Definitive Technology Mythos Eight User manual

It’s not often that I find something to
complainaboutwhenitcomestoDefinitive
Technology, but, lately, I have cause. Every
year,duringeachofthetwomajorconsumer
electronics trade shows, CES and CEDIA,
I(and plenty of other journalists, dealers,
and a few hangers-on who shouldn’t have
beenletintobeginwith)havemadethetra-
ditional pilgrimage to the Def Tech booth.
Wegothere,drawnlikecorn-breadmuffins
to butter, to hear the latest Def Tech incar-
nation, thanks to the genius of head honcho
Sandy Gross and company.As you would
expect,someofthesespeakerintroductions
have been more exciting than others—
the unveiling of the first Mythos
speakers being one of the extra-special
highlights in recent memory. Regardless,
the Definitive Technology booth never
disappoints.
Ah,butthere’s the rub. More than almost
any other company, Def Tech has come up
with speakers that sound good, look good,
and simply make audible sense (rather than
havinga$299,$399,$499,fill-in-the-blank
approach).Infact,theseguyshavehitmore
home runs than Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron,
Mark McGwire, and Barry Bonds com-
bined—allwithoutaccusationsofillegalste-
riod use. But, to continue the baseball anal-
ogy, visiting theDefTech booth isabit like
going to the Home Run Derby before the
All-Star Game. It’s tremendously exciting
at first, but, after a while, the excess of suc-
cessleadsyoutotakeitallforgranted—and
soon you’re heading out to get a beer and a
hot dog. Of course, that doesn’tmake the
achievement any less of an achievement. It
just means that, once you’ve seen a ball
reachtheupperdecks,theonesthatlandjust
overthewallinthebleachersdon’tgetquite
as much applause as they should.
I’m sure the self-imposed stress that
comesfrompushingyourselftocontinueto
amaze and delight fans (and frustrate com-
petitors) must be enormous. So, when you
hear things like “the best thing we’ve ever
done”comingfromtheconfidentbutunpre-
tentious group at Definitive, you can’t help
“Definitive Technology
hit this one out of the
park... sound, looks
and construction this
good arealmost
impossible to find
at anywhere near
this price.”
HIGH PERFORMANCE $$$ – $$$$
Definitive Technology Mythos ST
SuperTower Speaker System
Mythos the magnificent.
from the
test bench
“this is the floorstanding
speaker I’d recommend
that you buy.”
BY DARRYL WILKINSON

butthinkthateitherthepressure hasfinally
gotten to them or they’ve come up with
something truly special.
Mythos Optimus
This year’s unveiling was of a speaker that
Sandy Gross had been hinting at for
months—the mother of all Mythos speak-
ers,theMythosST.TheMythosline,incase
you’reunfamiliarwithit,wasrevolutionary
when it first appeared several years ago.
(Sincethen,manyotherspeakercompanies
have brought out similar designs.) Mythos
speakers are very slender, with curved alu-
minum cabinets, and are available as
floorstanding towers and on-wall/bookshelf
speakers.Inotherwords,theyaren’trectan-
gularboxes,andtheyexhibitabitmorestyle
than is typical.
At the time of their introduction, how-
ever, unlike the majority of the other styl-
ishly svelte speakers available up to that
time,theMythosspeakerssoundedgood—
really goodtome.Andtheydidn’tcarrythe
standardexorbitant“style”surcharge.Since
then, Def Tech has continued to refine the
Mythos concept, adding floorstanding and
on-wall models of various sizes.
Ican’tquite call the new Mythos ST a
refinement; and, yet, it’s not a revolution,
either,since it’sso firmly grounded in its
Mythosological heritage. But the ST is dra-
maticallydifferent—theemphasisbeingon
“drama.” Whereas all of the previous
Mythos models possessed style and class,
the Mythos ST adds gravitas, a sense of
sophistication and strength. It’ssomething
that’snot easy to come by, even in much
more expensive speakers. The best way to
characterize this powerful new beauty is to
call it an achievement. In fact, the Mythos
STmaywellbetheultimateachievementof
the Mythos milieu—a true tour de Mythos.
Mythmaker
In order to maintain their slender form
factor, Mythos speakers rely on relatively
smallmidbassdrivers.Theysoundgoodon
their own, but Def Tech designed the series
to be used with a powered subwoofer. The
Mythos STs depart from that tradition by
including a powered woofer in each tower,
asdomanyofDefinitiveTechnology’sother
speakers. Def Tech designed this particular
woofer specifically for the Mythos ST; it
uses a new 6-by-10-inch “racetrack” (oval)
activedriverthat’s acoustically coupled with
apairofsimilarlysizedplanarpassiveradi-
ators. A 300-watt internal digital amp
powers the driver. Definitive claims the
built-in woofer is the sonic equivalent of
their $1,199 SuperCube I standalone
powered subwoofer.But the Mythos ST’s
overallformfactorandbasicproportionsare
similartothoseoftheotherMythosmodels.
The result is a speaker that exudes power
and class.
The 1-inch aluminum dome tweeter in
the Mythos ST is new from the ground up,
including a new voice coil and high-energy
magnet, a new dome design, a new
“due to the might of the
Mythos STsbuilt-in
woofers... I felt the
impact of individual
pressure waves from
the left and right
drum sets.”
“Mythos STswerejust as
adept at letting loose as
they wereat getting up
close and personal”
“ these guys have hit more
home runs than Babe
Ruth, Hank Aaron,
Mark McGwire, and
Barry Bonds combined”
DEFINITIVE TECHNOLOGY MYTHOS ST SUPERTOWER SPEAKER SYSTEM
OVERALL RATING
Value
àSound, looks, and
construction this
good are almost
impossible to find
at anywhere near
this price
Features
àLFE inputs on
Mythos STs for
optional use
àOn-wall brackets
included with cen-
ter and surrounds
Performance
àHas dynamic bass
response with seri-
ous punch
àSmooth transition
between surrounds
and fronts It’s extremely rare to find a
system that offers performance for
both music and movies in a pack-
age that looks this stunning. And
it’seven more rare to find it at
this price.
Build Quality
àAluminum mono-
coque cabinet is
extremely dense
and nonresonant
àGranite base is
attractive, but
attach carefully to
avoid noisy air leaks
Ergonomics
àCenter and sur-
rounds are designed
for on-wall or
off-wall use
àYou don’t even
have to consider
using a separate
subwoofer
93 98 94
General information
Mythos ST SuperTower Powered Tower Speaker, $1,799/each; Mythos Eight On-Wall Center Channel Speaker, $699/each;
Mythos Gem XL Surround Speaker, $349/each àDefinitive Technology, [phone], www.definitivetech.com àDealer Locator Code DEF
95
97 93
95
“thanks to the genius of
head honcho Sandy Gross
and company... visiting
the Def Tech booth is a
bit like going to the
Home Run Derby before
the All-Star Game
. ”

surround,andafaceplatethat’s acoustically
contoured for better dispersion. The two
5.25-inch midbass drivers use what Defini-
tive calls Balanced Double Surround
System technology. These circular drivers
have the expected flexible surround for
suspension around the cone’s outside edge,
as well as a second surround near the
cone’s apex.
The system that Def Tech sent me con-
sistedofapairoftheMythosSTs,aMythos
Eight for the center channel, and a pair of
Mythos Gem XL speakers for the
surrounds. The Mythos Eight is an on-wall
speakerthatyoucanusehorizontallyorver-
tically. It has two 5.25-inch midbass drivers
that are acoustically coupled to a pair of
5.25-inch pressure-driven radiators and a
single 1-inch aluminum dome. The Gem
XLcomes with a bracket for on-wall mount-
ing, or you can use it with optional stands.
Itincludestwo4.5-inchmidbassdriversthat
fire askew from the speaker’s forward-
facing 1-inch aluminum dome tweeter. Def
Tech didn’t send a separate subwoofer (nor
did they need to), due to the might of the
Mythos STs built-in woofers.
The Sound of Sublime
WhiletherestofthespeakersintheMythos
line are striking (in both sound quality
and looks), the Mythos STs are simply
sublime. It doesn’ttake long to realize
it, either.Dave Kakenmaster,Definitive’s
regionalsalesmanagerandaveritablefount
ofgreatmusicrecommendations,introduced
me to Kathy Kosins’ Vintage CD. As far
asI’m concerned, as a songstress, Kosins
is everything Diana Krall should be.
The new tweeters in the Mythos STs were
fabulous at bringing out the subtleties
in Kosin’ssilky,sultry voice, and the brief
bass-clarinet solo at the beginning of “Go
Slow” showed the graceful blend between
the tweeters and the midbass drivers. (By
the way, if you order a copy of Vintage
fromwww.kathykosins.com and mention
“Mythos ST review,” Kosins will sign the
disc and ship it at no additional charge.)
While it’s not as great a recording as
Kosins’CD,blues-guitarist Coco Montoya’s
Dirty Deal disc is full of gritty life and
energy, and the Mythos STs were just as
adeptatlettinglooseastheywereatgetting
upclose and personal.The built-in woofers
showed their mettle on Godsmack’s amaz-
ing dueling-drum video, “Batalla de los
Tambores.” The racetrack drivers sound
tightandarejustascapable of blowing you
out of the room as any good standalone
poweredsubwoofer.InthecaseoftheGods-
mackvideo,onebenefitofhavingpowered
woofers in each tower was that I felt the
impact of individual pressure waves from
the left and right drum sets. You wouldn’t
experience that with a single subwoofer in
the room.
Theentiresystemfunctionsspectacularly
well as one cohesive whole when it comes
to home theater. When Saladin attacks
JerusaleminKingdomofHeavenwithgiant
trebuchets flinging what sound like nuclear
fireballs,Iwonderedhowitwasthatthecity
walls held up to even one direct hit—and
then I began to wonder if my own walls
wouldsurvive.(AndthenIwonderedifmy
HIGHLIGHTS
The first Mythos speakers with
powered woofers built-in
Incredibly smooth performance
from newly designed tweeters
Racetrack-style oval woofers
help maintain slender shape
“the ultimate
achievement of
the Mythos milieu—
atrue tour de
Mythos.”
“ The new tweeters in
the Mythos STs were
fabulous
”
“ The result is a speaker
that exudes power
and class.
”
“capable of blowing
you out of the room...
You don’t even have
to consider using a
separate subwoofer”
“The entire system
functions spectacularly
well as one cohesive
whole when it comes
to home theater.”

brainwouldsurvivetheinanityofthemovie
itself.) The Gem XLs proved to be a great
match for the Mythos STs as the fireworks
flew back and forth. Likewise, the Mythos
Eight performed well as the center channel
during dialogue-heavy scenes, especially
whenKingBaldwinspeaksfrombehindthe
silver mask.
Although Definitive touts the Mythos
Eightasamatchingcenterchannel,Ihopea Mythos ST center channel is in the works.
The Mythos Eight is great, but having the
fluidityoftheMythosST’s tweeters and the
strengthofthosemidbassdriversinacenter
channel would make an already phenome-
nal system absolutely unbelievable.
Oneofthesweeteraspectsof DefTech’s
Mythos line has been its surprising afford-
ability.TheMythosSTs,at$1,799each,will
certainly be a budget stretcher for many
people.But,ifthere’s any way short of risk-
ing time in a federal penitentiary to get the
cash, this is the floorstanding speaker I’d
recommend that you buy. You’d have to
spendgobsmoremoneytogetanythingelse
thatoffersthiscombinationofperformance
and beauty. The Mythos STs are an audio-
phile’s speaker wrapped in an interior
designer’s cabinet that sells for much less
than you’d expect to pay for either.
This isn’t just an upper-deck shot.
DefinitiveTechnology hit this one out of the
park.
from the test bench DEFINITIVE TECHNOLOGY MYTHOS ST
SUPERTOWER SPEAKER SYSTEM
Reprinted from HOME THEATER, June 2007.
For information and dealers
www.definitivetech.com
11433 Cronridge Dr. • Owings Mills, MD 21117
[phone]
AT A GLANCE
SPEAKER:
Type:
Tweeter (size in inches, type):
Midrange (size in inches, type):
Woofer (size in inches, type):
Nominal Impedance (ohms):
Recommended Amp Power (watts):
Available Finishes:
Dimensions (H x W x D, inches):
Weight (pounds):
Price:
MYTHOS ST
SUPERTOWER
Three-way, tower
1, aluminum dome
5.25, mid range (2)
5.25, upper mid (2)
6x10, active
6x10, passive (2)
4-8
20-350
Silver, Gloss Black
51.5 x 6.75 x 9.5
75
$1,799/each
MYTHOS
EIGHT
Three-way, center
1, aluminum dome
5.25, midbass (2)
5.25, passive(2)
4-8
10-250
Silver, Gloss Black
6.1 x 28.5 x 4.375
14.5
$699
MYTHOS
GEM XL
Two-way, monitor
1, aluminum dome
4.5, midbass (2)
N/A
4-8
10-200
Silver, Gloss Black
12.625 x 4.5 x 5.5
6
$349/each
L/R Sensitivity:
91 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz
Center Sensitivity:
91 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz
Surround Sensitivity:
89.5 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz
This graph shows the quasi-anechoic (employing close-
miking of all subwoofers) frequency response of the
Mythos ST L/R (purple trace), Mythos Eight
center channel (green trace), and Mythos Gem XL
surround (red trace).All passive loudspeakers were
measured with grilles at a distance of 1 meter with a
2.83-volt input and scaled for display purposes.
The Mythos ST’s listening-window response (a five
point average of axial and +/–15 degree horizontal and
vertical responses) measures +1.28/–1.68 decibels from
200 hertz to 10 kilohertz.The –3-dB point is at 30 Hz,
and the –6-dB point is at 26 Hz. Impedance reaches a
minimum of 5.21 ohms at 356 Hz and a phase angle of
–36.19 degrees at 179 Hz.
The Mythos Eight’s listening-window response
measures +2.18/–4.55dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz. An
average of axial and +/–15 degree horizontal responses
measures +2.21/–4.88 dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz.The
–3-dB point is at 88 Hz, and the –6-dB point is at 66
Hz. Impedance reaches a minimum of 4.63 ohms at 247
Hz and a phase angle of –51.51 degrees at 139 Hz.
The Mythos Gem XL’s listening-window response
measures +6.06/–1.73 dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz.The
–3-dB point is at 120 Hz, and the –6-dB point is at 106
Hz. Impedance reaches a minimum of 3.98 ohms at
288 Hz and a phase angle of –49.63 degrees at
158 Hz. —MJP
à
à
à
HT Labs Measures: Definitive Technology Mythos ST
SuperTower Speaker System
DEFINITIVE TECHNOLOGY MYTHOS ST
SUPER TOWER SPEAKER SYSTEM
These listings are based on the manufacturer’s stated specs; the HT Labs box below indicates the
gear’s performance on our test bench.
“Mythos STs are simply
sublime... You’d have to
spend gobs more money
to get anything else that
offers this combination
of performance and
beauty
”
The ST’sbuilt-in 300-watt
powered-subs incorporate
Definitive’s new racetrack-shaped
carbon fiber coned driver coupled
to two planar infrasonic radiators.
“ The Mythos STs are an
audiophile’s speaker
wrapped in an interior
designer’s cabinet that
sells for much less
than you’d expect to
pay for either.
”
“Mythos STs were
fabulous at bringing
out the subtleties
in Kosin’s silky,
sultry voice”