Definitive Technology Speakers - Opinions???? (1 Viewer)

[Rob_VVVV]

Due to space limitations (see below thread) I am considering picking a set of these puppies up.

Im looking at the Following.

4 ProMonitor 200 speakers for Mains and Rears

the Procenter C2

and the Pro Sub 200

Does anyone have any experience w/ these? What other options are out there

for good - high quality "bookshelf" speakers?

I currently have full size Polks and I just love them - I know I wont get the same sounds w/ these smaller once - but something close would be nice.

Also - I heard that DT now has powered bookshelf speakers.

Any opinions on these?

Thanks

Rob

 

[Michael Botvinick]

Robb,

There are alot of Def. Tech. dealers out there. Go listen to their speakers. I believe that Def. Tech speakers are the best value out there. To get better speakers you will have to spend ALOT more money. The powered bookshelves sound great. So do the new mini monitors. But I am a tower fan. Bottom line is go and listen to them. I think they will take you to another level over your Polks. Anyway my $.02

 

[LowellG]

I just bought the new Studio Monitor 350’s. It was between them and the 200’s. They are smaller in size than the PM200’s, but I thought they had a much cleaner sound. They are a 3-way vs. 2-way speaker. They have a 1” tweeter, 5.25 mid and an 8” side firing sub/large woofer. I felt like the 200’s did go deeper (larger cabinet), but not by much. Plus the 350’s had not even been used that much and may not have been broke in. I thought the 350’s definitely sounded better for music. In HT I would have taken either pair. The 350’s cost $50 a pair more than the 200’s, but look much nicer and have a smaller footprint if size is a concern as it was for me.

The only bad thing about the 350’s is the dealer said the CLR 2002 is the matching center, which cost’s $500 (ouch). I emailed Def Tech to ask how the C2 would match up. I am still waiting for a reply. I am only running the pair of 350’s up front in phantom center mode. They are on 24” stands on each side of my 32” Trinitron about 4’ apart. I don’t know if I will ever get a center channel. It sounds pretty good already. For music they are great. I hear very distinct voices and instruments. I am no audiophile though so try and listen to both.

I also listened to the Power Monitor 500’s. They to were very good. However, I still thought they would need a Sub and couldn’t justify their additional cost. It all depends on how much money you want to spend. Over the last three months I have listened to Paradigm, Bose, JBL, Polk, Atlantic Tech, and Klipsh. I really liked the clean sound of the 3-way JBL’s, but not the size. I wanted the size of the Polk RT25I. I found them both in the SM350.

I don’t think you can go wrong with even the PM100’s if you want a 2-way speaker just for HT. I might pick some up as surrounds when my dealer runs a sale. My local Def Tech dealer has a sale coming up in June so I’ll decide by then. I am using my cheap Aiwa’s right now and they sound fine with the Def Tech’s. I must not be too picky. I have also ordered a pair of the HTD Level One’s to try out instead of the Aiwa’s. I figure with their 30-day money back guarantee, I can at least try them. I may not have to spend the money on more PM100’s.

I have the system paired up with the new Yamaha RXV530. So far I am very pleased with it too. Anyway, I have probably given way too much of my opinion, so as I stated earlier you may want to go listen for yourself. But to answer your initial question, I like my Def Tech’s.

 

[Bob_A]

Guys, have you considered using one of DT's bookshelf-type speakers (like the SM350) for a center channel? This would give you basically ideal timbre matching. It should work well, and it might save you a little bit of money. I believe that all of DT's bookshelf-type speakers are shielded.

Lowell, what is the difference between the SM350 and the PM700? They seem to have the same drivers, but the former seems to be a smaller cabinet (which accounts for the added bass extension with the PM700).

 

[LowellG]

Bob, I want to correct an earlier error in my post. I stated the SM350 has an 8” subwoofer, that’s incorrect, it’s a 6.5”. The SM450 has an 8” Sub, 6.5” mid and 1” tweeter. The 450 is only a little bigger than the 350, way smaller than the 700.
The difference between the PM700 and the SM350 is huge, literally. It's about 4-6 times the size and weight. I have seen it and it is big. Calling it a bookshelf speaker is even more of a joke than calling the JBL S-38 a bookshelf speaker. However, the PM700 has two excellent reviews on the Def Tech website. Home Theater Mag loved it. If I had the room and wanted to spend that much, I would probably own it as well. The other big difference is the PM has an 8” powered sub, 250W for the 700, vs. non-powered sub in the SM series.
They all sound good to me. It’s a matter of price and space after that. Check out the specs at www.definitivetech.com

 

[Bob_A]

Lowell, you were actually correct initially. The SM450 has a 10 inch woofer, a 6.5 inch midrange, and a 1 inch tweeter. The SM350 has an 8 inch woofer, 5.25 inch midrange, and a 1 inch tweeter. The PM900 has a 10 inch woofer powered by a 250 watt amp, a 6.5 inch midrange, and a 1 inch tweeter. The PM700 has an 8 inch woofer powered by a 250 watt amp, a 5.25 inch midrange, and a 1 inch tweeter. The PM500 has an 8 inch woofer powered by a 150 watt amp, a 4.5 inch midrange, and a 1 inch tweeter.

Interesting...DT decides to go with passive woofers on these new models.

 

[Tom Brennan]

Decent speakers but I hardly think their technology is definitive. They sure throw the terms "professional", monitor" and "cinema" around loosely too.

 

[LowellG]

Bob, actually their website has the error. When you look under the Studio Monitor series section it shows the 10' and 8" config. When you click the Loudspeaker Specs button and scroll down to Studio Monitor, it gives you the 8" and 6.5" config. It didn't make sense to me how the SM350 could only be $25 more than the PM200 with an 8", it does with the 6.5". Either way, I am happy. I wanted a 3-way speaker and small size. I think the passive sub is just another way to compete. Some people like me like the 3-Way sound. Jama, JBL and I am sure other manufactures make them. They also cost allot less than the PM series.

 

[Steve & Karen]

I listened to the PowerMonitor 500, 700 & 900 series, and liked the 700 & 900 (and wife liked them a lot; see below). The 500 with smaller midrange driver sounded very cheap/empty/tinny to me. Overall the sound was very good for the 700 & 900... I've been told by DefTech to leave at least 3-5 inches in the back and on the side with with the powered subwoofer, so need a large bookcase to make it really a book case speakers.

I like a warmer sound then my wife who apparently likes a brighter sound... she picked the living room audio only speakers several years ago and chose the KEF Q Series... she likes the PowerMonitor... I like the Paradigm Reference Studio 40... my problem (see other post) would be to to get a small & cheap subwoofer to go with the Paradigm Studio 40s (which have good bass range for a bookshelf) or just get the DefTech 700...?

-Steve

 

[Bob_A]

Lowell, thanks for the info.

Steve, take the DT's home and try them out. They should not sound bright, tinny, or lean at all.

 

[Brett DiMichele]

Tom,

We all know by now that you are a 50 year old vintage

horn fanatic and I am sure we all agree when we say that

is cool and to each his own. But I honestly see no need for

anyone to come into someone's post and say "well I hardly

think thier technology is definative"

It's the name the company chose. I beleive that Def Tech

uses some great technology and it may very well be "definitive"

but no speaker technology is revolutionary.

Just like engine technology not much has changed in the

past 50 or so years other than the electronics side of it.

 

[Shawn C]

I have a pair of BP-2X that I use for my surround speakers. They actually match up to my Klispch Reference main/center speakers pretty well.

I have them hanging on the wall behind me. No problems whatsoever. They sounds great.

 

[Bob_A]

Sandy Gross graduated from JHU (Johns Hopkins University). He founded Definitive Technology. Def Tech was the first company to use built-in powered woofers in a tower speaker, the first company to use built-in powered woofers in a center channel, and the first company to use built-in powered woofers in a bookshelf-sized speaker. Sure, some people may scoff at the very notion of such a thing, but you now see companies such as ACI and Dynaudio who use such designs in their "high-end" speakers. DT also uses some interesting technology for their tweeters, where the aluminum tweeters are specially annealed to relax the crystal structure in a design which supposedly is said to bring together the benefits of metal domes with soft domes.

 

[Camp]

They also use some interesting technology for their tweeters...

Sounds like a brochure in here.

Bob, I appreciate your loyalty to Def Tech and I agree they are fine speakers (I have a nice Def Tech based HT myself). However, nothing Def Tech does in their tweeters is really all that special. There are literally dozens of tweaters out there by different companies that use very similar designs to those in our Def Techs.

 

[MatthewJ S]

Don't miss their factory tour!

Sandy listened to some Bi-polar speakers from other mnfgrs and took what he learned from Matthew Polk and built a great virtual manufacturing company...marketing genious!!!

Bose built tiny little speakers while other speaker companies scoffed at the idea, now look at how much of that sub/sat schlock is out there!!!!

 

[Bob_A]

I will be more specific. From their website:

"When Definitive introduced the concept of built-in powered subwoofers, we literally reinvented the loudspeaker. Our patented technology (U.S. Patent #5,887,068) combines multi-driver bipolar arrays with side-firing, high-definition, high-wattage powered subwoofers built into beautiful, sleek designer-styled cabinets which occupy 1.1 sq. ft. of floor space or less".

"the new PowerMonitor Series of ultra high-performance bookshelf speaker systems, the first ever with built-in powered subwoofers. "

"this [Home Theater Magazine] review marks the debut of a great idea: the world’s first center speaker with a built-in powered subwoofer".

And the tweeter technology, which other companies are specially annealing their aluminum tweeters?

I'm not trying to say that other loudspeakers companies have not come out with products which are as innovative (if not more innovative) than DT, but I just feel that DT has had some interesting ideas. They certainly use some interesting technology. Just my humble opinion though.

 

[Bob_A]

I agree that DT is a marketing powerhouse. I hope people don't fall for that! But I have always thought that their speakers deserve the praise that they are getting. And their street prices are reasonable IMHO.

Mirage was the company that first introduced bipolar technology to the world. They make nice speakers as well.

 

[Camp]

Quoting hyperbole from their website doesn't help. The fact remains that powered drivers, while uncommon, existed before Def tech.

...and Mirage did not introduce bipolar technology to the world. Bipolar speakers have been around for quite some time. Mirage was the first to successfully market bipolar speakers using traditional drivers.

 

[Bob_A]

One of those quotes was from a professional review, and another one of those quotes was an actual patent! Hyperbole? What other companies are using built-in powered woofers in such a small bookshelf-type speaker as the PowerMonitor? Did DT not come out with the first center channel specific speaker with a built-in powered subwoofer (as the reviewer claimed)?

 

[David Judah]

A couple of other nice things about DT speakers is that they have a small footprint and very solid, resonance free cabinets.

DJ