SP Technnology Loudspeakers
Professional Studio Monitoring - Home Audio - Home Theater
"I fully guarantee that you will absolutely be blown away by the Timepiece's performance, or I will give you your money back..." - Mike Garner, President of TweekGeek.com
"I Have never witnessed such wide dynamics reproduced by any loudspeaker of lower sensitivity as that exhibited by the TP2''s. Neither have I experienced or am I aware of any speaker in their size class to offer such extreme dynamic range while maintaining a ruler flat frequency response, completely inaudible distortion and superb imaging..." - Bill Roberts, EnjoyTheMusic.com
"SP Technology''s Timepiece 2.0s are unquestionably among the finest monitors I have had the pleasure of using..." - Stephen Murphy, Pro Audio Review
TweekGeek is proud to represent SP Technology loudspeakers. SP Tech offers a unique approach to loudspeaker design based not on hype or marketing savvy, but on time-tested principles of acoustics and physics. Robert Smith is the chief engineer behind the design. The end result of their endeavors is a loudspeaker line that reproduces music and/or movies with extreme accuracy, dynamics, and utterly unfatiguing musicality. Be warned, once you hear the phase correct, time aligned coherancy and clarity of these speakers, it will be tough to settle for anything else.
Originally Designed as Studio Monitors
The Millennial Reference Series™ studio monitors are designed to the highest possible levels of performance and accuracy. They are applauded by both experienced professionals and enthusiasts alike that demand nothing less than perfection – at an affordable price. The incredible advantages delivered by Waveguide Technology bring into the studio or home an experience that rivals a live performance.
The Series III offers a solid wood front baffle with built-in wave guide. The top and bottom receive the same hardwood surface, and the sides of the standard version are finished in a matte black texture. They can be ordered with a matching veneer as an upgrade.
The Timepiece, as well as all other SP Technology speakers, are manufactured in the USA with great pride and attention to detail.
Studio Finish
- Solid Oak front, top & bottom & Oak side panels with Black Finish.
- Neutrik “Speak-On input connectors.
- Mundorf Binding Posts
- Mundorf Crossover Components
- R. A. Smith Ltd.Copper Internal Wiring
Standard Finish:
- Solid hardwood front panels w/ choice of (3) species.
- Matching veneer species on sides
- Satin Finish.
- Mundorf Binding Posts
- Mundorf Crossover Components
- R. A. Smith Ltd. Copper Internal Wiring
Premier Finish:
- Hardwood Front Panel in Species of Choice (Depending upon availability and/or suitability – may incur surcharge at market price) w/ Mirror-Gloss Finish Option– or…
- Choice of Piano Lacquer (paint) Mirror-Gloss Finish on Front Panel.
- Choice of Veneer on Side Panels (many exotic species available) w/ Mirror-Gloss Finish Option or Piano Lacquer
- Mundorf Binding Posts
- Mundorf Crossover Components
- R. A. Smith Ltd.Copper Internal Wiring
The Technology Behind SP Technologies
Hybrid Technology Bass
SP Tech''s design objectives called for a "hybrid" approach that has been successfully implemented by the use of an inner chamber that absorbs and diffuses unwanted upper bass and midrange tones. The compact size and bass extension to 30Hz. of a ported design has been achieved with a superior transient response and freedom from the "boxy" sound often associated with them. Such performance is usually attributed to only the finest transmission-line systems. The moment you listen to well-recorded performances of the upright bass, timpani, electric bass as well as the kick drum and toms of a drum kit, you will realize how poorly and artificially these instruments are reproduced on most systems.
I found this to be especially true. These speakers present bass information with a clarity and "liveness" that I haven''t heard before in any audio system.
HF "Waveguide" Design
Waveguides are similar to horns in that they change the air load that the driver "sees". The difference lies in the extremes. Our waveguides are characterized by the fact that they utilize relatively low compression ratios. At higher frequencies the air load is virtually the same as a standard "baffle" mounted driver. This eliminates the associated distortion that is common at high frequencies with traditional horns. The relatively shallow design does not provide the higher loading characteristics of traditional horns and hence, none of the distortion either. Acoustic loading is only increased at the lower frequency end of the drivers operating range. This provides added efficiency where it is needed most. The low frequency range of any dynamic driver is where its mechanical limits dominate and ultimately degrade its performance.
The effect on Dynamic Linearity (transient response) is nothing short of incredible. Reproduction of percussive instruments is truly life-like -- almost unnerving. Critical midrange frequencies of the human voice are reproduced with virtually no distortion, imparting a captivating immediacy seldom experienced in recorded music. The masking effects of Time Domain errors are minimized -- thus permitting the natural localization of instruments and performers in 3-dimensional space.
Phase Correct Crossover Design
The Timepiece and Continuum''s crossover frequency is set at 950Hz. That is over two octaves lower than many other 2-way systems on the market. Due to driver limitations on many other systems, most two-way loudspeakers have crossovers that lie right within the critical 2khz range, exactly where human hearing is most accute.
To make things worse, many loudspeaker manufacturers also invert the phase of the tweeter in order to create a smoother frequency response. So in essence they are sacrificing phase accuracy for frequency response, and doing it at one of the most critical frequency ranges in the audio specturm!
Not so with SP Tech loudspeakers. The Timepiece and Continuum both employ true 4th order, in phase, symmetrical Linkwitz - Riley crossovers. What that means to you is a more coherent sound with much less phase distortion. There is no sacrifice of frequency response. This is not an easy or inexpensive solution. SP Tech goes to extremes in order to guarantee that every aspect of performance under the control of the crossover is optimized. Impedance compensation at critical points is always implemented (Often this has secondary benefits in the area of power handling that is often overlooked by those who consider such techniques to be of minimal value). Thermal time constants are modeled and conjugate solutions are implemented where appropriate and practical. The results? A wider sweet spot, more coherance, less phase distortion, better power handling.
Enclosures
SP Tech enclosures are all made "in-house" to exacting standards and under total scrutiny of their own Quality Assurance program. Although they offer standard finishes, virtually any veneer and finish is possible upon special request. Even solid hardwood construction can be provided, depending on availability. Their ability to offer products of such high value is a direct result of having designed and built all of our production machinery from scratch. Also, every machining process is performed on a dedicated device, so set-up time is eliminated, precision is maintained and consistency is assured.
More details (17 kb PDF)
Below are several links to the SP Tech web site. They offer a wealth of information on the advantages of their loudspeakers.
Theories Behind SP Tech Loudspeakers
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