Floorstanding loudspeakers — PMC IB2S XBD-AII

The IB2S XBD-AII is a twin-cabinet active reference monitor from PMC for professional mastering, mixing and post-production rooms working in stereo and surround. Introduced in 2019 as part of the second generation of the IB2S active range, it combines the three-way IB2S-AII master cabinet with a matching XBD bass cabinet and moves all amplification and DSP into external rack-mounted electronics. The single-cabinet IB2S-AII, with 2,025W per channel, serves rooms that do not need the extra bass cabinet.

Key specs that matter

Each channel uses two 10-inch (250mm) carbon-fibre/Nomex piston bass drivers, one per cabinet and the same units as in PMC's QB1, plus a hand-built 75mm soft-dome midrange and a 34mm soft-dome tweeter with acoustic radiator. Crossover points are 380Hz and 3.8kHz. Frequency response is 25Hz to 25kHz and maximum SPL is 128dB. Each cabinet has its own 2.4m transmission line. DSP-controlled Class D modules deliver 3,225W per channel, with 2,400W for the two bass drivers, 550W for the midrange and 275W for the tweeter. Inputs are balanced analogue and AES3 digital up to 24-bit/96kHz. The combined system measures 150 x 33 x 56.4cm and weighs about 90kg per side.

Engineering and use context

The flat honeycomb piston of each bass driver sits in an extensively vented cast-aluminium chassis. Being ultra-rigid, it moves as a true piston without the flexing of curved paper or polymer cones at high levels, and it supplies the air pressure needed to drive a long line. The XBD cabinet doubles the driver count and line length, adding about 3dB of low-frequency headroom for larger rooms. Two 3U rack units per channel keep heat and vibration out of the cabinets and make soffit or wall mounting practical, since the rear panels never need access after installation. All adjustments are made from an RJ45-connected desktop remote with a backlit display, which also stores three user presets and switches inputs. The two cabinets of each channel may sit one on top of the other or next to each other.

Pairing

The system takes a balanced analogue feed from a console, monitor controller or preamplifier, with input sensitivity adjustable from +4 to +16dB, or AES3 digital straight from an interface. No external amplifiers are needed, and the PMC IB range offers matching centre and surround monitors for multichannel rooms.

Alternatives

The PMC QB1 XBD-A is another active floorstanding system from the brand.