Monitor Audio

[Beave]

I'm too ignorant to really be making this comment, I'm sure, but those Soundstage measurements of the Gold 300 6g don't look great. Don't they show one or two significant resonances, not the best directivity, and a fairly ridiculous tweeter? I'm curious why the tweeter has such a sharp drop-off as you get far off axis? ...Anyone have an opinion on Soundstage dropping a higher decibel level measurement for THD and compression, seems slightly unfortunate

I just swapped out my Wharfedale Jade 3 three-way bookshelves, it's a damn shame they have significant cone edge resonance (I believe), they look similar to these except way prettier/more stylish

What makes you think the Jade 3 has a "significant cone edge resonance?" Even if the woofer driver itself does have such a resonance, the speaker is a three-way with the woofer lowpassed well below where such a resonance would manifest.

 

[Cadillacofminds]

What makes you think the Jade 3 has a "significant cone edge resonance?" Even if the woofer driver itself does have such a resonance, the speaker is a three-way with the woofer lowpassed well below where such a resonance would manifest

JA's graph in the Stereophile review shows a broad dip centered just below 1000hz, kind of at the center of the mid driver's band. Running a frequency sweep I feel I can confirm this dip (I actually have a lot of hearing loss in this region so I don't want to sound too certain about this). JA's graph shows this dip doesn't originate in the low woofer's response, there is no port, the graph doesn't have the tweeter's response isolated but I imagine the tweeter doesn't make much noise at 1000hz, so some sort of resonance originating within the mid-driver or perhaps the cabinet around the mid-driver seems to be the logical conclusion to me.

If anyone knowledgable reads, when one tries to use EQ to correct dips caused by resonances, the result would be an initial impulse that is too high in amplitude, right? I've spent way too much time trying to correct this dip with a complex filter on Equalizer APO and the results always seems grating to my ears (I'm quite certain JA is correct in showing this broad dip, toggling my "custom graphic equalizer" filter on and off I get grating sounds, then a clear hole in the response).

 

[Matias]

Fig 5 doesn't look too good imo.

Monitor Audio Gold 300 6G loudspeaker JA's Measurements

Sidebar 5: JA's Measurements I measured a Monitor Audio Gold 300 6G loudspeaker with the serial number 900005. I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system, a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone, and an Earthworks microphone preamplifier to measure the speaker's quasi-anechoic frequency- and time-domain behavior in...

www.stereophile.com

 

[Bleib]

Fig 5 doesn't look too good imo.

Monitor Audio Gold 300 6G loudspeaker JA's Measurements

Sidebar 5: JA's Measurements I measured a Monitor Audio Gold 300 6G loudspeaker with the serial number 900005. I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system, a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone, and an Earthworks microphone preamplifier to measure the speaker's quasi-anechoic frequency- and time-domain behavior in...

www.stereophile.com

Nope, is this the English sound? Slightly boosted bas and treble

 

[Subway2400]

As written in the review :

The dispersion is generally well-controlled through the midrange and presence region, though the radiation pattern narrows in the mid-treble and above. This will tend to compensate for the gentle top-octave rise in response seen in figs.3 and 4. Not toeing in the speakers all the way to the listening position should optimize the Monitor Audio's treble balance.

The directivity is narrow but it decreases evenly, placing these with no toe-in will bring good results.

 

[Matias]

Yes and no. When 30° off axis, meaning firing straight, on the horizontal dispersion we can see that only very high treble >10kHz reduces level, while the on axis is high already starting at >4kHz. Reducing the "air" will not tame sibilance.

Top curve: on-axis response
Middle curve: 15 degrees off-axis response
Bottom curve: 30 degrees off-axis response

 

[MarcT]

As written in the review :



The directivity is narrow but it decreases evenly, placing these with no toe-in will bring good results.

Lol, I like your pre-edited reply better!

 

[Subway2400]

The frequency response may be a tad bright, but the directivity shows a good behavior with an smooth decrease, the distorsion is pretty low, and there is not any noticeable resonnance. Out of the box, this speaker would sound good in treated rooms, and would behave very well with some EQ to suit all types of rooms.

I've heard many models of Monitor Audio from the Bronze to Platinum range, their performance is often good. Not all of their speakers are created equal, but they are pretty good overall.

For example, I find them more neutral and more natural sounding than Focal speakers (their inverted dome has a weird off-axis response that produces a noticeable "house-sound") and more pleasant than some DALI speakers. I auditionned the Bronze 6 and Zensor 7 in the same room with the same amplifier, the Zensor had some audible midrange "box" resonnance and the treble sounded more constrained and less detailed (and their frequency response is pretty much rising which could make think the opposite for non-experienced listeners https://audio.com.pl/testy/stereo/kolumny-glosnikowe/501-dali-zensor-7#laboratory) , while with the Bronze 6 you could more easily forget you're listening to speakers. The Bronze floorstanders are pretty interesting and their frequency response is one of the best in their price-range for passive speakers ( Bronze 200 : https://audio.com.pl/testy/stereo/kolumny-glosnikowe/3455-monitor-audio-bronze-200#laboratory ).

In the grand scheme of things, Monitor Audio speakers are more aiming for accuracy than a particular acoustic signature.

 

[Lawrence of Suburbia]

Curious if anyone here's heard/owns/measured a set of the current Bronze 50's. Wodger think? ...

They're currently on sale, about 45% off at a major online retailer.

 

[XDM]

Curious if anyone here's heard/owns/measured a set of the current Bronze 50's. Wodger think? ...

They're currently on sale, about 45% off at a major online retailer.

The Monitor Audio Bronze 6G speakers have generally been described as crude, shrill and harsh https://www.whathifi.com/reviews/monitor-audio-bronze-100 (also in the comments https://forums.whathifi.com/threads/monitor-audio-bronze-100.113815/ ),

https://www.reddit.com/r/BudgetAudiophile/comments/1fgvjto/help_with_harsh_tweeters_on_monitor_audio_bronze

etc.

 

[Jim Creek]

For Monitor Audio stand mount speakers I think the Silver 100 series is the sweet spot.

 

[Subway2400]

Curious if anyone here's heard/owns/measured a set of the current Bronze 50's. Wodger think? ...

They're currently on sale, about 45% off at a major online retailer.

A friend of mine has a pair of Bronze 50 on a Yamaha AVR, it doesn't sound harsh. They only have a little toe-in, they are not aimed straight to the listening position. I think they sound pretty good given their size. A subwoofer is a must-have, as with any speakers of this size.

 

[DanielT]

For those interested, here is an article about Monitor Audio.

It's rare that hi-fi writers get to talk to the senior design team of a major loudspeaker company. In audio journalism, much of the contact with manufacturers goes via public relations people or the marketing department. As crucial as these people are, they're not at the 'coal face' of product design. The following feature is a sometimes quite technical discussion between myself and the guys who actually do the designing for Monitor Audio – Product Design Director Charles Minett and Technical Director Michael Hedges.

Inside Track: What Makes a Monitor Audio Loudspeaker?

What Makes a Monitor Audio Loudspeaker?

stereonet.com

 

[Lawrence of Suburbia]

I bought a pair of Bronze 50s off Amazon recently, $315 on sale, and I must say I'm a bit stunned by how good they are. Very open, punchy, detail for days. Lots of internet chat has them as bright or fatiguing -- I'm not finding that at all. They're certainly lively, though -- and that's exactly what I was looking for. And they're not even fully broken in, maybe 30 hours so far (I think I read 50-70 hours recommended).

They've got the one thing I require in a speaker: they're  fun. I put on album after album, and am rediscovering lots of stuff in my collection I haven't bothered listening to for awhile.

At $315, a steal. And if I'd bought them at list price ($575) I'd still be well-pleased with the sound. I've owned speakers costing into four figures that would be embarrassed by the 50s.

 

[Jim Creek]

My MA Silver 100 G6 speakers are 6 years old, at $1K they were worth it. They deliver a convincing soundstage, with great imaging, which makes them immersive and fun. Monitor Audio raised the price on the G7 Silver 100 speakers to $1500. That puts them in competition with Warfedale Lintons. I not sure I would pay that much for the G7 Silver 100s.

Here is a discussion of the G6 vs the G7. https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/monitor-audio-6g-vs-7g.1147959/