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Left Brain, Meet Right Brain and What a
Wonderful Match it Is!
Some people are born romantics. Right-brain
driven, their emotions rule, their hearts
always lead the way. Others are mainly
analytical thinkers, left-brain driven where
logic and science rule and emotions are
largely disregarded. Many of us, however,
have a bit of an internal war going on - an
ongoing battle between what we feel and what
we think. If, like me, you are in the latter
category, read on as the Rockport Aquila may
be just the loudspeaker for you.
Right out of the box, the Aquila acquitted
itself as a loudspeaker with exceptional
linearity, balance, coherence and natural
tonal color. However, after a couple hundred
hours of burn-in, what was initially a very
capable and technically proficient
loudspeaker transformed into an exceptional
state of the art music maker.
 After
burn-in, while its linearity and balance
were still evident, the Aquila's outstanding
individual characteristics really came to
life. The upper frequencies were very
good - sweet, extended and crystal clear with
no hint of glare, strain or edginess. One of
my favorite albums is Lost and Found
[Courgette Records 30010-2] by female
vocalist extraordinaire, Judith Owens. The
first cut "Smoke on the Water" contains some
close-mic'd passages with a degree of
sibilance noticeable regardless of the
quality of the playback system. However,
through an analytical loudspeaker, this
sibilance can be intolerable. Because the
Aquila's leading edge transients and upper
frequencies are so natural (being neither
tipped up or rolled off), while the
sibilance on this cut was still evident, it
wasn't exaggerated or distracting to the
point of irritation. This allowed the rest
of this beautifully recorded and performed
song and album to really shine. In this
regard, the Aquila reminded me of my
reference speaker (with a superb ribbon
tweeter). However, many people may prefer
the Aquila's treble response as its soft
dome tweeter has a wider dispersion and
doesn't beam like a ribbon tweeter.
Personally, I do not enjoy music with a
tilted up treble response. Not only is it
unnatural sounding, but it quickly leads to
listener fatigue - which I don't get from
live music. Rest assured, you'll get all the
musical goods with the Aquila's treble
performance without any fatigue.
It may sound cliché but for me, the heart of
the music is in the midrange. If you ascribe
to that theory, the Aquila will infuse
enough heart, soul and emotion into your
music to satisfy the most demanding
midrange-obsessed music lover. If a
component cannot get timbre or tonal color
right it will never get the midrange or, for
that matter, the music right. Most
audiophiles are capable of hearing and
appreciating small variations in timbre.
Obviously, most people can hear the
difference between a trumpet and a trombone.
However, with a well designed playback
system we should also be able to hear the
difference between two different trombones,
two different trumpets or even two different
trumpet players. Through the Aquila, hearing
these differences was both easy and
musically fulfilling. The trombone is an
instrument with a certain amount of blat,
growl and body that's difficult to reproduce
well.
 I've
had the privilege of hearing trombonists
Ozzie Melendez, Mike Bogart and Mic Gillette
live on numerous occasions - the former with
Funk Filharmonik the latter two with Tower
of Power [TOP]. On "We've Got the Notion"
off Funk Filharmonk's fabulous, high-energy,
2008 release Everybody Get Down
[31220 Music], Melendez's tone was perfectly
rendered with the requisite blat and body.
Turning to Mike Bogart's solo on Could've
Done It Better from TOP's Oakland Zone CD
[JVC Victor 62375], I could easily
distinguish between Bogart's and Melendez's
tone. I can also attest that what I was
hearing through the Aquila was eerily
similar to hearing Mike Bogart perform live
(which I did two nights ago). The Aquila
easily reproduced the unique sound that
makes this instrument so special.
It wasn't just the sound of a trombone that
showcased the Aquila's midrange
capabilities. Trumpet, piano, male and
female voices, violins, guitar, drums all
were reproduced with aplomb and full bodied
richness without any hint of lethargy or
coloration.
 On
Rachelle Ferrell's Individuality CD
[Capitol 7243 4 949820 0], this
underappreciated jazz/soul singer's gritty,
soulful voice was more emotionally
expressive than ever. On this album, Ferrell
uses her voice like a finely honed
instrument with great dynamic range and
tonal changes up and down the musical scale.
I can't think of a loudspeaker more suitably
matched to reveal what Ferrell brings to the
table on this CD, a heart versus head roller
coaster ride! Similarly, Herbie Hancock's
piano and Joni Mitchell's and Tina Turner's
voices on Hancock's 2007 Joni Mitchell
tribute CD, River [Verve
B0009791-02], have never been reproduced in
my room with such presence, realism and
emotion and without any hint of stridency.
This leads me to an experience I had over
and over again during this review. You've
read the multitude of reviews, I'm sure,
where a reviewer claims a component revealed
a wealth of new information never heard
before. It wasn't the new detail I heard
through the Aquila as much as how the
existing detail was presented with such
clarity that struck me. On CD after CD,
where the liner notes didn't contain lyrics,
I could easily understand lyrics I had not
been able to decipher for years! I attribute
this to the difference between what I'll
call pseudo-resolution and real
resolution. Pseudo-resolution
(often the rage with newbies, gear hounds
and 15-minute dealer demos) is analogous to
what you get with entry level 720p, 63"
large screen LCD TVs on display at big-box
electronic stores with the contrast,
brightness and color settings all turned up
to give potential customers the illusion of
a clearer, more vivid picture. Sure, that
ultra sharp image of deep, vivid,
Kelly-green grass on that college football
field may look impressive, but is it
realistic? Not really. Now check out the 50"
plasma running an HD signal or, better yet,
the 63" 1080p LCD TV driven by a Blu-Ray
player where the TV has been professionally
calibrated to produce an accurate color
scale - now you have witnessed what
increased real resolution looks like.
The Aquila delivers real resolution in
spades - the kind of resolution that imparts
the true essence of music. This unparalleled
retrieval of macro and low-level harmonic
detail produced such life-like timbre and
tonal color it suspended disbelief of real
instruments and real voices in my room. No
speaker I've ever heard and I've heard some
of the best did this better than the
Rockport Aquila. Returning to the LCD
analogy above, the Aquilas simply provided
more sonic pixels than other speakers
allowing Rockport to refrain from
manipulating the sonic contrast and
brightness buttons to generate musical
involvement. This is a prime example of
Rockport's superb technical implementation
(left-brain inspired) translating into an
emotional connection with the music
(right-brain connection).
At the lower end of the spectrum, in my
listening room the Aquila's bass response was
world class and in every way better than any
other loudspeaker I've ever heard, any where
at any price. No brag, just fact. Before the
Aquilas arrived, I was generally leery of
side firing woofer designs as my previous
experience (in my room) with such a design
was less than stellar. Again, my higher
expectations from Rockport designs came into
play. Having heard and been impressed with
the Rockport Antares with its front-firing
13" woofer, I was expecting good bass
response from the Aquila since it basically
replaces the Antares in the Rockport
hierarchy (and I don't expect Andy to go
backward with a new design). That said,
however, because of the Antares’ more inert
(and heavier and more costly) monocoque,
resin cabinet design, I was not
expecting the Aquila's bass performance to
better the Antares but to probably
equal it. However, better it, it did and by a
noticeable margin. I don't know if this is
attributable to the new custom-designed
carbon fiber cones, the new crossover or
something else. What I do know is that the
Aquila's bass was linear and physically
powerful yet delicate and beautifully
textured.
When evaluating the Aquila's bottom end
performance, I was again drawn to its
uncanny reproduction of realistic timbre of
a musical instrument. The timbre of a sound
is greatly influenced by certain aspects of
its musical envelope such as attack time and
characteristics, decay, sustain, release and
transients. Returning to Rachelle Ferrell's
Individuality CD, this album has some of the
deepest, most difficult to reproduce bass of
any CD I've ever heard. Between George
Duke's synthesizer bass and Bryan Miller's
ponderously deep electric bass, most
speakers cannot reproduce these bass lines
without impeding on Ferrell's vocals and the
other instruments - to the point of
distraction. The Aquila delivered all of the
visceral impact of the bass - allowing its
weight and heft to shine though - while
simultaneously preventing it from overtaking
Ferrell's voice or the balance of the music.
Transient attack, whether from acoustic,
electric or synthesized bass, was accurate,
fast and finely nuanced neither blunted or
unduly sharp. Sustain, decay and bloom were
eerily lifelike, and the timbre full-bodied.
However, at the same time, what set the
Aquila apart was it ability to contain the
musical envelope of bass notes while
simultaneously allowing them to fully
develop with no bloat, overhang or smearing.
I again attribute this to the Aquila's ultra
high real resolution that made music come
more alive than I've heard it though any
other loudspeaker. Note that I purposely
refrained from describing the Aquila as a
lively loudspeaker since, to me, that
denotes a certain brightness - an adjective
I would not use to describe the Aquila.
Yes,
She's Gorgeous. Smart and Sweet - So What's
the Catch?
Finally, I must broach two unpopular topics.
First, I know I'll be sticking my head on
the chopping block but I could not find any
area of the Aquila's performance that could
be improved upon - given what I believe a
loudspeaker is realistically supposed to do.
Namely, maximize enjoyment of the music by
accurately reproducing the timbre of
instruments and voices while, to the extent
possible, suspending disbelief. No
loudspeaker will ever be able to recapture
and reproduce the actual physicality of the
live event in space and time. As such, while
I'll not debate which component in an audio
system is most crucial, I will assert that
the loudspeaker has the most difficult task.
I listen to many different genres of music
ranging from chamber music to folk and jazz
to bombastic horn-driven funk. As a result,
I've always preferred a loudspeaker that,
while not the absolute best at any one
musical genre, is at least second or third
best with most genres - the whole being
greater than the sum of its parts. What
floored me was that the Aquila was better at
almost all genres of music than every other
loudspeaker I've heard.
Second, as a resident of the Detroit
metropolitan area, I can relate to
unprecedented economic problems we’re
experiencing. I realize that the reviewed
component costs more than many homes in
Motown. Yet, that sad reality does not
diminish the Aquila's true value to a music
lover. While spending tons of money on a
component doesn't necessarily guaranty good
sound, in this case, assuming the rest of
your system is up to the task, it does.
Considering the number of ridiculously
overpriced audio components these days
including cables, tweaks and electronic
components, the Aquila actually represents
good value if you can afford its price of
admission. You rarely see a Rockport
loudspeaker for sale on the used market -
and for good reason. Like its turntables,
Rockport's Aquila loudspeaker is an heirloom
quality purchase that will provide world
class performance for years to come.
Conclusion
In 35 years of pursuing audio Nirvana, the
Rockport Aquila stands alone at as the
single most musically and technically
impressive audio component I've had the
privilege to experience. No, I haven't heard
every loudspeaker on the planet but I've had
some impressive and equally expensive
designs grace my room - the Kharma
Midi-Grand Ceramique ($47,000) and Kharma
Exquisite 1.D ($100,000+) and the Verity
Audio Sarastro II ($40,000) to name a few.
While these are all very capable and
excellent sounding loudspeakers, it wasn't
until I heard something better that I could
understand their respective limitations.
Accordingly, unless and until I hear
something better (the Altair?), the Aquila
stands at pinnacle of loudspeaker design and
represents the embodiment of what music is
all about - the application of learned
scientific techniques with artistry and
passion to communicate an emotional message.
Head meets heart, left brain meets right
brain and form meets function. Bravo
Rockport!!
Rockport Technologies Aquila Specifications:
Drivers:
High Frequency: 1 Scanspeak D30 modified
ring radiator Mid-range: 6"
custom-manufactured carbon fiber composite
by Audiotechnology Low Frequency: 13"
custom-manufactured carbon fiber composite
by Audiotechnology
Frequency Response: 25Hz - 20k
KHzSensitivity: 89db SPL/2.83v Minimum
Recommended Power: 50 wattsNominal
Impedance: 4 ohmsEnclosure Material:
Constrained-mode damped, multi-layer MDF
with variable section thickness, (up to 3"
thick - side walls and 5 thick - front
baffle)
Cabinet Finish: Piano Gloss Black (standard)
Internal Wiring: Transparent AudioDimensions
(H"xW"xD"): 49.37" x 18.46" x 32.18"
Weight: 300 lbs. each (net) 550 lbs. each
(shipped)
Retail price/pr:
$45,500.00
Manufacturer
contact information:
Rockport Technologies229 Mill StreetRockport,
ME 04856Phone: (207) 596-7151
Website:
www.rockporttechnologies.com
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