Floorstanding loudspeakers — Canton GLE 70 S2

The GLE 70 S2 is the second generation of Canton's GLE 70 floorstanding loudspeaker, part of the German brand's GLE series and the successor to the original GLE 70. Canton lists it at EUR 649 per speaker, and it comes in White, Black and Makassar, each combined with a satin-painted baffle and magnetically attached fabric grilles. The item number of the black version is 04530.

Key specs that matter

This is a 2.5-way bass reflex design with a rear-facing port. Two 174 mm woofer and midrange drivers use Aluminium Titan Black cones, and a 25 mm tweeter uses an Aluminium Black dome. The crossover points are set at 300 Hz and 3,200 Hz. Response is given as 25 Hz to 40,000 Hz, and power handling is 110 watts nominal and 170 watts music load. The impedance is 4 to 8 ohms and the efficiency is 89.5 dB at 2.83 V and 1 metre. Each speaker measures 19 x 95 x 28 cm and weighs 15.2 kg. The warranty runs for 5 years.

Engineering and use context

With the 2.5-way arrangement both cones handle the lowest band, and a single one of them continues upward to the tweeter handover, a way to fit two full-size cones into a slim cabinet. The reflex port radiates backward, which Canton labels Backfire. The S2 uses Canton's ATB drivers, short for Aluminium Titan Black, and the GLE tweeters of this generation carry an upgraded waveguide. Reinforced polycarbonate forms the baskets, strong magnet systems drive the cones, and the surrounds are triple-folded wave types. According to Canton, titanium is used as the cone material for both bass and midrange duty in these drivers, and integrated feet are part of the cabinet to decouple it acoustically from the floor. The grille is an oval fabric cover that attaches with magnets and can be removed without tools. The terminals accept banana plugs, so speaker cables can be connected without bare wire ends.

Pairing

The good efficiency lets the GLE 70 S2 work with modest amplifier power, and the impedance dipping to 4 ohms means the amplifier should be rated for 4 ohm loads. The pair can be joined by matching GLE centre and surround speakers plus a GLE subwoofer for multichannel use.

Alternatives

Canton's GLE 80 S2 is the three-way GLE tower, adding a dedicated midrange of the same size and a tweeter with integrated waveguide in a 99 cm high cabinet.