If you're looking for hi-fi speakers, it might be tempting to go for the newest, shiniest offerings around.
But then you'd be missing out on some genuinely great products, such as the Elac Debut B5.2, which won five What Hi-Fi? Awards in a row in the early 2020s.
And now the talented speakers are back at their lowest ever price – £179 at AV.com.
It's a solid £70 off the price we tested at, and a very reasonable price for a pair of capable bookshelf speakers.
The Elacs are an excellent option for a first starter hi-fi system, or for anyone looking to upgrade the speakers for an old-school micro system to something more qualified.
They're currently our favourite of the best Elac speakers, and we even prefer them to their successors, the Elac Debut 3.0 B5.3, due to their more forgiving and nuanced nature.
They’re even-handed and admirably balanced in the way they deal with poorer, more aggressive recordings, and deliver sound with a precision and cohesion that's rare for this level.
"You can enjoy a wide range of music too. We listened to everything from the sparse electronica of Neneh Cherry’s Broken Politics to Dave Brubeck’s Take Five and these little speakers take it all in their stride," our Elac Debut 3.0 B5.3 review reads.
"They have the dynamic expression, detail resolution and tonal sophistication to handle it all, and enough stretch in their abilities to get better even when the rest of the system is upgraded."
The front-firing nature of the Elacs means they're unfussy about placement, and will deliver relatively balanced results even with sub-optimal placement. They don't need to be angled in either, providing a wide, solid soundstage even when firing directly at the listener.
The speakers also have a more modern design than their predecessors, the Elac Debut 2.0 B5, coming in at 34cm tall, 18cm wide and 23cm deep.
The sound arrives courtesy of a 13cm aramid fibre mid/bass unit with a 1-inch, wide-surround tweeter. There's an excellent integration between the two, with rhythmic patterns followed with unerring precision.
The Elac Debut B5.2 were an Awards favourite for many years, only recently losing their crown to the likes of the Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 and Dali Kupid, which will set you back a fair bit more.
So if you're looking for a budget bookshelf speaker, the Elacs are a great value choice for £179 at AV.com.
MORE:
Here's our full Elac Debut B5.2 review
Considering a rival? These are the best bookshelf speakers you can buy
And here's our definitive list of the best speakers around for all budgets
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