Напольная акустика — Eltax MONITOR MTR 1959

The Eltax Monitor MTR 1959 is a three-way speaker for floor placement from the brand's Monitor 1959 series, a vintage-styled range that recalls the large studio monitors of the 1970s with a wide front baffle, a big woofer and a wooden cabinet. It takes its looks from the smaller Monitor PWR 1959, and the UK list price was GBP 799 per pair.

Key specs that matter

Eltax uses a 25 mm silk dome with neodymium motor, housed in a compression cell, for the treble in this ported three-way design, a 120 mm midrange with a treated cellulose pulp cone, and a 300 mm cellulose pulp woofer for the low end. The crossover splits the signal at 630 Hz and 3,500 Hz with 12 dB per octave slopes. Response is rated at 40 Hz to 22,000 Hz within plus or minus 3 dB, sensitivity at 90 dB for 1 W at 1 m, and impedance at 5 to 8 ohm. The cabinet is 38 cm wide, 60 cm high and 30.2 cm deep, and each speaker weighs 17.7 kg.

Engineering and use context

The flared reflex port on the front baffle is tuned to 32 Hz. Venting forward reduces how much space the speaker needs behind it, which helps in a 20 m2 living room. MDF forms the cabinet, which has internal braces that reduce panel vibration. Instead of a tall slim tower, the MTR 1959 is a low, wide box on a supplied plinth that raises it by 60 mm and tilts it back by 10 degrees, aiming the drivers toward the listener and aligning their acoustic phase at seated ear height. The broad baffle is what makes room for such a large woofer, a size rarely found at this price. Heavy-gauge cables and plugs are included, and the maker guarantees the speakers for two years.

Pairing

The rated amplifier range is 50 to 200 W, and the speaker handles 150 W RMS on a single-wire connection. With this efficiency, a modest integrated amplifier of around 50 W per channel will reach normal listening levels, while a stronger model gives more headroom for the large woofer. Because the impedance stays moderate, most transistor amplifiers and many valve designs with suitable output taps will cope without stress. A turntable-based system fits the retro styling well. The low, deep cabinet also has enough top surface for the speaker to be placed on its plinth beside furniture instead of on separate stands, and the angled base is part of the product, so no extra stands or spikes are required to set the listening axis.

Alternatives

Eltax's Monitor IX is a slimmer two-way floorstander from the classic Monitor series, with twin 130 mm woofers, 92 dB sensitivity and a 900 mm tall cabinet.