Surround Sound System Reviews

All of the source material I used for my evaluation was lossless and from discs, including CD, Blu-ray, and Ultra HD Blu-ray. I used an Oppo UDP-203 Ultra HD Blu-ray player for movies and a Marantz UD7007 player for stereo music listening, which was done with the projection screen retracted and with the grilles removed from the Silver 300 and Silver 50 speakers (the latter with movies).

Music Performance
Without the W-12 subwoofer engaged, the Silver 300s (EQ'd below 300Hz as described earlier) extended down to a useful 40Hz at the main listening seat. Bass was tight and clean with a little room-induced unevenness but no obvious strain or boom. Nevertheless, there was an audible lack of weight to the overall presentation, which wasn't a surprise given my large, open concept room. A subwoofer was clearly needed to give all but the least challenging music adequate support, which is true of most of the smaller loudspeakers I've reviewed in this space. The Silver 300s may be floorstanders, but their woofers are small.

I wired up Monitor Audio's W-12 subwoofer (along with the rest of the Silvers) and disabled the Audyssey EQ. Then I engaged its on-board Automatic Position Correction (APC) system, which is designed to measure the subwoofer's response and make appropriate corrections in the sub itself. But in all of the locations I tried, the APC made only tiny corrections and did nothing for a persistent peak at 30Hz.

Supplementing the APC with Audyssey room EQ below 300Hz solved the problem. Once positioned and EQ'd mainly with Audyssey, the W-12 extended the system's low end to around 20Hz as measured at the listening position with moderate levels (the bottom extension of any sub becomes more limited due to compression as the demands on its output increase). On bass challenging music—drums and organ, for example—the W-12 held its own, extending the low end without compromising the clean bass I experienced from the Silver 300s alone.

But the EQ did produce occasional, moderate strain from the W-12 on the most challenging music, and I still hadn't added movies to the playlist. At this point I realized that a single W-12 wasn't quite enough for my room. I'd need two. But at a price of $2,100 each, a pair of W-12 subs would be untenable in a system with a pair of front/left speakers that cost $2,600. So rather than ask Monitor Audio for a second sub, I went no further with the W-12, even though it might still be an effective, if expensive, option for a more modestly-sized room. Instead, I substituted two SVS SB-3000 subwoofers I had on hand ($2,100 for two when bought as a pair) and positioned them where they would provide the best results. They were used for all of the observations that follow here.

Two of the best demo/sampler discs I own were produced by the loudspeaker company Dali: (CD Vol. 2 and Vol. 3, no longer available). Though varying a bit from cut to cut, as you might expect, the female vocals on both discs—from Josefine Cronholm, Holly Cole, Sinne Eeg, and others—sounded universally excellent, with no audible coloration, clean sibilants, and precise soundstaging with just the right amount of depth. Male vocals were similarly convincingly rich and full.

The wide range of instruments on these discs, and others, were crisply detailed. If I had to categorize the Silver 300s' balance, I'd say that they lean slightly to the analytic side, but (for me at least) never to an excessive degree. Detailing was precise, from the hardest percussion to the subtlest fingering of acoustic guitar. Electric guitar, notably on Nils Lofgren's concert album, Acoustic Live, was as dynamic and punchy as you could hope for.

Another compilation CD I often use as a reliable, pristine source is Depth of Image from the label Opus 3. The selections on this disc include only acoustical instruments and vocals. There's little you could call spectacular here—no explosive dynamics or powerful bass. But every cut is a master class in superb recording (and from the 1970s no less). Light organ, pan pipes, harpsichord, and vocals all sounded sublime on the Silvers. The recording was also true to its title. The depth on virtually all of these cuts was superbly rendered by the Monitor Audio Silver 300s.

Movies Performance
My below-300Hz room EQ for the Silvers on music worked well, but measurements showed that in this setup it still hadn't fully eliminated my room's 100-200Hz issue (see Fig. 2 in the Test Bench). There was still a trace of excess warmth on a few of the bass passages. For movies I therefore went a step further and selected Audyssey's Flat option, which had little effect on response above 300Hz, apart from a slight elevation in mid to high treble. The uptick in highs wasn't objectionable as it occurred in a range where the treble was already rolling off and I was able to almost totally eliminate it by setting the AVR's treble control to –2dB. The main upside to Audyssey's Flat setting was that it completely flattened the 100-200Hz region (see Fig. 3 in the Test Bench).

That done, movies sounded compelling on the Silver system. I often reach first for Oblivion as a go-to UHD Blu-ray because I know it almost by heart. While I can't say for certain that the Silver 7G system equals the performance of a setup with my Monitor Audio Silver 10/Silver C350 combo (a direct A/B of two surround setups is next to impossible), it sounded remarkably close to my recollection of that larger system. The Silver 7G ensemble nails the explosive dynamics as the music crescendos under the title in the opening scenes, again as Jack fires up his jet copter, and even more as he flies through a violent thunderstorm.

Encanto is a very different experience. If it's music that ultimately sells Oblivion (for me it is), Encanto would (apart from its superb animation) have little to hold my attention without its music, which was lushly reproduced on the Silver 7G system, with the all-important dialogue coming across crystal clear. Ditto for the music's lyrics, which include some extremely rapid passages along with a few lines that barely rise above a whisper. Clarity on all of this was child's play for the Silver 7Gs.

It's been years since I watched Apollo 13, but it remains an unforgettable experience. The Saturn launch is always a trip, and the Silver 7Gs didn't let me down. Between the rush and growl of the rocket engines, the clanking of the launch machinery and, most compelling of all, one of the finest musical fanfares that the late James Horner (or anyone) ever wrote, the sequence is impossible to resist. It has never sounded better in my room. As the capsule makes its perilous descent toward the Pacific, the ending isn't quite as gripping as the launch, but as heard on a system such as the Silver 7G, evokes a swell of emotion.

Conclusion
I have reservations about the Monitor Audio W-12 subwoofer (unless you have a small room and a generous budget), but none at all about the other Silver 7G models reviewed here. Whether you're listening to music, watching the latest blockbuster film, or both, you're unlikely to do much better without spending a ton more.