Have my pair for several years. Use Esoteric RZ-1 to drive them. Emphasizing bass to get satisfactory result. Tonal purity is the major strength. The performance of string ensemble is almost unsurpassable. Forever to stay in my speakers collection, together with SF Guarneri Homage, and Electa Amator 1, and Evett & Shaw Elan.

Not suitable for large-scale orchestral music, and heavy metal perhaps.

Very natural sound with surprising deep bass for a small unit in a big box, very good imaging. Extremely revealing, so if you are a stupid person and runs them with crap, guess what they sound crap. I used Primare 928 amps or Trilogy 990/909 EL34 amps and they sound wonderful, even better than the PA-1 Reference. If you really want trouser flapping bass, use a Velodyne DD15+ and put the signal through it and it will cut the main speakers off at 80Hz, so you have loud with big bass. Easy to position, I use them about 0.5M from the back wall.

There is a small-ish unit that can only handle so much, so not for discos with a suitable sub. Expensive, but once you hear them you will have to buy.

i have owned Ensemble PA-1 as well as the Reference series. For many years these were my book shelf reference speakers. The high and mids were really good especially for jazz. I matched them with a pair of good sub-woofers to give it more "body". The sound was equivalent to a large speaker. A word of caution. Unlike a large speaker you cannot turn it up to full volume otherwise you damage the speakers. Music is played loud enough for the ears to listen to. They were fantastic speakers. I sold them two years ago and regretted it. I could not find a used pair at the price I expected to pay. I looked for them again for a year and found a pair of Primadona. I have yet to listen to them. I am sure that they are as good as the bookshelf speakers, if not better.

Full range balance...

Not everyone likes its bass character

My system consists of JA Michell turntable, Sony SCD-1, ARC SP11 pre-amp, Manley 300B power amp and this Ensemble Primadonna. Before I bought these speakers, I know nothing about them. I was just attracted by its appearance, unique design of speaker compartment. I asked the salesman whether it can be served well by my small-power 300B amp. I took a listen once he said no problem. Once it sound, I agree that it is easy to drive it well. When the music died, the mid-to-high range sounds very very good and which I never heard before. The Primadonna consists of a 1" tweeter and a 5-1/2" mid-bass driver. It seems the box size and the size of drivers are not in proportion. Many people beleive that it don't perform well in low range. However, I can gurantee it can provide a quality bass if you choose a right pair of speaker cable to it. My choice is XLO signature 5.1. Eventhought its lower range character is not punching-heart, it still can extend very very low. When I tested it, I compare it with ProAc 3.8. The outcome is Response3.8 is nothing when stand beside Primadonna, even Westlake BBSM8 with all kind of Music. The only thing cannot be comparible is low range. The bass from Primadonna sounds very unique, not in quantity, in quality. It really provides an unique, deep and ture bass range. However, if your listening area is smaller than 200 sq feet, this is your right choice.

Similar Products Used:

Westlake BBSM8, B&W N802, Revel Ultimate

I owned the Ensemble Primadonna for almost two years now. If you have a mid-size room and largely listen to vocal and jazz music, this is the speaker you won't regret investing in.
I am using Sutherland A1000 and C2000 preamp, source component is Goldmund 10P and transport.

Just had a chance to listen to the Primadonna, driven by Gryphon equipment. Source is an Ensemble CD transport.I heard the Ensemble Reference Silver a while back and were very impressed with the sound.
I had the same high hopes for the Primadonna, but the experience turned out to be a little disappointing.
Ensemble has arguably the 'most human' tonal reproduction of all speakers. The Primadonna was no different. Tone was wonderful. Voice really sounds like human voice.
However, due to its 4in woofer, the Primadonna cannot reproduce deep bass at all. I listened to Mahler no2's ending with the Primadonna and the organ sound was so soft that you could hardly pick it up.
From Mid-low bass downards, the sound is thin. Midrange and highs are pretty good, but the lower end is simply not there.
These speakers will do fine job if you are looking for mids and highs. but if you listen to large orchestral music (such as Mahler), the Primadonna won't be able to reproduce the 'scale' of such pieces.

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THIS SPEAKER USES A STYROFOAM COFFEE CUP FOR A MIDRANGE! IT IS AN OVERPRICED PIECE OF EURO-JUNK. NO BASS, NO DYNAMICS, NO HIGHS, NOTHING, IT SOUNDS WORSE THAN ANY BOOM BOX YOU CAN BUY AT BEST-BUY, CIRCUIT CITY, OR J&R MUSIC WORLD. DO NOT BUY THIS YOU ARE SERIOUSLY MAKING A BIG, BIG MISTAKE