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High-Performance Audio Reviews
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In 2014, GoldenEar introduced the Triton One to great acclaim at the Las Vegas CES. Then, the Triton One launched into the marketplace, thrilling listeners and reviewers alike, while achieving stupendous and previously unheard-of sales velocity for a loudspeaker in its price range. And, of equal importance, the One garnered an enviable and unmatched collection of the industry's most prestigious awards from the industry's most important publications, both print and online, winning Loudspeaker or Product of the Year from many, if not most, of them. Clearly, we knew that the One would be a very hard act to follow. There was a spirited discussion within our product development group about an all-out assault on the ultimate state of the art, producing a six-figure loudspeaker to do battle with the most esoteric and expensive loudspeakers on the planet. However, after much soul-searching, rational minds won out, and the decision was made to create a new GoldenEar flagship that would joust with the best, but would still stick to our trademarked slogan, "We Make High-End Affordable." We are pleased and proud to introduce the new Triton Reference, a loudspeaker destined to raise the bar and set a completely new performance standard for reasonably priced, affordable loudspeakers. The Reference has already begun gathering its own collection of honors, having just won the prestigious and coveted CES Innovations Design and Engineering Award!
The Triton Reference is an evolution of everything that we have achieved with the Triton One, but taken to a stunning new level of sonic performance and sophisticated visual design. All the components in the Reference - the active sub-bass drivers, upper-bass/midrange drivers, and high-velocity folded ribbon tweeter - are new, and have been specifically developed for use in the Reference. The fully balanced crossover is, of course, specially engineered for the Reference, and the powerful subwoofer amplifier and 56-bit DSP control unit are an evolution of those used in the Triton One and our SuperSubs. The new 6" upper/bass/midrange drivers are cast-basket units that incorporate a low-mass voice coil and a newly developed cone with unique low-mass bonding to the butyl rubber surround for improved transient response. In addition, they have a large, newly designed, specially engineered "Focused Field" magnet structure, which better directs the magnet flux to the voicecoil gap. The newly engineered 6"x10" active low-frequency drivers for the built-in powered subwoofers have 40% more surface area than the active drivers used in the Triton One, along with a larger diameter voicecoil and an even more massive magnet structure which also utilizes our "Focused Field" technology. The new Reference High-Velocity Folded-Ribbon tweeter incorporates 50% more rare-earth neodymium magnet material than do our other HVFR tweeters, for improved transient response and higher efficiency. The four inertially balanced 10.5"x 9.5" side-mounted (two on each side), planar, infrasonic radiators are similar to those used in the SuperSub X, but have been retooled to allow for even greater excursion.
There are a myriad of other significant upgrades and refinements, including: new internal wiring with a specially developed twist, further development of our signature balanced crossover including film capacitors bridged across the high-pass section on the upper-bass/midrange drivers, a unique proprietary mix of long-fiber lamb's wool and Dacron for more effective internal damping, intensive work with a high-resolution accelerometer to determine the most effective implementation of complex internal bracing, a 3/32"-thick steel plate built into the medite base to further stiffen it for increased stability, which results in higher resolution of subtle details, new stainless steel floor spikes and cup... and the list goes on and on. Visually, the Reference offers a strikingly beautiful upgrade to the classic Triton styling, with a gorgeous hand-rubbed piano gloss-black lacquer finished one-piece monocoque cabinet. Sleek, statuesque and refined, the Reference is simply a gorgeous statement piece that will excite listeners with its dynamic visual presence, as well as its extraordinary sonic performance.
Sonically, the Reference has been engineered to perform with a dramatic and authoritative voice, comparable to speakers that sell for 10 and more times its surprisingly affordable price. They completely disappear, with superb three-dimensional imaging that stretches from wall to wall and beyond, and depth that makes the wall behind them seem to vanish. The astonishing bass is rock-solid with low-frequency performance that is tight, quick, highly impactful and musical with extension flat to 20Hz and below. Another GoldenEar signature is a silky smooth high end that extends to 35kHz with a lifelike sheen but no trace of hardness, sibilance or stridency so common with lesser tweeters. Tremendous time and energy has been put into the voicing of the speaker and the seamless blending of the drivers, for unmatched musicality with all types of music, and home theater perfection. Rarely do speakers excel at both, but with their world-class neutrality, the Reference absolutely does. A special bonus is the Reference's extremely high 93.25dB/W/m sensitivity, which gives them tremendous dynamic range and allows use with almost any high-quality amplifier, including many SET tube amps. U.S. Retail Price is $4249 each. World Debut will be at the CES, at the Venetian, suite 30-120. Delivery is expected in Spring 2017.
Triton Reference
Specifications
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