We tested the Sonus Faber Aida standing speakers!

We tested the Sonus Faber Aida standing speakers!

We were invited into a XII. district luxury property in Budapest to test the Sonus Faber Aida speaker pair. The huge hi-fi room was equipped with the latest technology, cables and amplifiers, and the owner wanted to try out the newly purchased high-quality speakers from Sonus. The acoustic treatment of the room had already been done when designing the room, the owner replaced also the traditional carpet by an acoustic carpet, so there was nothing wrong with the surround sound of the room.

The Italian “stallion”

The Italian company Sonus Faber speakers represents the luxury category, which is reflected in appearance, technology and, of course, the high price of the products. The Italian company strives for perfect sound and artistic design when making the speakers. Aida speakers are clearly premium in quality and price. The sight of the beautifully hand-crafted 3.5-passenger standing speakers captivate you instantly. After careful design and development, the company’s engineers reduced the disturbing vibrations to almost zero, creating a clear, perfect sound. The Stealth Reflex system has been developed to reduce the noise generated by air exhausts, which provide purity for deep sounds. The Anima Legata is a steel structure running through detached speaker boxes that conducts vibrations to the lower and upper attenuators. The third system disconnects the speaker from the ground, eliminating virtually all unpleasant vibrations. This technology is also used for the tallest skyscrapers of the world.

The Aida speaker is approx. 150 kg, but thanks to the three systems, it does not transmit vibrations to the floor. The centre and tweeter controls are located on the back of the Sonus Faber Aida speakers. By setting up the Sound Field Shaper system, you can ensure that your speakers deliver flawlessly accurate stage images at any room size. The tweeter is the company’s self-developed Arrow Point DAD, which is an alloy of a dome and a ring radiator. The diaphragm of the centre radiator is not pressed, but made of air-dried cellulose fiber material, and therefore has a rough surface. The sound coil is made of copper-plated aluminium wire, which has very good sound conductivity, resulting in a much clearer and more accurate sound in the mid ranges than if it were made of solid copper. The infrared subwoofer at the bottom of the box provides the lowest ranges. Crossing frequency values: 55 Hz, 180 Hz, 250 Hz, 3000 Hz. Frequency transmission: 18-35000 Hz. Power: 100-1000 Watts. And the pair weights 330 kg !

Everything has a price

I think we can safely say that this speaker is not only striving for perfection, but is perfection in itself! It can even be called the “Ferrari” of speakers, as the design and technology inside is like that of the Italian sports car. However, anyone who wants such a quality has to have the budget for it as the price is extremely high.

Over the top

With this high-end model, the sound experience of music or movies of any style and rhythm will be unsurpassed. They perform at a live concert hall level without distortion and error. At higher volumes, the music may sound even more enjoyable, clear and true. The bass sounds are not aggressive, rather create a real and lively feeling.

Main rehearsal

Since the speakers of our test are of Italian origin,  we had to put on first the piece Time to Say Goodbye interpreted by the fantastic duet composed of Italian singer Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brigthmann. It’s hard to put into words what we’ve experienced. The vocals, the instruments sounded, for lack of better word, crystal clear and detailed. We felt like sitting in a concert hall in front of the stage, listening to this amazing music live. We just marvelled and stared. We listened to the speakers eponym opera Aida from the composer Giuseppe Verdi. The opera can either be loved very much or hated very much. But these speakers will prove the beauty of the opera even to those who had been given a bout of shivers from it in the past. The experience the speakers offered us is indescribable! The beautiful voice of the talented opera singers vibrated so smoothly that they touched our soul. The music filled the whole space, it was even and perfect regardless of the listener’s position.

We then hit the rocks.

We put on Aerosmith’s hit Crazy. Singer Steven Tyler’s voice sounded flawless at higher volumes as well, as did the instruments. There was no sign of unwanted noise or vibration.

A dream for every hi-fi and audio fan

Undoubtedly, the Sonus Faber Aida stands out among the speakers we have known and tested so far! For those who have the opportunity to spend a small fortune for the perfect sound, we clearly recommend these speakers.

G.H.