Cerwin-Vega speaker system test! CLSC-15

CLSC-15 likes and knows how to play loudly, their deep and dynamic bass should please the “rockers” and fans of rhythmic electronic music very much. Especially worth considering for those looking for a front end speaker for a large room set.

TEST RESULTS

CONSTRUCTION FEATURES: The CLSC-15 models belong to the “Classic” series of the famous American company Cerwin-Vega. In the design of the speakers there is no hint of the new-fangled Lifestyle in the way it is presented by the Europeans. No tiny shape or slim silhouette, but instead sheer power and strength in every detail. The other speakers in the test are just dwarfs beside Gulliver in comparison with the CLCS-15.

The speakers are made in the style of club loudspeakers with horn arrangement of the HF and MF drivers and the bass drum, closed by a rugged metal mesh. We were not able to take it off. The wide faceplate, with all its intricate profile, is molded “in one piece” from ABS anti-resonance plastic. The tweeter is equipped with a 25mm silk dome, and the midrange driver is equipped with a 165mm cloth diaphragm. Because of the horns the subwoofers provide a high sensitivity of 94dB. The question of why the CLS-15 speakers are so big is answered by the bass driver – a “paper” beauty with the Cerwin-Vega logo in the center and red edge trim. In fact, to a connoisseur the logo is not even necessary, the red border alone tells of the brand identity of the speaker – it is, if I may say so, a family trait of true Cerwin-Vega woofers. The size of the bass driver inspires real respect – 15 inches, or in the metric system 381 mm. Very few “home” subwoofers are equipped with “spot” speakers, for example, in the test of expensive subwoofers of the same issue of Video&Audio, none of the woofers could boast such a luxurious bass drum. By the way, the real shock of surprise was caused by the information true that the CLSC-15 is not the senior model in the “classic” series, there is another CLSC-215. As you might guess from the name, it has two fifteen-inch woofers! Just fantastic, bass aficionados can pray for these speakers.

But back to the description of the CLSC-15. Except for the plastic front panel the rest of the cabinet is made of MDF and finished with a vinyl film in two colors to choose from: black ash and cherry. The speakers don’t have studs, instead of them the set includes small rubber legs, which are glued to the bottom of the speakers. When you move the speakers, and it is not easy because of their considerable weight, the legs always tend to fall off. On the backside are two reflex ports, large enough to fit your hand, and a connection module with two universal terminals, as well as a fuse socket that protects the speakers from burning out. In addition to a common fuse, the speaker’s tweeter has its own protection system. Bassreflex ports are loaded only with the woofer of the speaker, for which American engineers have provided acoustically isolated from the other speakers compartment. The rear wall of the compartment is carefully damped with absorbent material. First and second order filters with electrolytic capacitors and inductors with ferrite cores are used in the speakers’ crossovers.

AUDIO QUALITY: the speakers clearly showcase the “classic” Cerwin-Vega sound. Designers believe all speakers should be able to play

loud and provide any amount of bass the listener wants, satisfying the listener’s most insatiable appetites. The CLSC-15 certainly meets those classic sound criteria. They have the power to amaze the listener with a terrifying amount of bass, the effect of which can only be compared with an earthquake. Measurements have confirmed that the speakers effortlessly play bass up to 30 Hz. This is the area of serious low bass, which is not every speaker can enter. In terms of bass depth the CLSC-15 shows the best result in the test.

The depth and dynamics of the bass of American speakers is such that they almost do not need the support of a subwoofer. Their abilities will be especially appropriate in multi-channel DT applications, it’s hard to imagine the bass special effects that the CLSC-15 can’t handle on their own when voicing soundtracks in movies.

The frequency response of the “American” speakers, rather flat in the middle, experiences rises in the lower part of the midrange and at high frequencies. So there’s a certain brightness to the sound of the speakers. However, the high-frequency fervor of the speakers can be slightly tempered by turning the speakers away from the listener. The reason is that the tweeter’s horn accumulates too much sound energy on the tweeter’s axis, and turning the speakers around partially eliminates this problem. The CLSC-15 stereo panorama is traditionally large-scale, but not at the expense of airiness, but due to enlargement of all images.

The loudspeakers reproduce the main strokes of the sound canvas quite clearly and naturally, but there is some simplifying feature of CLSC-15 approach, some, sorry, “canardiness”, so they superficially treat complicated and ornate moments of symphonic or chamber music. Not surprising, though, because historically, the sound of Cerwin-Vega speakers has been more suited to modern music.

PRICE: $940.

SUMMARY

BENEFITS: bass, bass and bass again.

CONDITIONS: CLSC-15 – big speakers in a standard apartment, to find for them will not be easy rather indifferent attitude of speakers to the rich timbres of musical instruments.

CONCLUSIONS: CLSC-15s like and know how to play loudly, their deep and dynamic bass should please the “rockers” and fans of rhythmic electronic music a lot. These speakers are especially worth consideration for those who are looking for front speakers for a set of DT in a large room.