Canton Movie 150 QX
CANTON MOVIE 150 QX SPEAKERS REVIEW - A Compact and Affordable High Performance Solution
March 2007 By Clint Walker
For many people, the dream of owning a German-made sports car is simply that, a dream. All too often our dreams elude us as a matter of simple economics—not enough money to buy the dream.
So we wind up trying to fashion some other means of seeing that dream fulfilled and before we know it, we wind up with a pile of parts in the garage and the shell of something which our spouse concludes is nothing more than an expensive trash bin. Okay, this is getting too real…
In the world of high-performance speakers there are but a few “German sports cars” and even fewer budget German sports cars. Today, we are beginning to see the effects of trickle engineering and refinements in cost-efficient production. So it is with little surprise and favorable welcome that we are seeing high-end companies like Canton offer products in the marketplace which should all but create frenzy at retailers when they hit the shelves.
We had waited patiently for the boat to arrive, our name on a waiting list and naturally, being one of the nations leading technology magazines, found ourselves at the front of the line. (A shameless but deserved thank you.)
The Canton Movie 150 QX made its way into our studio and as I unpacked the compact speaker ensemble, I found myself oscillating between thoughts of, “sure looks plain” and “yeah, but it’s a Canton.”
Plain indeed. Canton indeed. With the ensemble connected to a Rotel RSX-1056 receiver, the sports car began to purr and thoughts of simplicity were soon erased. In fact, the compact size and simplicity of the Canton Movie 150 QX makes them easy to integrate into challenging rooms, while delivering dynamic response with the depth and clarity that Canton is well known for.
The front left/right and surrounds are extremely compact, measuring just over 4 x 6 x 5-inches and the ensemble even offers a dedicated center channel that measures just over 11 x 4 x 5-inches. Each of the satellites features a single 4-inch aluminum cone woofer and 1-inch aluminum tweeter while the center features a pair of 4-inch woofers flanking a single 1-inch aluminum dome tweeter. The subwoofer is also simple and compact and features an 8-inch Cellulose/graphite woofer backed by a 120-watt amplifier.
Despite the size and price, the Movie 150 QX ensemble delivers on the Canton name through performance typically associated with speakers twice the size and price. The top-end is brilliant and well-dispersed, while matching well to the 4-inch woofer. High quality drivers equal increased transient response, and increased transient response equals a high-impact performance with a precise sound uncommon to “budget” speaker systems.
I particularly enjoyed music passages during the audition of the Movie 150 QX proving its ability to escape boundaries established by its name. However, movie performance did prove to be its strongest suit. The soundstage is wide and deep and overall mood enveloping, with strong bass notes delivered from the compact subwoofer.
Dialogue was a little more subdued and overall quite realistic with no signs of chestiness or sibilance. At higher volume levels, I noted excellent control of the speakers—free from unwanted distortion—with exception to the subwoofer which did erupt with port noise. In all fairness, I was pushing the system well beyond that of any reasonable listening level.
The Canton 150 QX represents the top-end of the Movie series. And I cannot help but wonder how the rest in the Movie series performs given the stellar performance of the 150 QX. It seems to me that anyone in the market for a true “micro” satellite speaker system should consider Canton’s latest endeavor—it’s a cheap ticket for a trip on the Audubon. yy
So we wind up trying to fashion some other means of seeing that dream fulfilled and before we know it, we wind up with a pile of parts in the garage and the shell of something which our spouse concludes is nothing more than an expensive trash bin. Okay, this is getting too real…
In the world of high-performance speakers there are but a few “German sports cars” and even fewer budget German sports cars. Today, we are beginning to see the effects of trickle engineering and refinements in cost-efficient production. So it is with little surprise and favorable welcome that we are seeing high-end companies like Canton offer products in the marketplace which should all but create frenzy at retailers when they hit the shelves.
We had waited patiently for the boat to arrive, our name on a waiting list and naturally, being one of the nations leading technology magazines, found ourselves at the front of the line. (A shameless but deserved thank you.)
The Canton Movie 150 QX made its way into our studio and as I unpacked the compact speaker ensemble, I found myself oscillating between thoughts of, “sure looks plain” and “yeah, but it’s a Canton.”
Plain indeed. Canton indeed. With the ensemble connected to a Rotel RSX-1056 receiver, the sports car began to purr and thoughts of simplicity were soon erased. In fact, the compact size and simplicity of the Canton Movie 150 QX makes them easy to integrate into challenging rooms, while delivering dynamic response with the depth and clarity that Canton is well known for.
The front left/right and surrounds are extremely compact, measuring just over 4 x 6 x 5-inches and the ensemble even offers a dedicated center channel that measures just over 11 x 4 x 5-inches. Each of the satellites features a single 4-inch aluminum cone woofer and 1-inch aluminum tweeter while the center features a pair of 4-inch woofers flanking a single 1-inch aluminum dome tweeter. The subwoofer is also simple and compact and features an 8-inch Cellulose/graphite woofer backed by a 120-watt amplifier.
Despite the size and price, the Movie 150 QX ensemble delivers on the Canton name through performance typically associated with speakers twice the size and price. The top-end is brilliant and well-dispersed, while matching well to the 4-inch woofer. High quality drivers equal increased transient response, and increased transient response equals a high-impact performance with a precise sound uncommon to “budget” speaker systems.
I particularly enjoyed music passages during the audition of the Movie 150 QX proving its ability to escape boundaries established by its name. However, movie performance did prove to be its strongest suit. The soundstage is wide and deep and overall mood enveloping, with strong bass notes delivered from the compact subwoofer.
Dialogue was a little more subdued and overall quite realistic with no signs of chestiness or sibilance. At higher volume levels, I noted excellent control of the speakers—free from unwanted distortion—with exception to the subwoofer which did erupt with port noise. In all fairness, I was pushing the system well beyond that of any reasonable listening level.
The Canton 150 QX represents the top-end of the Movie series. And I cannot help but wonder how the rest in the Movie series performs given the stellar performance of the 150 QX. It seems to me that anyone in the market for a true “micro” satellite speaker system should consider Canton’s latest endeavor—it’s a cheap ticket for a trip on the Audubon. yy
Companies Mentioned:
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