B&W Retools CDM Series With Nautilus Technologies

Multiple Refinements Raise Stakes In ""Affordable High-End Performance"" Loudspeaker Market

2-Jun-00

In a move very much in keeping with its ""trickle-down engineering"" traditions, B&W Loudspeakers has introduced a completely revamped lineup of its very successful CDM family of loudspeakers. The British firmís new CDM NT Series is comprised of four refined models, including a home-theatre center channel, an all-new surround loudspeaker design, as well as two full-range stereo pairs. Of central importance, the new range incorporates key technologies derived from the B&Wís impressive Nautilus family whose flagship, the Nautilus 801, remains an international sensation. All four CDM NT designs (save the surround-specific CDMS NT) incorporate the most important Nautilus concept - tapered-tube tweeter loading and a free-standing tweeter ""pod,"" which, together, contribute so much to the Nautilus familiesí world-renowned performance. All four CDM NTs also exploit refined drivers and crossovers that further benefit from valuable Nautilus influences. ""It is a long-standing B&W tradition to implement our latest technical advances just as rapidly, and as far ëdown the line,í as possible - and thatís exactly what the NTs are all about,"" says B&Wís Executive Vice President Chris Browder. ""With Nautilus technology tweeters throughout the range and improved woofer and enclosure designs as well, the new CDM NT series gives B&W a truly world-beating ëaffordable high-end performanceí range. I'm completely comfortable in saying that there are no speakers, from Europe, North America, or elsewhere, that can equal them dollar for dollar in acoustic performance.""In refining the CDM series B&W has simply ignored the famous adage, ""If itís not broke donít fix it!"" - the original CDM lineup was among the companyís most successful ever, with nearly a quarter-million speakers delivered worldwide. But within B&W, the engineering imperative is always to improve, and these improvements destined for the CDM NT models demanded to be heard.The NT RefinementsAll four CDM NT loudspeakers employ a specifically optimized iteration of the world-famous B&W alloy-dome 1-inch tweeter.  In all models (save the on-wall CDMS NT surround speaker) this exemplary driverís potential is extended by two important Nautilus technologies. The first is the revolutionary Nautilus tapered-tube enclosure tweeter-housing, which efficiently and transparently absorbs the high-frequency driver's back-wave radiation, setting new benchmarks for clarity and articulation. The second Nautilus characteristic, a freestanding, hemispherical tweeter ""pod"" mount, virtually eradicates undesirable high-frequency reflections, promoting unmatched detail and uncanny soundstage precision. The NT tweeter also features a highly efficient, redesigned aluminum voice-coil that boasts substantially lower mass than prior designs. This pushes the first ""dome-breakup"" mode measurably higher in frequency - a very useful factor given the imminence of DVD-Audio/SACD systems promising verifiable response to 30kHz and beyond.The CDM NT 6.5-inch bass/midrange driver follows familiar B&W practices with its woven-KevlarÆ diaphragm, resulting in a light, strong and inherently anti-resonant transducer for clear, articulate mids and quick, defined bass. The NT series adds a redesigned ""fixed-bullet"" dustcap that retains the earlier series' advantages in mid-frequency dispersion while substantially reducing turbulence noise furthering the NTs' impressive detail and low-level resolution abilities. With air-core inductors at all critical positions, and transparent polypropylene capacitors throughout, the NT crossovers preserve the redesigned line's remarkably high-end sonic performance. Like the original CDM models, all four NT designs construct each filter ""section"" on fully independent circuit boards for maximum isolation and signal integrity.The CDM NT enclosures are similar to the original - exceptionally dense and rigid and thus free of unwanted resonances. A more gradual slope at the top of the baffles increases the tweeter-pod's exposure, improving dispersion still further for enhanced openness, while the front-firing cabinet vents found on all except the CDMS NT now incorporate B&W's exclusive FlowportÆ dimpling. This reduces turbulence, and thus distortion, via precisely the aerodynamics by which a golf ball's dimples eke out additional distance.The NT ModelsCompact and sized for bookshelf or stand mounting via the optional CDM1 NT floor stand, the CDM1 NT offers true audiophile reproduction at a very accessible cost, and in a highly livable format. The CDM7 NT, a floorstanding design which retains elegant slimness and ""low-impact"" esthetics, builds upon the superb sonics of the CDM1.The CDM7 NT operates in a ""two-and-a-half-way configuration"" with the B&W woven-Kevlar bass/midrange unit, yielding further bass extension with zero sacrifice in definition, or bass-transient accuracy.The CDMC NT is essentially a CDM1 NT reconfigured in a horizontal-format, magnetically shielded enclosure suitable for top-of-monitor, stand or shelf placement. However, unlike virtually all competing center-channel designs the CDMC NT eschews dual-woofer horizontal layout, which inescapably imposes serious compromises in lower-midrange response, dispersion, and spatial stability.Designed for surround or multichannel work, and a perfect match with low profile plasma screen televisions, the CDMS NT incorporates a wide-dispersion two-way system in an on-wall enclosure. It is just over five inches in depth and is equipped with a structurally rigid mounting-plate that accepts both threaded and ""keyhole"" hardware. Smoothly angled baffle-sides form an interestingly shaped cabinet with clear CDM kinship, while significantly reducing reflections for enhanced dispersion and spatial integrity. The CDMS NT driver and crossover complement are derived from the CDM1 NT's, but it replaces the Nautilus tapered-tube with an internal closed-tube enclosure, and eliminates the exposed ""pod"" as unnecessary in a wall-mounted surround-channel speaker. Spatially complementary and tonally matched to the full-range NT pairs, the CDMS NT forms the perfect solution to complete high-performance 5.1-channel systems devoted to serious surround-music reproduction as well as high-performance home theatre film sound.The NT FinishesAll four members of the new B&W CDM NT family are available in a choice of three elegant, real-wood finishes: Black Ash, Red Ash, and Cherrywood. All are executed using the unique ""Api"" veneer system, which uses real wood materials exclusively in a controlled design that maintains perfect grain pattern, finish quality, color shading of each unit, and is totally unaffected by UV rays eliminating any darkening with age. In turn, this eliminates problems of consistency in matching pairs, ensuring that multi-speaker surround systems will be elegantly matched.Manufacturerís suggested retail prices: CDM1 NT: $1,200/pair CDM7 NT: $2,000/pairCDMC NT (center): $600/each CDMS NT (surround): $1,200/pair CDM1 NT stands: $350/pairAvailable: July 2000

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