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Spendor D1 news and commentary

Spendor D1 news and commentary

Spendor’s new £1,795 per pair D1 bookshelf loudspeaker is designed as a replacement for the popular SA1 and calls upon the technologies used in the company’s current D7 flagship floorstander. Optional dedicated and non-resonant stands are also available for £595 per pair.

The D1 features two Spendor-designed drive units; a 22mm ‘LPZ’ polyamide dome tweeter and a 150mm polymer cone made of Spendor’s own EP77 formulation. With moderately low 85dB/W/m sensitivity, but a benign eight ohm nominal impedance, the infinite baffle loudspeaker is capable of a in-room frequency response of a claimed 55Hz-25kHz and sports a rigid, asymmetric braced, dynamically damped cabinet.

Spendor has long provided loudspeakers that dominate the quality mini-monitor market. While the company’s could come across as arrogant by claiming the D1 is “the ultimate small loudspeaker for music fans” in its latest (and surprisingly gushing for a company as conservative as Spendor) press release, with such a back-story, it may have a point.

 

Here’s what Spendor itself has to say on the D1, taken from the press release, with deconstructed translations provided by the Editor.

“The Spendor D1 is the smallest loudspeaker in the Spendor D-line and a worthy successor to the award winning SA1 mini-monitor loudspeaker. Listeners will be captivated by its charming sound, surprised by its clarity and definition, assured by performance and engineering of the highest order and delighted by luxurious modern finishes.”

Translation: We stopped making the SA1. Here’s its replacement, and it’s called the D1. If you liked the SA1, you’ll like this even more.

, Spendor D1 news and commentary

“Spendor D1 is equally at home in a living room, study, bedroom or office. Unlike conventional loudspeakers it has been designed to deliver a naturally balanced sound even when it is installed close to a wall or placed on a bookshelf. Whatever the location, music is delivered with a depth and clarity which is remarkable for a small loudspeaker”

Translation: It’s what we used to call a bookshelf speaker, and technically it’s a half-space (or 2pi) design instead of fully radiating (4pi) design, but people don’t understand ‘pi’ these days unless there’s a tiger and a boat involved.

“The D1 delivers the most enjoyable and engaging bass, hard to define because everything sounds so natural. The effect is magical. Technically, it’s the result of perfectly balanced phase response, optimum bass alignment, high electrical Q and a cabinet which emits no spurious ‘noise’. It allows the D1 to deliver punch and drive and it has an uncanny ability to sound much larger than it looks.”

Translation: We didn’t just throw a couple of drive units in a box, you know? And didn’t you know small is beautiful?

“At the heart of D1 is a pair of Spendor D-line drive units. Low frequencies are handled by a new 15cm bass unit. Treble is reproduced by Spendor’s innovative new LPZ tweeter.

SPENDOR LPZ (LINEAR PRESSURE ZONE) TWEETER

“Imagine focusing an ultra-high-quality camera lens until you see a clear bright image. That’s the effect of Spendor LPZ technology. Our sequential geometry micro-foil operates like an acoustic lens. The result is perfect focus, uninhibited sound transmission and a very wide listening window. Sound images are vivid, in-the-air,  as bright or sweet as any music demands.”

Translation: We know what we are doing because we even make our own drive units. In other news, car analogies are so last year. Cameras are the new black!

 

“The D1 looks as good as it sounds. As fashion moves away from fussy shapes and bling toward functional form and natural materials Spendor D1 is on-trend with its pure-form cabinet and contemporary finishes. Spendor Dark, a diamond polished gloss lacquer over a dark natural wood grain, for an alluring look which adapts to room décor and lighting. Spendor White, a silky-smooth pure white lacquer, for a distinctive ‘cool’ look. Dark ebony for a deep dark luxurious look.”

Translation: We don’t change the style too much between designs, but “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” might not play well, so think ‘timeless’. It’s available in three finishes.

, Spendor D1 news and commentary

“For ultimate audio perfection Spendor has designed a complementary stand. Within the elegant satin form of the stand is a rigid, light, non-resonant structure which ensures that spurious energy and vibration will never degrade the sound.”

Translation: We make a stand for it too!

Cynicism aside, this kind of press release is somewhat unnecessary for a speaker like the D1. Spendor has a strong reputation for making excellent two-way mini-monitors (such as the SA1) and that it builds its own drive units in-house (a rarity in today’s speaker building climate) sets the products apart from the masses. All of which means the D1 will likely prove a very worthy successor to the SA1 and we look forward to testing this.

www.spendoraudio.com

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