Introduction:
A relatively new loudspeaker manufacturer from Poland, Pylon Audio makes some very nice speakers given their extremely competitive pricing are truly hidden gems in what is a sea of so many brands and types of loudspeakers currently available to all.
Pylon Audio makes their own cabinets and assembles the loudspeakers in their factory in Jarocin, Poland. The fact that they are making cabinets for many a top notch speaker brand in Europe says a lot about their cabinetry prowess and workmanship.
Unboxing:
The Opal Monitors come packed together in a single cardboard box that is quite simple to open and extract from. Thick Styrofoam blocks protect the Opal Monitors from the top & Bottom sides, so one can definitely reuse the packing for future movements if required at all. Suffice to say that the packing is simple yet functional.
Out of the box:
The Opal Monitors are quite a looker with the walnut wrap around the cabinet and matt black front baffle give them a look of a speaker that definitely is well put together and will put to shame those costing a lot more than them. Having said that, they are made to a price and that reflects in the way of them having simple single speaker binding posts enclosed in a typical mass market plastic binding post enclosure. A simple sticker printed with the model, impedance, sensitivity & frequency range details are stuck to the top rear left corner of each cabinet. That pretty much is what I can nit pick on these speakers.
The driver orientation is unique as well, what with the woofer placed above the tweeter, similar to what Mission does to their range of speakers, to aid time alignment & better transient performance towards the listener. Having said that, one doesn’t really think about such aspects once the music starts playing, the focus is definitely on how good they sound. Right out of the box, the Opal Monitors sound extremely balanced and weighty across the frequency range. This is such an important trait as one usually takes time to adjust to new speakers going through their burn-in period, which isn’t the case with the Opal Monitors. A variety of music was played and associated electronics/cables partnered with the speakers definitely showcased how the sound changed with each of the above entering the chain. The Opal Monitors definitely impress with the scale of sound that they can reproduce effortlessly, something that is rare in speakers at their price point. The Opal Monitor’s are rear ported but placement of these also isn’t an issue as they sound pleasing even when not ideally placed in the room. A slight toe-in gives a wonderful soundstage, though such things usually are a personal preference & subjective as are most aspects of this hobby. This made me think of doing A/B comparisons with mass market branded speakers costing double the price(ones that I politely won’t mention) and to say that the Opal Monitors put them to shame is an understatement. Pylon certainly have a winner in their hands with the Opal Monitors!
Associated Electronics & Cables for review:
Amplifiers:
Rega Brio
Naim Nait 5Si
Fezz Audio Titania
Parasound Halo Integrated
Sugden Audio A21 SE
T+A PA1100E
Source:
Wiim Mini
Wiim Pro Plus
Cocktail Audio N15D
Rega Planar 2
Thorens TD403DD
Densen B400XS
Cables:
Speaker Cables:
Wireworld Horizon
Nordost Blue Heaven
Power Cords:
Tellurium Ultra Blue II
PS Audio AC3
Interconnects:
Tellurium Blue II
Nordost Red Dawn
Wireworld Terra
Tech Specs:
| Impedance | 8 ohms |
| Frequency response | 45Hz-20kHz |
| Nominal power | 60 watts |
| Maximum power | 100 watts |
| Efficiency | 86dB |
| Dimensions [W x H x D] | 190 x 400 x 280 mm |
| Weight | 7.5 kg / piece |
| Woofer | Pylon Audio PSW 18.8 CS/M |
| Tweeter | Pylon Audio PST T-80/8 |
| grille | Yes |
| Warranty | 4 years |
Verdict:
The Opal Monitors are extremely well finished and balanced in their sound reproduction as well. They work with low wattage amps beautifully suggesting that one can get away with any amplifier that outputs quality amplification. We found them to particularly pair well with Rega’s Brio Integrated Amplifier, which denotes that one can build a very satisfying stereo set up for a relatively small amount of monies.
For example, one can definitely build an analog or digital front end based set up with the Brio & Opal Monitor combination for under 2L, which will definitely provide years of excellent music playback. The addition of a Pylon Subwoofer if needed will definitely add body to the low frequencies but as such will only be for those who like their music to have more bass reinforcement.
The Pylon Opal Monitors are speakers that I would highly recommend not only to those wanting to build their first quality hifi set up but also to those who are already well entrenched into the hobby and would like to set up a secondary set up for their study, office or den.
Chapeau Time Indeed!
