Sonus faber Concertino G4 speakers
The latest addition to Italian brand Sonus faber’s Concertino series is the G4, a two-way, standmount reflex design which come complete with matching stands. With a nod towards sustainable veganism, the G4 sports a patented, plant-based leather alternative from Italian start-up Ohoskin to wrap the wooden cabinets. The first 300 pairs produced also feature a brass plaque, with progressive numbering, affixed to the walnut side panels. Initially announced last summer, the product is now hitting the shops and I was loaned pair number 013.
Italian quality
Sonus faber, based in Arcugnano near Venice, was founded in 1983 by Franco Serblin from a small laboratory in Monteviale, in the hills of Vicenza. It was from here that the first product was launched, the Parva two-way monitor speaker with a midrange cone in Kevlar and a solid walnut cabinet. I remember the excitement in the audio press at the time, and among the handful of high street dealers selected to stock it.
In 2006 Franco left to pursue more boutique loudspeaker design although he sadly passed away in 2013. Manufacturers become known for certain things, Sonus faber made their name with fabulously elegant cabinets, as well as higher-end models being named after great violin makers (eg Stradivarius and Guarneri) or Italian locations associated with musical history, such as Cremona.
An important part of the McIntosh Group, it is a delight to see Sonus faber returning to its high-end roots of ultra-stylish Italian design. I have long admired the company’s smooth, well-balanced ‘house sound’ with tremendous detail and sublime driver integration. Just my kind of loudspeaker. Yet, in contrast to my staple diet of BBC-style monitors in veneered birch-ply boxes, the Italians gift us the sheer allure of magnificently crafted cabinets which are as much a part of their DNA as the sonic characteristics.
Design
Rather unusually, the core innovation of Sonus faber’s Concertino G4 is in its central carcase which is crafted from cork, yes… cork. It’s a material already synonymous with the Concertino models as well as the brand’s Suprema and Sonetto ranges where it has worked rather well. But this is the first-time cork has been paired with a bass/mid driver.
The designers have maintained their historic trapezoidal shape but applied this novel structure technique to limit internal resonances and reducing the requirement for additional damping inside the cabinet.
That Concertino G4 cabinet is a thing of beauty, by the way. With a nod to traditional aesthetics, the side walls are crafted from solid walnut with ribbed surfaces for enhanced structural integrity and increased rigidity, negating the need for complex and expensive internal bracing.
A plant-based leather alternative (made from orange and cactus by-products – the mind boggles) covers the cork structure and front baffle, giving full weight to Sonus faber’s ESG rating, the collective term for a business’s impact on the environment and society.
The main driver of the Concertino G4 is a five-inch long-throw paper pulp unit in what’s described as an ‘organic basket’. It crossed over, pretty seamlessly I might add (as conferred by the in-room plots), at 1.7kHz to a one-inch silk dome tweeter with aluminium ring enclosure. Sonus faber say the network is a “simplified design, in line with a phase-coherent philosophy, ensuring accurate phase alignment and a more defined, three-dimensional image”. To the rear of the boxes, we have a walnut wood reflex port and a pair of binding posts ready for bi-wire/bi-amping if required.
The optional and matching stands were supplied and are hefty, weighing in at over 14kg each. They are also proudly made in Italy, as stated on the cartons, and of steel. They have walnut veneer inserts in an effort to provide matching aesthetics. We are told the stands are “derived from an IPE 120X64 beam to retain proportions and provide a structural, industrial aesthetic.” All I know is that they are very heavy and provide for the speakers to be bolted to them. There are also optional floor spikes for those who desire such things.
Set-up and first impressions
The units were said to be supplied run-in but I left them playing random material for about a week before installation proper on my Custom Design FS104 Signature stands (the centre columns half-filled) because I found the dedicated Concertino G4 ones at 73cm a little too tall for my listening room chairs.
Connected to a Hegel H190 streaming amp with both satellite and internet tuners connected, I settled down to listen before the panel arrived. What should have been a 20 minute, or so, listen to make sure that all was well and nothing had been damaged in transit, ended up being a three-hour session. I just could not stop listening to the luscious sounds the Concertino G4s produced in my room.
As is often the case, I began with some of those songs where you think the first bit is the best, in this case Londonbeat’s I’ve Been Thinking About You (1995) which made it obvious that these beauties can time and time well. Dynamics were also top notch and the overall balance one of unfatiguing accuracy. The song’s thundering kickdrum thump made its mark every time. We get a sense of the Concertino G4’s LF abilities with the reproduction of the bouncy bassline here which is solid and convincing, as is the treble response from the bright guitar-jangle through the track. Midrange credibility is conferred by the vocals which were razor sharp and their realism immense. And this only via Airplay through the H190.
I wasn’t taking notes, because this was not supposed to be a proper listening session, but another track which stuck in my mind was Clapton’s Let it Grow, the one where he takes an audible breath before he starts singing, and here it works so well. The Concertino G4s certainly retained the track’s ethereal quality and the intimacy of the recording. The vocals were clean, no nasties such as sibilance, nasality or chestiness, often the downfall or a poorly-designed transducer.
Sound quality
As the listening panel arrived so did Atoll’s latest and top-of-the-range integrated amp from France in the shape of the very heavy IN400. I connected an Auralic Aries and launched Qobuz for some high-quality streaming. We were in for a treat with the Concertino G4s and had them atop the dedicated stands now.
We began with the original airplay mix of Maxx’s Get-a-Way, a memorable pumping dance track of the ‘90s. Timing, speed and bass output were all spot-on here and we moved the Sonus faber boxes further apart to generate an enormous soundstage without any ‘hole in the middle’ issues. Feet tapping away, we were aware of detail in a track that can easily sound blurred, messy and confused on lesser equipment.
The Concertino G4s also passed with flying colours when we switched to the album version of Dire Straits’ Private Investigation; highlighting the loudspeakers’ ability across virtually all frequencies, from the sinister, deep pitched synthesizer orchestration, leading into that slow piano progression accompanying an acoustic guitar and a pulsing bassline. The G4’s handled it with aplomb and we didn’t note anything out of place. They sound anything but the compact speakers that they are and filled the room with glorious sounds. Mark Knopfler’s whispered rather than sung words brought a tingle to back of my neck and we all agreed that Sonus faber has hit the spot with the Concertino G4s. The temptation to increase the volume didn’t faze the little boxes at all, and at higher SPLs they sounded just as good, if not better.
After a quick coffee break, we turned to Different Drum from 1968 by Linda Ronstadt and the Stone Poneys. Written by Mike Nesmith (of The Monkeys fame), it is arguably her greatest hit and notable for superb hard-pan stereo imaging. Female vocals can be a useful testing ground and reveal many a loudspeaker’s shortcomings, not so here though. Deliciously melodic, wrote one panel member, and I agree. The bittersweet, passionate, melancholic lushness comes across with all the emotion I remember from this song as a teenager, the Concertino G4s didn’t put a foot wrong. They possess more of a studio monitor quality than I expected, to the extent that I would be more than confident to use them for mixing. They avoid stamping their own character on the music and allow the original recording to come through as intended by the producers.
We finished with a change of genre and Nocturne (the third and arguable most famous movement) from Borodin’s String Quartet Number 2 (the Lindsay Quartet on ASV). Presented with clear, detailed, dynamically realistic sound, the G4s are, as I suspected, just as happy with gentle, chamber music as they are with more raucous material. The presentation was sublime.
In situ for bread and butter
The panel gone, I could not bring myself to pack away the Concertino G4s until the very last minute before the courier was due to collect them. I was able to enjoy them over the Easter break, with my daily diet of Swiss Radio Classic, BBC Radio 3’s live recitals plus a mix of radio drama and DVDs.
These confirmed my initial impression that Sonus faber have combined in the Concertino G4s all that I ask of a loudspeaker: honesty and integrity. Yes, we can nit-pick here and there but have to remember that these are mid-priced units, crafted in Italy, and in fact cost less than many of my all-time favourite BBC-style loudspeakers, and not all of those can claim to be made in Europe anymore.
Conclusion
With or without the optional stands, the Sonus faber Concertino G4 is a remarkable product: proficiently engineered, beautifully crafted and it sounds so inviting. Sonus faber have created a balance that is warm and natural, drawing the listener in to the performance. Nothing grates, nothing sounds out of place or exaggerated. They are a beautiful thing in so many respects, and that includes their aesthetic design.
The Concertino G4 is one of those products that I shall be deeply sorry to let go since it is something I could happily live with in my everyday system, it is that good. All too few products qualify on that front.