Sonja™ XV is an extreme, fourtower version of Sonja™, created to celebrate YG Acoustics™’ upcoming 15 year anniversary (2002-2017). It combines everything that YG Acoustics™ knows about speakerdesign, and incorporates several nextgeneration technologies that cannot be found elsewhere. Sonja™ XV – an entirely new sonic benchmark, truly extreme in every way… handmade in U.S.A.
Innovations include, first and foremost, a breakthrough tweeter made inhouse, and proprietary costnoobject bass inductors. These enhancements, together with an ability to move nearlimitless amounts of air, result in an effortless listening experience that is typically only associated with a live musical performance.
The bass, midbass and midrange units are made inhouse using YG Acoustics™’ proprietary BilletCore™ technology: the drivers are precisely machined out of massive slabs of aircraftgrade aluminum. This unique process offers overwhelmingly superior dynamics, musical delicacy and low distortion due to industry leading rigidity and accuracy (tight tolerances). A pair of Sonja™ XV utilizes a total of 18 BilletCore™ drivers.
The brand new BilletDome™ tweeter is YG Acoustics™’ most complex mechanical invention to date: a resonancefree soft dome is supported by a stiff, light airframe machined from aluminum billet. The airframe weighs a mere 30 milligrams (a thousandth of an ounce), but its critical sections are up to 14 times thicker than a typical hard dome, so its structural strength is vastly superior even to domes made of the most exotic hard materials. Finally, a tweeter that ends the ageold debate of hard versus soft, by combining the best of both.
The tweeter’s motor is YG Acoustics™’ ingenious ForgeCore™ system: inhouse CNCcutting introduces sophisticated 3D geometries into the magnet system. The resulting improvement is greatly reduced distortion and a sense of ease to the sound.
YG Acoustics™ crossover circuits are all created using proprietary software developed entirely inhouse. DualCoherent™ technology provides the best frequency response and relative phase available. Competing speakers are optimized in either the frequency domain (most common) or time domain. Only YG Acoustics™ has the ability to optimize both domains simultaneously.
Sonja™ XV’s bass crossover uses a brand new technology: ViseCoil™ inductors are CNC wound inhouse, then encased in a viselike milled structure to eliminate vibration and tighten tolerances. Residual loss is reduced by 24%, and linearity is improved by 60%. The result is better control over the woofers, far greater bass impact, and an easier job for most amplifiers.
Sonja™ XV’s mid and tweeter crossover uses ToroAir™ technology: inhouse CNC wound toroidal aircore inductors are unique in eliminating crosstalk (crosscontamination) common in crossover circuits. The result is preservation of highfrequency detail without harshness, brightness or sibilance.
Sonja™ XV’s exquisite cabinet combines visual refinement with overengineering. It is constructed of precisionmachined aircraftgrade aluminum alloy. This material, using vibrationfree pressurized assembly, allows for the most acoustically desirable enclosure achievable. The multilayered structure is optimized for each module’s specific frequency range. This ensures the lowest vibration achievable, even at extreme volume levels.
FocusedElimination™ antiresonance technology keeps mechanical losses lower than any competing speaker, by combining the minimized turbulence of a sealed design with the low friction otherwise associated with enclosurefree concepts.
YG Acoustics™ speakers are not voiced. All measurements are verified using extensive listening tests, but the speakers are not artificially manipulated. YG Acoustics™ speakers simply convey the recording – nothing more, nothing less. The endresult: Sonja™ XV is the closest that YG Acoustics™ has ever come to the natural sound of a live performance. It will be heard by few and attained by even fewer, but those who hear it will likely echo the statement that YG Acoustics™ President Yoav Geva made upon finishing his masterpiece: “From now on, when I listen to music, I want it to be either live or with Sonja™ XV”.
Expansions and Upgrades
Existing pairs of YG Acoustics™ Sonja™ can be expanded to Sonja™ XV, without the need to replace the speakers.
Sonja™ XV, in addition to its stateoftheart two channel (stereo) performance, is also fully compatible with multichannel audio and hometheater systems.
Sonja™ XV can also be combined with speakers from YG Acoustics™’ other lines for properly phasecoherent multichannel systems.
Specifications
Deviation:
±1 dB in the audible band
±5° relative phase throughout entire overlap
Exceptional pairmatching
Usable output extends from below 20 Hz to above 40 kHz
Drivers:
A fourway, fourtower system with a total of 20 drivers per pair of speakers
BilletCore™ ultrahighrigidity woofers, midwoofers and mids
BilletDome™ ultralowdistortion tweeter, unique to Sonja™ XV
Filters:
Sonja™ XV is fullypassive
Proprietary DualCoherent™ crossover at 65 Hz, 337 Hz and 1.75 kHz
Designed using software developed inhouse
ViseCoil™ bass inductors reduce residual loss and improve linearity, for greater bass impact and an easier job for most amplifiers
ToroAir™ mid and tweeter inductors eliminate crosstalk
Sensitivity:
88 dB / 2.83 V / 1 m 2π anechoic
Impedance:
4Ω nominal, 3.5Ω minimum
Dimensions:
4 towers, each 179x43x72 cm (70x17x28”) HxWxD
Weight:
4 towers, each 210 kg (463 lbs) per channel unpackaged
Shipping weight of a pair is 1.3 tons
Price:
U.S. MSRP $265,900 per pair