Genelec 8361A Review (Powered Monitor)

[Sancus]

This post?

Yep that's the one!

 

[richard12511]

How can there be a wide sweet spot if the soundstage is small? View attachment 165983

Soundstage isn't small, it's just smaller than soundstage the Salon2 produces.

 

[amirm]

@amirm looking at the pic it seems there is a Primare amp in background.

Good eyes!

 

[Pearljam5000]

8361A on the W371

 

[Xyrium]

Yep that's the one!

I can't believe I missed that review, it's quite informative! I just keep looking at the Ones, and figured that if I hadn't wasted so much money on previous "audio" mistakes in the past twenty years, and went straight to purchasing a pair of these, I would have SAVED money!

Just remember folks, you're getting amps built in as well. Most folks would easily pay $5k for amps to power their $5k speakers.

 

[Xyrium]

8361A on the W371

Cripes, I think his "listening triangle" might be a little bit closer than manufacturer specs, though I'm still envious!

 

[Pearljam5000]

Cripes, I think his "listening triangle" might be a little bit closer than manufacturer specs, though I'm still envious!

I think the minimum recommended distance is 70cm but I'm not sure

 

[Xyrium]

This entire thread is torturing my wallet....

 

[echopraxia]

@sweetchaos The Genelec's definitely outscore the 708p's but Genelec sets up their DSP to get the flattest frequency response while JBL leaves that to the user. EQ gets the 708p to 5.9/7.7. That doesn't top the Genelec's, but it doesn't leave JBL in the dust either. I'm still impressed by what the 8361's can do. I would be less afraid to put $10k in these than somewhat more in a pair of D&D 8c's because Genelec is a lot more likely to be around in 10 years with parts in stock.

There is no way the 708P even comes close to the sound quality of the 8361A IMO. Granted, my opinion here is based on owning the 705P and Genelec 8330A. The 705P are exceptional in terms of power, and indeed perform like a speaker one woofer size class up. But their sound quality, while excellent, isn’t as refined and smooth as the 8330A, let alone a 83X1.

The Genelec 83X1 series is another league beyond both of these, as a three-way coaxial design has much superior IMD as well as overall off-axis performance.

If you’re asking whether the 708P comes close to the 8351B or 8361A in sound quality, the answer is a definitive “no” IMO (and this is seen in the measurements as well as subjective impressions and theoretical concerns like IMD).

If you’re asking whether the 708P will get as loud and dynamic as you ever could dream of needing like the 8361A, I think the answer is yes. If you’re asking whether it is good enough for most people, well obviously it is. The 705P I have is great and I’m sure the 708P is even better. But the sound quality is not really comparable to Genelec 83X1.

IMO I think Amir is quite correct in designating these few speakers (Genelec 8361A, Revel F328Be, JBL 708P) as “endgame” level dynamics and power. But I don’t think he is saying the 708P is on par with the 8361A in terms of sound quality (though I could be wrong). Also, Amir (and others like myself) note that beam width differences are very important, and there’s no one “right” answer there. So depending on your preference, the F328Be or Salon2 may be a better endgame choice.

 

[eddy555]

tbh nothing really outstanding and spectacular ..I'd say rather par for the course...considering it's a dsp driven coax speaker. I mean if implemented correctly it oughta be damn flat.
Pricing though...

 

[hege]

IMO I think Amir is quite correct in designating these few speakers (Genelec 8361A, Revel F328Be, JBL 708P) as “endgame” level dynamics and power.

The quotes in "endgame" are indeed correct. For some people (like me) they would only be a passable starting point of dynamics and power.

 

[Holmz]

tbh nothing really outstanding and spectacular ..I'd say rather par for the course...considering it's a dsp driven coax speaker. I mean if implemented correctly it oughta be damn flat.
Pricing though...

But like a Ginsu knife commercial… “Wait , there is more…”

It has the DSP, Amp, and s/w all in one, and as others have pointed out… no magic cables are required

 

[Pearljam5000]

Is there any chance of a photo of the woofer? wondering if it looks identical to the 8351B

 

[ex audiophile]

S/PDIF Optical to AES/EBU - Digital Audio Interface | Hosa Cables

Find Hosa Digital Audio Interfaces near you. We supply digital audio interfaces perfect for interconnecting digital audio workstations, recorders, and more.

hosatech.com

That and a Chromecast Audio (Another $100 since they were discontinued.)

You can get a 3.5mm optical cable to feed the Hosa converter with the CCA.

Or just take the optical output from a smart TV which may have apps for streaming.

Personally a streaming box for me would be horrible in the long run since you can't update the software and it won't be supported as long as a smartphone and a remote is inferior to a touch screen, and a Chromecast solves the remote problem, the update issues, having an additional larger box, and the horrid experience that is Smart TVs. (I'd take an app on my smartphone and Chromecast any day over the relatively horrid experience that is WebOS or Android TV on my LG C9.)

For streaming Dolby Atmos, not sure what a good recommendation is under tens of thousands of dollars with digital outputs.

I should have stated I was referring to 2 channel setups only, not HT applications. I don't believe the CCA has native Spotify Connect which is something I'm looking for. The Bluesound Node 2i that i'm using now updates itself without need for any action on my part. If I do get a pair of Genelec speakers I will follow the manufacturer's recommendation to avoid spdif and use the balanced analog outputs from the Matrix X Sabre3, horrid as that may be

 

[Koeitje]

tbh nothing really outstanding and spectacular ..I'd say rather par for the course...considering it's a dsp driven coax speaker. I mean if implemented correctly it oughta be damn flat.
Pricing though...

Yep, pricing is very good. High bang for buck.

 

[TunaBug]

I should have stated I was referring to 2 channel setups only, not HT applications. I don't believe the CCA has native Spotify Connect which is something I'm looking for. The Bluesound Node 2i that i'm using now updates itself without need for any action on my part. If I do get a pair of Genelec speakers I will follow the manufacturer's recommendation to avoid spdif and use the balanced analog outputs from the Matrix X Sabre3, horrid as that may be

I think you need a thread for how to feed AES/EBU from SPDIF. Or maybe there's an existing one?

I re-read the response that you got from Genelec. I'm a bit skeptical about interpreting what a professional support person says isn't supported. Claiming it's supported has some amount of risk if it doesn't work out, so all I would infer is that they haven't tried your scenario and that putting two speakers in your house with an AES connection isn't critical enough to their business to warrant sticking their neck out.

They told you that for "long runs" you can get noise that makes the simple RCA-to-XLR adapter unworkable. What's a long run? Don't forget that Genelec does pro settings and that runs of hundreds of feet might be very common for them. How does yours compare? (Answer: you don't know, I don't know, and Genelec doesn't know) I don't want to discourage your inquiry though: for $10K I think you need to feel good about your setup.

I would contact Sweetwater or B&H or anybody who has experience integrating components, or at least selling to those who do.

At the end of the day, using a balanced analog connection is not "horrid".

 

[ex audiophile]

I think you need a thread for how to feed AES/EBU from SPDIF. Or maybe there's an existing one?

I re-read the response that you got from Genelec. I'm a bit skeptical about interpreting what a professional support person says isn't supported. Claiming it's supported has some amount of risk if it doesn't work out, so all I would infer is that they haven't tried your scenario and that putting two speakers in your house with an AES connection isn't critical enough to their business to warrant sticking their neck out.

They told you that for "long runs" you can get noise that makes the simple RCA-to-XLR adapter unworkable. What's a long run? Don't forget that Genelec does pro settings and that runs of hundreds of feet might be very common for them. How does yours compare? (Answer: you don't know, I don't know, and Genelec doesn't know) I don't want to discourage your inquiry though: for $10K I think you need to feel good about your setup.

I would contact Sweetwater or B&H or anybody who has experience integrating components, or at least selling to those who do.

At the end of the day, using a balanced analog connection is not "horrid".

I think we've kinda beat this one to death. I think it comes down to just what you said, we each need to be comfortable with our setups. Clearly there are a number of ways to connect to the Genelecs and likely no audible difference between them. FWIW I did contact an independent source, Blue Jeans Cable, for their opinion on spdif to balanced and this was their response:

"Unfortunately it's more complicated than that. Since a balanced input is looking for a particular voltage and impedance, running an unbalanced signal can be problematic in a number of ways. Best case scenario here would be that is works about as well as running an unbalanced signal, with a higher noise floor. The way to do this correctly is with a balun or 'DI box' that would match the voltage and impedance. You could also choose to have a custom cable built, but we highly encourage that you get wiring information from Genelec about running an unbalanced signal into their balanced input circuit."

 

[Futility]

Semi-serious: Any Black Friday deals on them?

 

[Habbe]

I think we've kinda beat this one to death. I think it comes down to just what you said, we each need to be comfortable with our setups. Clearly there are a number of ways to connect to the Genelecs and likely no audible difference between them. FWIW I did contact an independent source, Blue Jeans Cable, for their opinion on spdif to balanced and this was their response:

"Unfortunately it's more complicated than that. Since a balanced input is looking for a particular voltage and impedance, running an unbalanced signal can be problematic in a number of ways. Best case scenario here would be that is works about as well as running an unbalanced signal, with a higher noise floor. The way to do this correctly is with a balun or 'DI box' that would match the voltage and impedance. You could also choose to have a custom cable built, but we highly encourage that you get wiring information from Genelec about running an unbalanced signal into their balanced input circuit."

So they mixed up digital and analog connections?

I bought a Lundahl transformer for spdif-> aes/ebu, but it is very interesting that it might not be needed for short runs. There is no induced jitter without it? And of course Genelec might have ways to suppress jitter to inaudible anyway.

 

[dshreter]

There are plenty of testimonials right here on ASR that direct connection to S/PDIF works fine for short runs. Even Genelec has an official web page dedicated to this topic and states to keep cable lengths below 8 METERS. For home hifi, using an analogue connection when you have S/PDIF available to me seems like an unnecessary compromise towards extracting the best possible sound quality out of the system.

Can I connect my digital SAM-monitors to S/PDIF directly?​

SAM-series can be connected to a SPDIF directly, with noticing some limitations.
The S/PDIF signal voltage is a fraction of that in the AES/EBU. Also, S/PDIF is not a differential transmission line, making it more prone to external disturbance. S/PDIF has not been designed for long distances in the same ways as the AES/EBU link has. We recommend to keep the cable length less than 8 meter when using 110Ω cable.