PSB Imagine T54

REVIEW
Chris Kelly
Sep 15, 2025

Before I begin this review of the PSB Imagine T54 floorstanding loudspeakers, let me say that I am a happy PSB customer. I have owned a pair of their noise-cancelling headphones for more than a decade. However, that will in no way influence what I say. PSB is a Canadian loudspeaker and headphone manufacturer that has been in business for over 50 years. It is widely sold across North America.

However, it has vied for space in retail establishments with a raft of competent home-grown and European brands in the UK. With this latest Imagine Series, there will be a strong push to change everything.

The review pair of PSB Imagine T54s were finished in a satin white with matching grilles. There is also a satin black option with black grilles. Of course, the T54s can also be played with the acoustically transparent grilles removed if preferred. Physically, the T54s were by no means overbearing in our 15’ x 13’ lounge. They stand 171 x 830 x 302mm and weigh in at 14kg when unboxed. The shipping weight is 18kg.

The technology deployed is, from the top, a 102mm (4”) woven carbon fibre cone mid-range unit, a 25mm (1”) titanium dome tweeter featuring ferrofluid and a neodymium magnet, and two 133mm (5.25”) woven carbon fibre cone woofers. There are two letterbox-shaped bass ports on the rear, one at the bottom and the other halfway down. Crossover points are set at 2.5kHz and 500Hz. Providing two decent-quality binding posts means the T54s can be bi-wired if required.

Position, Position, Position

As always with loudspeakers, positioning proved critical with the T54s. After much faffing, I settled on having them very slightly toed in towards my chair. The rear corners nearest the wall were 65cm away from that surface.

There were two phases to the review period. The first was with the PSB Imagine T54s driven by a NAD Master M23 power amplifier, with a NAD Master M66 BluOS Streaming DAC-Preamplifier. The second was using my own PrimaLuna EVO300 Hybrid integrated amplifier. Sources were my Linn Sondek LP12 with either my Gold Note PH10/PSU phono stage or the one built into the M66. In my system, the Yamaha CD-S3000 acted as both DAC and SACD/CD player. My AURALiC ARIES Mini streamer was used via coaxial cable, and the television was used via optical cable. Interconnects were Tellurium Q Ultra Silver IIs, and the loudspeaker cables were also there.

After giving the T54s a couple of days to settle in and warm up, it was time to listen properly. I cued up one of my favourite albums of recent times, Dave Alvin’s Eleven Eleven, on Qobuz and pressed play. With the volume of 60 on the M66, Alvin’s voice and guitar came through the T54s with power and authority. The soundstage these loudspeakers were creating was immediately striking. It extended well beyond the speakers in height, width and depth. This was a big sound, yet not an overblown or unrealistic one. It simply transcended the physical boundaries of the loudspeakers which created it. I was hooked from the first few songs.

Spine-tingling YaYas

The Rolling Stones’ 1969 live album Get Yer YaYas Out has long been a favourite here. Streamed from Qobuz into the NAD amplification, it was spine-tinglingly realistic. When I pushed the volume up to 65, it was like being at Madison Square Garden all those years ago. It felt as if the teenage me was actually there. Midnight Rambler was epic.

While paired with the NAD Master components (more on that in a later issue), the PSB Imagine T54s never felt outclassed or overpowered. Towards the end of their time here, I returned my components to the system. I continued my review listening. Having established the rock credentials of the modestly sized floorstanders, I decided to test their mettle with some well-recorded choral music.

Although it is only November at the time of writing this, I loaded up Disc 2 of the SACD version of George Frideric Handel’s Messiah, performed by the Dunedin Consort and Players directed by John Butt. This Linn Records release is one of my favourite versions (I own a few!). I cued up track 16 and went back to my listening chair. The ‘Halleluja Chorus’ filled the room, and the combined voices were spine-tinglingly magnificent. It is a long-standing tradition that the audience stands for this piece, and I did so without thinking. I felt so much that I was attending a live performance. A commanding performance by the T54s.

Astonishing fingers

After a break, I returned to the CD player and loaded in my SACD-SHM Japanese copy of Dire Straits’ 1984 release of their 1983 concert at the Hammersmith Odeon in London. This album catches a band at the very peak of its powers. It is illustrated perfectly on the fifth track, ‘Sultans Of Swing’. Mark Knopfler’s finger-style guitar playing here is quite astonishing. The powerful drumming of Terry Williams also comes across well. So does the growling yet very musical bass playing of John Illsley and the other musicians. Hal Lindes on rhythm guitar and Alan Clark and Tommy Mandel on keyboards also stand out. The music ebbed, flowed, and soared to its mighty climax through the PSB Imagine T54s. Breathtaking stuff.

When asked to handle more mundane tasks, such as the audio from the television news, the T54s again did an excellent job. Reproducing the spoken word properly is no easy task. Just ask any of the surviving former BBC engineers who sweated over the design of studio monitors like the LS3/5A. These Canadian visitors did a fine job. Individual voices came through with great clarity and realism.

In the same vein, soundtracks were produced with subtlety and explosive force as required. The bass power of the T54s came into its own during action sequences. Even when I cranked up the volume on the Prima Luna to levels high enough to rattle the windows, the PSB Imagine T54s didn’t break into a sweat. Their composure never wavered. Furthermore, it was for my protection, not theirs, that I lowered the level to what others might term as sensible. Nor did they ever sacrifice detail. Subtle pieces of percussion in a mix were given space and air within that magnificent soundstage.

Final Thoughts

To be honest, I wasn’t sure what to expect when the T54s arrived. Although rather elegant, they are slim and unassuming. I would not have been surprised if their sound had been smaller and more polite than it turned out to be.

It was a real surprise when right from the first listening session, I found them creating a soundstage on such a scale as they did. They seemed even-handed across their whole frequency range. The T54s did an excellent job with all the music I threw at them and from whatever source. These are not a ‘Rock’ speaker or a ’Jazz’ speaker or any other sort of genre loudspeaker. In fact, these are fully formed yet diminutive, genre-agnostic music makers of the highest order. When, after the review, I checked the recommended retail price I was taken aback. I have heard loudspeakers that command three times the price or more.

These Canadian upstarts would give them a good run for their money. No doubt some component choices had to be governed by budgetary constraints. However, they were not discernible, at least to these ears. When I checked, the company’s website said that the PSB Imagine T54 is sold out. I am not in the least surprised. They are a genuine audio bargain and worthy of pairing with amplifiers and sources that cost far more. Run, don’t walk, to your nearest PSB dealer and demand an audition.

Technical specifications

Type: Three-way, bass reflex floorstanding loudspeaker
Drivers: 1x 25mm titanium dome tweeter, 102mm woven carbon fibre cone midrange, 2x 133mm woven carbon fibre cone woofers
Frequency Response: 35Hz-23kHz (on axis @ 0°, ±3dB)
Sensitivity: 87db (anechoic), 89dB (listening room)
Impedance: 8Ω (nominal), 4Ω (minimum)
Finish: Satin Black, Satin White
Dimensions (WxHxD): 171x830x302mm
Weight: 14kg per loudspeaker
Price: £1,199, $1,499, €1,499