That’s a whole lot of very expensive wood, I thought to myself as I walked into the Volti Audio room and took note of the large, sumptuous New Vittora loudspeaker system—an update of the company’s original Vittora—which was making its world debut here at the Florida International Audio Expo.
“What kind of veneer is that?” I asked Greg Roberts, owner of Volti Audio, as I took a seat and started to listen.
Greg Roberts
“It’s padauk,” he responded. That African hardwood is not cheap. It’s beautiful—so lovely that I could see these majestic speakers in the corners of a Windsor Palace ballroom.
Taking a look at a bare cabinet without drivers just outside the room, I noted that the walls were made from multiple layers of high-quality plywood, so I guessed that these are quite heavy.
“Yup, they’re about 250 pounds,” Roberts responded when I asked.
As I settled in, Roberts was playing music that would fit in that Windsor Palace ballroom. Massive brass, massed strings, all sorts of royal-sounding music that’s far above my pay grade. Still, it sounded dynamic and alive, with the kind of jump factor you’d expect from a huge speaker with a sensitivity of 104dB.
The New Vittora system comprises two three-way horn speakers, each loaded up with one 15″ woofer, a 2″ midrange, and a 1″ horn tweeter. Also included for the price of $50,000 (in USD) are two 12″ subwoofers, referred to by Roberts as ELF speakers, which kick in from 50Hz down, which is the natural rolloff point of the main speakers. Those subs are powered by an also-included ELF amplifier and equalizer.
For the show, Volti Audio was using one 18 ELF sub, as it better fit in the fairly small room. The amplifier was a Cary Audio SLI-80HS tube integrated fed by an Innuos ZENith music server and Mojo Audio Mystique X SE DAC. Cables were via Triode Wire Labs.
The enclosures of both the New Vittora and the ELF subs are made from birch ply. The curved sections are laid up from the raw sheet ply, which is glued and formed by hand. Wall thickness is well over 1″. Roberts estimated that it takes about 400 hours to build each pair of speakers.
Switching over to something a peasant such as I would enjoy, Roberts threw on Charles Mingus playing a version of “Better Git It in Your Soul,” and man, do these things boogie. Appropriately sized, rich-sounding jazz snapped out of the New Vittoras. He switched to Jill Scott, whom I don’t know well, singing some really nice groove-oriented soul, and I didn’t hear even a single hint of horn coloration. The New Vittora is an exceptionally neutral speaker.
Forcing a trip back north of the border, I asked Roberts to play “Fight” by the Tragically Hip. Large horn speakers seem to attract a demographic that’s about ten years older than me, and the chaps in the room didn’t seem to like the Hip, but that’s cool by me. I try to play this track in every room I evaluate, partly because I know it, but also because I’m a bit of a button pusher. And the Hip need more exposure.
It sounded great through the New Vittoras. Gord Downie’s voice leaped out, snappy quick, rich as all get-out. Again, no horn coloration! Tight, rich bass down to the bottom of Johnny Fay’s kick drum. Even at seriously loud volumes, it was clean, clean, clean. It sounded live. I’ve always regretted never seeing the Hip in a small venue, but now I feel that I have, thanks to these wonderful speakers.
Jason Thorpe
Senior Editor, SoundStage!
