Floorstanding loudspeakers — Albedo Agadia

Albedo Audio added the Agadia to its Imperiale series in July 2022 as the smallest member of that family, a handmade Italian tower that carries over the technologies of the larger Imperiale floorstanders into a cabinet meant to suit a wider range of rooms. Albedo names the bigger Acclara as its inspiration. The launch price was EUR 23,000 per pair.

Key specs that matter

Three Accuton ceramic drivers form a 2.5-way layout. The bass unit is an 8 inch woofer with a sandwich ceramic membrane, oversized for this class, working with a 7 inch ceramic midrange and a 25 mm CELL ceramic tweeter. Crossover frequencies are 250 Hz and 2.0 kHz. Albedo quotes 86 dB sensitivity at 2.83 V and 1 m, a nominal impedance of 11 ohm and a response of 39 Hz to 22 kHz. The official dimensions are 25.2 cm wide, 46 cm deep and 111.5 cm high, and one speaker weighs 62 kg. The finish list covers black oak and walnut veneers plus glossy lacquered black, walnut and pearl ruby red.

Engineering and use context

Low frequencies are loaded by a traditional Albedo transmission line tuned with Helmholtz resonators, the same principle Albedo applies across its current towers. The enclosure is built from 30 mm sandwich wood boards that thicken to 40 mm on the front and in areas under stress, and heavy steel plates are fitted to damp vibration. A dedicated crossover chamber keeps the network apart, mechanically and acoustically from the drivers, and its parts stay visible behind the cabinet. It uses first and second order filters wired point to point and hand soldered, with Mundorf parts throughout - oil impregnated polypropylene capacitors, coils of OFC copper and shielded non-inductive resistors. Using a big sandwich woofer below a separate midrange lets the low end reach further than on the smaller Achema while the 2.5-way topology keeps the filter simple. A full support kit with stainless steel spikes, spike holders and floor savers comes with each pair.

Pairing

With its high nominal impedance the Agadia asks for less current than most towers, which widens the choice of amplifiers to include lower-powered valve designs, while the moderate sensitivity and deep bass extension still favour an amplifier with healthy voltage reserves in bigger spaces. Its considerable mass and spiked base call for a floor able to carry that load evenly.

Alternatives

The Albedo Acclara is the larger Imperiale floorstander that inspired this model, a 3-way tower with a double specular transmission line and Accuton CELL drivers.