Tower Speaker Reviews

This graph shows the quasi-anechoic (employing close-miking of all woofers) frequency response of the CDM 7NT L/R (purple trace), ASW 2500 subwoofer (blue trace), CDM CNT center (green trace), and CDM 1NT surround (red trace). All passive loudspeakers were measured at a distance of 1 meter with a 2.83-volt input and scaled for display purposes.

On-axis response of the CDM 7NT L/R measures +2.32/-2.36 decibels from 200 hertz to 10 kilohertz. The -3dB point is at 54 Hz, and the -6dB point is at 43 Hz. Impedance reaches a minimum of 4.80 ohms at 9.9 kHz and a phase angle of -34.98 degrees at 111 Hz. Sensitivity averages 88.5 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz.

On-axis response of the CDM CNT center measures +1.61/-2.89 dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz. An average of axial and (+/-15 degree) horizontal responses measures +1.08/-3.46 dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz. The -3dB point is at 45 Hz, and the -6dB point is at 40 Hz. Impedance reaches a minimum of 4.34 ohms at 14.1 kHz and a phase angle of -51.95 degrees at 96 Hz. Sensitivity averages 90 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz.

On-axis response of the CDM 1NT surround measures +3.12/-3.29 dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz. The -3dB point is at 64 Hz, and the -6dB point is at 48 Hz. Impedance reaches a minimum of 4.48 ohms at 15.8 kHz and a phase angle of -55.60 degrees at 2.7 kHz. Sensitivity averages 87.5 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz.

Close-miked response of the ASW 2500 subwoofer, normalized to the average level from 40 to 80 Hz, indicates that the lower -3dB point is at 32 Hz and the -6dB point is at 26 Hz with the EQ switch set to the "A" position. The upper -3dB point is at 162 Hz with the low-pass-frequency control set to maximum.—AJ