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June 2025
Raidho X2.6 Floorstanding Loudspeaker Review
The subject of this review, the Raidho X2.6 floorstanding loudspeaker, is from their newer "X" Series. In its literature, Raidho states that the "X" in this series moniker denotes "eXtreme performance for the price." Yes, their X series features four models that, on average, are priced lower than most of Raidho's other models. Even though these four models in Raidho's X series speakers might have been built to a price point, I couldn't find anything about their X.2 — including their level of technological precision, fit and finish, not to mention their sound quality — that would indicate any cost-cutting measures.
The Conclusion
Goals Raidho's X series includes two stand-mounted models, the X1t and X1.6, and two floor-standing models, the X2t, and their top model in this series that is the subject of this review, the Raidho X2.6.
Impressive When reading about this technical info, it was clear that there was a level of meticulousness that went into designing and building these speakers that was very impressive. It was as though Raidho's designers were obsessed with creating the best speakers possible, and they somehow happened to align with their relatively affordable asking price.
Drivers These drivers' impressive technical specifications include a standard-setting level of resonance and a high-level of ventilation, which increases dynamics and lowers distortion. The drivers' unique construction uses high-strength geodynamic magnets for "ultimate control." The Raidho bass/midrange drivers are the antithesis of "off-the-shelf."
Ribbon
Besides having virtually no resonances or distortion, the tweeter's breakup point is at an incredible 82 kHz! What one will hear is an amazingly clear and natural sound. Raidho describes this as "all the detail in the world, but with no fatigue, distortion, or coloration." For Raidho's TD series, they claim that they looked at how they could improve the tweeter to match their new drivers. A redesign of the magnets, waveguide, and rear panel to optimize airflow helped raise the sensitivity by 3 dB and reduce its already low distortion levels by 35 dB. They state that this "raised the level of performance further, making our world-class tweeter even better."
Looking An added benefit is that the Raidho X2.6 are beautiful speakers. The X2.6 is much smaller than my reference Radio TD4.2. Therefore, the high-wattage power amplifiers in my main system that I use for these very large speakers are not necessary with the subjects of this review. And so, I auditioned the Raidho X2.6 speakers in my second system, which is in our dining room/living room area, which uses much more modestly powered amplifiers.
This System I did quite a bit of listening by sending a high-resolution digital signal to the Moon 681 or FiiO S15 streamers from Tidal or Qobuz apps on my iPhone or iPad. Occasionally I fed a Bluetooth signal directly to the Audio Analogue aaDAC.
Power When using the PrimaLuna amps, at first, I used the Moon integrated amp as a preamp, using its "preamp out" to connect to the inputs of the PrimaLuna amps. As expected, I obtained better-sounding results employing the Pass Laboratories' exceptional two-chassis XP-22 linestage. I also had excellent sounding results using the Pass Labs INT-25 Class A integrated amplifier that sounded much more powerful than one might assume from its 25 Wpc rating.
Associated So, rather than the Raidho X2.6 sounding poorly with certain associated gear and sources, they merely reflected the traits of equipment that fed them. In the meantime, if one uses the audio equipment one had before acquiring their Raidho X2.6s, there's no need to worry. But still, the Raidho X2.6 speakers will reward those who use the best gear that one can acquire.
Good Within Enjoy The Music.com's July 2020 issue, I reviewed Raidho's TD 4.2 loudspeakers. Describing my review as "positive" is an understatement. They are now my reference speakers. The Raidho T4.2 is a large, 7-driver speaker that stands over 5 feet tall. After carefully examining the smaller, twenty times less expensive Raidho X2.6 speaker, I found it amazing that the smaller, less expensive Raidho had a striking family resemblance to its larger sibling. Even though they didn't have the massive sound that emanated from the TD4.2 behemoths; the sonic similarities to the X2.6 were indisputable. With the best recordings, the Raidho X2.6s could fill the front of my listening room with a very realistic sound, contributing to the sense that they sounded much larger than what I would have expected, despite these speakers being only about 3.5 feet tall with a front baffle only about 14 inches wide.
Tapered Another trait these speakers had in common with my reference was that they were indifferent to different genres of music. During their audition period, I listened to a plethora of musical genres, including everything from small jazz ensembles to full orchestras, what some might call classic rock to a few metal bands' latest releases, electronic music, funk, and everything in between.
Listened · The Rolling Stones's Beggars Banquet and Let It Bleed SACD · The Pixies Surfer Rosa and Bossanova SACD · Todd Rundgren A Wizard A True Star SACD · Miles Davis In A Silent Way 24-bit/176.4kHz streamed via the Qobuz app · Anton Bruckner Symphony No. 7 Karl Bohm conducting the Vienna Philharmonic 24-bit/48kHz via Qobuz · Sleep The Clarity EP 24-bit/96kHz via Qobuz · Autechre Incanabula via Qobuz · Genesis Selling England By The Pound (remix) DVD-A 24-bit/96kHz · James Brown Motherload (compilation) 16-bit/44.1 kHz via Qobuz
Before I discuss how the X2.6 performed with these musical selections, it's important to mention these speakers' low-frequency performance. I found it remarkable that the X2.6's specifications list its lowest frequency response as 32 Hz. In practice, regardless of what type of music I played through them, I was never unsatisfied with the amount or quality of their bass response.
Bass Raidho's X2.6's two woofers are located below its ribbon tweeter, near the center of gravity of these speakers. These are not exceptionally large, yet the designers of these speakers were somehow able to endow them with enough excellent-sounding bass to allow me to enjoy all the music I fed them. This bass wasn't the type with pumped-up mid-bass to make them sound as if the bass is sufficient. This was real bass, and any support they had with the mid-bass or higher added to the prowess of their transient response and realistic-sounding bass guitar and even the largest drums.
Replicate However, like all great modern speakers, which include the Raidho X2.6, playing a recording such as Bruckner Symphony No. 7 with Karl Bohm conducting the Vienna Philharmonic, the gestalt of the orchestra allowed me to be captivated by this excellent performance, taking me back decades to the day it was recorded. The right side of the orchestra created a thundering backdrop to support this vast orchestra. When the horn section blasted their octave jumping multiple Scherzo-like sections, it was as if I could feel the air compressing around me so I could revel in their sound. The initial blast of the horns playing sustained, majestic parts of the score were brought front and center into my listening room. All this from a pair of speakers that were barely three and a half feet tall, that could easily blend into the decor of one's room.
Master
If one is into this type of music, other than their very first album Volume One, recorded in 1991, I can recommend any of their releases. But this monumental Clarity EP proved that Sleep, even though their genre-defining Dopesmoker album is objectively their best, its double album length requires a bit more dedication to the cause. Yet they have newer, less lengthy releases with no loss in their ability to captivate their underground metal fanbase.
Rolling Stones
When listening to the Beggars Banquet album (this being the millionth time) through the Radio X2.6 speakers as reviewed here, thanks to this high-resolution remaster, I was able to hear every instrument and every voice separated within a vast soundstage that extended far beyond the location of the speakers in my room. I could close my eyes, and the location of the speakers became undetectable. Because founding member Brian Jones was still very active during the recording of Beggar's Banquet, and his chemical dependence was not yet conspicuous, his contribution to the instrumentation on this album was with various instruments. It was 1968, so it's not that surprising that he added sitar, mellotron, tambura, slide guitar, and harmonica to many tracks on the album.
Because I began listening to this album at an incredibly early age, I often get goosebumps when listening to this album on a high-end system. When the Stone's SACDs were released this furthered my fascination. Thankfully, we can stream these SACDs via Qobuz and high-resolution streaming services. Through the Raidho X2.6 floorstanding loudspeaker, on certain tracks I felt as if I was hearing this album again for the first time, except now I was able to hear all the details I was missing throughout the years. The Raidho X2.6 are extremely transparent speakers; they were able to reproduce every detail of both Rolling Stones albums. Regardless of how long I listened to them, and regardless of how loud I had the volume on my preamp, my ear-brain never became fatigued. In fact, the opposite occurred. The more music I played, the more I wanted to hear.
Awe-Inspiring
Specifications
Manufacturer Voice: +45-99505040
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