Floorstanding loudspeakers — Thorens Soundwall HP 600

The Soundwall HP 600 is a floorstanding loudspeaker from Thorens' Soundwall range, built with an unusually high sensitivity figure and slim, wall-friendly proportions. Thorens is best known worldwide for turntables, so this loudspeaker represents a genuine departure into a product category the brand has not traditionally been associated with, and the design choices reflect a fresh approach rather than decades of accumulated speaker-specific engineering heritage.

Key specs that matter

Rated response is 30 Hz to 28 kHz, a wide and full-range window for a slim-profile design. Sensitivity is a high 95 dB into 8 ohms with power handling up to 300 W, an unusually efficient figure for the floorstanding category that suggests either a large driver complement or an unusually well-optimised crossover. At 60 x 125 x 16 cm and 40 kg it is a slim but dense tower, sized to sit close to a wall, with the 16 cm depth in particular standing out as noticeably shallower than a conventional floorstander of similar height and weight.

Sound and use context

Expect a dynamic, effortless presentation given the high sensitivity, in a slim cabinet profile suited to rooms where a deep floorstander is impractical - the combination of high sensitivity and shallow depth is a useful pairing of traits for anyone constrained by room layout who still wants an easy-to-drive, dynamic loudspeaker.

Pairing

The 95 dB sensitivity means even a modest amplifier reaches high volume easily, opening amplifier choice up considerably compared with a more conventional 87-88 dB tower of similar size.

Alternatives

Thorens is better known for turntables; this loudspeaker forms part of a smaller electronics and speaker offering alongside the brand's core analogue products, so anyone drawn to the Thorens name primarily for its turntable heritage should treat this model on its own acoustic merits rather than assuming it carries the same decades of refinement. Given the unusual proportions here, delivery and installation logistics deserve more thought than with a conventional tower - a 125 cm tall, 40 kg cabinet that is only 16 cm deep will need careful handling to avoid tipping, and a stable base or discreet wall tether is worth considering in a household with children or pets. The shallow depth also means rear-port behaviour, if the cabinet is ported, will interact differently with a nearby wall than a deeper enclosure would, so some experimentation with placement distance is worth doing even though the profile itself invites close-to-wall siting.