The Monolith by Monoprice THX-465T THX Ultra Certified and ATMOS Enabled Tower Speaker - Full Review!

Manufacturer & Model
Monolith by Monoprice THX-465T 3-Way THX ULTRA Certified Main Speaker with Built-In Up-Firing 2-Way ATMOS Enabled speaker
MSRP
$999.99 Each
Link
https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=38546
Highlights
THX Ultra Certified
Attractive ported tower enclosure
Three-Way main speaker design
Two-Way ATMOS up-firing speaker built-in with 5.25” woofer and .6” tweeter
Four - 6.5” woofers, One -2” silk dome midrange, One – 1” silk dome tweeter
Solidly Braced 5-layer HDF cabinet with attractive Black Ash Vinyl finish
High output capable
Useable either ported or sealed for different voicing options
Affordable speaker with an outstanding price vs. performance ratio
Summary
THX Ultra Certified three-way speaker system with a second two-way up-firing ATMOS Speaker built in. Using styling cues lifted from the Monolith THX-3XX/THX-2XX THX series of speakers in a full-size Tower design. This speaker is very effective when used as the front channels in a home theater system. The THX-465T is a perfect tonal and timbre match with the very capable THX-365C center channel speaker and other speakers from the Monolith THX-XXX line.
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The Review

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I must admit that I am somewhat intrigued with the Monoprice line of products. Here is a manufacturer that sells a VERY WIDE range of product offerings internet direct at VERY competitive prices. Their upper end AV offering is tagged Monolith by Monoprice. Many of the Monolith products are THX certified speakers and electronics and have an almost amazing performance to cost ratio on paper.

I was recently given the opportunity to review several of the Monolith THX line of speakers and found that they indeed offer a very high level of performance compared to the relative cost of the product.

Now, I was now being offered the opportunity to be one of the first to get my hands on a newish Monolith speaker, the THX-465T ATMOS Enabled Tower Speaker. Without hesitation I said bring it on!



Delivery Day

I was just finalizing my review of a Monolith 5.X.4 surround system when the THX-465T arrived… one box on Friday and then the other trailing the first by two days. They came via FedEX who was mysteriously able to circumnavigate my Ring Doorbell on both drop-offs. These are not stealth boxes by any stretch and how they did it will probably forever remain a mystery.

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I moved the large boxes to the garage for unpacking. The 55.3" x 13.1" x 16.7" (1407 x 332 x 425 mm)speakers were packed in single layer, heavy cardboard boxes and snugly protected with closed cell foam endcaps and form fitting foam protectors/supports on the sides top and bottom. The speakers themselves were swaddled in nice, draw-string black faux cloth bags. The grilles, wrapped in the same type of bag, are suspended trapped in their own slots between the two foam endcaps. One of the boxes had a bit of exterior damage but the speaker was well isolated and protected and was safe and sound in the box. The packaging appears appropriate and more than adequate affording good support and protection even against the whims of our major shipping services.

The topside protective side tray contained the accessories that included the five screw-in rubber feet (5), or if you prefer the five screw-in stainless steel spikes, and the pedestal base with the mounting hardware. The bases’ six mounting screws were Allen head screws but there was no accompanying Allen head wrench to be found in the box requiring me to track down one of my own.

There were a pair of white cotton gloves included in each box for handling.

No manual or warranty information is included with the speaker. There is a “Thank For Purchasing This Product” card with links to additional information on the web.

The speaker is a bit heavy at 55.7 pounds (25.3kg) and is big enough to be awkward for one person so a partner is recommended when unpacking, assembling and moving around.

My partner and I opened each box and gently lifted the speakers from the boxes. We then strapped each speaker to a padded two-wheeler and moved them, one-at-a-time, upstairs to the Media Room.


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Loosening the draw strings on the bags and standing the speaker up we shimmied the bags off. I was officially left to my own devices at that point.

Laying the speakers back down I installed the broad and heavy bases. The side foam pieces work well as a prop and enabled me to quickly insert the screws in one by one. The formed base mirrors the shape of the speakers and has a rubber sealing mat that makes the necessary seal between the open bottom of the bass cavity in the speaker and the base itself.

Looking inside the bottom of the speaker you can see damping material and the plastic pipe that forms part of the bass port before it disappears into the cabinet interior.


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I installed the rubber feet on the base and lifted the speakers on to the iso platforms that were home to my regular speakers. After connecting the speakers, we were good to go!

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Initial Impressions

As mentioned before, these are middle/large tower speakers at 55.3" x 13.1" x 16.7” and near 56 pounds. The styling cues match the rest of the Monolith THX line with the same matching cabinet face and radiused sides tapering to a rounded back. The top of the forward sloping cabinet contains the up-firing two-way ATMOS speaker system while the front of the speaker contains a total of four 6.5-inch woofers, two above and two below the 2” silk dome midrange and 1” silk dome tweeter module. Near the bottom of the cabinet face is the bass port. The full-length grille is quickly attached with magnetic standoffs and snaps into place when a near match is made with their hidden mounting points in the speaker body.

The only thing on the back of the cabinet is a narrow terminal block notched into the curved backside.

Fit and finish was perfect, and the attractive faux-wood Black Ash vinyl finish was well applied.

They are of a size with my deeper, but narrower, GoldenEar Triton One.R speakers. The overall look of the speaker should appeal to most. When set up, the flat low shine finish, narrow (15”) face, full length charcoal black floating grille, and the rear tapering shell of the speaker body almost disappear into a darkened room making them ideal in a theater environment. Like my reference speakers they are big enough they could intrude, but aesthetically pleasing enough that they don’t.



Construction


Form, fit and finish were excellent. The cabinet is well put together and solid. A good rap with the knuckles gave no hint of ringing and produced a nice solid “THUNK!”. Construction is five layers of HDF (High Density Fiberboard) laminated together with multiple internal bracing making for a very rigid and acoustically inert enclosure.

The THX-465T’s share the same design cues from the rest of the THX line. The THX-465T is a three-way design sharing many of the same components as the other three-way designs in the Monolith THX line (THX-365T and THX 365C). The woofers are four 6.5" long fiber pulp cones with FEA optimized Nitrile Butadiene Rubber (NBR) surround and aluminum shorting ring while the Midrange is a 2" silk dome with Neodymium magnet and aluminum shorting ring. The tweeter is a 1" silk dome with Neodymium magnet and copper shorting ring design. Crossovers utilize a Linkwitz-Riley configuration with a 24dB slope at each crossover point, with those crossover points being at 550Hz and 1.9kHz.

The THX-465T is ATMOS enabled and has an additional 2-way speaker system built into the forward sloping top of each cabinet that consists of a 5.5” woofer and a .6” coaxially mounted silk dome tweeter (Crossover at 3.8kHz – Butterworth 18dB) allowing it to work with ATMOS capable systems and ATMOS enabled content.

The THX465T is nominally a 4-ohm speaker and is relatively efficient at 89dB with 2.83V (2 watts into 4 ohms) input at one meter. This is somewhat surprising considering the THX-465T, in a departure from the rest of the THX series, is a ported cabinet. The result of the extra woofers and that port is good extension on the bottom end. With the port unsealed the frequency response is said to extend down to a very respectable 29Hz on the bottom end making it a much deeper digging speaker than its smaller brothers the THX-365T and THX-265B.


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The speaker ships with a foam plug installed in the port (see picture above) that will seal the cabinet and change the voicing of the speaker a bit, reducing the low frequency extension to 45Hz but tightening the sound somewhat.

The terminal block on the rear of the speaker had one set of terminals for the main speaker array and one set for the ATMOS system just as the other ATMOS enabled speakers in the line are configured.



Set-Up

I set-up the speakers in my main listening room/theater in a 5.2.4 configuration. This room is approximately 3700 cubic feet in volume. I placed the THX-465T’s right and left in the same spots my main speakers had occupied previously. The Monolith THX-365T’s I still had on hand from the previous review took over the Side Surround and Rear Height duties with the Monolith THX-365C continuing to serve as the center channel speaker.

Speaker wires were run to each of the Monolith speakers’ main terminals (10ga Belden 5T00UP) with separate runs of the same 5T00UP 10ga to the ATMOS sections as well. Amps powering the speakers were a Parasound Halo A21 (400 watts RMS into 4 ohms) for the front right and left, a Parasound Halo A52+ (255 watts RMS into 4 ohms) for the center and side channels and a four channel, Parasound ZoneMaster 450 (90 watts RMS into 4 ohms) for the ATMOS speakers.

I used my two Rythmic F18 18” (sealed – 900W RMS amplifier) subwoofers for all testing except where noted.

I ran the Audyssey MultiEQ XT32 calibration in my Marantz AV7703 pre/pro and then tweaked the resulting curve to my preferences using the Marantz/Audyssey Curve Editor App. My own measurements were performed using REW, MiniDSP UMIK-1 calibrated microphone and MacBook Pro. I turned off the Audyssey settings for the front channels for all measurements letting the speakers and the room generate the curves. I also ran the curves with and without the subwoofers engaged and with the THX-465T’s running full range. Only the main sections of the cabinets were measured and the ATMOS speakers were judged using purely subjective listening tests.

These were brand new speakers so in fairness I ran the speakers through a 70 hour “break-in” before measurements were made and before beginning the listening tests.



Measurements

Below are the published measurements from Monoprice. Measurements were with 2 watts @ 1 meter. Nice and flat for both the main cabinet and the ATMOS! The little bump in the ATMOS on the higher frequencies would be intentional to compensate a bit for any losses incurred when directing the sound up to the ceiling for reflection back to the listener.


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From Monolith

For my own measurements I used REW and my calibrated microphone on my MacBook Pro. I measured the frequency response vs SPL on the speakers in my listening room at the LISTENING POSITION and calibrated the measurements at 75dB using the Pink Noise generator in REW and an external SPL meter.

Monoprice claims low distortion and extended frequency response and indeed my measurements and listening tests support that claim. While they don’t list a +/- dB for the frequency response, the bass response is clearly active to below their published starting point. The highs have clearly usable energy well beyond the 20kHz where I normally stop my measurements so just for giggles and grins, I continued my sweep beyond 20kHz to 24kHz. In my room and with my measurement gear the speakers were still exhibiting measurable energy beyond 20kHz and beyond with only a gentle slope down.


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THX-465T With and Without Subwoofers at Listening Position

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THX-465T at 1 Meter NO SUBWOOFER

Although not specifically stated I’m sure that Monolith’s speakers were tested at one meter on axis in what must be an Anechoic or “Quasi Anechoic” chamber. My measurements, at the listening position in my somewhat imperfect room, are still revealing none-the-less and confirm the Monolith measurements in a “real-world” environment.


“The Proof of the Pudding” – Listening Tests

PLEASE NOTE! This
is truly a review of the THX-465T speaker! But in saying this, and since I still had the other Monolith THX speakers on hand from the last review, it just made sense (to me at least), to make sure a good part of this review reflected, and reported on, this speaker’s abilities and strengths when playing as a SYSTEM component in a surround sound system. To me the idea of the THX SYSTEM Certification (HOME THEATER) almost demanded at least some comparison, and crosswalk, between the other speakers and the consideration of the speakers as a component in a system.

My first order of business was to listen to the THX-465T with and without the port plug installed. I did this in stereo and with the subs off. Going back and forth between the two options I quickly discovered the sealed position did not work for me in this case. With the cabinet sealed there was a discernable loss of lower bass and perceptibly less slam and impact with music. The mid-bass suffered as well sounding a bit boxy and congested. For the rest of the testing I left the plug out and enjoyed the more open, solid and deeper digging sound of the ported cabinets.


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THX-465T No Subs – With and Without Port Plug - At Listening Position

For the remainder of the testing I wanted to, more or less, duplicate my last listening sessions with the smaller Monolith speakers to see if this speaker brought anything different to the table. With this in mind I stuck with my earlier approach and made my first musical choices with 5.X surround in mind and the emphasis was on listening selections from my small collection of SACD’s, and DVD Music discs.

Music
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here (SACD) – “Welcome to the Machine”
This 1975 classic was given a remix and 5.1 surround mix in 2011 to wonderful effect. I often pull this SACD out for speaker evaluation. It is not only extremely well done, but the surround effects really work when they are present. For the most part, and on most tracks, the surround is used as ambiance and to firm up the center image just as it should be with an occasional pan to the surround channels for effect.

“Welcome to the Machine” is the standout exception and the odd machine sounds swirl, crunch and burp from all channels to great effect at serious levels. The smaller Monolith THX-365T’s used in the right and left side channels more than held up their end with the sometime loud and abrupt noises. At no time did the smaller speakers draw any attention to themselves as different than their bigger front channel counterparts in tone, timbre or intensity.

This is a great song to listen to loud and so LOUD it was. All speakers delivered without any sign of strain or distortion.

The THX-465T tower delivered a much fuller range sound than their recently tested smaller brothers and sounded noticeably better with a solidly anchored center image and wider, more complete, soundstage.

Hiromi – Brain (SACD) – “Kung Fu Champion of the World”
This SACD finds the powerhouse fusion jazz artist Hiromi making strong use of synths along with her normal piano and accompanied by her small combo. The tracks dig deep and make good use of the 5.1 surround capabilities of the SACD format. The Monolith speakers delivered again with a wonderful tight and well-defined delivery.

In the opening track “Kung Fu Champion of the World” the “Talking Synthesizer” effect was up front and well presented. Surround pans were transferred seamlessly between all speakers. Handover from the main speakers was seamless when the music called for it.

The additional lower bass now available was well utilized by the THX-465T’s presenting a wider and deeper soundstage with a stable center image.

King Crimson – Discipline (DVD Audio) – “Elephant Talk” and “Frame by Frame”

This 1981 effort from King Crimson featuring a stellar lineup (Fripp, Belew, Levin, Bruford) is still a good listen. Remixed and remastered in 5.1 Surround by Robert Fripp himself and surround meister Steven Wilson in 2011 this disc is great music full of dynamics and complex music on DVD AUDIO Disc. The surround in this case was used to reinforce the material and open up the soundstage creating ambiance is the surround channels.

The Monolith THX-465T speakers presented it with well-staged and pleasing musicality. The overall sound was still a bit dry and more forward than with other speakers I have auditioned this music on in the past with but it was a more enjoyable listen than with the smaller Monolith speakers with more definition and presence.

Norah Jones – Come Away with Me (SACD) – “Don’t Know Why” and “Cold Cold Heart”
Released in 2002 this was the debut studio album from Norah Jones.

The THX-465T’s were still a little short on “Air” but provided a pleasingly warmish mid-range and upper registers with plenty of perceived space to enjoy with this recording.

When I had made my listening notes concerning the smaller speakers in the THX series, I had commented that the overall sound, while clearly extended on the high-end, felt somewhat flat and “constrained”, especially when listening to stereo or sparsely accompanied music. That feeling was still there with the bigger THX-465T’s, but it was now somewhat more open, revealing and inviting.

As I did with the other Monolith speakers I chose to jump back to stereo for the next selections and started with the same Bach selections I had auditioned with the smaller speakers. With the larger Monolith speakers I found the sound was much improved.

Queuing up the Brandenburg Concertos, Helmut Rilling conducting the Oregon Bach Festival Orchestra, once again, I found I was hearing more of that concert hall space and air that I was looking for, but missing, with the smaller Monolith THX series speakers.

I continued listening to several more selections from my library and from Amazon Music HD finding that despite having essentially the same driver components as their small siblings the THX465T speakers threw a bigger, more defined image. The best performance and most pleasing sounds still came from more aggressive Pop or Rock recordings rather than orchestral or sparsely accompanied Jazz/Pop recording, but I was certainly liking it more with the “bigger” sounding THX-465T’s.

To the credit of the THX-465’s in reproducing the often difficult multi-channel music I fed them, they worked seamlessly with the smaller center channel and surround speakers providing a coherent and strong multi-channel music experience. They never stood out or overshadowed the other speakers, always working together with perfect synergy. Some of this can, of course, be attributed to good bass management and a well-balanced mix spreading the load equitably. Much of it, however, must also be attributed to all of the speakers being good team players!

I found that when listening in stereo the THX-465T’s were very good, competent, performers. Easy to listen to for extended periods at any level with smooth, silky midrange and high end, and tight well-defined lows. All material was presented with a slightly forward, but rounded timbre with a solid center image and good soundstage. The bass was solid and listenable whether the subs were engaged or not. When listening to the speakers without the subs, the bass was tight and articulate with no signs of tubbiness or boxiness. Extreme lows were still missing and material with a lot of low frequency content like synths or piano in lowest registers did suffer a bit.

Listening to some of the same stereo material in “Multi-Channel Stereo” was actually interesting and provide a lively and pleasing sound stage (if not a very accurate one) with a lot of the material and I found that the system could stand with or without the subs and provided a satisfying low end in this sound mode.



Movies, Video and Television

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Restoring my Audyssey Reference settings across the front channels I started the listening tests for movie and video sound. Because of the ATMOS capabilities of the THX-465T my selections focused heavily on movies featuring Dolby ATMOS or DTS-HD Master soundtracks on Blu-Ray, Apple TV iTunes, and Disney+.

Selections included scenes from John Wick One, Mad Max Fury Road, Blade Runner 2049, Star Wars – Rogue One (Disney+), and other ATMOS enabled content streamed through my AppleTV 4K from multiple sources.

With all content I was listening for solid integration of all speakers with each other and the subwoofers, center channel dialog clarity and definition, the speaker’s ability to handle dynamics, ability to handle loud transients, detail/texture… and presentation of an effective ATMOS sound field when present.
Just as with the previous ATMOS enabled Monolith speakers tested I had to make the ATMOS channels somewhat hotter (by about 4dB) than set by the Audyssey calibration to really engage the overhead effects.

In John Wick One the THX-465T’s performed very well delivering the action cues and frenetic action of the movie crisply and with impact. The front channel speakers, surround and subwoofers worked hand-in-hand seamlessly delivering the action, LFE and surround effects with conviction.

The THX-365T’s used on the sides delivered surround effects with perfect integration with the front THX-465T speakers supplying clear directional cues or defuse ambiance whenever called to do so.

Chapter 15 kicks the ATMOS ambiance into high gear as the rain begins to fall in the action climax scene. The ATMOS was very effective providing an interesting and somewhat eerie soaking effect. Just as with the smaller speakers reviewed earlier the feeling of envelopment was so extraordinarily complete that I again got up and took another stroll around the room looking for holes in the effect. The effect held up even better this time with the taller standing THX-465T’s. As I moved all around the room the intensity only increased as I approached the individual speakers. The integrity of the effect never really fell apart until I was directly over one of the individual ATMOS speakers.

Mad Max Fury Road – This High-Octane action film is relentless in its action throughout most of the film. The Monolith THX-465T speakers delivered with incredible dynamics and transients.

The THX465T’s paired perfectly with the Monolith THX-365C Center Channel I still had from the last review and it again delivered intelligible and very natural dialog throughout while anchoring the effects and action in the center channel when needed with no sign of stress or stain.

Positional and surround cues were well presented and the atmospheric introduction and other subtle ATMOS effects were delivered well. The bizarre overhead effects and subtle environmental cues in the opening sequence were rendered very well by the ATMOS speakers in the Monolith Speakers.

The THX-465T’s delivered the rest of raucous, riotous, storyline with even the loudest effects delivered crisply and with impact and the speakers showing no signs of stress or stain.

Blade Runner 2049There are so many subtle things, visually and sound-wise, going on in this atmospheric and moody film that repeated watching is almost a necessity to get the most from it. Depending on your mood it can also be somewhat of torture test as well as it certainly plods along at times. But patience and concentration are ultimately rewarded as amazingly realized details are revealed.

The ATMOS was very active throughout this movie. Lots of rain falling in many of the scenes was well presented and enveloped the listener when it was supposed to.

One scene in particular, Chapter 11, the beehives, had a lot of overhead information with the bees flying about. The Monolith upward firing ATMOS speakers did a respectfully good job with this scene, only slightly dropping the continuity of the bee’s flight in this hard to reproduce effect.

There were other scenes throughout the movie where drones or air cars would fly overhead, and the effect sometimes fell a little flat. It seemed that the ATMOS sections of the speakers did a reasonably good job with subtle atmospherics and not as well with the bigger, in-your-face effects.

A Star Wars Story – Rogue One released in 2016 was mixed with ATMOS in mind. Produced by Lucasfilm and distributed by Disney this is a visually appealing piece with state-of-the-art sound. Available on Disney+ with 4K HDR resolution and a Dolby ATMOS soundtrack.

I enjoyed the heck out of the presentation through the THX-465T speakers finding the beefier low end solid and well-presented and passing the LFE seamlessly to the subwoofers.

The ATMOS channels were very active throughout the entire movie and were constantly adding subtle location cues and environmental ambience. Quite a few effects were piped through the overheads with good effect. The bigger flyovers in Rogue One were reproduced well and, for the most part believable, as the “overheads” contributed heavily.

With my new appreciation of the THX-465T’s ability to convey music in a convincing way I decided to run a concert video (or three) and was not disappointed. I ended up watching one complete concert and sections from two others.

The concert I listened to in its entirety was The 50th Anniversary - Yes, Live at the Apollo. It is a very well recorded 2015 concert featuring Jon Anderson (Vocals), Trevor Rabin (Guitars), Rick Wakeman (Keyboards), Lee Pomeroy (Bass), and Louis Molino III (Drums). AppleTV said nothing about surround sound but when played the surround channels, and even the height channels, activated on the processor. The concert proceeded in Dolby Surround and the height (ATMOS) channels remained very active throughout the entire concert. The ambiance was almost too much in spots as the crowd sounds constantly intruded, and not in a natural way, on the music. I of course blame whoever mixed this otherwise well recorded concert and not the speakers for that since it was clear that the additional crowd sounds were intentionality inserted at different, sometimes very annoying, intervals.

Despite the runaway popup crowd noise, the concert sound of the band was very well conveyed by the THX-465T’s whether I was listening in surround or stereo. In fact, in this case, listening in stereo the crowd noise was a bit less annoying and the sound more listenable and focused without the extra racket.

I also listened to selections from Steven Wilson’s 2018 concert at the Royal Albert Hall, Home Invasion. Another well recorded live concert presented in surround. This time the focus was on the music and centered on the stage. The occasional crowd sounds or room ambiance seemed natural and organic and never out of place. The THX-465T’s played this very dynamic music clearly and with punch, never flinching during the louder moments.

Listening to portions of Evanescence: Synthesis Live, another 2018 concert, found the surround channels and the height channels awash with ambiance. The bands’ performance was great and backed by an orchestra and other backup players. The concert hall air and space were just huge. I decided to check out other modes and went to stereo. The soundstage immediately collapsed and became, while still listenable,
lost a lot of the excitement and space that the surround and “overheads” conveyed.

I continued to use the THX-465T’s for my normal TV watching with more and more ever varied content on Acorn, Disney+, Netflix, Apple iTunes, Blu-Ray, and Hulu. The Monolith speakers continued to be eminently listenable across all of these sources and with all of the very diverse content.

I had just one more little test to preform before re-packing the THX-465T’s. I reconnected all of my reference speakers except for the Front Right and Left leaving the THX-465T’s in those positions. I wanted to see how the Monolith speakers would play with my normal center channel and surround speakers which sport Planar Ribbon drivers in the mid-range and tweeter positions working with conventional cone woofers. I also handed the ATMOS duties back over to my in-ceiling Polk CS-6 speakers.

The short answer is they performed very well. Other than a slightly warmer sound up front they blended nicely with the other speakers working perfectly well never standing out or announcing they were not part of the system whole.

The only noticeable difference, and it was not a huge one, was in the ATMOS presentation. My ceiling mounted Polk’s presented a slightly better ATMOS soundstage with none of the holes noted when using the Monolith’s for ATMOS. The overhead effects were more clearly defined and the ambiance more diffuse.



Summary and Closing Thoughts

I tried, I really tried, to make this a review about just the THX-465 speakers. But, try as I might I could not make this 100% THX-465T. Since the speaker is THX Certified as a SYSTEM component, I felt that at least a good part of the review should be about this speaker working in the environment for which it was created!

With the THX-465T, and the rest of the Monolith THX line of speakers, even the model numbers and the emphasis placed on the THX certification says it all. These speakers are made to be team players and to work in the THX environment and so this review evolved into something a bit different than just an review of the THX-465T’s.


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Musically, the softer, more rounded sound of the silk dome mid-range and tweeter initially left me wanting more. But, as I continued to listen to and acclimatize to that softer, silkier sound of the speaker system I began to appreciate the speaker’s smooth, slightly warmer and low fatigue presentation more and more!

While THX-465T speakers are not at all shy on bass they still will benefit greatly from a tightly integrated subwoofer or two (or three or four) for music, and of course, movies.

And… Hey, these are speakers made for the movies! It’s very clear from the first listen that these speakers really, really, shine with movies soundtracks. They add greatly to the movie experience by audibly connecting screen to sound in a very enjoyable way.

This implementation of the design concept of the built-in, up-firing, ATMOS speaker system by Monolith has convinced me that there is merit to this design strategy and that it can, and in this case does, result in a real, lively, and fun ATMOS presentation.

Monolith by Monoprice offers five-year replacement warranty, a Quality Assurance Guarantee, thirty days no questions asked return policy, and coupled with a strong service and support group it all adds a good measure of security and comfort to your investment.

Since these are speakers that Monoprice is asking the consumer to purchase unheard, there is real value in the presence of the THX Certification. This is certainly a case where third party, THX in this case, certification and guarantees of performance, can be real assurances to those shopping for speakers on the internet.

All said, these speakers offer a high level of performance at an extraordinary price point. Coupled with the THX certification assurance and robust build of the THX-465T speakers, and all of the speakers in the Monolith THX family of speakers, they deserve serious consideration for any home theater project where synergy and high levels of performance are required.


Published Specifications - Monolith by Monoprice THX-465T (MPN: 38546) Speaker with ATMOS

Main Speaker

  • Woofer Drivers: 4 x 6.5" long fiber pulp cones with FEA optimized nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) surround and aluminum shorting ring
  • Tweeter Driver: 2" silk dome midrange with Neodymium magnet and aluminum shorting ring
  • Midrange Driver: 1" silk dome tweeter with Neodymium magnet and copper shorting ring
  • Frequency Response: 29Hz ~ 24kHz Ported; 45Hz ~ 24kHz Sealed
  • Sensitivity: 89.0dB (2.83V@1m)
  • Crossover: 24dB Linkwitz-Riley
  • Crossover Frequencies: 550Hz and 1.9kHz
  • Impedance: 4 ohms

ATMOS Height Speaker
  • Woofer Driver: 5.25" long fiber pulp cone with FEA optimized nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) surround
  • Tweeter Driver: 0.6" silk dome tweeter with Neodymium magnet
  • Frequency Response: 120Hz ~ 20kHz
  • Sensitivity: 86.0dB (2.83V@1m)
  • Crossover: 18dB Butterworth
  • Crossover Frequencies: 3.8kHz
  • Impedance: 4 ohms
Cabinet
  • Cabinet: Sealed, 5-layer HDF with horizontal shelf bracing and 5-way binding posts
  • Dimensions (without grille): 55.3" x 13.1" x 16.4" (1407 x 332 x 410 mm)
  • Dimensions (with grille): 55.3" x 13.1" x 16.7" (1407 x 332 x 425 mm)
  • Weight: 55.7 lbs. (25.3 kg)

 
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Sonnie Parker

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Nice looking speaker ... Monoprice continues to impress with their products at very good price points.

Well documented review Tom :T
 

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Nice looking speaker ... Monoprice continues to impress with their products at very good price points.

Well documented review Tom :T
Thanks Sonnie! If was fun exploring the Monolith THX family of speakers! They are great team players!

Tom
 

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I love what Monoprice is chasing with this gear. Some good folks pulling the strings, there. Great review, Tom!
 

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Thanks Todd! It was a fun adventure!

With the THX certification and the distinct family crosswalk/parallels across the entire THX line Monolith is providing great scalable system synergy at a tremendous value!

T
 

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Hate to be that guy, but:

*Rythmik
 

Eric SVL

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Looks like you put a lot into the review though. Good job.
 

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Hey Tom did you and Sonnie flip for the HTP-1 and @Sonnie won?
Seriously though, is a HTP-1 review in our future?
Maybe you can put one of the Monolith amps up against your Parasound too
 

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Hey Tom did you and Sonnie flip for the HTP-1 and @Sonnie won?
Seriously though, is a HTP-1 review in our future?
Maybe you can put one of the Monolith amps up against your Parasound too
Ha! I would love to get my hands on some of the Monolith hardware most especially the HTP-1! I officially throw my hat into the ring:-)
 

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Nice breakdown, Tom. Monoprice knocks another one out of the park!

This 2 channel nut recently added surround sound and is considering a shift to Atmos. Up-firing speakers is how I first experienced that immersion, via a carefully-placed Triad/Dolby demo. As I do not want to go too crazy cutting holes in my living room ceiling, it's good to see more confirmation of the "bounce" giving the desired effect.
 

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Hi Dennis,

As mentioned previous exposure to the "Up-Firing" ATMOS speakers had left me wanting something more. The Monolith version, at least in my room, seemed to work much better than what I had heard in the past and were very convincing with most material.

T
 

JStewart

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Just saw these and the rest of the speaker line are on sale.

 

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Great review, Tom! Thank you : )
 

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Just saw these and the rest of the speaker line are on sale.


Already great pricing made better :cool:
 

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Nice review. I bought a set of these fronts, plus the monolith THX center and the THX 15”” monolith sub.
A little confused what I should set the crossover to for the towers and center in the AVR and what to set the sub too.

would you mind sharing your preferred settings you used when evaluating these?
 

Scyto

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When doing audyssey calibration my right upward firing Atmos speaker on the THX-465T was flagged as having a phase issue. I checked color coding of all wires and they were correct from speaker to receiver. Is it possible a)the amp was mistaken or b)that the internal wiring in the speaker is reversed?

to fix I swapped red and black and the error went away.
 

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When doing audyssey calibration my right upward firing Atmos speaker on the THX-465T was flagged as having a phase issue. I checked color coding of all wires and they were correct from speaker to receiver. Is it possible a)the amp was mistaken or b)that the internal wiring in the speaker is reversed?

to fix I swapped red and black and the error went away.
When doing audyssey calibration my right upward firing Atmos speaker on the THX-465T was flagged as having a phase issue. I checked color coding of all wires and they were correct from speaker to receiver. Is it possible a)the amp was mistaken or b)that the internal wiring in the speaker is reversed?

to fix I swapped red and black and the error went away.
Hi! Congrats! I think you will be happy with the speakers. The center channel is especially nice.
if using primaily for home theater I would start with the THX recommended crossover of 80hz for the LCR speakers. That should get you the optimal blend with the sub. Don’t be afraid to experiment if you think the bass a little lite or seem not have a good blend with the THX-465. The THX 465‘s have sufficient extension below 80hz so that would be a good blend crossing over at 80hz.

get someone to slowly rotate the phase control on the sub while you sit at the listening position while the Sub tone is playing and stopping them when it sounds the strongest. Audyssey SHOULD adjust the phase during calibration but it is not always quite right without some tweaking.

I’ve had Audyssey report an out of phase speaker when it was correct :-0 double check your connection at the amp side as well. It is possible that the ATMOS speaker was wired out of phase internally. if Audyssey reports the phase correct after reversing the connection then go with that... you will cause no harm. You could also try repositioning the speaker slightly and run Audyssey again.

The most important thing is to have fun with it. Let me know what you think!

Cheers!

Tom
 

Scyto

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Thanks, that was super helpful. Set mine to 80 for front and center. Been playing with the crossover set to THX (aka off) on the sub vs 90 to 140 on the sub as the AVR is set to 120 (which audssey says is only valid setting) also set LRC speakers all to smal as recommended though concerned that would remove anything below 80 from the front pair?. On the sub seems going higher than 120 pulls in more.
Whats wild is the difference in LFE on different movies / or ATMOS sources.
For example my Bladerunner 2049 UHD disc has tons of it. The Disney+ ATMOS Rise of Skywlaker is meh at same settings (though turning up the sub output fixed that, lol).

On the phase, yes i just swapped plugs for now. It is wired correctly. apparently room dynamics can cause mis-detection - so i need to test for thar first.

Your review was one of two that heavily influenced my decision - thanks, not regretting it whatsoever.
 

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Glad you are enjoying the speakers!

With the subwoofer set to THX that is a hard set to 80HZ. What kind of receiver are you running? Audyssey should not be setting the crossover so high with the THX465 speakers. If you can manually adjust the crossover I would reset to 80hz for the LCR (if I understand correctly you may have already done that :-) for the smaller surround speakers the 140hz still seems high but should work. I would be more inclined to crossover the surrounds at 100hz.

If you think you are missing something raise the sub crossover to 100 and try again.

Yes with the phase a room can fool the Audyssey with the reflected sound of the ATMOS speakers.

Let me know what that receiver is :cool:
T
 

Scyto

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It is Denon X6400H.
The LPF for LFE crossover is set to 120hz - according to audssey that's the only valid setting on the AVR.
Left right and center is set to 80.
Oddly audyseey set one set of surround to 120 and another to 80 (i can;t recall which it set to which between surround and surround back) but yes its adjustable - was just only playing with fronts/center and sub in effort to not change too much in one go.
When i talked about the 90 to 140 - that's just the dial on the sub when i test it outside of thx crossover mode.
The cross-over dial around 130 when thx crossover is disabled seems nice - doesn't make dialog boomy but gets more.
 

Scyto

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For streaming Atmos content like the Mandalorian I found setting crossover of front, left, surrounds and front Atmos at 120hz was needed to capture enough low frequency for the sub. Left center at 80hz. Sounds brilliant.
 

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It’s all about what sounds right to you in your room! 120hz sounds a bit high to crossover at, but the THX 465’s are naturally a bit bass shy so on your room that might be just the ticket!

Have fun with it!

T
 
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