New Philharmonic BMR HT Towers

[samysound]

These have been mentioned in a few other threads but I dont think there is a dedicated thread as of yet. In any case, the cabinets look compact and great, and cool driver selection:
Pictures:

Philharmonic Audio

www.philharmonicaudio.com

Specs:

Philharmonic Audio

I speculate these would be an interesting comparison to the revel F226Be and the latest Ascend tower design.

 

[tw 2022]

Once again Dennis gives us something to look at vs. The usual suspects... Amt tweeter and higher sensitivity than the bmr towers

 

[bigjacko]

There is a Chinese facebook page with lots of information, I can help with some information if guys can't understand.

Also I don't really think the sensitivity is that high. The facebook page claimed 90 db, Philharmonic claimed 88.5db. But from the measurement and common sense it is not there yet.....

 

[samysound]

There is a Chinese facebook page with lots of information, I can help with some information if guys can't understand.

Also I don't really think the sensitivity is that high. The facebook page claimed 90 db, Philharmonic claimed 88.5db. But from the measurement and common sense it is not there yet.....

looks like the sensitivity is 2-3db higher and more low distortion output capability in more compact form factor compared to the "standard" BMR tower.

 

[Steve Dallas]

The new zebrawood veneer is absolutely gorgeous!

 

[MaxBuck]

Awesome sauce.

 

[Dennis Murphy]

There is a Chinese facebook page with lots of information, I can help with some information if guys can't understand.

Also I don't really think the sensitivity is that high. The facebook page claimed 90 db, Philharmonic claimed 88.5db. But from the measurement and common sense it is not there yet.....

I'm not following this. The only measurement I've published shows a sensitivity of 90 dB. I've only claimed 88.5 dB because sensitivity measurements are always a little tricky. Why would common sense indicate otherwise? Remember, there are two 8 Ohm woofers running in parallel.

 

[JohnnyNG]

38 Hz - 20kHz (+ 1.5 / - 3db) Anechoic

I don't see why this wouldn't be a perfect music speaker as well for the vast majority. Looks incredible.

 

[Dennis Murphy]

38 Hz - 20kHz (+ 1.5 / - 3db) Anechoic

I don't see why this wouldn't be a perfect music speaker as well for the vast majority. Looks incredible.

It's designed for either use, but unless you need the HT'S more compact dimensions, the larger BMR tower plays deeper and is less expensive. The picture I posted on the specifications page was a natural walnut. I took that pic down because our shipment will include zebra wood, not walnut. You can see the zebra wood on the home page on the large BMR tower.

 

[TurtlePaul]

Dennis, silly question - do these speakers come with grills?

 

[Dennis Murphy]

Dennis, silly question - do these speakers come with grills?

Yup--all of our speakers come with magnetic grills. They're one-piece rectangular for the HT and Monitor, and a two piece that looks like one piece with a curved bottom for the big BMR tower.

 

[bigjacko]

I'm not following this. The only measurement I've published shows a sensitivity of 90 dB. I've only claimed 88.5 dB because sensitivity measurements are always a little tricky. Why would common sense indicate otherwise? Remember, there are two 8 Ohm woofers running in parallel.

Sorry if I got it wrong, but I thought the sensitivity is based on the lowest SPL in frequency response, usually in subbass. The spec does show -3db at 38Hz, I think it means SPL should be 85.5 at 38 Hz. Based on the measurement graph I don't think it really is.

 

[Dennis Murphy]

Sorry if I got it wrong, but I thought the sensitivity is based on the lowest SPL in frequency response, usually in subbass. The spec does show -3db at 38Hz, I think it means SPL should be 85.5 at 38 Hz. Based on the measurement graph I don't think it really is.

I've never heard of sensitivity specs being based on the F3. They're usually based on the response at 1 kHz, which often exaggerates overall sensitivity because so many speakers have a peak in that area. I try to arrive at an average over the midrange and treble range. My speakers tend to be voiced down a bit in the treble to avoid brightness due to their wide dispersion.

 

[Ricardojoa]

Sorry if I got it wrong, but I thought the sensitivity is based on the lowest SPL in frequency response, usually in subbass. The spec does show -3db at 38Hz, I think it means SPL should be 85.5 at 38 Hz. Based on the measurement graph I don't think it really is.

I don’t think there is a standard for measuring sensitivity but i have seem it to rate at 1 khz or average between mid to high frequencies like for example between 300 hz to 3khz at 1 watt.

 

[Severian]

I heard these at Capital Audiofest and thought they were terrific, among the best in show.

 

[BrokenEnglishGuy]

why is called HT? is more like a BMR even more HiFi..


It looks awesome, with some nice foots will looks stunning to me. Specs below .3% at 95dB is awesome tech performance too. (Distortion at 95 dB (one meter) does not exceed .3% from 250 Hz to 10 kHz). Looks an awesome floorstanding speaker both physical and technnical.

 

[MarkS]

HT because high power handling, plays loud.

I really wish they were sealed, to make subwoofer integration easier and to eliminate port issues.

 

[Dennis Murphy]

HT because high power handling, plays loud.

I really wish they were sealed, to make subwoofer integration easier and to eliminate port issues.

The HT stands for home theater, which is their primary target. However, I also wanted them to be appropriate for dedicated music listening without a sub for people who wanted a more compact speaker than the big BMR Tower. The Purifi woofers, which I considered a must for the speaker, don't work well sealed. I think you're overestimating the sub integration problem. No one has had a problem with the tower, which is also a mass loaded transmission line design.

 

[BrokenEnglishGuy]

The HT stands for home theater, which is their primary target. However, I also wanted them to be appropriate for dedicated music listening without a sub for people who wanted a more compact speaker than the big BMR Tower. The Purifi woofers, which I considered a must for the speaker, don't work well sealed. I think you're overestimating the sub integration problem. No one has had a problem with the tower, which is also a mass loaded transmission line design.

Looks very interesting, maybe in the future a tower like the bmr but with these 2 purifi and front port? and the same finish?

I often see in these ribbon/planar magnetic towers with a peak of distortion, but this one looks very nice.. fantastic

 

[8bits]

The Purifi woofers, which I considered a must for the speaker, don't work well sealed

Hey Dennis, keen to understand why that is the case. The March Sointuva uses the same woofer from Purify in a sealed enclosure and by the looks of the measurements, it has no issues afaik. They do use passive radiators though, would that be the reason?