Напольная акустика — Cessaro Horn Acoustics LISZT II

The LISZT II is made by the German firm Cessaro Horn Acoustics as a four-way horn loudspeaker in which the bass horns are built into the cabinet itself, so no external bass units are needed. It stands alongside the Wagner I, Beethoven II, Alpha II, Beta II, Beta 0.5 II, Gamma II and Omega I in the current Cessaro catalogue.

Key specs that matter

The maker lists efficiency of 100 dB for 1 W at 1 m, nominal impedance at 8 ohm and power handling at 60 W, with a stated maximum output above 120 dB. The four-way layout splits the spectrum between bass horn, sealed low-mid, mid horn and treble horn, with a stated range spanning 30 Hz to 45,000 Hz. Each speaker measures 216 cm high, 47 cm wide and 108 cm deep and weighs 450 kg. The maker recommends a room larger than 30 m2 with the seat placed beyond 3.5 m.

Engineering and use context

The bottom octaves are produced by a front-loaded horn fed by two 12 inch paper cone drivers, and each of these bass sections is driven by a dedicated solid-state power amplifier built around a large 1200 W transformer. The lower midrange is handled by an 11 inch Alnico driver in a sealed enclosure, which avoids any port for that band. Above it a 2 inch compression driver, a modified TAD unit, loads into a spherical composite horn. The top octaves are covered by a 0.5 inch compression unit fitted with a beryllium diaphragm and a cobalt magnet, also on a spherical horn. The cabinet combines plywood and composite construction. Owners can order the composite horns in practically any colour, and the wooden cabinet parts are available in a range of veneers, so the finish can be matched to a specific interior. Given the height, depth and mass, delivery and positioning call for planning and several people, and floor load should be checked before installation.

Pairing

With amplification for the low bass already inside each cabinet, the owner's own amplifier handles only the passive upper sections, so it never has to control the bass cones. Mains power has to reach both speakers for these internal bass amplifiers, which is worth planning together with the cable runs. Cessaro's own guidance lists more than 1.5 W as the recommended amplifier power, so it is sensible to consider low-output single-ended triode designs as well as modest solid-state units. A clean, quiet preamplifier stage matters here, since residual hiss is easy to notice with drivers this efficient.

Alternatives

The Cessaro Beethoven II is another floorstanding horn system from the same catalogue for buyers comparing the brand's larger designs.