Peculiarities
ProAc Studio SM100
shelf models are the famous Studio 100 monitors, produced unchanged since 1990.
“Sotki” turned out to be surprisingly versatile monitors, which were used with equal success in studios and home audio systems. Several times they tried to discontinue the “hundredths”, but the popularity of the speakers and the constant demand for them did not allow ProAc
to take this rash step.
Until 2013, when the founder and chief designer of ProAc, Stuart Tyler, finally decided to replace the Studio 100. The development of new monitors lasted two years, and finally, in 2015, Tyler introduced the near-field monitors Studio SM100
.
in the Studio series, the SM100 models replaced the legendary 100th monitors,
discontinued in 2013.
, Studio SM100 monitors
not much different from their predecessors: similar speakers, front bass reflex port, body of absolutely the same dimensions (406x203x254 mm HxWxD). Probably, the dimensions of the speakers were deliberately left the same to allow owners of old monitors to painlessly replace them with new ones. In studios, speakers are often placed in niches, so size matters.
The SM100 is very similar to its predecessors, but
boasts new drivers and a crossover.
In the case of the SM100
A quick glance does not allow one to appreciate all the innovations - 20-odd years of technology development could not be in vain, so the monitors have undergone deep modifications. They are equipped with new speakers and crossover filters, and the damping of the cabinets has also been improved.
The SM100s come with a completely new tweeter and a modified mid-woofer.
The mid-bass driver, equipped with a paper cone with a diameter of 165 mm, received a proprietary basket, a modified dust cup and a durable rubber surround. Brand new 25mm silk dome tweeter manufactured to ProAc
Norwegian company Seas. The tweeter is distinguished by a sound-absorbing pad on the emitter flange.
traditional rhodium plated speaker terminals
The monitor terminal block allows for dual-cable connections using two pairs of rhodium-plated Michell Engineering connectors. Enclosures ProAc Studio SM100
have two finishing options: black ash and cherry.
Compact acoustic monitors are deservedly popular among people who value maximum sound fidelity. This is not surprising, because compact enclosures have much greater rigidity and sound inertness, and also allow minimizing diffraction sound effects. Thus, using compact speakers, you can almost completely eliminate the unwanted sound coloration that plagues the vast majority of floor-standing speakers. The legendary ProAc Studio 100 monitors were designed for both home and professional use and were produced for more than 20 years until 2013. As near-field monitors, the Studio 100 has become very popular in many famous music and film studios.
Last two years Stewart Tyler
worked on new speakers called
ProAc Studio SM100 with improved parameters, as before, intended for home and professional use. For this acoustics, a completely new low-frequency driver with a modernized suspension and a dust cap, a dome high-frequency speaker, as well as a crossover have been developed, but the dimensions of the housing have been kept the same. The Studio 100 speaker systems were one of the most popular from ProAc and the discontinuation of their production, which occurred about two years ago, upset many audiophiles. All these two years, ProAc specialists have been preparing a replacement for the Studio 100 model, and finally the new Studio SM100
was presented to the public. The company's engineers were faced with the difficult task of preserving all the qualities that audiophiles liked so much in the previous version of Studio and at the same time making the speakers meet the needs of today.
Speakers Studio SM100
equipped with a new 165 mm woofer with a newly designed basket, which was developed by ProAc, with higher linearity and increased power input. The rubber suspension of the diffuser of the new woofer is not afraid of high ambient humidity, which made the Studio SM100 even more reliable. The tweeter in this model is also new; it has a silk dome diameter of 20 mm, a modified suspension and mounting flange to reduce the influence of the front panel of the speaker system. It was custom-made by SEAS for ProAc specifically for use in the Studio SM100.
The dimensions of the new speaker remain the same as the previous version, but its internal damping has been made deeper. In the separation filter Studio SM100
selected components are used.
The SM100 crossover has been completely modernized to accommodate the new speaker parameters - this has preserved the character of the legendary Studio 100, but has added more softness to the sound, which makes the new speakers more comfortable during long listening sessions. The speaker system is available in cherry wood or black finishes.
- Bass/midrange driver: 165mm cone with special impregnation and dome center cap
- Tweeter: 25mm soft silk dome
- Crossover: Selected components, highest quality installation. Wiring with multi-core oxygen-free copper cable. Possibility of connecting via bi-wiring/bi-amping
Short description
ProAc Studio SM100
— monitor-class bookshelf speaker systems with uniformity, detail and accuracy of reproduction characteristic of this type of loudspeaker.
In terms of design and sound tuning, the SM100
are improved versions of their ancestors, the legendary Studio 100 monitors, which are widely used in professional studios and home audio systems.
ProAc
monitors from continuing the successful path paved by their predecessors.
Impression
Speaker systems Studio SM100
sound honest and even, meticulously working out musical details.
Emotionally, they show more restraint than other ProAc
, compared to which the playback seems a bit dry.
But this is not surprising. As monitors, the SM100s
are tuned to be highly neutral.
The sound of bookshelf speakers is intelligible across the entire spectrum and is distinguished by good “timing” (processing of time transitions), which results in excellent accuracy of instrumental phrases, even in ornate compositions, and good spectral resolution. The latter property is especially valuable for studio acoustics, as it allows you to freely separate instruments with a similar sound spectrum into recordings, simplifying the mixing process. For home acoustics, this property will also not be superfluous. The bass is deeper than is usually the case with bookshelf speakers of this size and is well controlled. Sometimes the author of this review caught himself thinking that the bass could have been loosened a little for the sake of greater energy. Many monitors, in pursuit of clarity and sharpness of sound, make it too harsh. The SM100 does not have this problem; the speakers sound quite smooth, without fatiguing during long listening sessions. By the way, the subjective smoothness of the SM100's
is consistent with measurements: there are fewer irregularities in the tweeter response of the new monitors than in the predecessors of the Studio 100.
Audio components
Turntable: Lindemann 825
Integrated amplifier:
Lindemann 885
Interconnects:
Groneberg TS-Premium
Speaker cables:
Lindemann Speaker Connect
Music stage Studio SM100
They are built with a fair range of width, do not exhibit any particular directionality of radiation, creating a large area of high-quality stereo effect.
The contrast of the images is maintained along the entire front. And even though the depth of the stage does not seem very extended, the backgrounds are outlined no worse than the foregrounds with good localization and separation of instruments. The speakers are not picky about various musical genres, although they never hide their verified monitor character. Naturally, this manner will not suit all music lovers. On the other hand, the Studio SM100
has high potential: the tonal balance is good, there is naturalness, there is detail, and you can add emotions to the sound by choosing a suitable amplifier, source, etc.
Measurements
Frequency response ProAc Studio SM100
demonstrates good tonal balance with some increase in sensitivity to the upper octaves (on axis). As usual, by turning the speakers, this excess response at the very top is leveled out, and instead a decrease in sensitivity appears in the crossover zone. But, since the top is removed faster, a slight turn of the speakers (within 5-15º) will only benefit the tonal balance. The unevenness of the frequency response on the axis throughout the entire operating range is within ±3.5 dB. The lower limit of ±3 dB is 44 Hz - a very decent result for not the largest bookshelf speakers.
Impedance ProAc Studio SM100
does not fall below 6.9 Ohms with a minimum in the vicinity of 180 Hz. In the mid/high frequency range, the speaker impedance does not exceed 24.6 Ohms with a maximum near 1.3 kHz. The FI port is set to 46 Hz. There is no evidence of frame resonances in the impedance plot. In general, monitors should not pose a problem for modern amplifiers.
ProAc Studio 100
Marina, 01/22/2010
Advantages: In 1997, ProAc Studio100 had an excellent price-quality ratio, they cost $1100 (!) In light of recent times, it has become significantly less attractive for the same set of elements. The sound of the speakers in 1997, when they first came into my hands, at first seemed harsh. With quite a long warm-up, almost a year, I felt some softening. Overall, this is a good hi-fi level acoustics without any special frills. They are captivated by the simplicity of the music presentation; there is some simplification in the HF area, if you are too picky. The mid/bass speaker is very agile and lively. Very good workmanship and build quality. It feels like you have something very valuable in your hands.
Disadvantages: Don't think that there are acoustics without disadvantages. It is important how much you are able not to notice them. However, I will give the “disadvantages” or features that are noticeable to me: 1. You need an excellent sound quality, powerful and fast amplifier, at least 100 W/channel at 8 Ohms. (Old ones: Bryston, Naim, new ones: Hypex amp. UcD180, UcD400) 2. To be frank, the sound quality in these speakers depends most of all on the very good Scan Speak speaker, the Seas tweeter lags behind the quite cool midbass in quality. The quality of mixing and performance of crossovers is at a very average level. The unevenness of the frequency response in the range of 60 - 18000 Hz is slightly more than +-3dB, but they sound satisfactory to the ear. The quality of the crossover element base is low; it is desirable to have better quality coils, capacitors, etc. 3. Small volume of the case, however, this is not a disadvantage for everyone. If you wanted to have small speakers with modest bass frequencies, then they are in front of you. However, if the body volume is increased to 22 - 24 liters, then these speakers begin to sound more solid and solid. 4. The high price of new speakers, if we recalculate the speaker package at modern prices, it will be the following: ScanSpeak speakers 2 pieces - 300 €, Seas HF speakers 2 pieces - 100 €, Crossovers 2 pieces - 200 €, 19mm MDF cabinets with ash veneer or 2 pieces of nut - 300 €, Other elements (conductors, solder, felt, bass reflexes, acoustic terminals, etc.) - 100 €. Total: 1000 € It is also worth understanding that with mass production the final cost of components for the manufacturer is much lower. I gave this example solely for the buyer to understand the fact that most of the cost goes to marketing and remuneration for sellers. If you have experience assembling high-quality speakers, then it will not be difficult for you to create more advanced speakers based on the excellent midbass ScanSpeak 8542-00, but I do not recommend taking on the project without such experience.
Comment: As a result, we have before us modest, small shelf holders ProAc Studio, I would even say small, considering their internal volume and external dimensions. When used as front speakers, the Studio100 will perform well in rooms up to 12 square meters. In large rooms there will be a lack of low frequencies. In rooms from 12 to 20 square meters, it is advisable to use a housing with an internal volume of up to 24 liters. Before purchasing, be sure to try their work in your room(!) If you have experience in building speakers, fine-tuning crossovers, then you can use a cabinet volume of up to 24 liters, more advanced HF (to your taste and choice) around 300 € / pair and more expensive elements of hi-end crossovers. As a result, you can get speakers that will easily compete in sound with the most expensive branded products.
Be sure to listen and don't take anything for granted!
