New mysterious Genelec monitors

[Spocko]

Was lucky enough have a few hours with these yesterday.

I run a pair of 8351, 1238 and W371+ 8361 at the moment and can say with confidence that these are completely different to any of these.

To me the perceived volume you get from these is beyond the 1236 and far beyond any HIFI speaker I've ever witnessed. Think a PA level sound pressure with zero distortion or artefacts on the sound. It simply beggers belief.

Bass goes super low with, again, kind of authority and detail that I've never heard before. You could feed the speakers whatever and whatever volume and no problemo whatsoever.

Midrange has a kind of elasticity and depth that sounds a bit alien at first. Everything seems a bit too deep but brain seems to catch up pretty quickly and then its just simply wonderful.

Was a bit affraid of the compression driver at first but it just works.

Basicly you have a very detailed, extra deep wall of sound that seems to do whatever you ask it to do, even at extreme sound pressures. Beyond impressed myself.

Basically, you build a house around these speakers where you incorporate the cost of these speakers into the purchase of the house or renovation. Obviously, we're talking about a 2000 square foot listening room.

 

[Curvature]

Basically, you build a house around these speakers where you incorporate the cost of these speakers into the purchase of the house or renovation. Obviously, we're talking about a 2000 square foot listening room.

Room size doesn't matter all that much. The directivity control allows flexibility. Otherwise I agree with your perspective.

The main room consideration is to make sure the floor can bear the weight, and comfort. The current layout of my living room and my creaky old floor joists preclude using this speaker.

 

[d3l]

Was the room they were in untreated?

No. Better than average with slight acoustic measures and a wooden floor. Decay quite high from 400hz down with a resonance around 60hz but thats the usual for anything except properly built control rooms.

 

[RobL]

No. Better than average with slight acoustic measures and a wooden floor. Decay quite high from 400hz down with a resonance around 60hz but thats the usual for anything except properly built control rooms.

Thanks for that. Sounds like you’ve heard 1236a as well, do you feel that 8381A is superior?

 

[juliangst]

You mean 95db (Z) average,max or peak?
Cause these vary greatly.

95dB (Z) continuous. Peak will only be ~5dB higher with modern pop music.

 

[RobL]

I see preorders are up.

 

[Haruko]

Can't wait for Sharur to review this speaker with his moondrop Variations. Maybe I will buy it then

 

[d3l]

Thanks for that. Sounds like you’ve heard 1236a as well, do you feel that 8381A is superior?

I think they are so different that comparing them is a bit pointless. 1236 is a flush mountable main monitor for large control rooms and installations, just a different usage overall. Just as they are on the same price category doesn't mean they are competing products.
Personally, for a free standing hifi -setup, yes I like the 8381 better.

 

[Pearljam5000]

I think they are so different that comparing them is a bit pointless. 1236 is a flush mountable main monitor for large control rooms and installations, just a different usage overall. Just as they are on the same price category doesn't mean they are competing products.
Personally, for a free standing hifi -setup, yes I like the 8381 better.

Could you hear more details on 8381 vs 8351+w371 , or was it just more SPL and bass output ?

 

[Sokel]

95dB (Z) continuous. Peak will only be ~5dB higher with modern pop music.

You must have a look at this thread then,an example is in the post.
Peaks,are far-far higher than you think.

How loud do you like your music?

most like to preserve their ears and postpone hearing devices :D:D Oddly enough, at 70 my hearing is still pretty good.

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[d3l]

Could you hear more details on 8381 vs 8351+w371 , or was it just more SPL and bass output ?

Same as with the 1236, I rather not make direct comparisons as I did not listen to them side by side in the same room. You'd need to have them side by side and volume matched in the same space to make such claims. I find perception also so personal that I see as 'detail' might mean something else to someone else. But yes as I said before, I found the midrange clear, nuanced and effortless and the depth was unlike anything I've heard before.

 

[Pearljam5000]

 

[IamJF]

You must have a look at this thread then,an example is in the post.
Peaks,are far-far higher than you think.

How loud do you like your music?

most like to preserve their ears and postpone hearing devices :D:D Oddly enough, at 70 my hearing is still pretty good.

www.audiosciencereview.com

You measured LAS and LZpeak - so you A weighted your slow level. Therefore the big difference.
There was no average level in your measurement and of course you would need to measure LZ. For e.g. LZeq and LZpeak.

Modern productions are really compressed down to 6dB peak sometimes but normally it's about 8-10dB. And thanks to Spotify and Youtube the loundnes war seem to be over!

 

[Sokel]

You measured LAS and LZpeak - so you A weighted your slow level. Therefore the big difference.
There was no average level in your measurement and of course you would need to measure LZ. For e.g. LZeq and LZpeak.

Modern productions are really compressed down to 6dB peak sometimes but normally it's about 8-10dB. And thanks to Spotify and Youtube the loundnes war seem to be over!

Instead of answer:

Let's get honest with SPL

Replying to the initial inquiry. In casual listening to music I have an average of 78-82 dB, Slow C-Weighted calibrated UMIK on boom mic stand. For general Tv consumption the average is slightly higher at 80-85 dB. For Movies and popcorn time there is no average as the volume goes from...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Let's get honest with SPL

Maybe for you but in English it means as I used it. lay/put (something) to rest idiom : to make someone stop thinking about or believing (something) by showing it is not true I want to lay/put to rest any lingering doubts about my decision. You can lay/put those worries to rest now...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[juliangst]

You must have a look at this thread then,an example is in the post.
Peaks,are far-far higher than you think.

How loud do you like your music?

most like to preserve their ears and postpone hearing devices :D:D Oddly enough, at 70 my hearing is still pretty good.

www.audiosciencereview.com

I can measure peaks with dynamic range meter. In ~90% of pop music they are ~5-7dB higher.
With classical music it’s usually 10-15dB.

All of this doesn’t really matter though when talking about the continuous, average output. Your ears can handle spontaneous 15dB peaks and you speakers do as well.

I think blasting you ears with 95dBZ continuously is not really enjoyable or healthy either.
Parties and clubs usually are 100dBA (according to my Apple Watch) and I wouldn’t be able to go there without my hearing protection.

 

[Sokel]

I can measure peaks with dynamic range meter. In ~90% of pop music they are ~5-7dB higher.
With classical music it’s usually 10-15dB.

All of this doesn’t really matter though when talking about the continuous, average output. Your ears can handle spontaneous 15dB peaks and you speakers do as well.

I think blasting you ears with 95dBZ continuously is not really enjoyable or healthy either.
Parties and clubs usually are 100dBA (according to my Apple Watch) and I wouldn’t be able to go there without my hearing protection.

I know all this,all I'm saying is that this speaker (as all mains monitors should) can handle any peak even in high dynamic range music.
Something NOT so common in domestic Hi-Fi as speakers or amp's modest power (as Amir says,there's no such a thing as too much power) are usually holding that back.

 

[HairyEars]

I attended a Genelec immersive seminar yesterday. A generous and professional hosting in a large convention building. A half-day was dedicated to the theory behind immersive sound; the second half to mixing in object-oriented environment and auditioning tracks in a variety of genre.

It was my first exposure to immersive music, and I was stunned. Yes, there was a novelty effect, but there was more to it. The way the music engulfed me and shifted around was mesmerizing. Immersive may be a niche market for now, but, oh boy, it’s sure worth pursuing.

The loudspeakers were high-end—S360 L/C/R; 8351B field level; 8341A top level; and 7380 x 3. There were a few deficiencies: the hall was huge and not treated; the layout was too spread out for 7.1.4 (IMO); and the subs were placed far from any wall. Still, the sound quality shined through.

Having so many Genelec personal around, I couldn’t restrain myself and picked their brains on quite a few issues. Here are a few tidbits I thought this community would be interested in:

----
Having placed the 371+83x1 and 8381 behind a screen, Genelec asked listeners to pick the best sounding system. Without fail and with ease, all bar none chose the 8381. Apparently, it’s quite a jump.

----
For stereophonic system, the 8381 won’t benefit from a sub, and they recommend against it. In a damped room, the One Mains can go down to 17hz.

----
1236 vs 8381 in distances over 2m: The One has a superior vertical directivity, and that makes a big difference. The active bass management should yield results as good as embedding the mains—or at least in most cases. In some difficult rooms, an embedded 1236 would serve better. And of course, the 1236 boasts higher SPL.

----
One gentleman related to me that they sell a lot of 8361, but the optimal mains to match with the W371 are actually 8351B and 8341A. I’d heard that rumor before.

----
In an immersive setup with multiple subs, depending on the dimensions of the layout, it might be advantageous to assign certain monitors to each sub. Moreover, it may make sense to mount some subs higher up, to better localize them with the tops. I found the notion intriguing.

----
I was hoping Genelec would incorporate an HDMI port on their 9310B and offer a seamless digital path from TV to speakers. That is not to be, as Genelec won’t develop it due to 3rd party restrictions and poor eARC implementation. They feel that Dante is the way to go, since studios are already committed to it. Analog it is for households.

Back to the immersive experience: a 7.1.4 made of 8331 and 7380 might be more enjoyable than the best mains Genelec has to offer in 2.1 setup. Just a thought…

 

[Pearljam5000]

What were the Main differences between 371+83x1 and 8381 in stereo ?

 

[Sebastiaan de Vries]

They feel that Dante is the way to go since studios are already committed to it. Analog it is for households.

Yet no Dante yet on the ones which would make
Multi-channel setups easier

 

[juliangst]

I also wish it had Dante or at least some proprietary format that connects over GLM.

Imagine being able to just daisy chain all your Genelecs to each other and connecting 16 or more channels to your PC with just a single ethernet cable.

No need for multichannel AES Interfaces or the genelec 9301a for bass management; just a single cable.