Note that this is a discontinued product. You may want to visit the brand's page here to browse their newer products.
What reviewers think
Bloggers and YouTubers have tried this product—so we've summarized their strongest opinions below. Links to full reviews follow.
All
GLE 20
reviews
Manufacturer details
- Dimensions (WxHxD): 17 x 29.5 x 27 cm (6.7" x 11.6" x 10.6")
- Acoustic principle: 2-way bass reflex
- Tweeter size: 25 mm
- Tweeter material: Aluminium-manganese
- Woofer/Midrange driver size: 154 mm
- Woofer/Midrange driver material: Titanium
- Nominal load capacity: 70 watts
- Music load capacity: 130 watts
- Transmission range: 42...40.000 Hz
- Crossover frequencies: 3.200 Hz
- Impedance: 4...8 ohm
- Efficiency: 86.5 dB/2.83V/1m
- Weight: 4.6 kg
First and foremost, we would like to mention our outstanding titanium drivers, which have been incorporated into the current GLE series. Our aluminium-manganese tweeter system with a 25 mm dome tweeter, which provides the GLE 20 with finely resolved highs and an enormously detailed sound, has been tried and tested.
The ideal partner is the powerful 154 mm bass/midrange driver with titanium cone, which can reproduce deep tones powerfully and precisely in the optimally tuned bass reflex volume. Its lightweight yet extremely rigid cone guarantees balanced and neutral midrange reproduction with outstanding detail resolution.
The bass-midrange drivers are equipped with sturdy polycarbonate baskets, powerful magnet drives and the latest generation of triple-folded wave surrounds, allowing the speakers to perform very dynamically with the lowest distortion. The GLE 20 compact loudspeaker performs up to 40,000 Hertz - thanks to its precisely calculated and optimally shaped waveguide with ideal sound radiation even to the sides of the loudspeakers.
Brand highlights
Taking a step back to look at reviewers' thoughts of the brand's entire lineup—not just this product—what stands out most is the following:
- Canton's Reference line combines years of experience with advanced computer modeling and a dedicated testing laboratory, resulting in products designed with both precision and innovation.
- The brand emphasizes high-quality construction, utilizing stiff, multi-layer laminate cabinets with strategic internal bracing to minimize unwanted resonances.
- Canton's signature sound aims for a neutral and balanced presentation, delivering clear, detailed sound without excessive coloration.
- They often incorporate advanced driver technologies, such as ceramic-tungsten cones and aluminum-ceramic-oxide tweeters, to achieve optimal stiffness, damping, and dispersion.
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Used
Canton
What if you spend more?
We've redesigned the look and technology of our Vento premium speaker series. Thanks to the modern design, with discreetly curved side panels, rounded cabinet edges and high-quality surfaces with a perfect finish, the new Vento speakers have a very self-assured appearance. The harmoniously proportioned premium speakers offer a perfect balance between timeless elegance and powerful performance. This makes the Vento models universally usable - they are an enrichment for the most diverse living spaces. Despite their compact enclosures, the Vento 20s deliver plenty of sound. They look great freestanding in the room, placed on the matching LS 860 speaker stands, and offer a balanced, very broadband sound with clear structures. Alternatively, standing on a shelf or sideboard, it cuts a first-class figure - both visually and sonically. It can be used as a stereo and home cinema loudspeaker and impresses with its elegant design and excellent workmanship.
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Product Strengths
- Exceptional imaging and soundstage, creating an 'in the club' experience and disappearing from the soundscape
- High clarity reveals detail and dimensionality in recordings
- Beautiful aesthetic design with a deep gloss finish and well-executed walnut veneer
- Cabinet built with curved side walls to maximize interior volume and inertness
- Impressive bass output for its size, especially when paired with the right amplifier and placement
Product Considerations
- Can be a bit cool in the midrange and enthusiastic in the treble, requiring thoughtful amplifier matching
- Reveals faults in recordings and can sound a bit too much information at times—especially with compressed or poorly recorded music
- Lower sensitivity (85dB) means it requires more power to drive effectively
- While the bass is impressive, those heavily into bass may still prefer using a subwoofer
- The terminal block is plastic, which feels out of place for a speaker in this price range
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- Versus Klipsch RP6000 Mark II, the Klipsch is fuller sounding, makes more bass, and is more dynamic, while the Vento has better clarity, dimensionality, and imaging
- Versus Buchardt S400 Mark II, the Buchardt makes more bass and is more relaxed sounding, but the Vento has more life and better transient attacks
Takeaway: The Canton Vento 20 is a well-designed speaker that provides excellent clarity and imaging, making it great for audiophiles who value detail and soundstage. Careful amplifier matching is needed to deliver a truly impressive listening experience.
Video review
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t's the original and the oldest series in the house of Canton: our Ergo is the epitome of a classic hi-fi loudspeaker with noble ingredients and a classy appearance. It has never changed its character over the years and yet the Canton Ergo is at the cutting edge of technology. It is constantly being optimized by our developers and continually equipped with the latest technologies. Thus, the timelessly elegant construction scores with the best technical ingredients, its unmistakable design with high-quality real wood veneer and characterful aluminum front panels and the incomparably good Canton sound. The 2-way bass reflex compact speakers Ergo 620 inspire with excellent sound characteristics, offer themselves through their balance for all styles of music and visually enhance any living space.
Our summary
Product Strengths
- The Ergo line hits the sweet spot between performance and value
- There is nothing cheap or compromised about the Ergos
- With shiny metal drivers peeping out behind the metal grilles of their round-edged cabinets, they are practically objets d'art
- There are no sharp edges anywhere on the enclosure, which makes the speakers a pleasure to handle
- The soundfield—five channels of seamless, coherent perfection that are uninterrupted by any timbre-matching flaws—revealed a myriad of details
Product Considerations
- The five identical Canton speakers highlighted the mix's limited panning pattern of surround effects
- It was necessary to work hard to find just the right balance between the low-level speech of Ben Kingsley's hungerstriking Gandhi and higher-level crowd-action scenes
Takeaway: The Ergo speakers are beautiful and deliver seamless, coherent sound. They are a great choice for those who want both performance and value.
Video review
Our take on the brand
Wharfedale’s new EVO4 has grown out of the extensive research and development that produced the ELYSIAN flagship loudspeakers and borrows much of the technology involved in ELYSIAN.
Our summary
Product Strengths
- Excellent focus and separation, with the speakers 'disappearing' to create a natural soundstage
- Impressive low-end performance, adding authority to the music
- Cohesive driver integration, with no perceivable handover between the AMT tweeter, midrange dome, and woofer
- Remarkable neutrality in the midrange, with a detailed yet smooth treble—avoiding harshness even at higher volumes
- Clear and detailed sound reproduction, extracting nuances and levels of information outstanding for its price
Product Considerations
- Vertical off-axis performance of the AMT tweeter is not good, so correct speaker height and toe-in are important
- Soundstage is not super wide, with the presentation mostly between the speakers
- Some reviewers found the aesthetics or proportions to be awkward or not to suit all tastes
- Bass may be a bit polite for some listeners wanting subwoofer-type rumble
- The midrange can be fatiguing if the listener's ear is at the midrange driver level
Takeaway: The Evo4.2 is a well-rounded speaker that delivers excellent sound quality with impressive imaging, detail, and tonal balance. It is capable of providing an audiophile experience at an affordable price.
Video review
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Our summary
Product Strengths
- Attractive design with rounded cabinet edges and multiple finish options (Satin Black, Satin White, Santos Rosewood, Holme Oak)
- Good midrange reproduction—clean and uncolored—especially for the price
- Clear and detailed sound with good separation of instruments
- Taut and agile bass performance
- Internal bracing (P2P) stiffens the cabinet, reducing vibrations and improving stereo image
- Connectivity options such as binding posts
Product Considerations
- Can tend towards brightness, potentially causing fatigue during longer listening sessions—especially with the wrong equipment pairing
- Cabinet size is relatively large for a bookshelf speaker
- Bass response is somewhat subdued
- Some reviewers noted imaging issues, with vocals lacking a firm presence in the center
- Grilles muddle the sound
Takeaway: The Q Acoustics 5020 is a great-looking speaker that offers a rich and musical sound, making it a very entertaining listen for the price. With its ability to reveal details from recordings, it's a wise choice for those looking for a well-built and sonically pleasing speaker.
Video review
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What competes at this price?
Our Summary
Product Strengths
- Excellent sound quality for the price
- Wide and deep soundstage
- Good imaging
- Clear and detailed highs
- Neutral sound signature
- Good bass extension
- Exceptional build quality
- Versatile connectivity options
Product Considerations
- May not be suitable for very large rooms
- Lacks some of the refinement of more expensive speakers
- May require careful matching with amplifiers
- Some may find the aesthetics unappealing
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- The Buchardt S400 MKII presents a more neutral sound signature than the Wharfedale Linton, while the Linton offers a warmer presentation
- Buchardt's bass performance is considered tighter and more defined than the Wharfedale
- Buchardt's imaging is more precise than the Spendor Classic 4/5, though the Spendor has a more relaxed sound
Takeaway: This is a well-rounded speaker that offers excellent value. It is a strong contender in its price range, particularly for those seeking a neutral and detailed sound.
Video review
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Our Summary
Product Strengths
- Effortlessly detailed and balanced sound
- Excellent stereo imaging and dynamics
- High-quality Bluetooth streaming
- Simple setup and control
- Multiple connection options, including subwoofer output, digital input for TV, and analog inputs
Product Considerations
- No HDMI ARC for seamless control with TV remote
- No dedicated app for adjusting settings
- Bass output may be lacking for some listeners, potentially requiring a subwoofer
- Grilles are non-removable
- Speakers power down after 20 minutes at rest, requiring manual Bluetooth pairing each time
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- Compared to Ruark Audio MR1 Mk2, the Q Acoustics M20 sounds fuller, louder and less compressed
Takeaway: The Q Acoustics M20 HD speakers offer detailed, balanced sound and are easy to set up with various devices. They're a versatile audio solution for upgrading sound, whether for music, movies, or gaming.
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Our Summary
Product Strengths
- Good ability to get loud, clean sound without distortion or compression issues above 80 Hz when paired with a subwoofer
- Really good build quality cabinet
- Very clear, immediate, vivid sounding speaker
- Ultra-focused sounding, clean, and nicely balanced vocals
- A lot of treble liveliness combined with quality clarity and crispness
Product Considerations
- Treble is a little bit bright
- Not the most neutral speaker
- Leaner sound in terms of bass delivery
- Very tight, tuneful, and on-point bass, but the perceived amount of bass is less substantial than other speakers reviewed
- Some port noise or chuffing can be heard when setting the speakers to deliver as much bass as the Klipsch RP600M
Takeaway: The SVS Prime bookshelf is a sweet little speaker that delivers clear and vivid sound and has great build quality. It's also versatile, as it can be used in a stereo setup or as part of a home theater system.
Video review
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Our Summary
Product Strengths
- Delivers stereo sound, unlike the Sonos One, due to angled tweeters
- Has a larger woofer, resulting in deeper bass
- Features Bluetooth connectivity, in addition to Wi-Fi and AirPlay 2, offering more flexibility
- Easy to set up and use with the Sonos app, which integrates many music sources
- Includes Trueplay room tuning, now available for Android users, which optimizes the speaker's sound based on its placement in the room, and adjustable EQ
Product Considerations
- The Apple HomePod 2 provides more natural warmth of human voices
- A separate adapter is needed for a wired connection, and it's not included in the box
- Lacks Google Assistant support
- Android users may find the Quick Tuning feature is not as capable as the iOS version
- Isn't designed for outdoor use
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- Era 100 has better sound quality with cleaner bass and can playback stereo content without downmixing to mono, compared to Sonos One/One SL
- Era 100 is more affordable and compact but lacks Dolby Atmos support, compared to Sonos Era 300
- Era 100 is cheaper but doesn't have a built-in battery for portability, compared to Sonos Move 2
Takeaway: The Sonos Era 100 is a versatile wireless speaker with great sound, enhanced bass, and easy integration with streaming services. It's a solid choice for anyone seeking a compact, all-in-one speaker that delivers both convenience and quality audio for an immersive listening experience.
Video review
Our take on the brand
Every design element of the SVS Ultra Bookshelf speakers was scrutinized to achieve cost-no-object audio performance and build quality to create a groundbreaking bookshelf loudspeaker. Countless design innovations and world-class build materials result in reference sound quality and stunning dynamics normally reserved for the world’s most expensive speakers.
Whether handling the warm and engaging sound of vinyl or the demanding, multi-layered soundtrack of an action movie, the Ultra Bookshelf speakers deliver a powerful and convincing audio experience and are among the top audio investments available at any price.
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Our Summary
Product Strengths
- Nice cabinets
- Fluid and captivating articulation in the mids, with warmth and clarity to voices
- The bass is good enough that one could conceivably get away without ever having a subwoofer
- Excellent clarity and tonal balance
- Able to use so much high-performance technology in products that cost so little
Product Considerations
- Has aluminum wiring
- Lacks a little bit of detail at the very top—kicks, punches, and gunshots do not quite have enough "snap" to them
- Rated at 8 ohms, but in reality, they are 4 ohm speakers
- Do not have magnetic grills, they have a pin-and-cup grill retention system
- Tendency to sound bright with modern pop and electronic music
Comparisons (according to reviewers)
- Compared to the SVS Prime Bookshelf Speaker, it is a noticeable step up in linearity
- The Ultra Towers' performance is beaten by perhaps only one or two other models in the same price range
- The SVS's more laid-back character and natural response remains composed compared to the JBLs, where the JBLs start to lose control and break up
Takeaway: The Ultra speakers are a good value because of their high-quality sound and build that offer performance often found in more expensive speakers. One can enjoy great sound without breaking the bank.
Video review
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