There is a famous Rule of Three in loudspeaker design. You can have two of the following, but not all three simultaneously:
- a small loudspeaker
- an efficient loudspeaker (which requires less power to drive it)
- a speaker which goes deep.
It’s all down to the immutable laws of physics.
Like most compact loudspeakers, the Jordan Greenwich balances the rules whilst keeping compromises to a minimum:
- i’s compact (16 litres)
- it’s reasonably efficient (89 dB per watt)
- it goes reasonably deep (45 Hz or so).
For the majority of music, the lack of an octave below 40 Hz isn’t a problem but for some music (and some customers, see Karl’s blog here) it’s essential. Going even lower, entering the region that lies between 10 Hz and 20 Hz, can be a revelation. That’s where you begin to explore the space of the recorded acoustic.
When renowned UK reviewer Roy Gregory reviewed the Greenwich on his GY8 site, he understood the limitation in how low they could go. Discussing it with him at the end of the review period, I explained the balance and said 45 Hz wasn’t really a limitation. In fact, it was an ideal frequency to hand over to a good sub-woofer.
“That’s interesting,” Roy said, “Can I keep them a bit longer?”
Roy then approached Focal and requested a loan of their 1000f subwoofer to explore the Greenwich’s capabilities further. He found that this compact subwoofer did far more than just add an octave of bass. In fact, it enhanced the Greenwich in a number of unexpected ways. Here are some of his observations:
“If you like what the Jordan speakers do, in terms of musical timing, clarity and organisation – the sense of pattern they bring to a performance, especially an acoustic performance – then the real question quickly becomes, can a well-integrated sub actually enhance that sense of communication as well as delivering the expected increase in the sense of presence and dimensionality.
“…This isn’t just better bottom-end: it’s better music on every level. As impressive and insightful as the Greenwich speakers are, the modest investment in and careful addition of a well-chosen sub-woofer elevates them to another musical level.
“The Greenwich/Sub 1000F combination is an unqualified and highly recommendable success. Adding the sub-woofer doesn’t just make the Greenwich an even better speaker, it makes it a far more versatile one too. In a somewhat ironic twist, it allows the Jordan speakers to make even more of those distinctive and rather special drivers.”
To read the full review, click here.
And for Roy’s original review of the Greenwich, click here.
It’s a subject we’ve explored on the blog before. You can read about customer Karl’s experiences with the Greenwich and a REL Classic subwoofer by clicking here.
