Definitive Technology HT1004 System’s blending of bass and beauty is quite astounding, No Peaking

proportioned as tiny speakers can

be, beckoned from their perches in

the back of the room.

“The system’s blending of bass and beauty is quite astounding”

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

AT A GLANCE DEFINITIVE TECHNOLOGY MYTHOS FOUR SPEAKER SYSTEM

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

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

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,

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

24 $699

Mythos Three	Mythos Gem
Two-way, center	Two-way, monitor
1, aluminum dome	1, aluminum dome
4.5, cast basket (2)	3.5, wide dispersion (2)
4.5, planar bass (2)	N/A
4–8	4–8
10–200	10–200
Silver or Black	Silver or Black
5.4 by 25.1 by 4.2	10.25 by 4.25 by 4.125
15	5
$499	$249

I don’t really think Paris Hilton reads Foreign Affairs, either.

HT Labs Measures: Definitive Technology

Mythos Four Speaker System

“pinpoint accuracy, incredibly intimate detail ... in a word: three-dimensional and thrilling”

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

Mythos Four L/R Sensitivity:

87.5dB 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