I consider the speaker's imposing size a plus....you expect wonderfully clear performance from a speaker this size and you get it in spades. The fact that I paid so little money for my purchase only enhances my enjoyment.One would need to spend thousands to match this performance.

The only weakness I can think of might be the flack you would get from a spouse who desires hidden tiny speakers.My wife has chilled out to the point that I got away with it, although I still get the old "that's too loud routine". I think that for many people the addition of a powered sub-woofer would be an excess given the base provided by the ten inch cones.

I recently purchased a pair of Impact 40 speakers still in the original cartons....new and with reworked crossovers and an impedance change to 8 ohms for $500.00 for the pair to replace my old AR3 speakers. I found the sound first rank.....the tweeters are crystal clear and the base is powerful and tight. I added an eight inch Polk powered sub-woofer just to get room shaking base when playing classical organ music.I was in ecstasy the first time I played a Widor Toccata.My speakers would be able to break an apartment lease but also work just wonderfully with guitar,voice and piano at both normal and high volume levels.I am just so happy with my new speakers.

Customer Service

Audio Pro does excellent work out of a postage size shop.....they are geniuses who do exactly what they say they will do. With so much overpriced junk on the market I am glad I was able to find guys who really know what they are doing!

Similar Products Used:

The techs at Audio Pro (Watertown Ma.) where I purchased my speakers also restored my Marantz Model 15 amp and Model 7-T pre-amp as well as my Thorens turntable with a Shure SME tonearm. Everything works as well as it did when I first got the equipment forty plus years ago.Being that I am a lover of powerful base,the Polk eight inch powered sub-woofer only adds to my enjoyment but maybe not my wifes. I also employ a tape deck and a cd player which sound wonderful with the Impact 40 speaker

Great sound...provided they are fed a good signal and a suitable room for them to be heard. Imaging and detail are the great strengths here.

Very fussy in their placement...if you have a small place that is wall to wall carpeted with lots of furniture, be prepared to be disapointed. Hardwood or laminate with area rugs...a largish room to crank them and they deliver.

For the price paid I was not expecting much. Didn't even give them a thorough listen before paying the bucks. They were in great shape...had been boxed for a few years so I took the gamble.

When I got them home and connected them up to my old Marantz equipment I was definitely not happy...the bass was muddy and the highs could hardly be heard.
For the first time in my life I actually used bass, mid and treble controls to get them to sound "alright".
A day later I decided they had to leave the living room area...fully carpeted and filled with stuffed furniture. I moved them onto the hardwood floors with area rugs.
Suddenly, I heard a different speaker. Everything I hoped they would be they became. Tone controls returned to flat...Bill Evans cranked and I was away...I was very impressed with the detail and imaging...bass and mids were clear and tight...the highs were clear and smooth..I fell in love.

Lots of bang for your buck. For the money I want to say something like the best on the market! No foolin'. LOTS of clean, hi-definition output. They rock if you turn 'em up. Cool vibration-isolating spike legs (removeable if desired). Small footprint.

Like many British speakers, you need a lot of skookum (watts) to drive 'em. That said, give 'em what they want and you're going to be smiling.

Product Reviewed: Celestion Impact 40 I went shopping for used speakers on a tight budget and just took the recommendation of the owner of Hawthorne Stereo in Seattle. I knew England's Celestion because I own a 400-watt tube bass amp, a big 15-inch enclosure, and a 4X10 enclosure filled with British Celestion woofers -- I know Celestion's quality. Celestion woofers also fill my dad's Gale speakers, whose quality has also impressed me over the years. The Brits build great speakers (and tube amps! :) I have a great deal of respect for them. But I digress. But back to these Impacts. The price was right, and I was familiar with the product. I'm running them off my Philips SACD and Marantz 1250 integraged. For 12-inch woofers, they're not at all bass-shy. The detail is extremely accurate. Not overy warm, or cold analytical. Just right actually. But what incredible detail! I've clearly heard subtle nuances that I've never heard before in the music. (I was wondering what the hell a noise was and had to put my ear right to the speaker to verify that it was from the CD! It was definitely a "Wow, check that out!" experience. Pretty cool. For full retail of more than $1000 my review would be a little cooler, because for that kind of money you've got a LOT of choices out there. But for $200-something? I've spent that on dinner! For $500, these are superlative speakers. Mind you, I'm saving my sheckles for something better, but if you want instant upper mid-fi for cheap, absolutely and by all means, pay anything up to $500 and love the dickens out of these dudes. Buyer's remorse will be buyer's rejoice on this one.

Similar Products Used:

Altec model 19s foolishly sold

Seismic and Deep Bass from that 10" Sub Woofer and twin port design. Looks good with silver streaks running through the black wood veneer. Brilliant in a large room where they can be cranked up.

Useless at low volume. Double useless in my little one bedroom flat. But put them in a large room (i.e my mates party), turn them up and they are transformed and supremely musical and danceable.

Huge speakers! 92dB@1w@1m will make even the most weedy amp sound like a powerhouse. Watch that 4 Ohm impedence though. Not very good at low levels but really start to sing at high volumes. Ideal for movies or serious bass heads. Most comfortable in your average stately home where they can stretch their wings and fill the largest of rooms with that lovely beefy music.

Similar Products Used:

Tannoy R2, Tannoy Mx3, Tannoy Definition 300, Tannoy 600's, Bose acoustimass, KEF Cara, Vintage HMV's. All run through NAD C370 (120 Watts) amplifier, Pioneer multiplayer with Cambridge S700 DAC. NAD

Midrange

tweeters are weak bass is muddy

weak highs great mid muddy bass. i run two pairs it cost me $ 450. 00 for two sets. they cant compete with the better speakers

Similar Products Used:

jbl 4410 canton fonum 200

Imaging, detail, bass responce

I have been using these speakers for a year or so, and like them. The better the equipment used with them, the better they sound. But they are ruthlessly revealing. If the signal you send them is crap, you'll get crap out. Put in a good quality signal, and you will love the three dimensionality, huge soundstage, incredible immagind and deep, tight bass. The fit, finish and quality is A1. These are a wonderful pair of speakers, and a bargain at the price I paid for them.

Someone here, (a-hem) gave these a 1 star rating. Then went on to say he pulledout his Radio Shack speakers.. Radio Shack speakers? I believe he was sadly mistaken and very hard on these speakers. For someone on a budget these are a very musical sounding speaker with great midrange. I did the A - B tests comaring them to a $900.00 set of Boston Acoustic speakers. These blew the BA speakers away with clarity of the details heard. For $300.00 these are a true bargain, and a very fine entry level speaker. I have spent hours listening to music on them and find myself saying I never heard that before. These deserve a listen to at the least. My Dad now has 4 of them in his living room. Someday soon I will also buy a set for my apartment. I give these an enthusiastic 4 star rating! Anyone want to buy a set of Boston Acoustic speakers?

I give these 5 stars because of their high quality sound for extremely low $$$.You would likely have to spend well over $1000 to surpass their sound quality.
I have seen they are still available in some of the forsale newsgroups and
on ebay for a ridiculously low $299/pair. Now that I've summarized, I'd like
to add the rest of my .02 about these speakers. I think its
rare that you find a _legitimate_ bargain when it comes to
better quality audio. Its even rarer to find an incredible
bargain at a ridiculous price; which is exactly what these
Celestion Impact 40's are. After my first pair arrived,
I was anxious to see what I got for my money. Frankly, I was
blown away at what I had bought for the (back when I bought mine...)
$333/pair price. After collecting some of my favorite and best
recorded CD's, I went on a little music fest for a week. These
speakers seem to do everything well. Bass response is excellent
and quite capable of shaking the house when the right song and the
right volume demand it; but without drowning out midrange and highs.
The high end does justice to all instruments in complex pieces (the Grand
Canyon Suite done by the Philadelphia Orchestra really comes alive)
without sounding bright. The midrange gives vocals excellent clarity
and a natural sound and tone. I found that my favorite test-drive
CD track for imaging and soundstage (Ani Difranco's 32 Flavors on
her 'Not a Pretty Girl' CD) was just flat awesome. Shortly after
buying them, I played this track for friends at two dinner
get-togethers. When I told them the price, they went and bought
pairs for themselves. A few days later I managed to rationalize
buying a second pair to replace my rear speakers; these are excellent
home theater speakers as well. Out of curiosity, I decided to take
a trip to a couple of Audio dealers to see how much I would have to
spend to get the same sound quality/volume if I went and bought
something else at retail price. Its hard to compare
'in-your-living-room' sound with 'in-the-demo-room' sound, but
some factors (IMO) like weakness in bass response and speakers
that are 'too bright' (one of my audio pet peeve's...) will usually
rear their ugly heads. I decided to keep my target compare price at
$1200 max. I first auditioned the Cambridge Soundworks Tower II;
inadequate bass/too bright and a $1000 price tag. They were nice
speakers, but didn't measure up to my Celestions. Next I went to
Tweeter and auditioned several different models. Most all came at
or near the Celestions in highs and mid range, but all but one
was too weak in bass to give you an accurate sound:

Mirage OM12 - Nice speakers ($850), but a tad too bright. Compared
well after connecting a $799 subwoofer but that combo
exceeded my $1200 limit considerably.


Boston Accoustics VR960 - ($900) Compared well in high end and mid
range (maybe a bit better in the high range but I'd
have to bring 'em home to be sure) but again, bass was
inadequate.

Kef Q65B - ($1200) Sounded similar to the Boston Accoustics.


Klipsh KLF10B - ($1000) Compared well in the high end, and equal or
better in bass response. Lack of a dedicated midrange
(these are 2-way speakers but there are two woofers...)
showed a small loss in vocal clarity and accuracy.
These speakers were the best overall performer in the
compare bunch for my ears. If I had $1200 to spend on
a pair of speakers and I had to buy retail, I'd buy
these in a second at $999/pair and spend the extra
$200 on something else.


Im also in the process of converting my 1400sqft attic into a
rec/party room. Its about two years off til completion, but I
know that when I upgrade my receiver, the old one is going in
the party room. After auditioning at the dealers, I realized
that when it comes time to set up the room, I'll have to go out
and buy some speakers at retail _or_ I can push the budget envelope
now and save myself at least $700. What can I say? I went
and ordered a third pair and just packed them away until the
room is done. Soon after, My brother bought a pair, and an
audiophile friend at work bought two pair. Two thumbs _WAY_
up on these speakers for me; and at $299, you will absolutely
be amazed (provided you're driving these puppies with a decent
receiver/amp). Im using a 105 wpc Pioneer; I'd love to hear a
set on a serious amp.

My only complaint? I wish I had found the deal _after_ they
went to $299 pair but even at the $333/pair I paid this deal
kicks ass. My advice? Buy them before their gone.

Ones appreciation of sound is a personal matter. Some people love certain speakers and others don't. Personally I have enjoyed the Celestion Impact 40's. Almost all of the purchasers email from around the country has been extremely positive. I have sat and listened to the Celestion Impact 40's at home with a basic 50 watt receiver and in audiophiles living rooms with a Class "A" Amp that cost thousands. The response has been the same, Smooth Accurate Sound with AMAZING imaging, and nice tight bass. The design of Celestion Impact 40 Loudspeaker has a curved grill that flares out over the 10" Bass Driver. This feature is often misinterpeted as an imperfect grill. Those of you who are able to hear them at High-End Audio Shops or Elsewhere will be the best judge of their suitability for you. My personal take is that they are a great buy at $ 299 pair plus shipping.

After reading another review on the impact 40's I thought what the heck. its only a 350$ gamble.......My return probably would have been better in Las Vegas.Appearance is midline, cabinetry fair but probably is only 1/2" particle board (not MDF),ports fall out easily, grill came bent (the box was fine as received from UPS)

Most important was the sound using sound valves M60 monoblocks (6550C class A tube amp SE triode mode) What a dissapointment. The high end was muddy and the soundstage flat. The bass was boomy and significant resonant peaks were easily audible. I Listened and listened, repositioned, tried jazz, classic and rock but nothing seemed to help. Finally I pulled out an old pair of Radio Shack LX5 satellites to try and remind myself of what a consumer speaker sounded like and I left the LX5's in place and put the Impact 40's back in the box for someone that wants the typical consumer level speaker with booming bass. Sorry Celestion, but the ones a dog