Recording - March 2018 - 38

REVISITED

Genelec
8341 and 8331
Studio Monitors and

GLM 3 Software
Two new 3-way coaxial monitors to fit
any room-and software to ease the process
By Paul Vnuk Jr. with Mike Metlay

For 40 years now, Finnish speaker company Genelec
has had a big hand in def ining the look, style, and sound
of modern recording studio monitors. That genre-defining
innovation was most recently showcased in our
November 2015 issue, when I had a chance to work
with the 8351, arguably the company's most futuristic
design yet. This month, Mike Metlay and I are following
up with a report on two new, smaller siblings to the
8351. The 8341 and 8331 expand the line from a single
monitor to a series that Genelec is calling The Ones.
Looking at The Ones, you can see that these are not
your ordinary speakers. At first glance (and even at second
glance!), there appears to be no bass driver-just a single
domed tweeter in the center of a sculpted waveguide enclosure,
with barely-visible slim vents on the top and bottom.
All three models feature a 3-way coaxial design inside of a
precision-sculpted aluminum enclosure, and are part of Genelec's
Smart Active Monitor (SAM™) universe. They can be tuned to match
their room via Genelec Loudspeaker Manager (GLM™) software.
In many ways, The Ones are the culmination of all of Genelec's
advancements in speaker design, which we'll re-introduce below.
The 8341 and 8331 models are smaller variants of
the 8351. Where the 8351 measures 171/16" x 111/4" x
1015/16", the 8341 is 149/16" x 93/8" x 91/2", and the
8331 is 12" x 71/2" x 83/8". Each one sits on one of the company's Iso-Pod™ stands and can be positioned horizontally
or vertically. They are available in the standard Genelec gray,
or in white or black (at slightly higher prices than given below).

What's a coaxial monitor?

A coaxial design, also known as a single point source,
is just that-two speakers stacked inline, sharing the same
space and aimed along the same axis. This is in contrast
38

RECORDING March 2018

to traditional monitor speaker designs, where the different drivers
are placed apart from one another on the monitor enclosure.
Genelec label their design Minimum Diffraction Coaxial
(MDC™). On both the 8331 and 8341, the midrange driver is
31/2" with a 3/4" tweeter. Note that on the 8351, the mid driver
is 5" while sharing the same size tweeter as the other models.
The MDC is recessed into the molded cabinet which is
designed according to another Genelec technology invented in
1983 called the Directivity Control Waveguide (DCW™). DCW
increases the amount of direct energy to the listening position,
resulting in better stereo imaging, offers greater off-axis neutrality,
reduces cabinet edge diffraction... in a nutshell, it gives Genelec
speakers uncolored clarity and a wide frequency sweet spot.

Dual oval woofers

Each cabinet includes not one but two oval low-end drivers
that live on the top and bottom behind the abovementioned
slits. These, of course, have another Genelec abbreviation:
ACW™ (Acoustically Concealed Woofers). The woofers on the
8341 are 65/8"x 31/2" and those on the 8331 are 51/8" x
25/8". Again, for reference, the 8351 woofers are 81/2 x 4".
As with all 8000 series models, The Ones have a rear bass port
or Reflex Port Design that combines an internal tube that vents at the
port; it's designed to control distortion, compression and port noise.

Power and specs

The 8341 has a max output level of 110 dB, and is
tri-amplified (250W/150W/150W). Its frequency response
is given as 38 Hz-37 kHz (-6 dB) with a tolerance of ± 1.5
dB in the range from 45 Hz to 20 kHz.
The 8331 has a max output level of 104 dB. Its three
amplifiers provide 72W/36W/36W. Its frequency response
is rated at 45 Hz-37 kHz (-6 dB) with a tolerance of ± 1.5
dB in the range from 58 Hz to 20 kHz.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - March 2018