Danish Scansonic may be the sister brand of highly covetable Raidho, but its fabulously affordable ‘HD’ range of loudspeakers is starting to make waves in its own right. Now, it enters the Bluetooth arena with the new wireless active M BTL-series. Scansonic is owned by Dantax, the same parent company as Raidho and the brand’s loudspeakers are designed by Michael Børresen, creator of the renowned Raidho range. As a result, they have much of the Raidho family DNA and pedigree but at a fraction of the cost – which makes for a superb marriage of price/performance.
Børresen’s initial designs for Scansonic’s HD range were the first models in the MB-series (named with his own initials), closely followed by the astoundingly affordable M-series. The new active M BTL-series, comprising a standmount and two floorstanders, features wired analogue, digital and wireless aptX Bluetooth audio connections.
One of each pair of speakers features a built-in amplifier stage – but not the class D design that one might expect in this price range, since this has never been the Scansonic way (keep in mind the Raidho connection). Each of the three models in the M BTL-series sports a powerful class A-B amplifier: 50W in the 2-way M-5 BTL standmount, 60W in the 2.5-way M-6 BTL floorstander and 80W in the 3-way M-9 BTL.
All three models are designed around the same ultra-light ribbon planar tweeter as used in the Raidho-inspired MB-series. Its membrane is formed by a kapton-aluminum sandwich just 20µm thick and with an extremely low mass – approximately 50 times less than any conventional textile, ceramic, beryllium or diamond dome. This lower mass translates directly into higher resolution and less material coloration.
The tweeter is partnered with a paper-polypropylene coned 4.5-inch mid/bass driver (one in the M-5 BTL standmount and two in the M-6 BTL and M-9 BTL floorstanders) with underhung magnet system. The M-9 BTL floorstander adds an 8-inch side-mount bass driver. The cabinets feature a heavily braced, ventilated box design with front-loaded port, and the system also comes with a learning remote control.
Recently described by Hi-Fi Plus (April 2016) as “a next gen product”, the M BTL-series promises an authentic hi-fi experience from just a pair of speakers and a smartphone or laptop (ie. any Bluetooth-enabled device). Beam music from your ‘phone, plug in your TV… and get a great-sounding hi-fi system without the system!
Pricing and availability
The Scansonic HD M-BTL series is available now, priced as follows (incl VAT). All models are
available in a choice of two finishes: black-piano or white-piano.
M-5 BTL 2-way wireless active standmount £599
M-6 BTL 2.5-way wireless active compact floorstander £1,199
M-9 3-way wireless active floorstander £1,799
