Bookshelf Speaker Reviews

We reviewed the Aretai Contra 100S, a 2.5-way bookshelf speaker featuring dual 6” midbass drivers and a 1.75” ring radiator tweeter housed in a custom-built waveguide horn positioned atop this unique speaker.

Monitor Audio’s new Studio 89 speakers ($2,500/pair) celebrate the brand’s iconic Studio Series from decades past while incorporating all of the latest technology that the company has to offer.

Dayton Audio's OPAL1 achieves subwoofer-like bass from 5.5” woofers in a compact bookshelf speaker. Priced at $800/pair, they stand without peer for their bass performance and exceptional build quality.

Focal’s Theva No.1 is their new entry-level bookshelf speaker that replaces the venerable Chora series. Focal makes high quality speakers, but how do they fare in a lower price point? Read on.

The Sonus faber Duetto are an impressive pair of active bookshelf speakers. At 4K/pair they deliver truly amazing sound but the prototypes I reviewed were buggy.

The Heco Aurora 300 bookshelves produced a nicely balanced sound that is uncommon for a loudspeaker of its price range. How did they do it and how do they compare to more expensive speakers? Read on.

The Orian 3-way bookshelf speaker is a high-output, coaxial design with a dipole midrange and an 8” bass driver, for only $675/pair. How can it be priced so low? You have to assemble it yourself!

The Sonus Faber Duetto ($3,999/pair) is an active streaming speaker system using Ultra Wide Band technology to maintain a high-quality, uncompressed audio signal between the two speakers. Read on.

The RBH Sound 61/AX is a fully active 2-way bookshelf speaker system that employs SOTA DSP with active crossovers and 400 watts of built in amplification for pristine, dynamic sound quality we review.

The PlatiMon Virtual Coaxial One stand-mount loudspeaker ($6,500/pair including stands)boasts truly superb build-quality and is the latest offering from MonAcoustic. Watch our Youtube Review.

Andrew Jones revealed the new MoFi Electronics SourcePoint 8 ($2,750/pair). It features an 8" concentric driver and a design nearly identical to the SourcePoint 10, but in a more compact package.

We review the Arendal Sound 1961 Monitor, featuring an MTM & waveguide design built with similar DNA to their venerable 1723 series but in a more compact affordable package at $1,100/pair. Home run!

McIntosh’s new ML1 MKII retro Loudspeaker ($12K/pair) has 4-way, 5-driver design that features an unusual horizontal array of midrange drivers, promising wide dispersion and a room-sized sweet spot.

Starke Sound has always been known for their engineering and build quality. Read our review of their IC-H1 Elite Stand mount speakers to find out what in company parts and engineering means to you.

From PSB's Flagship line, Synchrony, we'll be reviewing the PSB Synchrony B600. PSB is known for reliable high end speakers, but will this translate to a $2,800/pair of bookshelves? Read on.

The Børresen Acoustics M1 doesn’t look too different from other high-end two-way bookshelf speakers, but its $100,000 price tag suggests that there is more to them than meets the eye.

At $25k/pair, the SuperMon Isobarics bookshelf speakers from Mon Acoustic are not cheap, but they use the best construction materials money can buy. Does this add up to an amazing sounding speaker?

JBL released a new pair of powered Monitor Bookshelf speakers. The $4.5K 4329P Studio Monitor Powered Speakers come with an 8" woofer, 1-inch compression driver and high-definition imaging HDI horn.

Andrew Jones and MoFi have launched the SourcePoint 10 loudspeakers ($3700/pair). The SourcePoint 10 is a large 2-way stand-mount speaker featuring a 10-inch concentric driver and 91dB sensitivity rating.

With the R80 V2 studio monitor, PreSonus packs 140-watts of amplification into an 8” woofer and a high-powered AMT tweeter, but will it be enough to make us forget about their dome tweeter monitors?

Mon Acoustics SuperMon Mini loudspeaker is a $2,000 all-aluminum speaker that uses a waveguide loaded AMT tweeter and an isobaric-loaded bass drivers. Is it worth the price?

Karl-Heinz Fink bought Epos Loudspeakers and is rebooting the brand with new designs of old models, like the ES14N. The new ES14N features all new technology inside and out. Read on.

In honor of celebrating its 50 year milestone in business, Canadian loudspeaker manufacturer PSB launched the Passif 50 loudspeaker ($2,499/pair). It features retro styling, but is all modern inside.

Our review of the Sigberg Audio SBS.1 active speakers show a design that is long overdue. At $6.5k/pair, these Norwegian beauties give you state-of-the-art design in a reasonable size with high dynamic range.

Sigberg Audio launched in Norway in 2020 offers high performance active loudspeaker designs and subwoofers employing high quality drivers and revolutionary technologies to optimize sound.

We review the Perlisten S4b 3-way bookshelf speaker system to see if the unparalleled technology found in their flagship S7t tower performs superbly in a more modestly sized package.