New Speaker Systems Coming Soon
Aligning ourselves with specific brands and manufacturers is something that Majik House has never undertaken lightly and we will always be resolutely independent on this front, specifying the equipment which we consider to be right for any given installation.
As you would expect, there are numerous factors which influence our decision making on this front such as performance, reliability, the ‘handshake’ with the network, the user experience and control.
In addition, we have talked in the past about how we just don’t take a manufacturer’s marketing information as gospel and will always thoroughly test new products ourselves, and this typically means in our own homes.
At time of writing, we are installing two new speaker ranges – Cinergy by Monitor Audio, and the Phantom Series by DALI – with a view to offering these to clients as part of their home cinema specification and for their whole home audio.
MONITOR AUDIO CINERGY
We have worked with Monitor Audio and their outstanding products for more than a decade, during which time we have specified and installed pretty much every single product in their catalogue.
Whether part of a whole home AV system, for dedicated cinema rooms or for single room set-ups for audiophile customers, the Monitor Audio speakers – floor standing and cabinet speakers, sound frames and custom install in-wall and in-ceiling – have become one of our ‘go to’ products.
Launched in 2022, the Cinergy range is firmly positioned for custom install home cinema installations and promises ‘the dream of experiencing true cinema sound in your own home’ and boasts THX® Certification, the globally recognised assurance of uncompromising sound quality, consistency and performance.
Intended to be positioned out of view behind an acoustically transparent screen, the Cinergy speakers are quite substantial and, dare we say, imposing units but the sound produced is equally substantial and imposing.
That said, Cinergy speakers are designed to be flexible and can be positioned in-wall, on-wall or even freestanding should you want them to be seen (and why not!). In addition, they can be positioned vertically or horizontally, with the the mid-tweeter array on the 100, 200 and 300 models easily rotated, depending on which you prefer.
From initial experiences with them, we can say these are speakers that truly immerse you in sound, not overpowering or intimidating, but a completely embracing audio experience. In fact, that’s the word – these speakers generate an audio experience and a very good one at that.
A Cinergy cinema sound system is currently being installed at Autumn’s home, combined with Monitor Audio custom installation power amplifier and Arcam control, so we’ll be providing an update in the weeks ahead.
DALI PHANTOM SERIES
DALI, an acronym of Danish Audiophile Loudspeaker Industries, was founded in 1983 to offer their Scandinavian customer base with loudspeaker products which could deliver the outstanding performance and natural sound that other brands weren’t able to achieve at a competitive price.
Very much a brand loved and respected by audiophile customers both here in Europe and worldwide, DALI are perhaps best known for their portfolio of floor-standing, on-wall and bookshelf speakers, all of which have a very loyal customer following.
Like so many other custom installers, we were very excited when DALI announced the introduction of their in-wall / in-ceiling Phantom Series, a product aimed specifically at professional and expert installers like Majik House.
Size isn’t everything, but we have been impressed by the dynamic sound reproduction from these slim speakers, and consider them to be just as capable as their bookshelf and floor-standing cousins, not surprising given that they share much of the same underlying technologies.
The Phantom Series are ‘in wall’ but not ‘plaster in’ speakers so there will be a smart grille visible (or not, if placed behind a screen as part of a home cinema system), but these are still a very attractive and discreet option and well worth consideration.
Carol and Tim have recently installed a pair of DALI Phantom Series S-280 full-size speakers and DALI Phantom Series M-675 centre speaker at their home in the South Lakes and have been very impressed with the performance. These are combined with a Velodyne Digital Drive Plus Series subwoofer producing 5.1 sound for the screen and also used for music in general. Again, we’ll report back on their opinions in the coming weeks.
ALL CHANGE ON THE SPEAKER FRONT?
Definitely not; at least, not just yet. Although we have been ‘wowed’ by both the Monitor Audio Cinergy and the DALI Phantom Series speakers to the extent that we have invested in them for our own homes, we’re not for one moment suggesting that a complete change is afoot.
We’re still holding true to our current speaker brands and consider the ranges from Sonance, Velodyne, Amina and Monitor Audio themselves to still be the tried and tested leading options for the vast majority of our commissions.
It is, however, great to see Monitor Audio developing their offering and the Cinergy range is a very strong statement of intent towards the custom install and home cinema customers. Likewise, we also welcome DALI developing their technologies to provide new high-end audio options for professional custom installers.