Monitor Audio Gold GX Speaker Line Preview

Monitor Audio is one of those rare breed of speakers that have garnered not only audiophile, but critical success. They are one of those speakers that nearly everyone respects. You may not own them, but you've heard of them - and you've likely heard nothing but good things. So when they announced a new line of speakers at CEDIA this year, we couldn't help but show up.

The Gold GX line is meant to be a more affordable alternative to their Platinum line. To start with, the speakers are drop dead gorgeous, sporting a number of high quality finishes including Black or White high gloss lacquer or real wood veneers (Bubinga, Walnut, or Natural Oak). The cabinets are curved for increased rigidity and to reduce internal standing waves. In order to get this quality of finish, Monitor Audio applies 11 layers of lacquer by hand. Such workmanship shouldn't be marred by unnecessary holes, so Monitor Audio has equipped their new Gold GX line with magnetic grilles.

If a speakers were bought on looks alone (and believe us, they are), the Monitor Audio Gold GX line would sell like hotcakes.

But it isn't just about looks. The new line sports a number of improvements - all based on the drivers in the Platinum line. First, they have the new C-CAM wideband GX ribbon tweeter which will reproduced sounds up to 60kHz. The woofers utilize Monitor Audio's RST (Rigid Surface Technology) cones with oversized voice-coils and powerful magnet structures. The woofers are mounted in die-cast driver chassis, vented for optimal performance. Each of the drivers are mounted on a single tensioned through-bolt which is secured to the back of the cabinet. This bolt acts not only as a rigid cabinet brace (reducing unwanted enclosure flexing), but it also effectively decouples the driver and the front baffle. Inside the Gold GX speakers you'll find Pureflow Silver cabling and dedicated midrange and tweeter enclosures for precise speaker tuning. 

There are seven new speakers in the Monitor Audio Gold GX line (see table below). The GX300 Tower is a ported, three-way speaker with the C-CAM ribbon tweeter, a 4" midrange, and two 6.5" woofers. This flagship of the line retails for $5,495 a pair (half what the Platinum flagship tower commands) and brags a frequency response down to 30 Hz. The GX200 drops the sizes of the woofers to 5.5" and lowers the price by a grand while only losing 5 Hz off the low point (down to 35Hz). The two bookshelf offerings are the GX100 and GX50 which mirror the two tower offerings with a 6.5" woofer and 5.5" woofer respectively. These retail for $2,195 and 1,795 a pair and dip down to 42 Hz and 55 Hz respectively. The GXC350 center channel has the same driver compliment as the GX300 tower but in a smaller, sealed box while the GXC150 mirrors the GX200 except without the midrange or port. These retail for $1,695 and $1,095 and have similar low points as the bookshelf offerings (40 Hz and 55 Hz).

The GXFX is a switchable dipole/monopole speaker designed to be wall mounted for surround duties. Uniquely, it can be toggled for mono/dipole duties via a 12 volt trigger. It retails for $1,095 each and, when in monopole mode, uses its front-firing C-CAM ribbon tweeter and 6.5" RST mid-bass driver. Dipole mode uses out of phase side firing driver pairs (C-CAM ribbon tweeter and 4" C-CAM RST mid-range drivers) and the shaped output of the 6.5" RST midbass driver. The 60Hz low point is well within the range of the THX recommending crossover point for subs. Rounding out the line is the GWX15 subwoofer sporting a 15" woofer, 650 watt amp, and an integrated room correction system for $2,795. The GWX15 is housed in a sealed cabinet with a low point down to a bone crushing 18Hz. At 77 pounds, you'll want to get a friend to help you move this ~16" cubed monster.

Conclusion

Monitor Audio speakers have have a reputation for many things, but being cheap is not one of them. While you'll have to dig into your wallet for the new Gold GX line, you can put together a 5.1 system for less than the cost of the flagship tower speakers in the Platinum line. Given that the Gold GX line borrows much of the technology from the Platinum line, that represents a pretty significant value. Monitor Audio fans have something to really get excited about with these new offerings and, for those new to the company, the Gold GX line may be the perfect entry into the world of high end audio.

For more information, please visit www.monitoraudiousa.com.

Unless otherwise indicated, this is a preview article for the featured product. A formal review may or may not follow in the future.