About The Sonus faber Olympica Nova V Speakers
The Sonus faber Olympica Nova V explores new territory for the Olympica range coming in above the previous top-of-the-range Olympica III in size, performance and desirability. With a big natural sound the Olympica Nova V's are relatively easy to position for best effect and will give immense musical satisfaction in larger size rooms. They also team up very well with a larger REL subwoofer or two to fill your room with full spectrum sound.
Since 1983, many moments have marked the history of Sonus faber; the launch of the Olympica Collection in 2013 is one of them. One of the first lines presented as a complete family of products, but above all, the very first one to feature original drivers, entirely designed in-house at Sonus faber. Olympica Nova is the second generation of this iconic family, improved in its form and substance, imbued with the timeless values that inspired Sonus faber to create the original line. The result is a new Collection that embraces the most advanced technologies that already enhance Sonus faber's most prestigious creations.
Organically Shaped
The lack of flat and parallel walls improves enclosure performance and maintains the typical asymmetrical Lute shape of the first generation Olympica. The asymmetrical shape of the cabinet is an original design concept that allows versatile positioning of the speakers to tune the bass response in any room. Inspired by nature, the lines follow the flow of a circular spiral motion, achieving a more organic cabinet structure. No longer just a functional element added to handle airflow, the reflex duct is now fully integrated into the cabinet, further improving the speed and transparency of sound.
A Closer Look
The Olympica Nova V is the overachiever of the collection, and will effortlessly fill even a large room with vivid, dynamic sound guaranteed to put a smile on your face whether you're sitting back enjoying a string quartet or bopping along to your favourite Saturday night techno playlist.
Wood: Just like the cabinet sides, the front baffle and the top are made in walnut or wenge hand finished natural wood which sits in a solid die-cast aluminium plate. The designers wished to pay homage to Sonus faber's most representative material, making it even more of a standard bearer.
Tweeter: The 28 mm silk soft dome tweeter features the DAD™ technology (Damped Apex Dome™) that enhances the smoothness and extension in the high frequencies by applying local dampening to the apex typically responsible for anti-phase behaviour of soft dome diaphragms. The DAD™ structure has been totally redesigned and is now a solid piece of diecast aluminium that forms an arch and ring over the dome to increase the strength and accuracy of the system.
Midrange: The midrange has been designed and constructed completely in Sonus faber's laboratories in Italy. The cone is comprised of an air-dried, non-pressed blend of cellulose pulp, Kapok, Kenaf and other natural fibres. This treatment gives the cone a slightly rough surface of varying densities, which reduces cone resonance, guaranteeing a natural sound with increased transparency and greater detail.
Woof Woof Woof: The three woofers are made in Italy and benefits from an exclusive sandwich construction technique where two sheets of cellulose pulp are combined with a hi-tech syntactic foam in between them. This low-mass high-rigidity structure provides fast and powerful sound reproduction while allowing total coherence with the mid and high frequency drivers.
Crossover: The crossover network implements Paracross Topology™, making the crossover less sensitive to radio frequency interference, improving transient response and lowering the noise floor. The filtering topology features new exclusive Clarity Cap capacitors, customised for Sonus Faber.
Reflex Port: The solid piece of extruded aluminium that completes the Stealth Ultraflex™ system, an extremely low turbulence porting system, is inherited from Homage Tradition models. Favouring the profile of sea waves, the structure facilitates airflow through the duct while controlling its speed and reducing any distortion causing turbulence.
Structural Rigidity: The entire structure of the acoustic enclosure has been redesigned. Similar to the Homage Traditional and Reference Collections, the side walls are constructed with eight layers of bended wood, providing the cabinet with extreme rigidity. Inside the cabinet, carefully placed structural ribs are used as reinforcement to reduce vibration and to handle the overall power of the transducers movements.
Natural Leather: The natural leather embellishes the Voice of Sonus faber, the brand's iconic configuration of tweeter and midrange and enriches the aesthetic ring around the woofer. Genuine Italian leather that, as per Sonus faber's tradition, is applied by hand in the production department in Vincenza.
Supports: Sonus faber have completely redesigned the supports for the cabinet, crafting the bottom plates from solid aluminium with threaded adjustable steel spikes (floor protectors are included). These ultra-solid supports take inspiration from the Homage Tradition & Reference Collections to guarantee greater strength and solidity.
Sonus faber In The News
"Unlike the Magico S1 speakers that I drove into limitation with the same electronics recently, the Olympica Nova V stayed composed at the same listening levels in a fairly big room. I was very surprised, however, that the Sonus Faber was closer to the overall Magico´s voicing than expected. Not only was the bass of the Olympica Nova V deep but it was beautifully contoured and punchy too. Gone was the soft structure of the previous Olympica, the bass of the Nova V is crisp and clear down to the declared 30 Hz. A duel of cellos and bowed double-bass got alive in the listening room, with substantial weight and resonant mass of the instruments – actually it was so good that it kept me nailed into the listening chair for over 30 minutes in a repeat mode. The improvements on the bass reflex duct are audible as if any remaining compression caused by bass cones moving has been removed.
I expected the Sonus Faber´s house style – a kind presentation full of forgiving warmth, smoothness and creaminess. Not here, the Olympica Nova V was like listening to Bowers & Wilkins new 800 D3 series. The sound was fast, open, dynamic and transparent with only a hint of silkiness that could be heard on drumstick hitting a cymbal, for example. This Sonus Faber follows completely different sonic philosophy than its siblings, yet with the typical Italian flair.
Every time I thought I detected the warm signature I heard the speakers saying it's not a signature what you hear, it's harmonics. Indeed, the Olympica Nova V unmistakably showed the difference between Steinway and Fazioli grand pianos, across their whole keyboards. The sound was colourful but not coloured, rich and less romantic than I used to hear from SF's speakers. The pianos were not metallic, glassy or thin, it was clear that it is a wooden instrument of substantial size.
Ramirez's Missa Criolla was presented with a huge soundstage through the Sonus Faber Olympica Nova V. The massive choirs stretched far outside the room's boundaries but it was not achieved by relegating the choral plane too far beyond the speakers. There was clear 3D perspective and the scene was actually very present with singing right in front of me, it was the perspective of 6th row in the audience. At the same time the recording's ambience was immersive, as if the Olympica Nova V created its own microcosm with music and ambient noises that were close to real.
The Sonus Faber Olympica Nova V became a surprise for me. I expected 'another' Sonus Faber and got new generation sound. Yes, the Nova V is 30% more expensive than the old model, but it is at least 30% better than it. Highly recommended." Audiodrom
Main Features & Specifications
- Design: 5 driver, 3 way, full para-aperiodic vented box "Stealth Ultraflex", floorstanding loudspeaker system
- Drivers
- Tweeter: H28 XTR3 Silk dome 28 mm moving coil driver with DAD™ (Damped Apex Dome™) technology and vibration optimized mechanical interface. The ultra-dynamic linearity is provided by the Neodymium "cup design" motor system.
- Midrange: MW15 XTR2-04 150mm cone driver. CCAW wire is used on a composite former "eddy current free" voice coil. Special custom diaphragm made with a real time air dried non pressed blend of traditional cellulose pulp and other natural fibres, developed according to the most natural sound. Ultra-dynamic performance and high linearity. Designed in-house at Sonus faber.
- Woofers: 3 x W18XTR2-12 cone drivers. Sonus faber designed 180 mm lightweight "sandwich" cone structure (high-tech syntactic foam core and two external surface skins of cellulose pulp) woofers.
- Crossover: Anti-resonant design, optimized amplitude/phase response for optimal space/time performance. "Paracross topology". Impedance compensation at low frequencies for a clear and friendly amplifier performance. Highest quality is used in terms of the components: Jantzen inductors and a new generation of Sonus faber capacitor designed in partnership with Clarity Cap.
- Crossover Frequencies: 250 Hz and 2,500 Hz
- Frequency Response: 32 Hz – 35,000 Hz
- Sensitivity: 90 dB SPL (2.83V/1 m)
- Nominal Impedance: 4 Ohms
- Suggested Amplifier Power: 60 – 400 Watts, without clipping
- Dimensions (WxHxD): 424 x 1,174.5 x 530mm
- Weight: 44kg each
- Finishes: Walnut, Wenge & Piano Black
- Manufacturer's Warranty: 5 Years
Note: Features & Specifications Subject To Change Without Notice. E&OE