Genelec 8341A SAM™ Studio Monitor Review

[Wombat]

Your the experts no problem but find it bit good argument that common calibration file make them all look benefit a relative smoother response, know each Spinorama in that overview is scaled down to keep it web friendly but if you viewed each as normal scales are on my panels i'm shure you agree that calibration looks a no brainer for example look how KH 80 sample 1 and LS50 behave, know it probably is a little bit less precise calibration than was it calculated upon original txt-file output from NFS but still it looks make sense.

Manipulating the curves does not change the original measurements.

 

[BYRTT]

Manipulating the curves does not change the original measurements.

Whatever serious pro use of a microphone can for software use have a seperate calibration file applied, other stuff as AP hardware is service calibrated in hardware and so can some microphones be, i'm fine your opinion but if you look close at that animation it really looks be a common calibration that makes sense as was it a pro service in my eyes ...

 

[AudioSceptic]

Apparently erroneously attributed to John Maynard Keynes.

https://quoteinvestigator.com/2011/07/22/keynes-change-mind/

My favorite quote from Keynes is, “The fact that all things are possible is no excuse for thinking foolishly,“ from his book, The Makings of the Peace, in which he essentially predicted World War II. He was a close friend of Bertrand Russell.

Sorry to be picky, but do you mean <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Economic_Consequences_of_the_Peace>?

 

[StevenEleven]

Sorry to be picky, but do you mean <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Economic_Consequences_of_the_Peace>?

Yes I do.

 

[hege]

I have the 8340 and 8331 and I have a really hard time swallowing the complaint about these lacking power and volume. In a VERY large room/hall, with a really heavy bass track, listening REALLY loud... yes, maybe the red light might blink, but in normal home environments this should not be a problem at all.

They might be decend for their size, but even 1032C don't need VERY large room or REALLY loud to blink. Most people seem to be satisfied with 40hz soap boxes, good for them. Even I thought I could live with just 1032C, but after building my BMS's... oh hell no, it's just a next level clean sound.

 

[Frank Dernie]

Do you know about how loud the SPL was before hearing the strange noises and/or the LED coming on? Also, you didn't mention anything odd about the woofers behind the coaxial the way they are but I always thought it might make the midrange sound odd since they're crossed at 500Hz, you didn't hear anything odd in that range in male vocals? These seem to be excellent speakers, was just curious about that.

Those little "racetrack" bass units are doing a lot. 500Hz (as the fundamental) is in the 5th octave of a piano keyboard! They will be doing most of the work, power wise.

 

[Frank Dernie]

View attachment 51450

View attachment 51451

Max SPL for the 8331 and 8351A (not B) as measured by S&R. 90dB or so at 1m probably when it starts to lose steam on bass-heavy content and clip. Which is not extremely difficult to achieve.

edit: note also the vast improvement in max SPL around 50Hz - says a lot that the much smaller 8331 has significantly higher max SPL in that range than the first-gen 8351. Genelec have really refined the concept.

TFP.It is the mid range driver which can go very loud then not the tweeter or bass units.
On orchestral music, which I listen to most, a lot of the content is below 500Hz.

 

[Frank Dernie]

If there's a resonance in the cabinet, you can EQ it away. Then for all intents and purposes, it no longer exists.

Not so.
You can equalise so that there isn't a peak in the response at that frequency but the cabinet will still be resonating and a substantial proportion of the sound you are hearing will be radiating from the cabinet, not the drivers. The likelihood of that being as accurate (ie not there) is absolutely zero.

 

[Vintage57]

The 4367's certainly won't have as smooth vertical directivity (no non-coaxial will), but its horn shape should limit the ceiling and floor reflections to a lower volume so they matter less.

i haven’t read the postings beyond this yet but my experience with 4367 was conclusive for me. I bought them used from a member of ASR for 7K and sold them for 7K. I concluded they were not for me. I kept my ATC 150 actives. Then came the Neumann KH 420’s and the ATC’s were sold. I bought the ATC’s new in 2004 and compared half a dozen speakers in the same room and relatively same location Over 15 years.

I’m keen on learning how the bigger Genelec measure out.

In closure, to me the 4367 were not in the same class, too bright and not enough bass punch even after MiniDSP.

YMMV

 

[tomtoo]

This 5-10 inch drivers could never impress me. But this 1236am sam look cool i think even @restorer-john could lift a eyebrow on them. The problem to measure them would be that @amirm now would need a trained working elephant as new pet. ; )

 

[LTig]

There is nothing in the path of the speaker and microphone. There is no way for it to have a negative impact other than it looks like hell.

Send pix, PLEASE!!!

 

[direstraitsfan98]

By the way, is the SAM in these Genelecs referring to the technology that Devialet owns?

 

[Soniclife]

By the way, is the SAM in these Genelecs referring to the technology that Devialet owns?

No.
Confusing isn't it.

 

[QMuse]

By the way, is the SAM in these Genelecs referring to the technology that Devialet owns?

Genelec SAM = Smart Active Monitor
DEvialet SAM = Speaker Active Matching

 

[direstraitsfan98]

No.
Confusing isn't it.

Yes, very confusing. I can’t seem to find any info on what SAM is. What is it? Is it just the branding they use for their speakers, and not a technology?

 

[Frank Dernie]

Yes, very confusing. If I had to guess though, it’s somrthing to go with managing how the woofer behaves at lower frequencies, am I right?

I don't think so.
The Devialet maps the movement of the actual bass driver, compares it to the ideal output, generates the transfer function of the error inverts it and applies the correction on playback.
Genelec uses SAM to refer to its DSP actives which are smart over the whole frequency range and can also, with extra purchase, be used for room correction.

 

[Purité Audio]

GLM is Genelecs EQ/room correction.
Keith

 

[Soniclife]

Yes, very confusing. I can’t seem to find any info on what SAM is. What is it? Is it just the branding they use for their speakers, and not a technology?

It's room correction.
Devialet's version is speaker correction.

 

[DSJR]

Speaking as an ATC fan and ex owner of 100A's some time back before I got married and needed to sell them (the things we do for love eh?), I was mightily impressed by the 4367's driven by a stack of modern Levinson gear probably costing way way more then the boxes themselves. I have to say I loved them for the 'ease' they gave the music although on a much loved Buddy Holly track (Everyday), it could be argued his voice was perhaps a little larger than life (smaller UK room syndrome again?). I haven't heard 150's lately but hearing the current spec ATC 100A's brought tears of recognition and admiration to my eyes (I used to regularly visit the factory with prospective domestic clients and all but never lost the sale, so worth it to everyone and this good vibe about the brand has lasted decades now). These days, the high end market is heard with the eyes over here mostly, so no matter how 'good' the 4367 may be, it's judged as too cumbersome and retro-niche to sell sadly, by the few remaining higher end dealers here

In the domestic arena, we just don't get the chance to hear many truly world class professional speakers, as it seems that companies like PMC, Dynaudio and Focal do specific individual ranges and never the twain shall meet (ATC and Harbeth seem to do wood veneer or painted versions of much the same thing for some of their shared-market models), Harman never pushed JBL here really and Tannoy had some rather meocre domestic lines and again, the larger pro models rarely if ever came our way to try. Fascinating to read here of Genelecs, which I've read and heard so much about and wish to hear properly, as well as the larger Neumann's which look just right in higher end monitor prices (half that of an equivalent active ATC I think).

P.S. This may only be relevant to the UK or maybe European market, but my understanding of a 'powered' speaker is basically a speaker with passive crossovers but with a built in or bolted on amp pack. An 'Active' speaker to 'us' is one where the crossover is done electronically *before* the amps, these amps then looking directly at the drive units with nothing in between. Is this the same for the rest of you all?

 

[Matias]

I don't think so.
The Devialet maps the movement of the actual bass driver, compares it to the ideal output, generates the transfer function of the error inverts it and applies the correction on playback.
Genelec uses SAM to refer to its DSP actives which are smart over the whole frequency range and can also, with extra purchase, be used for room correction.

Exactly. Devialet SAM works under 200Hz and corrects delay and extends the frequency response, while at the same time setting a dynamic EQ excursion limit so that the woofer excursion does not damage.
Quite clever I think.