Напольная акустика — Westlake Reference SM-1

The Reference SM-1 is a large five-way main monitor from Westlake Audio, the American maker of studio loudspeakers, part of its Reference Series. It is built as a production reference system for large control rooms, next to the BBSM and Tower series in the current Westlake catalogue, and Westlake states that SM-1s were used in the recording of Michael Jackson's Thriller.

Key specs that matter

Two 18-inch woofers handle the bass, with a 10-inch cone midbass above them. A 2-inch horn-loaded compression driver covers the midrange, a 1-inch compression horn the treble, and a half-inch compression super tweeter the top octave. Crossover points are 200, 800, 3200 and 10000 Hz. Rated response is 20 Hz to 20 kHz within plus or minus 3 dB, and sensitivity is 101 dB at 2.83 V and 1 m. Nominal impedance is 4 ohms with a minimum of 2 ohms. Rated IEC power handling is 600 W short term and 1800 W long term. The cabinet measures 99 cm high, 124.5 cm wide and 81.3 cm deep and weighs 158.8 kg, so it is wider than it is tall.

Engineering and use context

Westlake claims about 6 dB more headroom at low frequencies than most studio monitors, which is the reason for the pair of 18-inch drivers, and describes the crossovers as phase aligned. The SM-1 can run in several ways. With the MRX-2 two-way active crossover it can be bi-amplified, or run as a tri or quad-amp system with passive sections. With the SM-1X four-way active crossover it becomes a quad-amp system, or a five or six-amp system with passive sections. Using the SM-1X and MRX-2 together gives a fully active five-amp setup. Speaker wires attach to a heavy-duty barrier strip on each cabinet. The cabinet comes in black or walnut, with a one-year warranty.

Pairing

The 2 ohm impedance minimum calls for power amplifiers that stay stable into very low loads, and in multi-amp form each band needs its own channel, so a fully active pair takes ten amplifier channels, for example five stereo amplifiers. The weight and size mean the speaker needs a very solid mounting surface. With such high sensitivity, even moderate amplifier power produces high levels, so the large headroom figures matter more for peaks than for average listening.

Alternatives

The Westlake Reference HR-1 is a smaller four-way main monitor from the same series with two 15-inch woofers, a 10-inch midbass, a 2-inch horn and a 1-inch tweeter, rated down to 34 Hz.