Monitor Audio Loudspeaker Platinum Series User manual

“In developing Platinum we’ve created the definitive
Monitor Audio loudspeaker. There is no finer
expression of the dedication to sound quality, design
and engineering that has driven our adventure and
innovation for over three decades. We’ve proved once
again that there is no preconception that cannot be
challenged, no rule beyond question. By refining new
materials and technologies, we’re getting closer to
perfection.”
Dean Hartley
Technical Director

Technical Expertise
Innovation
Superior Design
Performance
Pride of Ownership

Famous for his ‘Il Libro Del Cortegiano’ (The Book of
the Courtier, 1528), Renaissance humanist Baldesar
Castiglione coined the word ‘sprezzatura’ to describe
the ideal for courtly behaviour. He insisted that in
order to be worthy, exceptional virtuosity should be
conveyed with an unaffected, effortless dignity. In
essence, sprezzatura is the art of making something
difficult look easy.
Created from the finest materials and complex
technologies, our superlative Platinum loudspeakers
are a sophisticated blend of craftsmanship and
science, but make music so gracefully that it sounds
naturally effortless.
SPREZZATURA

SPREZZATURA

Introducing genuinely esoteric yet affordable
performance and quality, Monitor Audio’s Platinum
loudspeakers are engineered to achieve the most
natural sound possible. In our quest for true
fidelity, we’ve harnessed new materials, developed
innovative new technologies, tested, refined and
optimised every last design detail, and verified the
science with plenty of good old-fashioned listening.
Every component part is produced to exacting
standards and each speaker is carefully hand-built
by our small team of technicians. The new Platinum
Series represents the epitome of British design and
quality, demonstrating Monitor Audio’s devotion
to music and film sound reproduction.
AUDITION

Each pair of Platinum loudspeakers is an original
work of art. Monitor Audio’s cabinet makers hand
select uniquely matching sets of exotic natural wood
veneer in Santos Rosewood or Ebony for every pair.
The veneers are applied by hand after the cabinet
is made to ensure that the grain match is precise
and that no joints are visible. After meticulous
inspection, no fewer than eleven layers of clear gloss
piano lacquer are applied to enhance the exquisite
grain definition and rich variety of colour within each
veneer.
The front baffles are hand-upholstered using
Strathspey leather supplied by Andrew Muirhead.
Strathspey’s natural leather is of the very highest
quality and is associated with many respected
British brands from the furniture, automotive and
marine industries. It conveys a tactile sense of luxury
which blends with the lustrous beauty of Platinum’s
lacquered veneer finishes to impart an immediate
impression of excellence in any room, however lavish
its décor.
Platinum promises a depth of beauty, quality and
performance that will inspire an intense pride of
ownership in lovers of music and design.
Craftsmanship
and Quality

Ceramic-Coated Aluminium/Magnesium (C-CAM®)
Since 1972, Monitor Audio’s near fanatical
commitment to excellence and innovation has
received global recognition and acclaim. When
we launched our R352MD loudspeaker - the first
model to incorporate a metal dome tweeter - it caused
quite a stir. Until that time, most metal domes were
single-metal types made from copper or titanium and
virtually all sounded unconvincing. The R352 used
an aluminium/magnesium alloy dome and sounded
significantly better and smoother than all of its
single-metal rivals. This radical design formed the
blueprint for successive generations of our C-CAM
metal domes.
All the radiating surfaces of the Platinum drivers are
formed from C-CAM, a material originally developed
by the aerospace industry for jet engine components.
Its properties are ideal for loudspeaker cones:
extremely rigid, yet light enough to yield high overall
efficiency. In manufacture, aluminium/magnesium
alloy undergoes stress-relieving processes to
remove surface deformation and molecular weakness.
Once formed, the alloy cone is subjected to a high
temperature anodic coating process, in which a
layer of pure ceramic alumina is depleted onto its
surfaces to give a completely rigid exterior.
Conventional cone materials are liable to flex or
twist in operation, producing a significant level of
audible distortion. C-CAM cones have a much higher
resistance to bending stress and therefore exhibit
much greater fidelity.
Technologies