Description: Three-way, four-driver, reflex-loaded, floorstanding loudspeaker. Drive-units: 1" inverted beryllium-dome tweeter with ¾" voice-coil and Focus Ring magnet system; two 6½" W-cone midrange drivers with 1½" voice-coils and "Power Flower" magnet system; 13" W-cone woofer with 3" voice-coil and "Power Flower" magnet system. Crossover frequencies: 250Hz, 2.5kHz. Crossover slopes: 24dB/octave. Frequency response: 25Hz-40kHz, ±3dB, on reference axis. Low-frequency point: 20Hz, -6dB. Sensitivity: 91.5dB/2.8V/m. Nominal impedance: 8 ohms. Maximum…
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Sidebar 3: Associated Equipment
Analog source: SOTA Cosmos Series III turntable, Graham 2.2 tonearm, Dynavector XV-1S cartridge.
Digital sources: Esoteric DV-50 universal player, Classé Omega SACD/CD player.
Preamplification: Manley Labs Steelhead, Aesthetix Io Signature phono stages; VTL TL-7.5 Reference, BAT VK-51 SE line stages; McIntosh C200, Halcro dm10 preamplifiers.
Power amplifiers: Lamm ML1.1, VTL MB-450 Signature, Halcro dm58, McIntosh C501 monoblocks; Edge NL12, Hovland Radia.
Cables: Phono: Hovland Music Groove 2. Interconnect: Acoustic Zen Silver Reference,…
Sidebar 4: Measurements
Because of the size and bulk of the Nova Utopia Be—260 lbs apiece—it made both practical and economic sense for me to fly to Minnesota to measure the speakers in Paul Bolin's listening room rather than have them shipped to my Brooklyn lab. The upside of this was that I could spend some time listening to the speakers in Paul's system; the downside was twofold, in that a) I couldn't examine the Nova's dispersion in any direct manner, and b) the measurements were affected by reflections from the inevitable room boundaries. (In Brooklyn I do my acoustic measurements…
English manufacturer Monitor Audio has been around for just about as long as people have been putting "high-end" and "audio" together—they opened their doors in 1972. Back in the mid '80s, when I was a young and carefree (and impoverished) consumer of hi-fi reviews, I'd read about the gold-deposited metal tweeters that Mo Iqbal was concocting and think, "Man, that's some exotic, far-out stuff!"
Now '00 is almost over, and Monitor Audio is still going strong. The Silver Series is their next-to-the-top line, and the Silver 9i is that line's pinnacle. And at $1999/pair, it seems within…
Sound
Right out of the box, and before I'd even worked on their proper positioning, the Silver 9i's felt comfortable—like putting on a favorite pair of well-worn jeans or sneakers. In other words, they sounded good, in a way that kept me listening without anything—good or bad—sticking out to call attention to itself (footnote 1).
Right out of the box, and before I'd even worked on their proper positioning, the Silver 9i's felt comfortable—like putting on a favorite pair of well-worn jeans or sneakers. In other words, they sounded good, in a way that kept me listening without anything—good or bad—sticking out to call attention to itself (footnote 1).
The Silver 9i offered detail a-plenty without sounding strident. On "Mami," from Master Sessions 1 by Up, Bustle and Out (Ninja Tune CD Zen CD46), the flute of Richard Egiies ("Cuba's Number 1 Flautist," as the jacket affirms) had, especially when Egiies…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Floorstanding, reflex-loaded loudspeaker with mass-loadable cabinet and two sets of binding posts for biwiring. Drive-units: one 1" gold-colored dome tweeter, two 6.5" ceramic-coated metal-cone woofers, all shielded for use in video applications. Frequency response: 30Hz-25kHz, ±3dB. Sensitivity: 91dB/W/m. Impedance: 8 ohms. Power handling: 150W RMS, 350W peak. Maximum SPL: 111dB.
Dimensions: 39" H by 7.5" W by 10.5" D. Weight: 52 lbs (23.6kg).
Finishes: Natural cherry, black oak, rose mahogany.
Serial number of units reviewed: 1320 (both…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog source: Linn Axis turntable with Linn Basik Plus tonearm, Benz Micro Glider phono cartridge.
Digital source: Arcam Audio FMJ CD 23 CD player.
Preamplifier: Anthem PRE 1L line preamplifier.
Power amplifier: Simaudio Celeste 4070se.
Loudspeakers: Thiel CS.5.
Cables: Interconnects: Synergistic Research Alpha and Looking Glass, TARA Labs RSC Gen.II. Speaker: Cardas Crosslink 1.
Accessories: Audio Power Industries Power Wedges 116 and 110, Power Enhancer and Power Link power cords; Checkpoint Systems P-770 Laser Speaker alignment tool;…
Sidebar 3: In My Room
We've moved, and as bringing the old room with us was ruled too difficult and costly, I've had no choice but to break in a new one. My old listening room was our former house's living/dining room (the audio-lab portion was confined to the living room; the dining area provided a large open space behind). This large rectangle offered a mostly symmetrical setup, except for an opening on the left wall into the entry hallway, and a fireplace on the right wall (at about the first-reflection point for the right speaker). The room was carpeted, had an 8' ceiling, and…
Sidebar 4: Measurements
The slim Monitor Audio Silver 9i tower was 5.5dB more sensitive than my reference Rogers LS3/5A, at 88dB(B)/2.83V/m—below specification but still higher than average—while its plot of impedance magnitude and electrical phase angle against frequency (fig.1) revealed it to be a pretty easy load for the partnering amplifier to drive. It drops below 6 ohms only in the high treble, where there is rarely any high-level energy. Although the phase angle is quite heavily capacitive in part of the mid-treble region, the magnitude is generally above 6 ohms, mitigating the…
The upper woofer's fairly wide diameter gives rise to a slight amount of beaming at the top of its passband (fig.5), but the wider dispersion of the tweeter between 10 and 20kHz will compensate, at least in smaller rooms, for the lack of on-axis energy in this region. Otherwise, the lateral dispersion is fairly even. In the vertical plane (fig.6), deep suckouts appear in the crossover region between the tweeter and upper woofer at more than 5 degrees below and 10 degrees above the tweeter axis—it's important not to sit too low when you listen to this tower. The top of the cabinet is 36" high…