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Sonodyne SM200AK - Active Studio Monitor

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The New SM200Ak is 2 way studio reference monitor with exceptional frequency bandwidth and sound pressure level making it an ideal solution for broadcast, post-production and professional studios.

The SM200Ak enclosure combines the best of two cabinet worlds: wood and aluminium. The sturdy aluminium die cast baffle ensures that the 8" Kevlar LF and the 1" metal dome HF are firmly mounted and vibration is minimized. Additionally the curved edges of this solid baffle also minimize diffraction. This baffle also features an integral waveguide for the HF, resulting in precise imaging and exceptional on and off axis response.

The inbuilt low distortion amplifier module continuously provides 150 watt to the LF and 100 watt to the HF and feature room compensating bass and treble tilts useful in difficult acoustical environments.

Review Verdict

Sonodyne are an up-and-coming brand breaking ground rapidly overseas. These tidy-looking, hand-finished cast aluminium-fronted speakers are manufactured in India. This particular model has a largish trapezoidal box shape that’s wider at the back than the front, to minimise internal reflections. (The other models are all aluminium – these ones have MDF sides.)

I was really surprised with how good they sounded straight out of the box, especially considering they were competing with systems that cost significantly more.

Overall the sound was clean and open, with excellent transient response, solid bass and outstanding stereo imaging. The 150W bass and 100W treble amps coped well when driven hard, remaining clear at all volumes.

At this price range they’re perfect for someone with a mid-size project studio or home studio who would normally be buying something like the Mackie 8” systems or similar – in fact I swapped them out with some original-model Mackie 8” speakers in the studio at work, and immediately the sound was much improved.

Zed Brookes, NZ Musician Read More

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Sonodyne Technology

1. Magnetically shielded Kevlar cone woofer with powerful motor and long throw voice coil. A die-cast chassis helps to eliminate resonance
2. Flared twin bass ports to minimize turbulence
3. Magnetically shielded ferro fluid cooled silk dome with wave guide for a larger sweet spot
4. Aluminium die-cast enclosure with non-parallel edges; specially treated inner walls (to prevent ringing)
5. Easily accessible master volume and power
6. Inclined front baffle for time alignment
7. Bi-amplifier with 4th order active crossover. Toroidal transformer, low noise op amps, minimal signal wiring and careful PCB layout for high S/N ratio
8. Balanced TRS and XLR connectivity (recessed)
9. LF, HF tilts for workstation boundary compensation

Good quality audio reproduction hinges on the quality of audio production. Sonodyne, India's premier audio design and manufacturing house of 40 years, understands this. To allow for high-grade production values in audio recording and broadcast we present the SM active monitors.

The SM series of reference monitors were designed with the utmost attention to detail and feature high-grade components throughout. The SM series key elements:

MONOLITHIC ALUMINUM DIE CAST CABINETS: At Sonodyne, our research into alternate enclosure designs has resulted in the development of rigid aluminium die-cast enclosures for the reference series. The entire cabinet of SM 50Ak and 100Ak is a 6 mm thick monolithic aluminium die-cast. For the SM 200Ak, the front baffle is aluminium, and the sides and rear are made up of 15 mm MDF. Additionally, the interior walls are coated with a specially formulated deadening compound to prevent ringing.

MECHANICAL PRECISION: All sides are non-parallel to discourage the formation of standing waves. The inclined baffle also contributes towards horizontal time alignment. Additionally, all corners are rounded, and all controls well recessed to minimize edge diffraction. The twin bass ports are flared at both ends to minimize turbulence. The vent area has been optimized to prevent power compression at loud levels.

KEVLAR WOOFERS IN METAL DIE-CAST CHASSIS: The woofer for each monitor has been designed with 2 objectives in mind: As a bass unit, it should provide fast, tight and low distortion bass from the modest sized enclosure, and, as a low mid unit it should yield a smooth frequency response, good transient response and minimum cone break up. Kevlar was the obvious choice of material. The bass performance was achieved by optimizing the T/S parameters to suit the enclosure volume and by equipping it with a powerful motor and long throw voice coil. The mid performance was achieved by optimizing the cone geometry and the dust cup.

INTEGRAL WAVEGUIDES: The 26mm dome tweeter, for the 100Ak, has a wide dispersion at high frequencies made possible by the integral waveguide. In conjunction with the waveguide, the dome produces smooth response out to 22 kHz. A rear chamber design pushes the tweeter resonance peak to below 1 kHz allowing for a low crossover frequency thereby minimizing phase errors due to horizontal time alignment. The SM 200Ak, with a new waveguide design, features excellent off-axis response, that allows it to be placed farther from the console.

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