Напольная акустика — Lawrence Audio VIOLIN

The VIOLIN is a two-way monitor in the Instrument series of Lawrence Audio, the Taiwanese brand started in 1996 by artist and designer Lawrence Liao, whose models take their names and angular, cubist cabinet shapes from string instruments and avoid parallel walls. It is sold with a dedicated stand, and a European price of EUR 6,000 per pair was quoted for it.

Key specs that matter

This is a 2-way vented-box design using three drivers. At the front sit an Air Motion tweeter of 25 x 120 mm with a field-replaceable diaphragm and a single 200 mm (8 inch) midwoofer, and on the back is a field-replaceable ribbon tweeter of purified aluminium measuring 60 x 8.5 x 0.01 mm. A VIOLIN SE version shares the same specifications. Lawrence Audio rates the response from 35 Hz to 40 kHz and gives 88 dB sensitivity at 2.83 V and 1 m. Nominal impedance is 8 ohm, with 6.4 ohm as the lowest point, and the recommended amplifier range is 30 to 150 W. The speaker measures 81 x 26 x 40 cm and weighs 19.5 kg, and the matching stand adds 42 x 35 x 43 cm and 7 kg.

Engineering and use context

The midwoofer has an aluminium frame and a sandwich cone made of non-woven carbon fibre on either side of a cell core. The driver uses a 2 inch copper clad aluminium voice coil working in a ferrite motor with a Faraday ring and a demodulation coil. The crossover works at 2 kHz and 9 kHz, with slopes of 12 dB for the woofer, 18 dB for the front tweeter and 12 dB for the rear ribbon, so the rear unit only handles the top octaves. Parts include MKP capacitors, inductors of OFC wire and military-grade metal oxide resistors, and the internal runs are Teflon insulated OCC cable. The back panel carries two connectors for a single amplifier feed. The rear ribbon adds ambient energy aimed away from the listening position, and both tweeters can have their diaphragms swapped by a service technician without replacing the whole unit. The overall footprint of speaker and stand suits a 20 m2 room. Each speaker is shipped in a wooden case of 58 x 40 x 47 cm weighing 17 kg.

Pairing

With its lower sensitivity the VIOLIN needs somewhat more power than the brand's Accuton-equipped models, so an amplifier toward the middle or top of the recommended window is a sensible target. The high minimum impedance lets both tube and transistor designs drive it without stress.

Alternatives

The Lawrence Audio MANDOLIN is a smaller 2-way stand-mounted model using Accuton ceramic drivers and a 7 inch bass-midrange unit.