Сабвуферы — Mordaunt-Short Alumni 9

The Alumni 9 is the powered subwoofer of the Alumni home cinema range, which Mordaunt-Short introduced in 2007 as a follow-on to its earlier Genie and Premiere speaker packages. Mordaunt-Short was set up in 1967 by Norman Mordaunt and Rodney Short and was acquired by Audio Partnership in 1999. The Alumni models were offered as a complete 5.1 set or individually, so a buyer could start small and later grow to 6.1 or 7.1, and the subwoofer alone carried a UK price of GBP 200. Its internal model code is MS339.

Key specs that matter

An onboard 120 W RMS amplifier powers one 8 inch long-throw woofer. Mordaunt-Short quotes a frequency range of 35 Hz to 200 Hz, and the active low-pass filter can be varied between 50 Hz and 160 Hz. Full output is reached with 270 mV at the line input, while the high-level input needs 2.15 V with both left and right channels driven. Maximum power consumption is 240 W, and the unit was built for either 220-240 V at 50 Hz or 110-120 V mains. The cabinet stands 376 mm tall, 260 mm wide and 354 mm deep and weighs 15 kg. Finishes were satin black and satin white, a matt surface chosen to sit next to the gloss cabinets of the Alumni satellites.

Engineering and use context

The woofer uses the brand's Continuous Profile Cone, or CPC, design and fires forward from the front panel. The box is vented, and the port opens downward toward the floor, with its end shaped by Mordaunt-Short to keep mechanical noise and distortion from the vent low. A set of custom-made feet, supplied in the box, lifts the cabinet off the floor under that downward port. The rear panel carries level, phase and crossover frequency controls, and the crossover can be bypassed when an AV receiver already handles the bass split. Connections include left and right line-level RCA inputs as well as speaker-level terminals with both inputs and outputs.

Pairing

In a surround system an AV receiver's LFE output feeds the line input, and the internal filter is then bypassed. In a two-channel system the speaker-level terminals let the sub run in parallel with the front speakers, taking its signal from the stereo amplifier's speaker outputs, or the line inputs can take a preamplifier's pre-outs. The matching Alumni 2 satellites and Alumni 5 centre use a 25 mm aluminium dome tweeter and a 75 mm CPC mid/bass driver, so the sub covers the range these small drivers cannot reach.

Alternatives

The Mordaunt-Short Aviano 7 is a larger subwoofer option, using a 10 inch aluminium CPC woofer and a 175 W amplifier.