Mark and Daniel Maximus Monitor Speakers

The bass driver is a 6.5 inch reinforced coated paper cone. It is a proprietary driver designed by Daniel Lee, patented during 1999 and manufactured in Shanghai. The excursion rate is three times that of comparative drivers and moves three times as much air. The piston is always under 100 percent magnetic control. The driver does not distort at full excursion. The Dreams driver (tweeter) is a modified Heil driver, larger in size, and its frame structure and curvature are different.

As a result, a lower cross over point (800 Hz) can be achieved as well as greater dispersion. The Dreams driver is a folded ribbon and has the radiant equivalent (surface area) of 40 one inch dome tweeters. According to the manufacturer, it has 5.1 times the speed of a conventional cone.

Compared to a flat rectangular ribbon, it has about 8 times the radiant area. The bass driver has significantly greater dispersion than the Dreams driver. The manufacturer�s stated frequency response is 38 Hz to 20 KHz, + or 3db, and the woofer is flat to 50 KHz.

A design goal of this speaker system is the minimization of frequency modulation distortion effects. Essentially, this means minimizing distortion accruing from the presence of two or more fundamental frequencies. When listening to an ensemble or orchestra, one may notice congestion and lack of separation of instruments. The speaker has been designed to achieve a level of transparency enabling a listener to experience a natural and realistic presentation of complex musical information.

The cabinet is composed of mdf, to which a 3/8 inch thick artificial marble frame is attached. The cabinet is lined with acoustic foam and drivers are mounted to the cabinet with 4 screws. Twenty man hours of labor, at US$ 1.50/hour is required to fabricate each cabinet. Since the speaker is assembled in China, the retail price is US$ 2980 per pair. If constructed in the US, production cost would raise the price to more than US$ 9000. The stands provided by the company are priced at US$ 700 per pair. They match the color and finish of the speaker. Speaker weighs 33 pounds and is rated at 83 db.