Bookshelf Speakers — Revival Audio ATALANTE 3

The Atalante 3 is a compact two-way speaker for stands or shelves from Revival Audio, a company based in Alsace, France, and founded in 2021 by the engineer Daniel Emonts and the strategist Jacky Lee. Its look, drawn up in partnership with the Paris studio A+A Cooren, combines a retro outline with walnut veneer. The Atalante name covers two models, and at launch the price was EUR 2,390 per pair, placing it below the EUR 4,490 of the bigger three-way model.

Key specs that matter

Revival Audio quotes a response of 44 Hz to 22 kHz at -3 dB, a sensitivity of 87 dB at 2.83 V and 1 m, and a nominal impedance of 6 ohm, dropping to a lowest value of 4.4 ohm at 175 Hz. The crossover point is 2.8 kHz. Power handling is 150 W, and the maker suggests amplifiers from 30 W upward. Each cabinet measures 390 mm high, 240 mm wide and 270 mm deep and weighs 11 kg. The recommended room size is 15 to 35 m2.

Engineering and use context

Handling the treble is a 28 mm soft dome using ARID, short for Anti Reflection Inner Dome, a patented Revival Audio technology that the company says absorbs over 95 percent of unwanted resonances behind the diaphragm. A generous chamber behind the dome, tuned to 520 Hz, lets the tweeter operate comfortably down to the crossover point. Lower frequencies go to an 18 cm woofer built with BSC, meaning Basalt Sandwich Construction, a cone that is both light and rigid. The crossover follows what the brand calls a Phase-Coherent-Fast-Response topology and is wired with Van Den Hul cable throughout. The enclosure is reflex loaded and sized to sit on a shelf, a sideboard or the dedicated stand. Revival Audio states that its components, drivers included, are manufactured in-house in France. Its co-founder Jacky Lee previously worked with Dynaudio, IBM and L'Oreal, while Daniel Emonts brings over 30 years of engineering experience in hi-fi.

Pairing

Revival Audio sells a matching stand for this model as a separate EUR 399 purchase, whereas the bigger Atalante 5 ships with an inclined stand in the box. The moderate sensitivity and benign load suit most solid-state integrated amplifiers. The same ARID tweeter is also used in the three-way Atalante 5.

Alternatives

The Revival Audio Atalante 5 offers a bigger three-way bookshelf alternative from the same Atalante series, using a 30 cm woofer.