Adam Audio A4V Powered 2-Way Studio Monitor

Product Information

As I said at the beginning. The A4V isn’t likely to be the most popular model of the range, I suspect that will be the A7V, which would be a natural choice for someone working in stereo who wants the sweet spot between performance and value. However the reason I said I suspected the A4V would be the most important of this new range is that having a compact, DSP-controlled monitor which, courtesy of the A Control software can be easily incorporated into, and tuned as part of an immersive monitoring system, which has the performance to match such a demanding application is key to ADAM’s A series being a natural choice for people moving into Atmos. Anyone familiar with folded ribbons will know how well they work and whether you like them or not ultimately is a personal choice. Having tried products from ADAM’s classy S series I know exactly how good this style of tweeter can sound and they certainly don’t disappoint. The 120x70 degree (HxV) waveguide is rotatable allowing horizontal use or, more interestingly, use upside down so when monitors are installed inverted you don’t have to look at an upside down logo for the rest of time! The drivers cross over at 3KHz. Amplification is via a 110W class D unit for the bass and a 20W class A/B for the tweeter. The A7V also offers Voicing options. The Pure setting keeps everything as neutral and flat as possible, while the UNR option is an ADAM Audio voicing that more closely resembles the previous AX Series. It’s also an engaging and more dynamic voicing profile for casual listening. Finally, the Ext option opens up the remaining tuning options.

The A Series capitalizes on the transformative power of DSP-based electronics to provide greater tuning precision and better predictability than analogue-only speakers. With firmware that can be updated through an Ethernet connection, over time you can expect to integrate the latest DSP-based capabilities from ADAM Audio—including new filter types and features, plus alternative voicings If it is your time to update your monitoring system and get a new set of monitors, and even if you are in a small room – then this is a set of monitors that you will benefit from. With the latest technologies used on these monitors, you will be up to date and in trend with the newest know-how for studio monitors. As they’re part of a larger range and are not Adam Audio’s entry-level monitors, using a pair of them in a small home studio does put you at the bottom end of the target user base. Some of the features, such as fine-tuning and remote control via Ethernet using the A Control app, or uploading Sonarworks filter sets to them, are arguably more suited to professional use and multi-speaker systems in studios, and you may regard these as overkill. In that case, Adam Audio has its simpler, cheaper F Series of monitors that may be a better choice for you. Adam Audio made it easy to rotate the tweeter 90 degrees, so the dispersion still works correctly no matter how they’re set up. One of my A5 monitors died recently and rather than buy another used one I decided to go for these. Overall very disappointing. The first thing I noticed when taking them out of the box was how cheap they felt. You can tell these were built to be disposable and not meant to last. After plugging them in, I noticed that they were very boxy and thin sounding. Due to the ADAM Audio HPS Waveguide, you get exactly directed sound with huge dispersion within the horizontal and tight focus in the vertical. Made from novel high-density fiberglass polymer materials, undesirable resonances are minimized, leading to a clearer sound.

The two-way monitor makes use of ADAM Audio’s famed X-ART tweeter in addition to a 4-inch woofer, which – as with all A-Series models – is fabricated from an extremely lightweight but extraordinarily sturdy mineral fiber materials (MLM). Along with DSP expertise to calibrate, update, and modify the monitors, the A4V delivers excellent sound in a variety of working environments. Conveniently, the tweeter may be rotated 90 degrees to permit the monitor to be used vertically and horizontally without sacrificing the advantages of the waveguide. Within the heart of this HPS waveguide is the so-called X-ART tweeter – handcrafted in Germany and with the assurance of most impulse responses and detail. Woofer manufactured from multi-layer mineral The first two are quite narrow so audibility impact is very small (or imagined). I thought that filling that 1 kHz trough made the sound a bit less bright. The biggest difference naturally came from the broad filter #2. That needs to be adjusted to taste. Without it, the sound appears to be "higher resolution/detailed" but with female vocals it, I did not care about the way it exaggerated some sounds. In ADAM’s case, the room modification tech is used from Sonarworks. In the event you ever had a curiosity about that, you know what to expect. Moreover, the upgradeable firmware (which lets ADAM evolve the monitors) and a prolonged 5-year guarantee (plus post-warranty help) make sure the monitors’ longevity. Adam Audio A4V Design and Sound The new, revamped A series took what was so popular about these distinctive boxes and brought them bang up to date. Available in a range of sizes from the compact three way A8H, the original new low-profile A44H and the replacement for the super-popular two way A7X, the A7V, down to the diminutive A4V. It was this smallest of the range I chose to audition for this first look at the range because while it isn’t the most impressive and probably won’t be the most popular, I suspect it might be the most important.

The Neumanns have a slightly wider sweet spot than the Adams, as well as built-in DSP processing making them slightly more flexible across a broad variety of setups and spaces. The build is robust, and surprisingly heavy for the size of the speakers. We find the design rather tasteful, with the iconic yellow tweeters. The general consensus is that anything Genelec has to offer is the crème de la crème of audio monitoring. However, with the Genelecs you might want to invest in a subwoofer. The A4V thrives as part of all-encompassing, 3D multi-speaker configurations or when operating at short listening distances. You can even fine-tune the sound to suit your room using the integrated DSP-based tuning functionality! Impressive EngineeringThe Adam Audio X-ART tweeter is at the centre of the HPS waveguide, which is constructed using a new glass fibre polymer compound to produce clean sound and be free of unwanted resonance. Multi-Layer Mineral (MLM) Woofer But you do need to have their app running on your laptop and your audio routed through it for it to apply the “filter set”– which takes resources, adds complication, and is hard if not impossible to set up when using external audio gear like DJ kit. The KH 80 and the the A4V are not only comparable in price, but in the quality of their performance as well. Both are nominally flat, and both are more ideal for smaller-sized studios.