The company has invested a huge amount of time and effort into refining the slopes and phase characteristics of the crossover, improving performance inside the pass-band and out of band too. Together with a complete reappraisal of component sources and types, especially in critical locations, the result has been that step up in integration and temporal, spatial and dynamic coherence. The earlier Divins were always seamless for such large boxes, large drivers and wide bandwidths. The Monarque takes that to a whole new level. I guess you don’t know what you don’t have until it comes along…
The significant improvements in musical communication, intelligibility and the more natural perspective that goes with them is obviously good news, but it gets better: those benefits will soon be available to owners of the earlier models. It will be a factory/distributor upgrade and (following the lead established by CH Precision) the upgrade will cost the difference between the old model and the new. Having heard what the new crossover does for the Monarque, if I was an existing Divin owner I wouldn’t be forming an orderly line outside my supplier’s premises, I’d be beating on the door…
Bits and bobs…
I’ve already spent considerable time describing the arrival, installation and set-up of both the Monarques and the system driving them. You can wallow in that here https://gy8.eu/blog/and-so-it-begins-again/ .But a couple of points bear repeating. The first concerns the fact that the speakers are bi-wireable and, like all the Divins, respond positively to both that and bi-amping – although if you go the four channel route, you’ll need four identical channels, not just similar ones. Try to mix and match amplification, even within a single manufacturer’s line and you’ll damage the musical coherence that makes this speaker so special. I ran the Monarques with CH Precision M10s and M1.1s as well as Trilogy 994 mono-blocs – all with conspicuous success. I also used two-channel variations on the above, as well as Trilogy’s 995Rs and the VTL S400-II. In all cases, as good as the two-channel option was, four identical channels absolutely walloped it, in terms of not just scale and dynamic range, but dynamic response, immediacy and musical presence. If you are seriously contemplating the Monarques and you are running two channels of amplification, budget to add another two in the not too distant future. Or better, right now!
Secondly, I’d like to draw attention to the Göbel flight-cases, a transport and installation solution that should be the benchmark for all such speakers. Not only do they provide the necessary protection for the speakers (I’ve never received a damaged speaker or flight-case from Göbel) but the simple expedient of using three-part construction with a separate base makes handling and installing even the heaviest speakers safe and secure. Having been confronted so often with the problems of trying to extract heavy speakers from two-part flight-case or poorly designed crates, my (ever fragile) patience is wearing increasingly thin. Other manufacturers should look at the Göbel solution and learn from it. From a customer’s perspective, it’s yet another reason to congratulate yourself on your purchase, as the installation team position your new ‘babies’ quickly and with a minimum of drama.
