Floorstanding loudspeakers — Eltax MONITOR PWR 1959

The Monitor PWR 1959 is a passive floorstanding loudspeaker from Eltax styled after 1970s hi-fi, with a walnut veneer cabinet and a wide, low proportion, unlike typical slim towers. It belongs to the Eltax Monitor 1959 series and was launched in its original form as the Vintage PWR 1959, sold as a pair at EUR 999. Eltax is based in Jutland, Denmark, and has made hi-fi speakers for more than 50 years.

Key specs that matter

Eltax built the speaker as a three-way system with reflex loading of the woofer. A newly developed 38 cm woofer with a cellulose pulp cone handles the low range, a 16 cm midrange with a cellulose cone covers the middle band, and two 25 mm dome tweeters set in horn flares with a central phase plug take the treble. Eltax quotes 30 Hz to 22 kHz within plus or minus 3 dB, a sensitivity of 96 dB at 1 W and 1 m, and an impedance of 5 to 8 ohm. Recommended amplifier power is 30 to 250 W, with 250 W given as the RMS handling. Each cabinet measures 518 mm wide, 900 mm high and 385 mm deep and weighs 34 kg.

Engineering and use context

MDF forms the enclosure, reinforced by several internal braces, while the mid driver sits in its own dedicated sub-enclosure so that pressure from the large woofer does not act on its cone. Two large reflex ports open side by side on the front baffle, so the rear panel can face a wall at modest distance. The cabinet rests on inclined supports that tilt it back slightly, aligning the arrival of sound from the three driver groups at the listening position. Screw terminals accept heavy gauge bare cable as well as banana plugs and spade forks, so thick speaker cable can be fitted without adaptors. A hollow base under the cabinet helps isolate it from vibration, and the acoustic fabric grille fixes with discreet straps instead of magnets. Because the bass comes from a single large woofer in a cabinet about half a metre wide, the Monitor PWR 1959 takes up noticeably more floor area than a narrow column, and its weight calls for two people when positioning it.

Pairing

Such high sensitivity lets even a small amplifier play loud, so low power valve designs and small class A or class D units in the 30 W region are workable, while the upper power rating leaves room for a larger solid state amplifier. A lowest impedance of 5 ohm poses no difficulty for typical integrated amplifiers and AV receivers. In a 20 m2 room the pair benefits from space to the sides given its width and front ports.

Alternatives

The Eltax Monitor IX is a slim two-way floorstander with twin 130 mm woofers, a 25 mm soft dome tweeter and 92 dB sensitivity.