Electrostatic Speakers

I have been using since last 6-7 years, Electro Stat speakers from a company from India called Cadence Audio . I have their flagship model ARCA, which are hybrid type with 12’ woofers. With 91.5 dB sensitivity and 8 ohm avg., my 35 wpc tube amp drives them comfortably.
I had upgraded the capacitors ( OIMP V-Caps) , Resistors ( Duelund CAST carbon ), internal wires, etc.
I find them to be very precise and especially on mids and highs , they are terrific !
I thoroughly enjoy them and do’t think of going back to cones .
I do’t think they have established dealers network in USA , so these ARCA  from Cadence Audio may not be familiar in USA.

My favorite of all speakers, over the years, was, without question, the Apogee Duetta Signatures. They require a bit of space and at 2 ohm, demand a great deal of good power, but when set up properly, they make the closest thing to a live performance, I’ve ever heard.
Now that I no longer can handle the scope and volume of a live performance, for the many hours that I spend listening to music at home - I am much more interested in a speaker that will create a large, detailed, yet musical stage at more moderate levels. I can’t help but believe though, that either the Sanders or the Sound Labs would do an incredible job at that or full size orchestrate alike...Jim

I presently am a "long term owner" of Soundlab Ultimate II's. I purchased them back in 1999. My Soundlabs have the "original panels" and I can say with utmost confidence that my speakers have kept me satisfied and never a moment have I ever considered another speaker! My original panels have "never" been back  to Soundlab for any reason. I have covered my panels since the beginning of this odyssey with bed sheets  when not in concert status. I do not know for sure but maybe this has helped to keep dust at bay and contributed to their longevity.  They are never over driven . My amps are NAT Se2Se  and the sound is to die for. Getting the components and cables up stream to your satisfaction will greatly pay big dividends not necessarily the most expensive or exotic products.  Each listener has their biases I have mine. My Soundlabs have kept me away from the merry-go- round upgrade disease .... many many  THANK YOUs to Dr. West for his creation.  I don't visit here too much anymore it can keep me  state of "what if" . My nirvana is here listening to my babies. Happy Listening.... 

The newer Quads are still basically an ESL 63 with better cabinets and looks. My ESL 63’s were purchased from Electrostatic Solutions and are 7 years old now. Totally rebuilt with upgraded power supplies that took this speaker to another level, the power supply being the key. I added 2 small 8: subs crossover at 40 Hz, and all I can say I’ve heard speakers in the 15K and range that cannot touch the Quads, tone-wise, size, and placement, all cone speakers push sound at you, B3 organ sounds like notes not like the organ, same very piano, Vocals tight, but lacking real body and tone. Quads still rule, and they won’t cost you an arm and a leg. Buy a used pair send them to Kent at Electrostatic solution and you have a world-class speaker that will play as loud as is natural, not headbanging though. Quads may have some limitations but what they do well no muti-driver cone speaker can do it. I owned a lot of cone speakers and loved a few, Dynaudio Confidence 5’s come to mind. But very few I could live with long. Look at how many same brand speakers you see for sale over and over and over. Not Quads, you own them for life if you have the experience to enjoy what they do so well.

I see this thread is quite old, but allow me to tell you about my saga with 989s when I was still living in England.

I heard a pair at the London Hifi Show soon after they launched and, well, let’s just say they blew me away completely.

So I went home, offloaded some gear and ordered a pair. I won’t say where from because the very well known dealer is still trading and had nothing to do with the awful issues that started almost as soon as I fired up the first pair out of the box, making that crackling and thudding noises that are familiar to many ESL owners up and down the years - but right out of the box when brand new!

My dealer, who was amazing throughout and even visited me to check things out, then arranged for a new pair to be delivered. Same issue. This went on until I reached, wait for it, the 5th pair and they ALL had the same problem...

As a pattern had formed, I decided to bow out and was given a full refund. It was heartbreaking.

It transpired that it was around this time that Quad ESL manufacture had moved to China. From what the OP is saying here, it looks like the glue issues persist to this day. In fact I know they do through conversation with someone who repairs Quads as a hobby. He is often doing rebuilds to overcome this issue, even on the latest pairs.

Prior to this purchase, I had owned a couple of pairs of 63s at various points. I loved them but this was the time in my audiophile career when I was curious about lots of speakers and I inevitably traded them for something.

Another audio dealer friend would generously allow me to take home his shop "retro display" pair of 57s every now and again. I absolutely loved them, even though they clearly needed some servicing.

Fast forward to moving to the States and, after many years of casually looking, about two years ago I located a very unspoiled 1978 pair of 57s and I pulled the trigger.

So far so good, and I have had the rectifiers rebuilt and also had the treble clamps fitted. Nothing comes close to them in terms of that core strength of Quads, the irresistible mid-range.

The 57s are definitely a forever speaker. I do have a cone driven pair of Thiels as my daily drivers, but the Quads come out every few weeks when I lust after more of their magic.

It’s horrible to read that people are still buying their dream speaker, at huge expense, only to be let down by the build issues. The solution is to get an expert repairer to strip them down and make them good. Personally I think Quad should paying for that each and every time for pairs that are still under warranty.

Not the revered company it once was. I highly recommend Ken Kessler’s book "Quad The Closest Approach" that reminds us of happier times at Huntingdon.