German Physiks – Unlimited
Our price:£12,400.00
German Physiks – Unlimited – At HFL, we couldn’t be happier to present the German Physiks Loudspeaker range to our customers. If you want an immersive listening experience, try an omnidirectional loudspeaker. With each model embodying its unique DDD driver technology, you can rest assured that the level of quality is consistent throughout the entire range. The DDD driver produces a phase-cohesive response with a wide soundstage which is incredibly musical and detailed. Omnidirectional speakers have become a popular choice among audiophiles and really do stand out from the crowd. We have a selection of German Physiks Loudspeakers on demo, so please feel free to come into the HFL to experience something a little different.
The Unlimited Ultimate and Unlimited Carbon Loudspeakers
Less Is More
Both versions use exactly the same DDD driver as all our other models, including our Euro 250,000 flagship Gaudi, so will give the listener more than just a taste of the musical nirvana that our higher end models can provide.
The Unlimited employs a single carbon fibre DDD driver mounted on top of a compact floor standing cabinet, with a downward firing 8-inch woofer mounted in the base. This provides the famous German Physiks trademark dynamics, transparency and musicality.
The Unlimited Ultimate and Unlimited Carbon Loudspeakers
Less Is More
Both versions use exactly the same DDD driver as all our other models, including our Euro 250,000 flagship Gaudi, so will give the listener more than just a taste of the musical nirvana that our higher end models can provide.
The Unlimited employs a single carbon fibre DDD driver mounted on top of a compact floor standing cabinet, with a downward firing 8-inch woofer mounted in the base. This provides the famous German Physiks trademark dynamics, transparency and musicality.
Stylishly Simple Design
As well as taking great care to make the Unlimited an exceptionally good sounding loudspeaker, we also went to great pains to make it an exceptionally good looking loudspeaker. The design is intended to be both elegant and simple, so that it blends into its surroundings rather than draws attention to itself. We want the listener’s attention to be concentrated entirely on the music. This ability to blend in is enhanced by its very small footprint – just 24 cm x 24 cm (9.5″ x 9.5″) – so it takes up a comparatively small space on the listening room floor. Despite its modest cabinet size, the Unlimited will work well in rooms of up to about 55 square metres (580 square feet).
Tuneful Bass
One of the first things that will strike you about the Unlimited is the excellent quality of the bass, especially considering the compact size of the cabinet. The bass is deep with real weight and measurements have shown that useful bass is produced well into the 20Hz region. Importantly, the bass is also clear, articulate and in time with the rest of the audio range. It is easy to follow the bass lines and drums have an authentic impact to their transients. The correct bass balance is maintained even when listening at low levels, so you can continue to enjoy your Unlimiteds when you might otherwise have to use headphones.
The heart of all German Physiks loudspeakers is the unique omnidirectional DDD driver
The German Physiks DDD driver uses a cone made of extremely thin (0.15mm) carbon fibre. This is very light, but also very rigid. Each driver is hand-built by a skilled technician in our factory in Germany. This is a painstaking process that takes 6 hours. After assembly, each driver undergoes a series of rigorous tests. It is then subject to a 96 hour pre-aging process, playing specially selected music at high level. Finally, it is retested and put together with another driver to form a matched pair.
The DDD driver has two key distinguishing features
1. It is omnidirectional, meaning that it radiates the sound evenly around it.
2. It has an exceptionally wide operating range. In the Unlimited it covers the range from 200Hz up to 24kHz – almost 7 octaves.
This extremely wide range is achieved by the use of 3 modes of radiation
Pistonic radiation
Bending wave radiation
Modal radiation
By comparison, most loudspeakers use drivers that only use pistonic radiation. These have a much narrower operating range and as the frequency rises, they tend to concentrate their energy into a progressively narrowing beam.
The DDD driver’s omnidirectional radiation characteristic and its very wide operating range, together with several other key features give the following important advantages to all German Physiks designs and is what sets them apart
1. Exceptionally coherent and natural sound
This is due to the DDD driver’s 7 octave plus operating range. This is very difficult to achieve when such a wide range is split over two or more different types of driver, which are in different positions on the loudspeaker’s cabinet.
This wide operating range also eliminates the crossover point in the mid-range that loudspeakers using pistonic drivers must have. This is where our hearing is most sensitive, so removing anything that might cause level or phase errors from here will improve transparency.
2. Realistic stereo images more like those you experience in the concert hall
This is because the DDD driver’s omnidirectional radiation characteristic creates an enveloping sound field like that in the hall, rather than beaming the sound at you as conventional drivers do. This way the Unlimited is able to recreate a more natural rendition of the original stereo image. This has excellent depth and focus, but without the overly sharp image definition that some hi-fi loudspeakers produce and which you will rarely if ever hear at a live performance.
3. Stereo imaging enjoyable in almost all positions in the room
This is achieved whilst also maintaining an even tonal balance, much like at a live performance: again due to the DDD driver’s omnidirectional radiation pattern. This gives more flexibility in where you sit and allows several people to enjoy a good sound together. This is useful in home theatre systems.
As you are not restricted to a small “sweet-spot” in order to hear the best sound, the Unlimited provides a more relaxed listening experience. This is especially noticeable when you listen for long periods.
4. Exceptional dynamics
The DDD driver’s very low moving mass, less than 3 grams, allows German Physiks loudspeakers to recreate both the attack of the music and resolve low level detail very accurately. This is essential in order to faithfully reproduce the delicate nuances of a performance and make it sound like music, rather than just good hi-fi. The resultant transparency is maintained even on complex high-level passages.
5. Accurate portrayal of musical instruments’ tonal characteristics
This is because the DDD driver is phase linear across its operating range. This together with the excellent dynamic response, enables the Unlimited to reproduce percussion with startling reality. Voices have a clarity and purity that can be breath taking, with all the elements of the vocal sound correctly located in space and with no undue emphasis. The hardness you often hear with conventional tweeters is eliminated and you get a greater sense of hearing a live musician.
6. Quick and easy to set up
As they are omnidirectional, German Physiks loudspeakers are less sensitive to room position than conventional designs and there is no toe-in adjustment to worry about.
7. The DDD driver is less likely to excite cabinet vibrations
Due to its very low moving mass and the way that it is mounted, the DDD driver puts less energy into the cabinet than an equivalent conventional driver would. This reduces cabinet resonances and improves transparency.
8. Physically extremely rugged
The DDD driver can withstand abuse that will destroy most other drivers. This is illustrated in the video below. We don’t advise our customers to try this, just in case they are having an unlucky day.
Low Resonance Cabinet Design Enhances Transparency
Designed for a Lifetime of Listening Pleasure
Colouration caused by resonances in a loudspeaker cabinet, where the cabinet itself starts to radiate sound energy, can seriously degrade the sound quality by obscuring detail. To prevent this, the Unlimited’s cabinets are constructed from heavy panels of MDF, with internal re-enforcements fitted at critical points.
As a further anti-resonance measure, a special damping material called Hawaphon® is applied to the inside of each panel. This adds mass to the panel to reduce the resonant frequency and its special internal structure very effectively converts vibration energy into heat. Hawaphon® achieves a broadband attenuation of structure-borne sound of more than 50dB: a remarkably high figure.
Finally, to damp resonances of the air within the cabinet, the whole of the inside of the cabinet is lined with a thick layer of high-density felt.
As you would expect from a German product, the quality of construction and reliability are first class. We use the same quality of parts in the Unlimited as in our reference products, where we design for a minimum life expectancy of 25 years. For this reason we have selected highly corrosion resistant V4 grade stainless steel for the DDD driver support pillars, terminal mounting plates and all the screws.
WBT nextgen™ binding posts are used to provide an excellent connection between the loudspeaker cable and the loudspeaker.
Meticulous care and attention is paid during the manufacture of the Unlimited. Prior to assembly all components and materials are subject to a rigorous inspection. We also carry out detailed inspections at each stage of the manufacturing process. We can afford to do this as we build our products by hand in small batches. After assembly the performance of each loudspeaker is measured. Then it is burnt in for at least 12 hours and measured again. Once the burn process is complete each loudspeaker is given a final detailed physical inspection before being packed.
Product Finishes
The Unlimited Ultimate loudspeaker is finished in high polish polyester black, white, red and yellow and the Unlimited Carbon is finished in high polish carbon fibre.
Hand Finished For Ultimate Quality
Because the look of our products is as important as the sound, all cabinets are hand built and finished in Germany by skilled cabinet makers for the best possible furniture grade finish.
They are built in small batches, so that they can maintain a consistently high level of quality. Nothing is rushed.
Click on an image below to see a finish more closely.
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| Polyester Black* | Polyester Red* | Polyester White* | Polyester Yellow* | Carbon Fibre* |
Downloads
“It is hard not to love the immersive, widescreen sound served up by the German Physiks Unlimited Ultimate. With brilliant spatial accuracy, it suits classical music down to a tee, but works very well across all music types because of its speed and grip.”
hifi choice, june 2015
“The unique bending wave principle gives the Limited 11* sonic characteristics that are almost beyond compare. Exhibiting a perfect spatial reproduction, an honest tonality and an astonishing naturalness, these speakers definitely are something very special for connoisseurs of a sophisticated music reproduction – a true‚ Highlight‘!”
HiFi Vision, 2011