Sigberg Audio MANTA: Awesome active monitors from Norway

The Norwegian company Sigberg Audio has introduced new active monitors MANTA with a cardioid pattern. The Sigberg Audio brand is very young – the company started in 2020 and specializes in the development and production of active speaker systems and subwoofers. The company conducts both design and production in Norway.

Traditional dynamic drivers radiate sound waves in all directions. This is especially true in the low frequency range. Thus, only a small part of the sound energy reaches the listener’s position. And the rest generates reflections from the walls of the listening room, which can provoke sound distortion.

Sigberg Audio claims that the MANTA monitors achieve a cardioid polar pattern over an “exceptionally wide frequency range without sacrificing performance.” That is, the developers managed to concentrate sound energy in the direction of the listener.

Like Sigberg Audio SBS.1 active monitors , Manta speakers are designed to work with triphonics with an active subwoofer. The company notes: “Despite the 12-inch driver, the lower limit of the MANTA frequency range is 90 Hz. This means it is essentially a 4-way speaker unit that integrates perfectly with our subwoofers.”

Sigberg Audio MANTA active monitors are already available for pre-order directly on the company’s website. Suggested retail prices are $13,300 , €12,300 or £11,000 .

Specifications:

• Type: 3-way (with subwoofer – 4-way) active speaker system
• Drivers: 12″ midbass, coaxial driver – 5.5″ midrange driver and 1″ silk dome tweeter
• Amplifier: Three-channel Hypex nCore class D amplifier with DSP (650 watts per channel)
• Equalizer / Room Correction: 9-band parametric equalizer
• Frequency response: 20 – 20,000 Hz (indoor with subwoofer) / 90 – 20,000 Hz +/-2.5 dB (anechoic)
• THD: <0.5% at 96dB/1m
• Maximum sound pressure level: 122 dB (at 1 m)
• Cardioid dispersion characteristics (120-180°): ~100 – 500 Hz: 10 – 12 dB attenuation / ~500 Hz – 1 kHz: 16 – 20 dB attenuation / ~1 – 5 kHz: 25 dB attenuation
• Analog Inputs: RCA unbalanced, XLR balanced (input/bypass)
• Digital inputs: optical, coaxial SPDIF (in/bypass), AES/EBU (in/bypass)
• Dimensions of a single monitor (W x H x D): 360 x 600 x 350 mm, stand height 1070 mm
• Single monitor weight: 25 kg (without stand)
• Scope of delivery: Stainless steel MANTA freestanding stand tilting the speaker by 4 degrees, USB cable, power cable