【新品發表】Siltech Pantheon

[Leo Yeh]

在今年的9月18日，來自50多個國家的音響記者將前往荷蘭參加Siltech開發喇叭計劃的記者會，部份新聞稿的摘要如下：

Celebrating 25 years of Siltech precision audio engineering. On September 18th, 50 journalists of the international audio press from Europe, US and Asia will descend on Holland to witness the official launch of Siltech's new statement loudspeaker project. For a teaser, here's part of the press release:

Siltech started with a lofty vision: to create the world's best transducer liberated from musical compromise. It would cater to every style of music and every type of listening room. From the most subdued background levels to extreme 118dB sound pressures free of distortion, it would champion true-to-life dynamics no longer plagued by room issues.

Pantheon的特點



The Pantheon is the fulfillment of this ambitious dream. It portrays the finest of nuances alongside the grandest of fortissimos

• faster than the human ear,
• with spectacular low-level linearity,
• unbelievably warm and natural;
• built to the highest quality standards,
• precision-engineered by using complex software modeling with multi-physics programming.

Pantheon是所有Siltech Pantheon Series的旗艦，限量39對

"The Pantheon loudspeaker is a true musical performer that stands as the flagship for the entire Siltech Pantheon Series and provides the highest level of technical advancements, sound and build quality, craftsmanship and sonic purity," commented Edwin van der Kley, Siltech's CEO and General Manager. "This loudspeaker development combines sound quality with cutting-edge engineering innovations. Siltech deliberately limited the Series to 39 pairs. They are crafted exclusively for a select music-loving elite who seeks the very highest possible audio performance in a clear aesthetic and functional design."

When Siltech launches a reference loudspeaker, one expects truly uncompromising quality and impeccable finishing. With the launch of this unique loudspeaker, we now fulfill your wildest musical dreams!

全新的設計：空間不會影響喇叭的表現

Acoustical Design
A new approach: Room-invariant loudspeaker performance

As a regular attendee of classical and other concerts, Edwin van der Kley noted that even the most advanced loudspeakers hardly ever resemble a true life experience. "As an equally enthusiastic pop and jazz fan, I always enjoy the unlimited power, dynamics and especially with Jazz, the raw energy of the brass section slicing through the air. That's the sound we like to recreate, including the crucially infallible timing which separates the best of performers from the rest."

Why do real instruments sound so good in our homes? When recorded and played back, all manner of artifacts suddenly intrude - like boomy bass. This does not happen over headphones. There must be a reason why even the best loudspeakers in the market continue to excite room modes and boundary-induced resonance.*

Siltech took on the challenge to tackle these common problems. By using the most advanced computers and state-of-the-art engineering normally reserved for the aerospace industry, we were able to set new standards.

* Prior to our latest research & development, it seemed obvious to most that big speakers will create more room-induced problems than small speakers. A common belief was that higher bass output aggravated low-frequency resonances to significantly degrade the overall sound.

[Leo Yeh]

Pantheon的設計與製造

For our design, we were inspired by organic forms and refined ingredients. The careful selection of natural materials combined with light metal elements transformed our substantial 300-pound loudspeaker into an object of timeless elegance. Key designers of Traditional Arts, a London-based institute of the Prince of Wales Foundation, co-developed the cosmetics of this unique loudspeaker series to add a pristine and luxurious character to its laboratory-driven functionality. High-gloss paintwork contrasts with the recessed leather of the front panels to emphasize the curved sculpting

Fashioning a Siltech Pantheon Loudspeaker involves a unique process that demands pioneering technology and exceptional hand-crafted artisanship. We employ advanced technologies to control potential enclosure resonance. Eliminating cabinet reactivity while relying on today's most advanced drivers creates a wonderfully realistic sound source that is second to none in the industry.

As just one of the many innovations Siltech developed especially for this project, you will find dome-shaped diffuser panels inside the Pantheon enclosure. Tested in a 3-dimensional control environment, these panels quickly proved to be the most effective address of neutralizing mechanical resonance. As demonstrated by subjective listening evaluations, controlling resonance with a non-harmonic structure proved highly efficacious. This patent-pending invention is just another Siltech contribution to the audio industry.

規格

• Power handling: 800W RMS
• Recommended amplifier power: 60W or more into 4 Ω for a tube output amplifier
• Recommended amplifier power: 80W or more into 4 Ω for a transistor amplifier
• Bandwidth: 8Hz—40,000Hz
• Frequency response: 18Hz—38,000Hz –3dB (with bass port contribution)
• Bass Q-factor: 0.38/0.5 (port closed/open)
• Midrange Q-factor: 0.5
• Distortion: 0.1% THD nominal, < 0.5% @90dB/1m, 30Hz—23000Hz
• Maximal sound pressure: 120dB
• Linear phase crossover, with all drivers wired in correct absolute phase.
• System acoustical slopes 24dB/octave Linkwitz-Riley
• Crossover transitions: 180Hz and 1200Hz
Impedance: 5 Ohms (min. 4 Ohms)
• Shipping weight: Bass cabinet 110kg/240lbs net; head unit 35kg/78lbs net
• Height 140cm 36inch
• Depth 60cm 24inch
• Width: 48cm 19inchColor schemes:

三種顏色
For the Pantheon, we created three exclusive color schemes.
• Option 1: a classy combination of lustrously deep black piano lacquer with aerospace-grade aluminum parts and the subtle use of real fine leather.
• Option 2: a combination of lustrously deep black piano lacquer with exclusive leather accents and real gold-plated cast-metal parts.
• Option 3: A high-tech combination of warm metallic carbon grey paint with matching metal parts.

Every Siltech Pantheon is hand-built and finished to exacting standards by the finest technicians and craftspeople. It is this extreme attention to detail that distinguishes the Siltech Pantheon even among statement efforts.

In our state-of-the-art clean room, highly trained craftspeople spray the enclosure panels with successive layers of Akzo-Nobel primer followed by two layers of high-gloss base coat and five layers of high-gloss transparent coat. Between each layer application, the structure dries at room temperature for 5-7 days.

“‘We check each newly painted dry surface by spraying on a thin contrasting test layer. This shows off the smallest of imperfections during polishing” explains Wim, Siltech’s master cabinet maker.

Enclosure
For our enclosures, Comsol™ optimized angled and dome-shaped multi-layer panels for minimal refraction (Siltech patent-pending) insure flat acoustical impedance to greatly improve driver performance. The twin-cabinet architecture guarantees perfect mechanical isolation and the constrained-layer composite panels add high damping and stiffness to transform each Pantheon into a Comsol-engineered energy-neutral cabinet (Siltech™ patent-pending ENC system)

Transducers
• 2 x 16-inch precision low-Q woofers
• 1 x 7-inch ultra-fast, Comsol-optimized low-Q midrange with patent-pending decoupled motor
• 1 x 19 inch ultra-fast electrostatic high-frequency driver with long-life self-powered power supply
All drivers can withstand very high input power without distortion. The tweeter array includes a 0-15° (+75° to +90° ISO) vertical tilt adjustment to optimize the sound balance for your preferred listening position.

Crossover
The substantial crossover is optimized for minimum parts density despite its 4th-order architecture. All coils are patented supersonic air-core inductors weighing up to 5 pounds each.

Binding posts
Heavy-duty Rhodium-plated WBT terminals.
Akzo-Nobel is a registered trademark of Akzo-Nobel NV. Siltech is a registered trademark of Siltech BV. Comsol, Comsol Multiphysics and Comsol Reaction Engineering Lab are registered trademarks of Comsol AB.