MONITOR AUDIO 703 PMC

I was initially seduced by the look of these speakers with their beautiful gold woofer & tweeters and needed a change never being entirely happy with any of the 3 pairs of speakers I've had since saying goodbye to my Misson 751's (rogers, missions & tannoy) a few years back when I finally had space for some floorstanders.

If you are reading this review because you are considering buying a pair, just stop reading.. you are wasting your time.. just buy these speakers.. WOW.. WOW.. WOW.

In my opinion (based on many 1,000's of hours listening / many different hi end set ups) these are the best sub £1,000 speakers I've heard when marked against all the usual perameters..
this is set against a backdrop of having 2 woofers before on my tannoy revolution XT's (£800) so i expected a slight drop off in low end punch..wrong.

soundstaging.. 5/5 wide, fully transparent and totally emersive.. the hiss of the cymbal and dry kick of the snare drum just make you smile and want to move.. incredible..

musicality.. as above.. all compenets of the music are picked out in incredible detail, placed perfectly and allowed to shine in their own right, never clinical but so.. so precise sounding.. amazing.. the speed of percussion & drums is breathtaking. I've filled the botton sections with lead shot just to crisp everything up marginally.

build quality.. stunning, as good as the £2,000 linn speakers I tried recently in store.

overall impression.. 5/5 gergeous sub £1,000 speakers that you pick up for a gew £100 quid these days, stop reading and start completing your purchase.. you will NOT be dispointed..

I have them partnered with some top end vintage Marantz class A kit & a thorens turntable.
go.. buy.. go now!

They have everything you need in beautiful and best speakers

Nothing so far

To be honest with you... this is one of the best speakers under £1000 ever created. To those who are going to buy a pair of speaker,...please have this speaker auditioned. They won't dissapoint you. You'll be enthralled...An absolute 5 stars.

Openness, clarity, speed and amazing transparency

It's not ugly....damn it!!

I purchased this speaker at a bargain price...At the first moment i listened to the speaker..there was nothing special actually.... warm, compressed and bold. I thought i made a mistake... but, after a few days, everything changed. The bass become a bit tightened, the vocal presentatation was very close to natural, the treble was the sweetest I've ever heard and the clarity and transparency that made my jaw dropping. For me,, this was a true bargain and added with its enviuos looking, nothing below £1500 can't touch this speaker ...believe me. To be honest, you can get more from the speaker by filling sand into the compartment provided and leave it for a few days... And it is transformed to a higher level especially its bass, which is more tightened and focused. So..to those who want to buy a pair of speaker around £1000, you must audition this amazing speaker to make your purchase unregrettable later on. An obvious ***** .

I bought these speakers 2 months ago and just love them. They offer a sound that's detailed, clear, and precise. I think this is because of the fact that Monitor Audio have designed a cone that's unlike any other ever produced. This Ceramic coated beauty reproduces sound that's incredibly life-like that you'll swear that it's live. The 703s are IMO the best of the PMC line. I've auditioned the 700 - 705 and they all lack something that the 703 has. The 700 and 701 lack the serious bass needed to reproduce realistic performances. They are also more upfront. The 705 are not as focused. I think it might have something to do with the fact that it has two mid/woofers instead of one. The 705 also don't seem to go as low...perhaps I am mistaken because of the listening condition.
The sound is fast and tight. Most paper cones cannot even come close to the sound that comes from these light cones. The paper cones all sound kinda full after listening to a pair of Monitor Audios. Good amp/cd players are a must for these speakers however. They will put out wahtever you put in. If you use bright equipement it will sound bright, if you use dark it will sound dark. Try a listen for yourself.....

I am at the point of buying new speakers. The last couple of years I had a pair of Driade 9 speakers, which look superb, but the sound of it never really engaged me.
The CDM-7 SE's are high on my list, although I am also still considering other B&W's (P4/5; CDM-1 SE)
and also speakers from other manufacturers, like the
Dali 450/850,
Celestion A1/2,
Mission 753,
KEF Q55/65,
Castle Avon/Harlech,
Acoustic Energy 109/120,
Monitor Audio MA 70# PMC,
Ruark Acoustic Scepter
So, it's obvious I still have quite a lot of listening to do.

My amp and CD are from Harman/Kardon (6500 and 730, resp.) wired with Van Den Hul cables and interlink. At this moment the CDM-7 SE's have my preference but I don't know how they hook up with my amp and CD. Your experience on any of these speakers or suggestions are highly welcome.

The 703's are among the best speakers I've heard for even close to the $$$.They were fast and accurate and a great upgrade from my former B&W 801's (Older style). I was ready to spring for the new design and spend nearly what it would cost for a good used car when i happened on the 703's at century stereo. I was happy saving so much money, but bottom line is they just sounded better.More real, and much more involving. In N.CA, we have many hi end shops, but none could beat the sound of the Monitor Audios at any price. I feel other speaker companies have a long way to catch this company.
Great work guys

Very beautifull floorspeaker. Excellent midband focus. Fast speakers.

Nice cables are neccesary.

These speakers are well built and is very womenfriendly (most beatifull cabinet i've seen).
The Sound is excellent, especially the soundstage which is very wide. The midbandfocus is superb.
I had some problems at first with the bass, but when I filled them with sand, the bass became a lot tightener.
This week I bought the Van den Hul Teatrack cables (CS-122 BIWI)and the bass is a lot deeper now, but so very good controlled. I started shivering when Bocelli sang, it's just perfect now!!!

This is my set:

Sony cd player CDP-X3000ES
Sony amplifier TA-F3000ES
Monitor Audio 703PMC
Interlink : Van den Hul D102 MKIII
Speakercables: Van den Hul Teatrack (CS-122 BIWI)

This combination sounds superb together.

Similar Products Used:

Hepta Forore 80, JM Lab , Kef Q65

I purchased these speakers about a month ago now, after listening to B&W, NHT, Definitive Tech, M&K, Infinity, etc.. They require 100-150 hours to break-in, before which they sound very tight.
After the break-in, they really begin to open-up and are very detailed, articulate, and accurate. I hear things in both movies and music that I never recall hearing before. I really like 'em. They are part of my Home Theater, which consists of:

MA 703PMC
MA CC70
MA ASW210
MA MAFX-2

B&K Ref 20
B&K AV5000II

I will say that you really need to use a sub with them, to get good bottom end...

Fine midband projection, with loads of detail and good focus; excellent cabinetwork

Up-front sound can become fatiguing.

Monitor Audio has long been known for turning out some of the prettiest woodwork imaginable, and this Rosemah-veneered compact floorstander is no exception.

Like a number of other compact floorstanders, the whole of the internal box volume is too large for ideal working with the main driver, and the lower section is blanked off.
A small inspection hatch allows ballast to be added here. Spikes are fitted directly into the bottom panel, so the fore-and-aft footprint is limited.

Bass extension is similarly constrained, rolling off rapidly below 50Hz on our in-room measurements. These show that the happiest position for the 703 is well clear of room boundaries, whereupon it delivers a remarkably flat and smooth balance, right up through the treble, albeit with a more rapid roll-off than usual in the treble as well as the bass. Unusually - perhaps controversially - the crossover network involves a measure of equalisation to 'peak up' the main driver output just prior to the (highish) 4kHz electrical crossover point.

Sound Quality

The listening panel was pretty impressed by the 703, with every listener rating it average or better, although the level of enthusiasm did vary. The even-handedness and neutrality was widely appreciated, and the midband is very well handled, bringing plenty of well-focused fine detail to voices in particular.

However, the sound is also a bit small and mid-dominant - as one panellist put it: "A safe loudspeaker... easy on the ear, but I want it to let go and try harder." The hands-on work raised some additional question marks. The balance is very well suited to playing at modest levels, with the slight forwardness helping detail intelligibility. Start turning up the volume, though, and the experience becomes less comfortable. An initially attractive top-end 'sheen' starts to become a bit of a glare, and dynamics begin to sound a little congested.

Conclusion

The 703 is well suited to smaller rooms, and is particularly effective when operating at modest levels, with splendid midband coherence and clear, clean, well-projected detail - a rare strength, which demands recognition by Recommendation. Though the price may be high for the engineering content involved, the finish and presentation are well ahead of the pack, too.

Similar Products Used:

Kef Q65 II, JM Lab Opal 810; Xanadu DS14 markII; BMW n7se