Recording - March 2016 - 42

B Y PA U L V N U K J R .

PSI Audio A14-M Broadcast
and A14-M Studio Monitors
Swiss precision in a remarkable portable monitor

PSI Audio is a Swiss manufacturer of
high end studio monitors. The origins of the
company date back to 1977's Roux
Electroacoustique, who designed and built
speakers under the PSI name, which then
became Relec SA in 1988. In addition to
its own products, Relec SA was a major
OEM company whose most fruitful partnership was with fellow Swiss firm Studer.
Relec developed and produced a popular
series of nearfield studio monitors-the
Studer A1, A3, and A5 models-between
1992 until 2003.
When Studer was acquired by Harman
in 2003, Relec began selling the formerly
Studer-branded monitors under the
revamped PSI audio name. Since then PSI
has expanded its line to include full size
mastering speakers in addition to updated
versions of the older Studer models. All of
the models are hand-built, and PSI Audio
can still repair any monitor it's ever sold!
A14-M and A14-S
The A14-M is in fact an updated version
of the older Studer A1. It is billed as a
broadcast model and is built with options
for both portability or permanent installation.
As of the 2015 AES show in New York
there is also an A14-M Studio version; other
than physical features, there are zero sonic
differences between the two. I was sent a
pair of A14-M Broadcast speakers; I will
simply say "A14-M" from here on out.
The A14-M is the baby of the PSI line. It
measures 93/8" tall, 61/4" wide, 65/8" deep
42

RECORDING March 2016

and weighs in at just over 12 pounds. Its
cabinet is made of MDF and finished in a
dark crimson textured coating which is the
signature look of the PSI Audio line.
The A14-M is a ported design with a
thin, low-profile reflex bass port on the bottom of the cabinet. It has a 5.8" bass driver and 1" tweeter. Also on the front is a
volume attenuation control and a 2-stage
green/red power-clip LED light. Around the
back there is a balanced female XLR input,
a low-end rolloff control, and a 3-prong
IEC connection.
The A14-M is biamped with 70 watts
for the bass driver and 30 watts to the
tweeter. The crossover point is set at 3.5
kHz, its frequency response is 56 Hz to 22
kHz (-6 dB), and it has max SPL of 112
dB (per pair).
Under the hood
The A14-M makes use of four innovative technologies unique to PSI Audio. To
understand some of what goes into the
monitor to create its sound, let's tackle
these new technologies (and their alphabet soup) one by one.
AOI-Adaptive Output Impedance:
adjusts the impedance of the amplifier to
make sure the speed and movement of the
speaker membrane and the amp are in perfect sync. According to PSI, this makes for
better accuracy and truer sonic translation,
especially in the low frequencies.
CPR-Compensated Phase Response: an
analog system of all-pass filters that controls
group delays, phase distortions, and irregularity for better clarity and imaging.
ALG-Acoustic Load Guide: PSI Audio's
waveguide which helps with the speaker's
directivity, SPL levels, and bandwidth
extension.
PSC-Phantom Standby Control: allows
for remote-controlled standby of PSI monitors
through the signal cable. It requires a simple
voltage control via the company's R&B
Signal Router.
Broadcast vs. Studio
As mentioned before, the A14-M
Broadcast offers a few unique features not
found on the Studio version. Since it is
made with portability in mind, the bass

driver is protected by a robust metal grille. It
also sports a thick metal bracket which
swivels from top to bottom. This bracket can
be used as a handle, to attach the speaker
to a mic stand, or even as a wallmount in a
permanent install or surround setup.
The front panel volume control is unique
to the broadcast model. On the A14-M
Studio and most other PSI Audio models, the
volume is on the back and there is no grille
over the woofer or handle/mounting bracket. (For the historically minded, the original
Studer A1 looked identical to the A14-M but
was finished in gray. It had the bracket, but
not the grille cover.)
In use
I started using the A14-M in my home
editing suite. After a few days of low-level
burn-in, I set to work using them for podcast
creation, pre-mixing and editing, dialogue
work, and general music listening.
The words that describe these speakers
best are "focused, full, and accurate."
They are not a pretty-sounding monitor and
not made to sweeten a mix. They will
expose flaws in a mix, and delight in

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Recording - March 2016