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Soliloquy 5.3 loudspeaker

"Gotta get my hands on these!"

Before the 1999 CES, I had never heard of the Soliloquy 5.3, but "this slim, 38"-high obelisk was among the most open- and transparent-sounding speakers at the Show," as I said in my April '99 Show Report. As I slogged from room to room, never able to spend enough time with things (and people) that entertain and inform, and rarely able to avoid exhibits of even minimal interest, it was absolutely wonderful to stumble on something both novel and satisfying.

Skimming Soliloquy's website, I learned that Dennis Had of Cary Audio Design put about four…

Soliloquy 5.3 loudspeaker Page 2

Over the course of the next few weeks I moved the 5.3s closer together, then farther apart, all the while experimenting with their distance from the listening seat. I tried to reduce the bass bark by stuffing their rear ports with polyester batting. Nah—that only muffled the bass. Besides, the Soliloquies demonstrated their disdain by blowing the batting out with an emphatic PFOOOT! Finally, thinking that the drivers might be wired out of phase, I removed the jumpers from the binding posts and biwired the 5.3s for easy phase reversal. Which only made things worse.

Not knowing how to live…

Soliloquy 5.3 loudspeaker Page 3

The use of small drivers in a small enclosure means that the Soliloquy is limited in how much air it can move. It couldn't blow me away with huge symphonic and choral monsters, as can the Stratus Gold-i. In fact, my Paradigm Reference Esprit/BP, with a pair of 165mm drivers but with a 60% larger enclosure, is more capable of shaking the timbers than is the 5.3. But when listening to Mahler, as is my habit, I found the Soliloquy ever-so-nearly excellent. It handled everything in Symphony 4 (Salonen/LAPO, Sony Classical SK 48380) with aplomb, and did just fine with Symphony 3 (Horenstein/LSO,…

Soliloquy 5.3 loudspeaker Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Two-way, magnetically shielded, floorstanding dynamic loudspeaker. Drive-units: one 1.125" coated, silk-dome tweeter, two 5.25" poly-fiber-cone bass-midrange units. Crossover: 18dB/octave at 2.4kHz. Frequency range: 35Hz-20kHz. Impedance: 8 ohms nominal. Sensitivity: 90dB/W/m. Recommended amplification: 8-300W.
Dimensions: 38" H by 7.5" W by 11" D. Weight: 80 lbs each.
Finishes: Curly maple, cherry, rosewood.
Serial numbers of units reviewed: S530030LR/RR.
Price: $1895/pair. Approximate number of dealers: 25.
Manufacturer: Soliloquy…

Soliloquy 5.3 loudspeaker Associated Equipment

Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment

Analog source: Heybrook TT2 turntable, Rega RB300 tonearm, Koetsu Black/Gold cartridge.
Digital sources: Burmester 970/969 CD transport/DAC, California Audio Labs CL-20 DVD/CD player, Mark Levinson No.360 DAC, Theta Miles CD player.
Preamplifiers: Klyne 6L3.3P, Z-Systems rdp-1.
Power amplifiers: McCormack DNA-1 (with Rev.A mod), Sonic Frontiers Power-2.
Loudspeakers: Coincident Super Conquest Series II, Paradigm Reference Esprit/BP, PSB Stratus Gold-i.
Cables: Cardas Cross and Golden Cross interconnects, Straight Wire Maestro II speaker…

Soliloquy 5.3 loudspeaker Measurements

Sidebar 3: Measurements

The Soliloquy 5.3 was fractionally less sensitive than specified, my B-weighted estimate coming out at 88dB/2.83V/m, but the speaker is still a little above average in this respect. It is also relatively easy to drive, its plot of impedance (fig.1) indicating a generally mild electrical phase angle, and a magnitude that remains above 8 ohms for most of the midrange and treble and drops below 6 ohms only in the midbass and lower midrange. Relatively low-powered tube amplifiers should work well with this speaker, though if they have a high output impedance, the…

Soliloquy 5.3 loudspeaker Measurements part 2

Fig.5 shows how the 5.3's balance changes to its sides. In a normal, not-too-lively room, the slight flare in the presence region (due to the tweeter's wide dispersion at the bottom of its passband) will compensate for a slight lack of on-axis energy in the same region. The silk-dome tweeter may have an on-axis peak in the top octave, but it has very narrow directivity in this region: the exact high-treble balance in-room can be managed by experimenting with the speakers' toe-in to the listening position. Note that the woofers are more directional at the top of their passband than might be…

Genelec HTS4B subwoofer

Home theater has dramatically influenced the design of aftermarket subwoofers. Multichannel processors automatically provide a properly filtered low-frequency signal to drive a subwoofer, relieving the need for the sub to be shipped with a passive crossover network or an active electronic crossover. When Genelec offered one of their subwoofers for review, I decided it was important to try to evaluate such a product, even if it meant I'd have to scramble around to find a quality external electronic crossover.

Genelec's national sales manager, Karen Richardson, confirmed that…

Genelec HTS4B subwoofer Page 2

The HTS4B allowed my system to reproduce bass-drum notes with power but no overhang. The deepest notes were pitch-perfect, with a tight, rhythmic quality. Take the ominous rumblings of "The Caravan Moves Out," from Philip Glass's soundtrack for Kundun (CD, Nonesuch 79460-2). The double bass and synthesizer blend into a massive drone that brings to mind the galical suffle of camels in a cold, airless desert.

The HTS4B reproduced the intensity of synthesizer notes on other film soundtracks, adding suspense and setting a tight, anxious mood. The blend of ESL-989s and HTS4B mixed…

Genelec HTS4B subwoofer Specifications

Sidebar 1: Specifications

Description: Powered, magnetically shielded subwoofer with two auxiliary bass radiators. Drive-units: long-excursion, 12" Kevlar-cone woofer, with 2" diameter voice-coil and 1" peak–peak excursion; two 12" passive drivers. High-pass and low-pass filters: not supplied (see review). Inputs: single balanced (XLR), unbalanced (RCA). Outputs: Single balanced (XLR) to additional subwoofer. Input sensitivity: +12dB to –6dBU; an input voltage of 6dBU with a –6dBU input sensitivity setting will produce a 100dB SPL output. Input impedance: 10k ohms balanced (XLR),…