into a spectacle and pamper the listener, while the American loudspeakers, without emphasizing defects, try to stay on the path of objective truth. This does not mean, however, that it is more valuable than subjective truth offered by the British monitors. In the end, each reproduction is just an attempt to “translate” a recording situation into a playback situation and these are not identical situations. And, as in the case of every translation, we get a new story.

Quoting Jacek Dukaj, a Polish high-quality SF writer and Stanisław Lem’s successor, one could say that the M40.1 are “a perfect imperfection” giving us more pleasure from listening to music than almost any other loudspeaker. The YG Acoustics loudspeakers are like revealed truth that is hard to negate, but not everyone will submit to it. Unlike many other, equally transparent constructions, they speak with the language of music and not technology, combining technical ability with a musical phrase, but with emphasis on transparency and not on density. The latter is the domain of imperfect loudspeakers “by BBC”.

Conclusions

I very rarely say this, as I rarely deal with such a situation: the tested loudspeakers were a big step forward in the development of my system. Yes, I have heard a few other, excellent constructions in my system, which I liked for some or another reason, e.g. the LumenWhite speakers. The AudioMachina Pure NSE loudspeakers also did a great job, I have good memories of standmount Kaiser Acoustic Chiara speakers and smaller YG Acoustics models. However, this is probably the first time I have got something that is not only better than the Harbeth loudspeakers in almost every respect related to sound, but also constitutes their creative development.

This is one of a few best loudspeakers that I have ever heard.

The Hailey loudspeakers are available in two forms – as a compact speaker 1.1 and a floorstanding speaker with an additional bass module. This is a three-way design in a sealed cabinet, equipped with a 25 mm tweeter and a 185 mm midwoofer – the latter has been designed especially for this loudspeaker. These constitute a small monitor placed on the bass module in which there is a ø 250 mm woofer. The crossover is at 1.75 kHz and 65 Hz, respectively.

The crossover is assembled on large printed circuit boards – with the best subassemblies, including coils on a toroidal core. The company calls this technology ToroAir – in their factory, they wind coils onto CNC-machined cores. These coils have unique features, e.g. electrical and mechanical impact on other elements of the circuit has been eliminated in them. The company also uses Mundorf top-class capacitors from the M-CAP series. Double driver clamps made of directly gold-plated copper are made by the company, just like the jumpers. I usually recommend replacing them, but not this time – these are electrically excellent jumpers and they are mechanically damped, so that they do not vibrate.

The casing is made of aluminum CNC-machined slabs. They are perfectly finished and matched, and I have never seen a better job done. Only Magico loudspeakers match the tested ones. The lower module is a little bent towards the floor and becomes wider at the bottom. The upper part is a cuboid with rounded edges. It is placed in the lower part using a cut which makes the construction more stable. The company name for the technology is FocusedElimination.

The loudspeakers stand on three really solid feet made of aluminum cones and steel spikes. I do not like spikes, so it is worth trying out feet with ceramic balls. However, here and now, spikes in the Hailey loudspeakers look really professional.

These are the most excellently made and technologically advanced loudspeakers that I have had at my home.

Technical specifications (according to the manufacturer)

Usable output: 20Hz - 40kHz
Deviation:
±1dB in the audible band
±5° relative phase throughout entire overlap
Crossover: 65Hz and 1.75kHz
Sensitivity: 87dB / 2.83V / 1m (2π anechoic)
Impedance: 4Ω nominal, 3Ω minimum
Dimensions (W x S x G): 1220 x 330 x 540 mm
Weight: 77 kg per channel unpackaged