Dear Troels, 
Just three months ago, I received the TL-5 cabinets, built in 25 mm MDF (30 mm for the woofer baffle) by MF Custom Speakers in Poland, following Troels Gravesen's original drawings. The company is run by two young, talented and highly motivated craftsmen, and throughout the entire project we stayed in almost daily contact with smooth communication through a dedicated WhatsApp group.
Only a few minor modifications were made to the original design. For example, the side panels extend 16 mm beyond the front baffles to allow perfectly flush-mounted speaker grilles (keep in mind that the mid driver front chassis thickness is more than 15 mm).
The quality of the cabinets is outstanding. They are CNC-machined and assembled with exceptional precision and craftsmanship. At my request, MF Custom Speakers also arranged for the cabinets to be finished with a premium automotive paint of my choice. Although significantly more expensive than conventional lacquer, the result is clearly superior, that fully justifies the additional cost. For shipping, the cabinets were simply secured to a pallet, carefully wrapped and firmly strapped down. Despite travelling all the way to Switzerland, they arrived in absolutely perfect condition.
I opted for the passive version of the TL-5. The only significant departure from Troels' original design was the choice of woofer. Instead of the recommended unit, I selected the 18 Sound 18NLW9000, a driver that is technically very similar but features a neodymium motor. I have always preferred neodymium drivers whenever possible, and this project was no exception.
Within a single weekend, both the crossovers and the loudspeakers were fully assembled. The speakers were mounted on heavy-duty polyurethane casters, raising them approximately 50 mm above the floor while allowing them to be moved easily during the long process of finding their optimal position.
The system was connected to my reference electronics: a Totaldac d1-total streamer, di-reclocker, d1-sublime DAC, two d1-driver-sublime passive preamplifiers, a Holton Inviso pure Class A amplifier delivering 50 W into 8 ohms for the midrange and treble, and two Holton Ex Nihilo monoblocks producing 275 W into 8 ohms for the woofers. All interconnects and speaker cables were custom-built.
One point should be made very clear: I was not immediately impressed.
Partly because one never quite knows what to expect from a loudspeaker built around professional PA drivers. But also because my reference loudspeakers are the TG Ellipticor 50 MKII, which are simply extraordinary in virtually every respect. They excel in microdynamics, possess astonishing refinement and transparency, and are built around what is, in my opinion, one of the finest midrange drivers ever produced.
My very first impression of the TL-5 was their astonishing macrodynamic capability—something that genuinely takes time to adjust to. Equally striking was their ability to reproduce music at sustained listening levels of 95 to 100 dB without the slightest hint of distortion or mechanical stress. Rather than sounding louder, they simply sounded larger and more effortless.
Finding their ideal position required patience. After numerous experiments in my 90 m² listening room, several small adjustments and, most importantly, tilting the upper cabinet backwards by approximately four degrees, I finally found the optimum setup. The loudspeakers now form an equilateral triangle of 3.2 metres with the listening position, are toed in by approximately 16 to 20 degrees, and have no nearby boundaries, with the closest walls being about 2.7 metres away.
After more than three months of listening—time that also proved beneficial for driver break-in—I now feel that the loudspeakers have reached their full potential. The following impressions therefore reflect not the excitement of a first encounter, but the conclusions drawn after living with them over an extended period.
What immediately became apparent over the following weeks was that these loudspeakers are remarkably difficult to analyse in the traditional audiophile sense. Rather than drawing attention to individual aspects of their performance, they present music as a coherent whole. One quickly stops listening for bass extension, treble sparkle or imaging tricks, and simply becomes absorbed in the performance itself. That, in my opinion, is one of the rarest qualities a loudspeaker can possess.
The first characteristic that consistently stood out throughout all my listening sessions was the extraordinary sense of effortlessness. At no point do the loudspeakers give the impression that they are approaching their mechanical or dynamic limits. Whether reproducing the explosive crescendos of Hugh Masekela's Stimela, the intimacy of Patricia Barber's Company or the acoustic realism of Nils Lofgren's Keith Don't Go, they remain composed and completely unconstrained. Instead of sounding louder as the music becomes more demanding, they simply sound larger. The presentation expands naturally in scale, creating the impression of virtually unlimited headroom.
Their macrodynamic capabilities are exceptional. Large orchestral climaxes, powerful drum strikes and sudden dynamic contrasts are reproduced with an authority that is rarely encountered, even among very expensive loudspeakers. Yet this dynamic freedom never comes across as aggressive or spectacular for its own sake. It simply feels natural, as if the loudspeakers possess reserves that remain largely untapped. Listening at sustained levels is therefore surprisingly comfortable, because distortion never seems to become part of the musical experience.
Another characteristic that deserves particular mention is the loudspeaker's remarkable consistency across different listening levels. Many systems only come fully alive when played loudly, while others lose composure as the volume increases. The TL-5 behaves differently. Whether listening late at night at moderate levels or at realistic concert levels, the tonal balance, spatial presentation and overall musical expression remain essentially unchanged. At lower volumes, the loudspeakers do not become thin, lifeless or dynamically compressed; they simply reproduce the performance on a smaller scale. As the listening level increases, the presentation gains physical impact and authority, yet the fundamental character of the sound remains intact. This ability to preserve both tonal integrity and emotional communication regardless of playback level is, in my experience, one of the clearest indicators of a genuinely accomplished loudspeaker design.Equally impressive are the microdynamics. Small variations in playing intensity, subtle vocal inflections, the delicate touch of brushes on cymbals or the changing pressure of fingers on guitar strings are reproduced with remarkable fidelity. Particularly on Keith Don't Go, the guitar is rendered not only through its strings but as a complete resonating instrument, preserving both the initial attack and the harmonic decay of the wooden body. The loudspeakers follow every nuance of the performance without ever sounding analytical or artificially detailed.
The tonal balance is equally convincing. The bass reaches deep and possesses considerable authority, yet never dominates the presentation. It provides a solid foundation while remaining agile and exceptionally well controlled. The midrange is arguably the greatest strength of the system. Voices have natural body, warmth and physical presence without sounding projected or oversized. Despite using professional drivers, there is virtually no trace of the forward or aggressive character that many listeners associate with PA-based loudspeakers.
The treble deserves particular praise. I had expected at least a slight hint of the typical compression-driver signature, yet throughout all three recordings I was repeatedly surprised by its refinement. Cymbals retain their metallic shimmer without hardness, guitar harmonics extend naturally, and reverberation decays effortlessly into silence. High-frequency information is abundant, but never highlighted for effect.
Transparency is another area where these loudspeakers excel. However, they achieve it in a different way from many modern ultra-high-end designs. They do not impress by exaggerating detail or dissecting recordings into countless individual components. Instead, they simply remove themselves from the signal. Complex passages remain intelligible because distortion is evidently very low and each instrument preserves its own identity within the musical structure. Details are always present for those who choose to listen for them, but they never distract from the musical performance.
The soundstage is equally convincing. Width is determined by the recording itself rather than artificially expanded beyond the loudspeakers. More remarkable is the sense of depth. Voices, instruments and ambient information occupy clearly separated acoustic planes, creating a believable three-dimensional perspective. The centre image remains exceptionally stable, while musicians are reproduced as physical bodies rather than sharply outlined cut-outs. Some loudspeakers produce more holographic precision, but few reproduce such convincing physical scale.
The impression of scale becomes even more evident with large orchestral works. Listening to Mahler's Symphony No. 2 under Leonard Bernstein, the TL-5 demonstrates an impressive ability to preserve order within an exceptionally complex musical landscape. Even as the orchestra reaches full strength, the presentation never collapses into a homogeneous wall of sound. Individual orchestral families remain clearly identifiable, with strings, woodwinds, brass and percussion occupying distinct positions both laterally and, more importantly, in depth. The soundstage grows naturally as the music develops, giving the orchestra convincing physical dimensions rather than simply increasing in loudness. Equally impressive is the loudspeaker's ability to communicate the architecture of the performance. Bernstein's carefully constructed crescendos unfold with remarkable inevitability, allowing musical tension to build progressively without ever sounding strained or congested. Throughout the recording, transparency and coherence remain intact, enabling the listener to follow the orchestral dialogue even during the most demanding passages. This ability to preserve musical structure while maintaining effortless dynamics is, in my opinion, one of the defining characteristics of the TL-5.
Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the TL-5 is its coherence. Despite being a large multi-way loudspeaker built around professional transducers, it behaves as a single acoustic source. At no point does one become consciously aware of individual drivers or crossover transitions. Everything emerges with remarkable continuity, giving the impression of listening to one instrument rather than several transducers working together.
After living with these loudspeakers for several months and evaluating them with recordings ranging from intimate jazz and solo acoustic guitar to large-scale orchestral works, I have come to the conclusion that their greatest strength is not any individual performance parameter, but their remarkable ability to preserve musical structure, tonal coherence and dynamic freedom regardless of the complexity of the programme material. They combine the effortlessness and headroom of the finest professional monitoring systems with the refinement and musicality expected from very high-end domestic loudspeakers. Rather than impressing through spectacular hi-fi effects, they recreate the scale, flow and emotional impact of live music with an ease that allows the listener to forget the loudspeakers altogether. Based solely on their musical performance, I have no hesitation in placing the TL-5 in the company of loudspeakers retailing in the €50,000–60,000 range. Not because of luxurious cabinetry or exotic materials, but because of the sheer quality of their musical reproduction. In the end, that may well be the highest compliment any loudspeaker can receive.
Ultimately, no written review can replace a personal listening experience. Those interested are warmly invited to audition the TL-5 in a purpose-designed listening studio located just 12 minutes from Basel EuroAirport, at the crossroads of Switzerland, France and Germany. For added perspective, the TL-5 can also be compared directly with the TG’s Ellipticor 50 MKII in the same room and with the same electronics.
Troels, many thanks for you design and help !
Cheers,
Theo