Floorstanding loudspeakers — Canton Vento 90

The Vento 90 is a three-way bass reflex tower from Canton, the German maker based in Weilrod, and a larger tower than the Vento 80 in the reworked Vento series. Canton describes it as a stately floorstander, and it uses larger woofers than that model. The German price is EUR 1,999 per speaker in black high gloss, with white high gloss and light walnut high gloss as the other finishes.

Key specs that matter

Two 192 mm woofers and a 174 mm midrange use titanium-graphite diaphragms, and the treble is handled by a 25 mm ceramic tweeter. Crossover frequencies are 170 Hz and 3,000 Hz. The stated range is 20 Hz to 40,000 Hz and the impedance is 4 to 8 ohm. Canton rates the load capacity at 180 W nominal and 340 W music. Measured with the base, the speaker is 29 cm wide, 110.5 cm high and 38 cm deep, and it weighs 29.7 kg.

Engineering and use context

The drivers were newly developed for this series, and their matt titanium-graphite cones sit flush in the lacquered baffle without visible screws. Double cone construction and surrounds built for long excursion let the woofers move a lot of air, while the stiff and well damped membrane material is intended to keep each cone working as a piston. The basic form of the enclosure was changed to gain internal volume, which allowed a lower bass tuning than before, and the sharper cabinet radii together with the new base are meant to cut sound radiated by the cabinet walls. The reflex port is a downfire type that vents toward the plinth, and the plinth is shaped so that the tower seems to hover. Solid screw terminals on the back take cables up to 10 mm2 as well as banana plugs or fork connectors and support bi-wiring. A fabric cover is held by magnets, and passive Canton models carry a five-year warranty. Packed for shipping, each speaker weighs 33.5 kg in a carton of 119 x 48.5 x 35.5 cm.

Pairing

The larger woofers and generous power handling mean the Vento 90 can take a powerful amplifier, while an impedance that drops to 4 ohm makes stability into low loads more relevant than raw wattage. A solid-state integrated or power amplifier with a 4 ohm rating fits the load, and the bi-wiring terminals also make bi-amping from two stereo amplifiers possible. Its height and depth suit a room of around 20 m2 or larger.

Alternatives

The Canton Vento 80 is the slimmer passive Vento tower with two 174 mm woofers and a 250 W music rating.