PLC150 is Compact New Center Channel Speaker from Monitor Audio

The long-awaited Platinum PLC150 center channel speaker from Monitor Audio is almost here. The speaker is a compact alternative to Monitor's PLC350, which has been woefully large for many installations.

Some foreign sites have been showing the PLC150 for quite some time.

And the product was exhibited in Bristol, England this year, with dealers reporting that they had demos of the unit.

As early as February of this year, consumers were already abuzz over the product. One of them posted on the PLC150 at AVForums.com:

Is there any official MA info on this? Next week I'm buying PL300 but PLC350 is out question, way too big. This PLC150 would be just what I want. Now my problem is that do I buy GSLCR or do I trust this info and wait for PLC150? It would be really shame to buy GSLCR now and then in May see that PLC150 is on stores now. On the other hand it would be really annoying to be without center channel all year 2008 and then just notice that PLC150 never came out.

Other than that, little has been said about the product … until now.

CEDIAnews.com breaks the news on the PLC150, which is fashioned using the same materials, processes, and techniques as all other Platinum loudspeakers from Monitor.

It is a compact two-way, three-driver center channel speaker featuring dual 6.5-inch Rigid Diaphragm Technology (RDT) bass/midrange drivers and a Ceramic Coated Aluminum/Magnesium (C-CAM) high-frequency ribbon transducer.

The optional PLC150 stand can provide straight or tilted positioning for optimized set-up.

Want more technical details on the PLC150? Turn the page.

Pricing and Availability

The MSRP for the Monitor Audio Platinum PLC150 center-channel loudspeaker is $3,300 each, and the floor stand is $550 each.

The product, to be demonstrated at CEDIA Expo 2008, is expected to be available October 2008.

Monitor explains the technology behind the PLC150 center channel speaker in its own words:

PLC150 Technologies

All driver surfaces are Ceramic Coated Aluminum/Magnesium (C-CAM), an innovative alloy material, which is extremely rigid and light for ultra-low distortion and high efficiency. Bass/midrange driver cones employ Rigid Diaphragm Technology (RDT), designed to reduce mass and increase cone stiffness.

A core of honeycomb Nomex material is sandwiched by ultra-thin skins of C-CAM, creating a structure that is extremely light but more rigid than a steel plate when formed as a laminate type construction.

The new concave cone geometry has been refined by FEA analysis to provide a smooth frequency response and eradicate break-up. The PLC150 s front baffle is cast from Anti-Resonance Composite (ARC) material. This is a cast thermo-set polymer loaded with minerals to provide very inert, optimally damped components.

HiVe II port technology provides a straight rifled port design that accelerates airflow and reduces turbulence.

Drive Units

C-CAM high-frequency ribbon transducer
A departure from Monitor Audio s traditional C-CAM tweeter domes, the ribbon design developed for the Platinum range uses an ultra-thin sandwich of C-CAM alloy suspended in a powerful transverse magnetic field of high-energy NeFeB rare-earth magnets. The ribbon serves as both voice coil and radiating diaphragm, with every part of the ribbon driven directly and simultaneously without energy storage. With a mass of just 18mg, the ribbon diaphragm has a very fast transient response and exhibits extremely low inter-modulation and harmonic distortion. These characteristics coupled with a useable frequency range to 100 kHz allow the transducer to capture the leading edge and natural decay of the most complex musical sounds and their harmonics.



RDT Bass/midrange drivers
The new die-cast alloy driver chassis features a vented rear section with an increased open area for low reflection. Using FEA, Monitor Audio has developed motor systems in which a focused magnetic gap and copper eddy rings work together to produce a higher level of linearity and lower distortion than was previously possible. Magnet plates and poles are CNC machined to very precise standards in order to provide ultimate consistency.

Crossovers

All components are arranged to provide the shortest signal path and selected for the best possible sound quality after many hours of listening and evaluation by our engineers. Capacitors are metallized polypropylene film types, specially made by ICW ClarityCap. High power, low tolerance film resistors are used because they have no residual inductive effect. Special flat copper foil air-core inductors are selected to provide low internal resistance and add no discernable distortion to the input signal.

Cabinet Design

The cabinet comprises multiple laminations of wood veneer in a rigid plywood construction shaped to form a one-piece shell. Internally, the sides are non-regular, preventing the formation of standing waves. Monitor Audio has developed a unique "pin-hole" internal bracing structure for the Platinum range, positioned to provide rigidity and integrity. Steel bolts that tie the front and back panels to the ‘pin-hole brace and are tightened to a specific torque further enhance cabinet bracing in order to tune out undesirable resonances. Bitumastic internal damping material is applied to all internal cabinet walls to provide a further level of resonance damping.

Speaker Terminals and Feet

WBT Platinum signature terminals are considered to be of the highest quality available. Precision-machined and plated with pure platinum, they provide very low contact resistance and the best possible contact reliability. They feature accurate fine-pitch adjustment and are suitable for heavy-duty cables with spade, 4mm plug or bare wire connection. Adjustable spiked feet are used on the PLC150 floor stand. Machined to the finest tolerances from high-grade alloy and anodized to the most exacting standards, the feet accept ‘bullet spikes of high-tensile steel, chromeplated to a mirror finish. For hard or solid wood flooring, a non-slip rubber pad is integrated with the foot design.