Spendor C5e, Compact Center Channel

Spendor's own drivers are present and accounted for in the company's entry-level range speaker line. The Spendor C5e is a remarkably compact, yet powerful center channel companion to the company's "S-Line" of speakers.  The C5e is designed to match the output and timbre of its large counterparts and uses many of the same components to achieve that goal.

The cabinet of this small center is made of 18mm-thick MDF, using a "balance-veneered" technique —ie, veneer is glued to the inside surfaces as well as to the outside, to keep the wood stable. The S5e's cabinet uses internal, circumferential braces at each driver position for greater rigidity.  Those braces are also sized and shaped to function as back-braces for the drivers: The wood is carved to fit against the rear surfaces of the drivers' magnet assemblies, with rigid polymer dampers between, intended to turn excess energy into heat.

The drivers include a 1" composite dome tweeter pair of Spendor's own poly cone 5" mid-bass woofers.  The material Spendor chose for this task is known for being stiff, light, and intrinsically well damped. The woofer surrounds use a light, flexible butyl rubber, and there's a stationary phase plug at the center of each.

The C5e crossover network uses third-order filters, and is said to be designed for especially good dispersion and off-axis response. In common with the SP100s and BC1s of yore, the S-range crossovers use Spendor's own hand-wound, hand-matched inductor coils; they go the older speakers even better by banishing series resistors for response attenuation of the drivers. That, along with the relatively simple crossover design, would seem to contribute to the Spendor's pleasantly average electrical sensitivity and nominal impedance, which are 87dB and 8 ohms, respectively.

This compact center is in excellent physical condition all-around as well.  The images tell the story.

Demos are highly encouraged in Andover, MA.

$299 (plus applicable shipping and/or MA sales tax)