Jupiter Audio - EUROPA ACTIVE speaker

Introducing the Europa Active

I used to think audio was simple. A certain amount of "going with the flow" was required, because the pundits sure made it seem that the pundits were always right. Thus, an audio system--an especially good one, of course--consisted of a source component, a preamp, and amp, and a pair of speakers. Some companies, mostly British hi-fi or American pro-audio companies, have used or continue to use active speakers, either with internal or external amplifiers, but that is very far from the norm in the average audiophile system. The reasons for actively biamping have been cut and dried for decades now, but for some inexplicable reason this has always been relegated to the fringes of consumer audio.

And yet, oddly enough, my experience in this arena almost happened by accident. Originally, when I was first developing the Europa, I asked a friend of mine who imports tube equipment if he could have one of him manufacturers do a custom tube crossover for the speakers. He said sure, as long as I was willing up to pony up the money for the development costs. Since I was barely able to pony up the money for my own development costs, I had to put it on the backburner. A few months passed, and then one day as I was on the hunt for different options for subwoofer amplifiers, it hit me: Dutch manufacturer Hypex Electronics, a maker of some really good amp modules for subs, also makes active modules for two- and three-way speakers.

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It seemed like a no-brainer: the two-way module should work well with the Europa, and then as time allows, I should be able to utilize the three-way module for the new Ganymede as well. So I did it. I installed a pair of two-way modules into the first ever pair of Europas I built, S/N 0001 and 0002, and hoped for the best.

First, a little background. Some people reading this will be well aware of why active electronics are a good idea for speakers. A passive crossover, as found in about 99.5% of the speakers on the market, is largely a lose-lose proposition. Because of this there has been a trend to try and make the crossover network as simple as possible, sometimes with no crossover at all on the woofer and a single capacitor on the tweeter. But that's still not as optimal as having a dedicated amplifier for each driver, with the dividing network coming before the amp sections. When this occurs, you have the least lossy transfer of power between and amplifier and speaker. And who would've thunk less lossy would mean better sound quality? Well, we all should have. Picking an outboard amplifier with a thick, heavy faceplate and a thick, heavy chassis might be more sexy, but it likely wont equate to the ultimate in sound quality.

Having built in amps allow for something else, something that is generally anathema to the dyed in wool audiophile: EQ. Just having separate level controls for the woofer and tweeter amps amounts to a de facto equalizer, but the Hypex unit does one better by adding high frequency and low frequency room matching controls, affecting frequencies above 6 kHz and below 150 Hz respectively. These controls don't have to be used, but if you're really looking for the ultimate tonality from the Europa in your room it's a good idea to at least play with them. Personally, I vacillate between being a hands-off and hands-on kind of guy, so some days the idea of tweaking little screwdriver controls appeals to me and other days it decidedly does not. Fortunately, the speakers sound great out of the box, so if all you're looking for is plug and play that's no problem.

The specifications of the Europa essentially stay the same, but certain amplifier related specs are no longer applicable, such as input impedance, power handling, and sensitivity. In fact, the overall character of the speaker is largely unchanged, but ever aspect of the speaker's sound is improved: it's more lively, more musically accurate, has more clarity, and has more even bass response. The clarity of the speaker is almost unnerving, almost to the point where it could be described as 'analytical', but not quite. Instead, I think it is better described as simply pushing the envelope of what can be acheived sonically at what can still be described as an exceptionally reasonable price. In fact, considering an amp isn't necessary, it can even be considered a better value than a Europa with a separate amp.

Features and specifications:

Here are some of the pertinent amp specs as stated by the amp manufacturer:

POWER: 65W into 8 ohms per channel--one channel for the woofer and one for the tweeter
Crossover: Fourth order Linkwitz Riley 2700 Hz
Frequency Response: 20 Hz to 85 kHz, +0/-3 dB
Per Channel Gain 12 dB independent adjustment
Overall Volume Range: 30 dB
THD: Less than 0.05% THD at rated power
S/N: Greater than 100 dB at rated power
Damping Factor: 1000
Input Impedance: 10k Ohm
Input Voltage: 115VAC (220VAC available)

220 Volts is no problem, but will require a special order from the importer of the amp, so please allow 8-10 weeks for delivery.

The back panel screwdriver adjustments are as follows (click here to see it):

Gain, one for the woofer and one for the tweeter channel
Overall volume of the speaker system
Room matching controls: above 6 kHz for the treble and below 150 Hz for the bass.
There is also one other option: both RCA and XLR inputs are standard, but one or the other has to be selected via an internal jumper, so please specify which input you will be using when ordering.

price: $2000 per pair
Sorry, no introductory price on this product.

Other finishes are available upon request; click here to contact us.

Speaker Instructions