The Affordable Towers to BEAT? From Monoprice?!

Check us out: GR-Research.com

[@freone111]

When I had my shop back at home this is the kind of gear that get me excited more than hi-end stuff. Budget friendly gear that perform great and everyone can afford.

[@HaraldMacGerhard]

Could not agree more 🙂

[@hometheaterjoe9489]

Ditto

[@paulgyro]

The Monoproice Monolith THX speakers might be the best value in the industry.

[@musiccritic8704]

The cough and the klipsch came out of nowhere 😂 i really wasnt expecting that

[@carlosoliveira-rc2xt]

I expected it to be repeated twice more but Danby is a gentleman.

[@greggibson33]

The designers at Monoprice are almost genius level to be able to create a speaker of this level while limited to a low price point.... it's actually more impressive than designers with an unlimited cost-no-object budget.

[@levinelson3508]

It’s nice to see some speakers Danny likes. On forums I hear people say things like Danny is full of crap, but honestly, I think the guy knows what he’s doing. He just has a high caliber.

[@Slane583]

They're calling him out because he's poking facts at something they like and they can't handle the facts. What they're also not getting is that Danny isn't MAKING them buy his upgrade kits either. They're reacting and making it sound like he's grandpa and he's forcing them to eat grandma's Lima Beans. He's presenting raw evidence of his testing, explaining what he did to get to where he is and this is what he did to fix it. If you want to buy the parts to make it better that is up to you. I would love it if Danny made me a crossover network for my vintage Pioneer CS53's that I could buy and assemble myself because they don't actually have any crossovers in them. But they probably fall in the category of "Not worth it" as far as upgrades go. But I still love them anyway, especially for the price I paid. :)

[@Shadowban69]

​@@Slane583no...its because of the tube connectors.

[@stevengilmore1509]

A man of integrity in my opinion. I bought his 16 strand speakers, and they DO perform. He is intelligent, and talented!

[@stephenyoud6125]

@@Slane583why not send him one of your Pioneers? I’d like to see that video

[@Slane583]

@@stephenyoud6125 I've thought about it, I'd love to have Danny design a crossover for them. But at the moment they're my only set of useable speakers I have hooked up to my computer. Because he has a lot of people waiting for an upgrade way ahead of me I'd be waiting for a while without any speakers. I would most likely do it when I have an extra set I can use while the Pioneers are absent. So maybe in the future if funds allow. :)

[@stephenyoud6125]

Nice one Brother! Designed by someone who follows your channel, no doubt? Nice job. I'm almost done upgrading my Home Theater surround speakers with new DIY XO designs with better parts. thanks to your inspiration and leadership.

[@stefvanarchipel]

Love the looks of these. Stunning package 🤩

[@jonathanpatterson2798]

Fair play to you.keep up the brilliant work hear and on the Repair shop

[@Lowkey_nxthxn]

I'm impressed to see the first speakers ever that actually have a good crossover network good stuff monoprice

[@DodgyBrothersEngineering]

That's some decent looking frequency responses for what I would consider budget speakers.

[@scottspencer4018]

Thanks for sharing the news on these speakers. It's nice to see some decent stuff coming from an affordable and less recognized brand name. My only hands-on experience with Monoprice products is their 4-conductor 12 gauge speaker wire, which I thought was pretty darn decent sounding for low cost bulk wire. Hopefully a lot of folks will be able to get a decent sounding affordable pair of speakers that are a better value than the multitude of popular profit boxes that so many brand name manufacturers crank out....with a little DIY magic they can get started down the path to some really good sound. Well done all around on this one!

[@v12alpine]

My only experience with monoprice is bulk cat5 and IEC power cables. Pretty cool they are delving into audio and doing so quite well it seems!

[@TriAmpHiFi]

Always interesting..............thanks. 🔈🔉🔊

[@tbob2224]

Someone ought to send you an Encore T6 - they were just on sale for $118 each - could be a good candidate for an upgrade as the build quality is quite good. Extremely impressive at that price to me - reach well into the low 30hz range nearly flat with room gain and very solid dynamics overall.

[@srijithps]

Not many reviewers out there who do a 'tear-down' and explain pros and cons of each component,.. Man! this is how deep-dives should be. The reviewer really knows the subject and thats the "Trust factor" for people who watch this review. Good work and keep going..

[@robh9079]

Hope your klipsch allergy clears up...

[@tonyt.5771]

😂 good one

[@PAINFOOL13]

The hottest weather I was in was Buckeye Az. 126 made my ears ring 😂 Stay cool Danny 😎

[@wwlittlejOfficial]

What i love about this is "reviewers" will not touch Monoprice stuff, generally. theres a few budget oriented guys that might, but I haven't seen any reviews yet. Danny doesn't care, what u send him is what he's gonna check out and test. I LOVE this. I'm definately from the audio doesnt have to cost a home remodeling to enjoy crowd. Now if Danny could design a proper THX style 7.1 system with atmos, lol. (yes I'm aware he has surround and center channel speakers!)

[@RennieAsh]

There's quite a few reviewers with monoprice stuff?

[@wwlittlejOfficial]

@@RennieAsh "... generally. theres a few budget oriented guys that might, but I have(n't) seen any reviews yet."

[@patrickkellaher9673]

Danny, thank you for that note about the 1 ohm resistor. I listen to bass heavy music (Drum and Bass), and I'm fairly sure these would burn up after 1 song, then again, the sub would probably be taking some of the load from the these. I would love to hear some drum and bass on the brutes though. I bet those could put out some nice sub-30 hz signals.

[@v12alpine]

The 1ohm 25 watt resistor is really only dissipating 1/4 - 1/5 of the power since the drivers are 3-4 ohms. So you'd have to pass a constant 100w-125w or more *average* before they become an issue. If you have a separate sub, this would definately be a non-issue.

[@Hawkeye242]

@@v12alpineThanks for explaining. I have these speakers and they hit low end super well. I have not detected any issue playing music or movies with a lot of low end bass. I also have a 3700H denon AVR and am not sending massive amounts of power to each speaker. Monoprice usually over specs products at a given price point. I would be surprised if they saved a couple bucks and put in a resistor that would fry with low bass music. That is hard to believe and I don’t see any owner reviews or posts indicating that this is a problem in real world usage.

[@kenanderson2216]

I'd like to see some real testing on the OMA Fleetwoods. Have you seen these come through yet? They are pricey[10-20K], so I assume they have the good stuff in them. I'd like to see what's under that OMA skirt.

[@HaraldMacGerhard]

Obviously kudos to the Monoprice guys for job well done 😎

[@anthonymiriello5029]

Great video Danny. I got worried when you got ( Klipsch), stuck in your throat and choked.....lol Nice speakers I was considering them. Just got a pair of JBL studio 690. Not great but actually pretty nice sounds, not shouty or too sibilant.

[@fredschroer182]

i have been listening to Danny for accouple of years. i bought the BRUTES 6months ago and had GR build my speakers. every time i compare them with other speakers i have owned that cost 4x or more are out classed by his speakers a broad range of music. if you think he is just a Utube show you are uninformed . these speakers outclass many other speakers i heard too thanks Danny.

[@dannyrichie9743]

You are welcome and thanks for the feedback.

[@deanedgx]

Good review. It would be great if you could include directivity index, estimated in-room response, distortion, and polar plots.

[@dannyrichie9743]

Directivity can be seen in the off axis responses. What the response might look like in a room can also be derived from that data. Distortion measurements taken outside of an anechoic chamber are irrelevant.

[@IliyaOsnovikov]

Danny, that 25W resistor in the woofers circuit does dissipate not all power that goes into those woofers but only a small portion of it. Let's say if we have 8 Ohm driver and 1 Ohm resistor connected in series that resistor would always get 8 times less power than the driver.

[@TheMirolab]

Agree!! A simple Ohms law problem!

[@dannyrichie9743]

That is correct in that it will not dissipate all of the power. The woofer will dissipate more of it. However, the resistor will still only dissipate 25W and that's it. It's also depends on frequency. The lower wavelengths will be rough on it. It might not even handle half of that power if the wavelengths are long and the time frame is long. It is still a problem. Simply raising the impedance of the drivers would have been an easy solution.

[@IliyaOsnovikov]

@@dannyrichie9743 I believe there is no issue with a power rating of that particular resistor in those speakers. Otherwise they would specify two 25W resistors instead of one or some 50W resistor. I agree with you that this issue can be addressed by other and better methods. But it seems that the company just decided to use it's standard drivers in different models to minimise inventory.

[@dannyrichie9743]

@@IliyaOsnovikov The 25 watt rated resistor can be a problem for some people. It just depends on how loud they play certain types of music. One heavy dub step album cranked up might do them in. I also agree that they are trying to minimize inventory and use the same woofers in everything.

[@tonyb3350]

That affect you're talking about in the atmos speaker, I believe that's by design. Dolby has a specific frequency response they require for it to be a "Dolby atmos" speaker. And it's supposed to be that way to create a better height affect. Not sure if it actually works though...

[@sudd3660]

looks like a value speaker, some drawback was the 25w resistor, with the expectation that so many woofers it would handle some eq to add more bass, and also the port would suggest some bass capability. i am pretty sure i would fry that thing with one album of bass mechanic..... but for real world use i set up my speakers with stereo subwoofers, and a high pass. but then the port is only in the way and adds cost. but at least the resistor would probably keep up now.....

[@1013301]

I love your information, and I wanted to know if you ever listened to a pair of "Thiel CS-3.6" speakers? I have owned a pair since 1996, and never heard a better speaker at its price point ($4,300.00) for basic black finish, in 1996. Thiel went out of business in 2012 (after Jim Thiel died from cancer), and was later bought out by a sub-par company, and went bankrupt in 2018. I miss that original "Thiel" sound, Never warm and forgiving, but rather, a microscope into the whole recording from begining to end. I truly miss the "Thiel" sound, and the fact that they were made in Kentucky, before they were bought out. My guess, is that you would hate them, because they are very analytical, and feature a "first-order" crossover, as did most of their speakers, back in the day. :) The last speaker that they made while Jim Thiel was still alive, was the "CS-3.7", which was over 15,000 dollars for the pair.

[@dannyrichie9743]

His brother Tom has been in contact with me regarding a plan to relaunch some products under the Thiel name. So maybe they will make a comeback.

[@think2023]

So...25 watt resistor dissipated ALL of the power in the outer woofer circuit....even when woofer voice coils have 300% more impedance? And...what about damping factor?

[@FOH3663]

That brutal load doesn't let up ... ouch, I suspect some characteristics of compression. Overall however, seemingly a solid design.

[@psyphonyxaudio]

Might have convinced me to upgrade my front end from the Encore to the THX ! ... Always loved this format / tower. How high off the floor is that tweeter?

[@dannyrichie9743]

I wouldn't.

[@nathandaniels4823]

I think he’s talking about the Monolith Encore, not the GR Research Encore 😅

[@dannyrichie9743]

@@nathandaniels4823 Ah....

[@GSP-76]

I love Monoprice's monolith subwoofers. Their 13 and 15 inch 2000w watt subs are probably the best on the market for what they cost. I got the monolith 10 inch sub for my desktop 2.1 setup and couldn't be happier.

[@curtissanjenko285]

I just upgraded my older Pinnacle Super sonic 12”. (2 of them) which have 2 12” per sealed cab….very musical and accurate and never a complaint….to 2-13” Monolith ultra subs….totally different ballgame….home theater hobbyist to home theatre serious….can’t even describe how powerful they are.

[@ElCidPhysics90]

Wow. The 465 is a lot taller than I expected. Considering using their in wall 465 as LCR

[@Bradimus1]

This is a company that makes big powerful subwoofers and as well, they consider these home theater speakers. It isn't intended to be playing much under 80hz if at all.

[@officialpoa3171]

*All you have to do to dampen a cabinet is take all the hardware out of it and cut/trim to fit, glue and line the inside of the cabinet with MASS LOADED VINYL. Then for more support add a few staples to hold the material in place, while the glue settles.*

[@NeilBlanchard]

I would suggest the mid/tweeter pod face plate could do with some improvement, as well. Plastic is rarely going to be as stiff or low resonance as it needs to be to keep it from being a weak link.

[@rikardekvall3433]

Put some Dynamat on the backside of the plastic. Then you will reduce some of the resonance.

[@NeilBlanchard]

@@rikardekvall3433 Sure, that's one possibility. Another might be to do fabric and glue layers. And/or some ribs across the narrow web between the drivers.

[@rikardekvall3433]

@@NeilBlanchard Ribs might make edge diffraction. Keep it on the inside.

[@NeilBlanchard]

@@rikardekvall3433 Yup - that's what I meant. Plastic of this sort needs to be strengthened and damped.

[@davej9228]

May I request that you explain the spectral decay graph,what am I looking at and what does it tell me. You've shown it many times but it means nothing to me.

[@dannyrichie9743]

I did do a video on that. It is one of the older ones on measurements.

[@xxxYYZxxx]

Another great review by Danny, but I can't take my eyes off the Brutes in the background.

[@Silentprofessional1]

Which speaker brands use the best crossover parts?

[@toecutterjenkins]

It would be interesting to see if the atmos speaker could be replaced with an upfiring tweeter.

[@BootJamesOut]

Hello folks. I feel it might be best to use the same tweeter mid combo plate but in its own box or Vifa M10 4" midrange. As we all like to play too. Or try the little Mecca speaker. Ceiling to wall Sona tube cut to quarter rounds, to control the wave. Yes I'm still crazy Ride Easy

[@Shadowban69]

Bought a pair of NS-690's for 300. Im a happy camper.

[@1Aquadon]

I think all budget brands need to have a white version of more of their products!!

[@randyduncan795]

If you have serious amps capable of below 2 ohms I wonder how bypassing those 1 ohm resistors would sound.

[@Aswaguespack]

I’m a Louisiana “neighbor” and the heat and humidity is brutal here too. I think you guys are a couple degrees hotter than we are but we expecting triple digit temps this week. No rain to cool us down, and it’s inside time to listen to music 👍🏻 “When you have Lemons you make Lemonade.” As always great stuff Danny

[@bingdong8571]

These things are 1000 bucks a pair right now with sale!

[@linandy1]

Cough *Klipsch* 😂

[@think2023]

Serious question. If steel nuts on binding posts cause serious degradation , smearing the signal.....why don't stamped steel baskets (Much more ferrous material) get the same condemnation. Or...the steel chassis of the amp, or the laminated ferrous coils in tube amp output transformers etc? There might be several POUNDS of ferrous material subject to inductive eddy current losses....but removing the steel binding post nuts makes all the difference? (and are they really IN the signal path if all other parts of the binding posts are non ferrous?....why would current flow through higher resistance steel if thick brass parts constitute a complete path...even with steel nuts?

[@dannyrichie9743]

Steel on the binding posts is in the signal path and affects the signal. Steel used on a driver frame is part of structure. It does not affect the signal. Yes, removing it makes a difference.

[@supermanwhereareyounow3081]

Do they still make speakers or going out of business? Everything is out of stock like forever

[@Edward135i]

This speaker is on sale for $750 right now.

[@seanb3303]

Speaking of acoustic centers, Danny why do you stay away from coaxial designs?

[@dannyrichie9743]

We've used coaxial designs in the past and we have had one under development for the last two years. When we get it to where it needs to be then we'll bring it out. Also, most of the coaxial drivers out there suffer from a number of problems that I find unacceptable.

[@shipsahoy1793]

When companies pinch pennies on hardware, it doesn’t say much for their integrity. Put your product where your marketing is !!

[@shipsahoy1793]

@@Moonplant432 Lol, you’re basically stating the obvious, hence apparently not “in tune”with the statement made.

[@realjaxon]

What is the ohms of those towers?

[@dannyrichie9743]

See the 8:51 mark.

[@ubeuonly]

Ebonics not spoken here

[@ahnenpost5237]

The dip in the response about 6kHz did not occur in the smaller model - to me, something went wrong there and I would like to fix it by just using the crossover-topic of the smaller model. This time, I have a different opinion about this speaker, I do not agree with Danny.

[@dannyrichie9743]

The crossover for those two models will not interchange. Also, that dip at 6kHz is not too bad.

[@danabunner487]

Sounds like someone should purchase the 460T version, not get the questionable ambience top-mounted tweeter and save $300 (actually $470 right now as the 460Ts are on sale) a pair.

[@louskimming4371]

I have no context for how they actually sound, nor how they would rank against other speakers, other than the possibility that we are to deduce something from the title. Puzzling.

[@dannyrichie9743]

The quality of the parts used will tell you a lot about how it is going to sound.

[@anonymous007advice]

Monolith Subs are better than SVS take a look!

[@RegondiMusic]

yes I have the Monolith Sub ver 2 10 inch and my friend the SVS about the same price and specs. The SVS sub is very weak.

[@anonymous007advice]

@@RegondiMusic I compared them with Subwoofer benchmark SPL Tests...from their budget entry level to their flagship models and Monolith wins at virtually every price point and is better priced as well. (This comming from a current and long term SVS fan and owner since my first Sub PB12/Plus2 back in 2005.) But today i'd be buying Monoprice Monolith Subs without question!

[@ricksmith7659]

Blasphemy... Lol. I've been seeing RSL Speedwoofer reviews saying the same thing and now you talking about Monolith being better. I use 2 SB1000 Pros because they are very small for a 12" sub.

[@dextermorgan1]

I've been screaming that for years now. Monoprice subs are amazing. Especially for their price. Ive bought 3 so far.

[@anonymous007advice]

@@ricksmith7659 RSL does pretty good too, watch them.

[@bingdong8571]

Their description says its built with hdf wood? T\F?

[@aaronswalwell4673]

Little confused that you didn't show the before and after measurements like you usually do.

[@dannyrichie9743]

There were no before and after measurements. We did not redesign it. It is just a parts quality upgrade, binding posts upgrade, new wiring, and sheets of No Rez.

[@bkline3147]

Danny, I own these speakers (love them for my HT) and thank you for the review! I would like to try to upgrade them, but at $1k for the pair is more than I want to spend and I'm not sure I have the expertise to upgrade the parts / make a new board. However, I would like to do the other upgrades (NoRez, wiring, tube connectors)...will that help the speakers, and is it an option?

[@dannyrichie9743]

@@bkline3147 That will really help.

[@user-gf7kj5vj3p]

Pity not bi ampable capable...

[@epi2045]

$765 each isn’t really budget. I think the Emotiva line is a better value.

[@dextermorgan1]

Have you heard either one? The Monoprice speakers sound really good. The Emotiva products are OK. There's nothing wrong with them at all but they don't sound exceptionally good like these do. The Emotiva uses cheaper x over parts too. I have friends with both speakers. To all of us that listen to them, everyone agrees the Monoprice are a significant improvement over Emotiva.

[@bearclaw5115]

I have sent back or sold every Emotiva speaker I have purchased except the B1+ and I'm not a huge fan of them either. Their speakers range from junk to just ok if you ask me. Under 2,000 a pair is budget. Not to say that's cheap, it's just that speakers below that tend to have a compromise or two to hit the price point.

[@Seiserism]

First

[@hifiman4562]

First reply.

[@Take-the-Ticket]

@@hifiman4562 Comment

[@peternemeth4947]

Second

[@dilbyjones]

Measurements don’t show radiation pattern

[@dannyrichie9743]

The off axis measurements give you that data.

[@hom2fu]

that's 1 aspect. it also depend room size + furniture.

[@dannyrichie9743]

@@hom2fu The room certainty has everything to do with the in room response, but the room responses is not part of speaker measurements.

[@DodgyBrothersEngineering]

Third, but who cares, I'm here for the video...

[@kodyadams5561]

GUY ARE YOU HIGH? THIS IS THE BEST SPEAKER FOR $700 FOR 1 OR $1,400 FOR A PAIR YOU GET 7 SPEAKERS FOR EACH TOWER. THE SOUND AND CLARITY FROM THESE SPEAKERS WOULD MAKE YOU THINK THEY WERE ABOUT $3,000-3,500 .

[@dannyrichie9743]

Yet, they left a lot of room for improvement.

[@darrengillesdarrengilles8336]

So $1500 USD a pair five years ago and the idea is for these speakers to sound good you need to build an entire outboard crossover network and if that's not bad enough you have to pay more money for the privilege of doing so. 45 years ago I went to the now Iconic Bay Bloor Radio in Toronto Ontario Canada and sat down in a listening room with a switching module in my lap and previewed a dozen or so speakers listening to an LP I brought from home and switched from speaker pair to speaker pair with the same track playing and based on what I heard picked the best sounding speakers out of the group bought them took them home and never looked back on that purchase. That is how you as an individual need to buy speakers, your ears are never mentioned in these videos and the truth is everyone's ears and hearing is different from each other and for that single irrefutable truth you can cut out all this confusing technological rabbit hole insanity which is for people who are never satisfied, can never spend enough money and painfully more true, never agree with each other on what sounds the best. Don't believe me? There are dozens of audio Gods on the internet that think Danny is full of shit and their are dozens of audio Gods that think those Gods are full of shit and on and on and on it goes forcing you to chose which Audio Gods religion you will buy into and that cash investment " NOT YOUR HAPPINESS " is what these guys and this industry is all about. You are not going into an audio retailers facility with a battery of electronic testing equipment looking for scientific data your ears will never hear. All you have between parting with your money and being happy about it is " YOUR EARS " so? use them, make a choice that makes you happy and never look back.

[@carlose.martinez545]

Many times on your comments about different louspeakers you receive to test or to improve, particularly on lower priced boxes, you complain about the thickness of the wooden walls, particularly the lateral ones. Very few, even from brands like ATC, add some kind of anti-resonant wood plate, or even dowels, to dampen the walls. So the walls resonate when you knock on them, and certainly with music. Adding large horizontal wooden pieces inside an existing commercial box would decrease the volume, though just using two 1" thick dowels, forcefully pushed in without any glue would help a lot and eat up little volume. More effective than using Nores, I think. But there's another solution that could be used on several resonant points on the box wall, even front to back, that might work marvels. Using a galvanized steel threaded bars, 1/4" thick, bought by feet or meter, then cut to the extension of the box walls separation. Two 1/4" bolts per end. You tighten the second end's external bolt till resonance is lowest, and then tighten the internal bolts. www.amazon.co.uk/Threaded-Galvanized-Strength-Diameter-Locking/dp/B0BCQRGQ62/ref=sr_1_1?crid=MIFULAL6YY10&keywords=galvanized+threaded+bar&qid=1687888632&sprefix=galvanized+threaded+bar%2Caps%2C329&sr=8-1 Of course you have to embed the external bolts on the wood, which will depend on the external wood finish, which is an important issue. But the gain you will have in deadness is considerable. Worth thinking of a way to do it on your box. Carlos E. Martinez

[@dannyrichie9743]

Stiffening up the walls with braces breaks up the resonances and pushes them up to higher frequency ranges, but a product like No Rez is still needed and very effective at damping out the resonances.

[@audiotechguy]

I love Monolith but I love GR better 🫶