Floorstanding loudspeakers — Lawrence Audio PENGUIN

The PENGUIN belongs to the floorstanding range of Lawrence Audio, the brand of designer Lawrence Liao, and this passive three-way tower relies on ceramic and sandwich cone drivers from the German specialist Accuton. The cabinet uses bass reflex loading and stands 124 cm tall, 28 cm wide and 45 cm deep, with spikes adding a further 4 cm of height. Each speaker weighs 60 kg.

Key specs that matter

Lawrence Audio quotes a frequency range of 24 Hz to 35 kHz and a sensitivity of 86 dB. Nominal impedance is 4 ohm, with Lawrence Audio advising 100 W to 150 W of amplifier power per channel. The driver complement counts five units per cabinet. A 5 inch Accuton ceramic cell midwoofer covers the middle band, two 8 inch Accuton cell woofers with aluminium sandwich cones handle the bass, and two 1 inch tweeters complete the set, one facing the listener and one firing to the rear. Crossover points sit at 250 Hz and 2,500 Hz.

Engineering and use context

Sharing the low range across two woofers gives the cabinet a large combined cone area, which is what allows the stated deep extension from a reflex box of this height. The ceramic midwoofer works from the lower crossover point up to the tweeter hand-over, so a single driver covers the whole central band without a further crossover point inside it. The rear-firing tweeter sends treble toward the rear wall, which bounces it back into the room, so distance to that wall has a direct effect on how much of its output reaches the listener. Because the reflex port also couples with the room boundaries, the PENGUIN needs a space where it can stand well clear of the rear wall, and it is better matched to rooms larger than 20 m2 than to small studies. The heavy cabinet and the spikes give a stable stance on carpet or wooden floors.

Pairing

Low sensitivity combined with a low nominal impedance makes this a demanding speaker for small amplifiers. A transistor amplifier, stereo or monoblock, built around a strong power supply, able to double its output into low loads, fits the maker's power window, and high-power push-pull valve designs with a low-impedance tap are a possible option. Low-output single-ended triode designs are not a practical match. Speaker cables of generous gauge help the amplifier keep control of the two woofers.

Alternatives

The Lawrence Audio DOVE, a narrower three-way tower, uses a pair of Accuton ceramic drivers and has 91 dB sensitivity.