Swiss company Dartzeel, known for its high-end audio electronics, has introduced its first loudspeaker model, the MHB-12NB. The new floorstanding speaker features a two-way configuration with a coaxial driver arrangement, in which the high-frequency driver is positioned directly in the center of the woofer. Behind its relatively traditional appearance lies an innovative acoustic design developed by the company’s founder, Hervé Delétraz. The model’s key feature is the patented Virtual Infinite Baffle technology, designed to significantly reduce the influence of cabinet geometry on sound wave propagation.
The technology is based on an unconventional approach to minimizing sound diffraction at the edges of the front baffle, commonly associated with the baffle step effect. Special openings connected to a system of miniature Helmholtz resonators are positioned along three edges of the cabinet’s front panel. According to the designers, this solution helps control sound wave propagation and creates an acoustic effect typically associated with a significantly wider front baffle. Dartzeel claims that the effective acoustic baffle width reaches approximately two meters, even though the actual dimensions of the speakers are considerably smaller. The technology is also intended to reduce the influence of speaker placement on sound quality, allowing the MHB-12NB to be positioned close to walls or even in room corners without noticeable degradation in performance.
The Dartzeel MHB-12NB is built around a 12-inch woofer with a 1.25-inch compression tweeter mounted at its center. The coaxial configuration promotes coherent sound wave propagation across different frequency ranges, helping create a unified soundstage and a wider optimal listening area. The crossover frequency is set at 1.2 kHz, while the specified frequency response extends from 32 Hz to 30 kHz. With a sensitivity of 98 dB, the speakers do not require particularly powerful amplification and can also be paired with relatively low-powered Class A tube amplifiers. The nominal impedance is 8 ohms, the maximum power handling capacity is rated at 300 watts, and the specified maximum sound pressure level reaches 123 dB.
The introduction of the Dartzeel MHB-12NB marks a significant expansion of the Swiss manufacturer’s product portfolio, which has previously focused primarily on amplification equipment. Rather than following a conventional loudspeaker design approach, the company has combined a high-sensitivity coaxial driver with an unusual method of controlling diffraction effects. According to Dartzeel, this architecture is intended to deliver expansive, dynamic, and spatially coherent sound while giving owners greater flexibility in speaker placement. Pricing and the exact availability date for the Dartzeel MHB-12NB have not yet been announced.
