Definitive Technology Mythos Four Manuel utilisateur

when it suddenly

hit me: The slen-

der, silvery beauty

of Deﬁnitive Tech-

nology’s Mythos

speakers might

actually be a draw-

back. I was so

disturbed by this

realization that,

using ancient Latin

with such elo-

quence it would

have brought tears

to Cicero’s eyes, I

cancelled our date

to go shopping for

the latest opera

releases on SACD,

returned the new

issue of Foreign

Affairs that I’d

borrowed from

her, and headed

home to drink a seaweed-and-algae

smoothie while meditating on

the problem.

There’s simply no doubt about it.

The Mythos speakers that Def Tech

sent me for review–ﬂoorstanding

Mythos Fours for the mains, a

Mythos Three for the center, and

a pair of never-before-seen-by

normal-humans Mythos Gems for

the surrounds, plus a SuperCube

II subwoofer–were drop-dead

gorgeous. I’m talking stunning,

can’t get-them-out-of-your-mind,

wouldn’t-kick-them-out-of-bed-for-

eating-Limburger-cheese-andWassa-

crispbread gorgeous.

The Mythos Four exudes class

and style as it presses upward from

its elegant glass base. It soars

toward the ceiling like a refined

cathedral spire built to appease

the gods of great sound and

stylish décor. The sylphlike

horizontal Mythos Three rested

lightly atop my TV, looking for

all of the world as if it were

only temporarily reclining and

might, at any moment, choose

to soar upward, as well. The

Mythos Gems, about as perfectly

So I was chatting with Paris

Hilton the other day about some

arcane aspect of cosmic string

theory (OK , all aspects of cosmic

string theory are arcane to me)

The totally bearable lightness of being a Mythos

“perfectly propor-

tioned ... built to

appease the gods

of great sound and

stylish décor”

BY DARRYL WILKINSON

from the

test bench

Deﬁnitive Technology Mythos Four

Speaker System

“They will eat for lunch just about any other system in the price range”

proportioned as tiny speakers can

be, beckoned from their perches in

the back of the room.

There’s no law of physics nor

any pending Constitutional amend-

ment that I’m aware of declaring

that speakers must look average

at best and toad’s-butt ugly if at

all possible. But our collective

puritanical background subcon-

sciously forces most red-blooded

Americans to be highly suspicious

of any component that even has

a whiff of style about it (Apple’s

iPod being a giant–or, more accu-

rately, a tiny–exception to the rule).

Our feelings run much the same

with people. Geeky nerds aren’t

expected to be the best dressed

guys at the lunch buffet; and, well,

I don’t really think Paris Hilton

reads Foreign Affairs, either.

Some misguided people are

going to dismiss these Mythos

beauties as just another collection

of pretty faces with no substance to

them–and they’d be wrong. Stulti-

fyingly wrong. If Def Tech had just

jumped on the rapidly moving

lifestyle bandwagon and simply

crammed a few basic drivers inside

a cabinet cosmetically tailored to

appeal to the ﬂat-panel TV-buying

crowd, then none of this would

matter. The fact is that, while

Def Tech most admittedly designed

these speakers around a contempo-

rary cosmetic concept, they also

used their engineering prowess

to breathe silky sonic life into

their creation.

No Peaking

Here’s an example of what I’m

talking about. Def Tech engineered

the Mythos Fours, Threes, and

“pinpoint accuracy,

incredibly intimate

detail ... in a word:

three-dimensional

and thrilling”

“The system’s

blending of bass

and beauty is

quite astounding” AT A GLANCE DEFINITIVE TECHNOLOGY MYTHOS FOUR SPEAKER SYSTEM

HT Labs Measures: Deﬁnitive Technology

Mythos Four Speaker System

These listings are based on the manufacturer’s stated specs;

the HT Labs box below indicates the gear’s performance on

our test bench.

SUBWOOFER: SUPERCUBE II

Connections: Speaker- and line-level

ins and outs, LFE in

Enclosure type: Passive radiator

(two, 8 inches)

Woofer (size in inches, type): 8, long-throw polymer

Power Rating (watts): 1,250

Crossover Bypass: Yes

Available Finishes: Piano Black Gloss

Dimensions (H x W x D, inches): 12.5 by 12 by 12

Weight (pounds): 38

Price: $899

SPEAKER:

Type:

Tweeter (size in inches, type):

Woofer (size in inches, type):

Radiator (size in inches, type):

Nominal Impedance (ohms):

Recommended Amp Power (watts):

Available Finishes:

Dimensions (H x W x D, inches):

Weight (pounds):

Price:

Mythos Four

2.5 way, tower

1, aluminum dome

4.5, cast basket (4)

4.5, planar bass (2)

4–8

20–225

Silver or Black

44 by 5.19 by 5.13

$699

MythosThree

Two-way, center

1, aluminum dome

4.5, cast basket (2)

4.5, planar bass (2)

4–8

10–200

Silver or Black

5.4 by 25.1 by 4.2

$499

Mythos Gem

Two-way, monitor

1, aluminum dome

3.5, wide dispersion (2)

N/A

4–8

10–200

Silver or Black

10.25 by 4.25 by 4.125

$249

Mythos Four L/R Sensitivity:

87.5 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz

Mythos Three Center Sensitivity:

89 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz

Mythos Gem Surround Sensitivity:

87 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz

This graph shows the quasi-anechoic (employing

close-miking of all woofers) frequency response of

the Mythos Four L/R (purple trace), SuperCube II

sub (blue trace), Mythos Three center (green

trace), and Mythos Gem surround (red trace).All

passive loudspeakers were measured at a distance

of 1 meter with a 2.83-volt input and scaled for dis-

play purposes.

The Mythos Four’s listening-window response

(a ﬁve-point average of axial and +/–15-degree

horizontal and vertical responses) measures

+2.77/–1.26 dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz.The -3dB

point is at 104 Hz, and the -6dB point is at 90 Hz.

Impedance reaches a minimum of 4.82 ohms at 267

Hz and a phase angle of -30.34 degrees at 162 Hz.

The Mythos Three’s listening-window response

measures +0.95/–2.91 dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz.

An average of axial and +/–15-degree horizontal

responses measures +0.97/-2.98 dB from 200 Hz

to 10 kHz.The –3dB point is at 122 Hz, and the

–6dB point is at 106 Hz. Impedance reaches a mini-

mum of 3.96 ohms at 251 Hz and a phase angle of

–46.45 degrees at 158 Hz.

The Mythos Gem’s listening-window response

measures +1.52/–2.17 dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz.

The –3dB point is at 162 Hz, and the –6dB is at

134 Hz. Impedance reaches a minimum of 4.68

ohms at 343 Hz and a phase angle of –51.06

degrees at 183 Hz.

The SuperCube II’s close-miked response, nor-

malized to the level at 80 Hz, indicates that the

lower –3dB point is at 27 Hz and the –6dB point is

at 25 Hz. the upper –3dB point is at 110 Hz when

using the LEF input. — MJP

ferent sonic character than you

might be used to, largely because

the Mythos speakers feature a

forward-radiating design, not a

bipolar one.As a result, the sound-

stage isn’t as big as that of the

larger bipolar towers. There’s

something here that’s equally as

Gems (plus the Mythos Twos,

which the company sent me before

they had a pair of Gems ready for

me to listen to) with the intention

that there would be a subwoofer in

the system, so there’s no midbass

peak designed into the speakers.

Some manufacturers use this trick

to fool the listener into thinking

there’s bass where there is none.

In addition to detrimentally altering

the sonic balance, such a peak

makes it more difficult to

smoothly integrate the speakers

with a subwoofer.

That’s a rather bold step because,

if you put these speakers on a demo

wall in a store and compare them

with another speaker that’s been

voiced with a peak in the midbass,

your ﬁrst reaction is likely to be that

the Mythos are a little thin and

weak, rather than highly accurate

and neutral. But, here again, your

thinking would be going in the

wrong direction.Add a subwoofer,

such as the SuperCube II, and–

like a rich socialite with a dark

past–these mild-mannered, highly

reﬁned beauties turn into adrena-

line-pumping, take-no-prisoners

competitors that will eat for lunch

(belch included) just about any

other system in the price range.

The system’s blending of bass

and beauty is quite astounding. I’ve

rarely run into a combination where

it was so easy to match the sub-

woofer to the speakers–or a combi-

nation that sounded so natural

together. It’s as if they were made

for each other (which, now that I

mention it, they were).

If you’ve long been a fan of

Def Tech’s bipolar speakers, this

Mythos system has a slightly dif-

HIGHLIGHTS

Mythos beauty is more than

skin deep

Gems utilize wide-dispersion

bipolar array

Music and movies are equally

stunning

DEFINITIVE TECHNOLOGY MYTHOS FOUR SPEAKER SYSTEM OVERALL RATING

Value

In this price

range, you normal-

ly get either style

or substance;

the Mythos

gives you both

The SuperCube

II trounces most

under-$1,000

subwoofers

Features

Wall-mount

brackets are

included with

the Mythos Three

and Mythos Gem

The Mythos Gem

has a prethreaded

insert for the

option pivoting

wall mount

Performance

Pinpoint accu-

racy, incredibly

intimate detail

Bass is extremely

convincing

The subwoofer

blends phenome-

nally with the

other speakers

Ergonomics

Slender silos

and wall-mounting

options make

these some of the

easiest speakers

to integrate into

a real living room

It’s easy to reach

the SuperCube II’s

controls The Mythos system

is not only one of the

best sub-$3,500 sys-

tems on the market,

it’s one of the most

stylish and attractive

systems, too.

General information

Mythos Four Tower Speaker, $699 Mythos Three Center-Channel Speaker, $499

Mythos Gem Surround Speaker, $249 SuperCube II Subwoofer, $899

Deﬁnitive Technology, (410) 363-7148, www.deﬁnitivetech.com Dealer Locator Code DEF

96 94 93 97 98

“worthy of hanging

in the Louvre ...

some of the

easiest speakers

to integrate in a

real living room”

“The SuperCube II

trounces most

under-$1,000

subwoofers”

Build Quality

Polystone,

non-resonant

front bafﬂes

Aircraft-grade

aluminum cabi-

nets with interal

ribbing and

camping pads

sumers think about how products

should perform and fit into our

lives. I, for one, am certainly ready

for this shift. Even if other manu-

facturers don’t follow Def Tech’s

lead, this system is still a mighty

fine-sounding and damn good-

looking group of speakers.

appealing, though. The Mythos are

so intimate in their imaging and

precise in their reproduction that

they create a sonic portrait with

such subtlety and sincerity that, if

you could somehow freeze forever

such an audible moment, it would

be worthy of hanging in the Louvre.

The cabinets’ narrowness, the

lack of parallel sides, the excellent

internal damping, the PolyStone

mineral-ﬁlled polymer front bafﬂes,

the specially annealed aluminum

dome tweeters with silk surrounds,

and the Medite planar bass radia-

tors that refuse to let midrange

frequencies bleed into the room

combine to provide the unfettered,

thoroughly unencumbered lightness

of being a Mythos speaker. But

what it really boils down to is this:

How do these slender silos sound

when you plunk them on the ﬂoor

or pop them on the wall next

to your plasma? In a word: three-

dimensional and thrilling. Well, that

was three words, but you get what

I mean.

Strong yet Subtle

The underlying nature of the

Mythos Fours, Threes, and Gems

(which, by the way, also fared quite

well as main speakers when I

paired them with the SuperCube II

sub-woofer) is a subtle sweetness

and unerring accuracy. The sonic

blend of the bass with the midrange

vocals, guitars, and harmonica on

Blues Traveler’s Truth Be Told

DVD-Audio disc is a great exam-

ple of this; at the same time, the

ensemble ﬂawlessly reproduced the

maniacally deﬁned antics found on

Chesky’s Musical 5.1 Surround

Show SACD. In fact, if you don’t

think these speakers have what it

takes to run with the ugliest but best

sounding speakers in the price

range, listen to “Music for Cello,

Helicopter and Cars” on the Chesky

disc. If the system is dialed-in

properly, it’ll change your opinion

of how good a lifestyle product

should be.

All of the aspects that make

music sound so good achieve sim-

ilar results with movies. Master &

Commander was much more than

I bargained for with this system —

especially early in the movie, when

you’re lulled into calm by the

creaking of the ship and the break-

ing of the waves just before a hell

storm of cannon shots is released.

These Mythos are no passive wall-

ﬂowers, let me tell you. Seabiscuit,

a much less rambunctious movie

that relies on subtlety of sound and

narration as a large part of its story,

was just as engagingly portrayed

and just as enjoyable.

Hopefully, the Mythos are an

early indication of a paradigm shift

in the way manufacturers and con-

11433 Cronridge Dr. • Owings Mills, MD 21117 • (410)363-7148

Reprinted from the October 2004 issue of HOME THEATER.

For information and dealers

www.deﬁnitivetech.com

from the test bench DEFINITIVE TECHNOLOGY MYTHOS FOUR SPEAKER SYSTEM

“drop-dead

gorgeous. I’m

talking stunning,

can’t get-them-

out-of-your-mind”

“Music and movies

are equally stunning”

Ce manuel convient aux modèles suivants

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