I started the audition with my favorite one-man-band, Raul Midn, playing an acoustic version of "Everybody." The opening guitar was surprisingly smooth and without any tinny sound I often hear in the upper range with other systems. Then again, I found Midn to sound a tad stuffy; the airiness that normally crests his vocals was subdued, making his presence less than real. Later, as Midn elevates his pitch, there were some brazen notes that popped. Reflecting on what I was hearing, it was obvious that there was a deficiency in the response near the crossover frequency.
On to another acoustic cut, I pulled up Phil Collins' "Another Day in Paradise." The AVI's immediately impressed with a nice, expansive soundscape. To that end, it was easy to picture the layering and location of each instrument and vocalists. The lower end of Collins' vocal was nice, but like Midn there were some questionable frequencies in his upper range through the CLS-160s. But that's about all the criticism I have with this track. The piano was delicate and the bongos, nicely rendered and easy to discern in the soundstage.
Pat Coils' "Big Spring" is a very open track, making it easy to pick up on the details. Here the AVI's upper range struggled, with the cymbals in the opening sounding a bit artificial. But that was overshadowed by the enormous stage and the drums. While the lowest octaves of the kick were lost, they remained relatively full, and the snares were delightful, yet a tad peaky.
The piano in "Clocks" by Coldplay was, for the most part, delivered naturally with no signs of breakup at and above normal listening levels. There were, however, a couple standout keys that I found a tad aggressive and sometimes disruptive. Chris Martin's vocals, however, were surprisingly smooth and open by contrast to the previous tracks, but found the shaker restrained, lacking the presence and distinction it should.
Conclusion
The CLS-160's are very capable of maintaining a correct soundstage with good depth and width, scoring them huge points for their audiophile intentions. There's no doubt that the crossover helps the resolution of the system, providing clear signal for the speakers. However, the tweeters could stand to be opened up a bit for an improved response, and it would be nice to have more range in the attenuation circuit. At the end of the day, though, the tweeter was a minor issue. Go check out the CLS-160-it's a respectable set with an even more respectable price tag.
| | Points Possible | AVI CLS-160 |
| Sound Quality | 5 | 4 |
| Treble | 5 | 3 |
| Midrange | 5 | 4 |
| Bass | 5 | 4 |
| Value | 5 | 4 |
"Average" is half points possible