Sonus faber is announcing the launch of their new Olympica Nova speaker collection at the 16th Annual Rocky Mountain International Audio Fest (RMAF) today. The new collection will be available for viewing at the Red Rock 1 Room, Colorado Ballroom, Level 3 of the Convention Center.

Over the last 12 months, Sonus faber has begun a complete update to their product assortment, focusing on the attributes which originally built the brand: technological innovation, long term listenability and Italian craftsmanship. New launches have included Sonetto and Palladio Collections, a new line of Gravis subwoofers, the Electa Amator III and the Minima Amator II, all showcasing the brand’s dedication to innovation and its Italian heritage. The reinvention of the Olympica Nova collection is just the latest step in this evolution.

Olympica Nova 

The new Olympica Nova embraces the authentic values that inspired the original Olympica line while adding freshly developed technology, from new drivers and crossovers to new cabinet structure and internal volume tuning, to a new exterior look. Of the seven models in the collection, three are all-new to the Olympica Nova line, including an on-wall model, a third and more powerful floorstander, and a larger center channel.

Construction

Structure: The walls of the new Olympica Nova collection are made with eight layers of bent wood, providing the cabinet with extreme rigidity. Inside the cabinet, carefully placed structural ribs are used as reinforcement to reduce vibration and to handle the overall power of the transducer’s movement.

Top: The original Olympica’s leather-wrapped top panel gives way to a walnut or wenge wood panel set in a solid die-cast aluminum plate.

Reflex: The outer part of the Stealth Ultraflex™ system, an extremely low-turbulence porting system, is fabricated from a solid piece of extruded aluminum and it is inherited from Sonus Faber’s Homage Tradition models. Inspired by sea waves, the system facilitates airflow through the duct while controlling its speed and reducing distortion-causing turbulence.

Supports: Completely redesigned for the line relaunch, the supports (bottom plates and stands) are crafted from solid aluminum billets and paired with steel spikes, guaranteeing increased strength and solidity.

Front baffle: The front baffle is comprised of hand-finished natural wood, enhancing the entire enclosure.

Voice of Sonus faber: Genuine leather is applied to Voice of Sonus faber and around the woofers. As per Sonus faber tradition, the leather is applied by hand in the brand’s Vicenza production facility.

Asymmetric shape: This specific shape allows versatile positioning of the speakers for efficient bass response tuning in any room, while the lack of flat and parallel walls improves enclosure performance. This is an original design concept inspired by nature, as the lines follow the flow of a circular spiral motion, achieving a more organic cabinet structure. Not just a functional element added to handle airflow, the reflex duct is now fully integrated into the cabinet, further improving the speed and transparency of sound.

The Technology

The new Olympica Nova collection merges tradition and innovation

The tweeter features the DADTM technology (Damped Apex DomeTM) on a 28mm silk dome diaphragm and a magnetic motor system that integrates “Neodymium Cap Design”. The arch and the ring of the DADTM system have been redesigned and obtained from a solid piece of aluminum die-cast.

The midrange and mid-woofer transducers are derived from those used in the Homage Tradition collection with evolutionary improvements: – The Cone: Following the traditional Sonus faber structure, air-dried, non-pressed blend of cellulose pulp and other natural fibers Kapok, Kenaf gives the cone a slightly rough surface of varying density, which reduces resonance, guaranteeing a natural sound with increased transparency and detail. – Die-Cast Aluminum Basket is designed to allow maximum rigidity and airflow, enhancing detail. – The Moving Coil is made with CCAW (Copper Clad Aluminum Winding), a special copper alloy that reduces moving mass and improves dynamics and power handling – The Phase Plug is made of aluminum with a copper ring, helping to eliminate intermodulation distortion and enhance micro-dynamics

The woofer features a cone that benefits from an exclusive sandwich construction technique where two sheets of cellulose pulp encasing a hi-tech syntactic foam. This low-mass, high-rigidity structure provides fast and powerful sound reproduction while allowing total coherence with the mid-high units.

The cross-over network implements Paracross TopologyTM, making it less sensitive to radiofrequency interference, improving transient response and lowering noise floor. The filtering topology of the entire line features new exclusive Clarity Cap capacitors, customized for Sonus faber.

Finishes, Prices And Availability 

Olympica Nova collection is available in two finishes, WENGE matte and WALNUT matte

Olympica Nova V: $ 16.500 (pair) • Olympica Nova III: $ 13.500 (pair) • Olympica Nova II: $ 10.000 (pair) • Olympica Nova I: $ 6.500 (pair) • Olympica Nova Stand: $ 1.200 (pair) • Olympica Nova Center II: $ 7.000 (each) • Olympica Nova Center I: $ 5.000 (each) • Olympica Nova Wall: $ 4.000 (each)

Olympica Nova V, III, II, I will be available worldwide in September 2019. Olympica Nova Center II, Center I and Wall will be available in October 2019.

For all the up to date RMAF 2019 news and show coverage, check out our Rocky Mountain Audio Fest section here.