Напольная акустика — Franco Serblin Lignea

The Lignea is a compact floorstander made in Italy by Franco Serblin. According to the maker, it came from the need for a small loudspeaker that could be easily integrated into a living space. It was the final design project of Franco Serblin himself and went through three years of research and development before it was completed.

Key specs that matter

The Lignea is a two-way system. A 110 mm customised midwoofer is paired with a 27 mm impregnated textile tweeter, and the two are joined by a first-order crossover. The quoted in-room frequency response runs from 58 Hz to 36 kHz. Nominal impedance is 8 ohm and sensitivity is 83 dB at 1 W and 1 m. Franco Serblin recommends a minimum of 20 W per channel. Overall size is 105 cm high, 50 cm wide and 29.5 cm deep. The pair weighs 16 kg unpacked, which works out at 8 kg per speaker.

Engineering and use context

The enclosure has an internal volume of only 4 litres and is vented. Packed for shipping, the pair weighs 18 kg, so the packaging adds 2 kg to the net weight. Each cabinet is made from a single piece of solid wood and includes a refraction chamber that the maker uses to control resonances and standing waves inside the box. The drive units are mounted on a brushed aluminium panel, which also houses the components and sits within the wooden body. The cabinet rests on a stand of brushed stainless steel, which lifts the small enclosure to floorstanding height. The first-order crossover is the simplest filter type, with the fewest parts in the signal path between amplifier and drivers. Two finishes are offered - High Gloss Wood and Medium Gloss Graphite. After Franco Serblin died in 2013, Massimiliano Favella worked to bring the concept to production while following the principles and methods Serblin had set out, so the Lignea reached the market as a posthumous design. Production runs in limited quantities because of the handwork involved, and one Australian listing gives a price of AUD 8,950 per pair.

Pairing

The low sensitivity means the amplifier needs more output to reach a given level than with a higher efficiency design, even though the maker's minimum power figure is modest. The nominal impedance suits most amplifiers, including valve designs with the corresponding output tap.

Alternatives

The Franco Serblin Accordo Essence is a bigger floorstander from the same company, a three-way vented design with a 180 mm woofer.