It seems like the folks at GoldenEar have been kind of quiet as of late, but that is certainly changing with the availability of today’s review subject, the T66 floorstanding loudspeaker.

The latest speaker from the company takes popular concepts from 1990s speaker designs, GoldenEar modernizes those concepts, and in doing so, the company has arguably created a floorstanding speaker that perfectly complements today’s trends in home audio.

Reviewing the speakers in my home I used the T66 floorstanders in my stereo system powered by Bryston electronics, as well as my home theater that includes an Integra receiver, and I used the speakers with the newest components from Simaudio: the Moon 761 Amplifier and the Moon 791 Network Player/Preamplifier.

GoldenEar T66 Features

• The T66 stands about 49 inches tall, it is about 7.5-inches wide, and 14 ¾-inches deep
• The 60-pound speaker has a 4-ohm impedance rating and a 91dB sensitivity rating
• GoldenEar specifies the T66 to deliver a frequency response of 29Hz to 25kHz
• The T66’s driver array features a folded-ribbon AMT tweeter, along with a pair of Cast-Basket midrange drivers, two 5-inch x 9-inch quadratic subwoofers, and two quadratic planar back-wave driven radiators
• The speaker’s built-in subwoofer is powered by a 500-watt RMS DSP controlled amplifier that can deliver 1,000-watt peak bursts
• MSRP is approximately $3,600 each

GoldenEar T66 Setup and Initial Thoughts

Shipping to my house in two boxes, the speakers stand just over 4-feet tall and they have a narrow, but semi deep dimensions. Internally, the speakers employ an advanced design with a multiple driver array and crossover network.

Focusing more specifically on the driver array, the T66 incorporates a single High-Velocity Folded Ribbon AMT Tweeter, along with a pair of 4.5-inch High-Definition Cast-Basket Midrange drivers; two 5-inch x 9-inch Quadratic Subwoofers, and two 8-inch x 12-inch Quadratic Planar Back-Wave Driven Radiators.

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GoldenEar specifies its new floorstanding speakers to be 91dB efficient at 4 ohms, and the speaker is specified to deliver a frequency response of 29Hz to 25kHz. The T66 has a nominal impedance rating of 4 ohms, and a recommended power rating of 20 watts to 500 watts.

Additionally, GoldenEar states the T66 incorporates a 500-watt RMS, DSP-controlled subwoofer amplifier that can produce 1,000-watt peaks.

I will also point out the speaker stands just under 49 inches tall without the spikes; the speaker is about 7.5-inches wide and 14.75-inches deep. GoldenEar also says the speaker weighs 60 pounds. Setup was straight forward as a stereo pair of speakers. After I unboxed the speakers, I removed my loudspeakers and placed the T66 pair in their place for the review.

Using a pair of AudioQuest Rocket 44 speaker cables terminated with banana plugs and bi-amplification wiring options I ran the speaker cables from my Bryston amplifier to the speakers, and I finished by connecting a pair of AudioQuest NRG-Z3 power cables to each speaker to power the speakers’ built-in subwoofers.

Fine tuning the setup of the speakers within my 12×23-foot room with 8-foot ceilings, I positioned the speakers about 8 feet from my listening position in a stereo configuration and I applied a slight amount of toe-in to maximize the speakers’ imaging.

I will add I believe the speakers came from another reviewer and the previous reviewer had the subwoofer level set at roughly 11 o’clock. I chose to leave that level at that position and adjust as I felt necessary.

Moreover, later in my review process I connected the speakers to the Simaudio Moon 761 Amplifier and the Moon 791 Network Player/Preamplifier.

Setup of the GoldenEar T66 speakers should not take long.

T66 Performance and Final Review

I think that people tend to generalize multipurpose AV systems as small integrated amplifiers with small speakers. After this review, I think the GoldenEar T66 loudspeakers blow that generalization to pieces.

The speakers can obviously be used in a high-end, luxury two-channel stereo system or as part of a state-of-the-art immersive audio. Where I really like the speakers are as the finishing piece to a high-performance multipurpose AV system. With a nice AVR (AV receiver), integrated amplifier or separate amplifier and preamplifier connected to a TV, streaming device, disc player, and/or turntable, homeowners will benefit from the dynamics, smoothness, and detail the speakers provide.

It’s easy to see the T66 speakers as a turnkey 2.1 speaker solution for a luxury AV system following my review of them. The speakers won’t compromise AV content performance, and in fact through the precise imaging of the speakers I would bet that homeowners wouldn’t even realize they don’t have a center-channel speaker. Both male and female voices are easily intelligible and surrounding effects and other content sound full through the speakers with broadcast and streaming content.

Tonally, I would describe the speakers as relaxed, but I want to emphasize with that being said, the T66 does not roll off high frequencies and its bass extension is not cut off either. I thought the low end of the speakers was smooth and well connected to the midrange. It is not overly compensated like a pair of Beats headphones. The speakers are just easy to listen to whether it’s a stereo soundtrack like the audio from the History Channel app and shows like History’s Greatest Mysteries or a full immersive audio soundtrack like Pacific Rim, which I watched using the new Kaleidescape Strato V player.

Circling back to the point I made about the previous reviewer setting the speakers’ subwoofer level at 11 o’clock—I did not change the setting. I felt that setting provided a nice balance of low-end reinforcement and balance. I will add that in my room the speakers are probably 2.5-feet from the wall, so they aren’t getting much boundary reinforcement from the walls or room corners either.

With stereo content from my restored Thorens TD-160 connected to a Cary Audio phono preamplifier and a Bryston preamplifier I found the vinyl version of AC/DC’s Back in Black to have a nice amount of detail where I could hear the aggressiveness of Angus Young’s guitar in the left channel and the roundness of Malcom Young’s guitar in the right channel. The bass line reproduction was warm and the T66 speakers showed how locked in Cliff Williams’ bass lines were with Phil Rudd’s drums.

Switching electronics, I was surprised how well the speakers paired with the Simaudio components. Listening to Bluetooth content from my phone did not feel much like a compromise. The combination of the Simaudio components and the GoldenEar speakers provided more air and a bigger soundstage that provided more midrange resolution.  I would say I like the combination of the Simaudio components with the speakers more than my Bryston gear.

I’ll also note the speakers worked as well with my Integra receiver for AV duties as it did with the Bryston and Simaudio products for the playback of CDs, vinyl and Bluetooth content. The reason why I am pointing this out in this review is the T66 speakers are easy to drive. There shouldn’t be any concern about amplification unless it’s a cheap amp. If that’s the case, no one should be using high-performance speakers like the new GoldenEar speakers with an amp that could damage their speakers.

My takeaway is I am really impressed with the versatility, system friendliness, and the overall performance of the speakers. My take is that GoldenEar has created what may be the first modern, high-performance multipurpose loudspeaker solution that’s just as at home in an immersive audio system, as a multipurpose 2.1 system flanking an 83-inch 8K TV.

T66: CE Pro & Cons

Pros:

• The T66 sounds great as a stereo speaker or as part of a surround sound/immersive audio system
• The speaker is easy to drive to support its use with AVRs and component-based amplifier and preamplifier systems
• GoldenEar’s T66 is easy to set up, it is forgiving to listen to with a wide variety of content, and it produces precise imaging, which is a key element to its two-channel performance within a multipurpose AV system

Cons:

• In terms of price this may not be a speaker for everyone looking for a multipurpose AV speaker, but with that said, the T66’s versatility simply enables that application scenario
• The only real thing that may prevent someone from purchasing the T66 loudspeaker is that it will need to be relatively close to a power outlet to allow to power its built-in subwoofer
• Like any speaker with built-in subwoofers, sometimes room placement may not be conducive with the acoustic properties of a room

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