Golden Ear Triton One

I have been using Sonus Faber Mementos for a few years and love the looks and sound of these two-way speakers, the one element of my system which I thought was there forever. However lately I have been reading intriguing reviews in major journals of the new Triton One by Golden Ear which makes me think I might need a change. These are full-range speakers from 14 Hz powered subwoofers to 35k Hz ribbon tweeters, plus an array of passive bass radiators and woofers. Covered by a sock, the speakers are not pretty but the technology seems first-rate, so I am going to audition them at my local dealer. Has anyone heard the Triton One and is it as good as the gushing reviews would indicate?

Thank you Tom for your considered opinion which gives me a point of reference for the audition. Since the Tritons are half the price of the Mementos, I was wondering if they might be put in the "great value" rather than the great sound regardless category.

I too am two-channel so that when I listen to the Tritons they will be competing with the SF Mementos. This should be interesting on several levels: price, frequency range, driver numbers and of course sound. Good tip about the bass level.

Today I visited my dealer in Lisbon to hear the Triton One speakers which were being displayed in a modestly-priced system in time for the Christmas season no doubt. This morning I read the glowing review in DaGoGo but had read many such reviews and wanted to find out for myself if these speakers were really that good. A hard sell under normal circumstances, I was sure that this would be a normal listening session for me, oh hum, nice sound but time to go home and enjoy my Mementos. The dealer was very welcoming (magnificent store) and took me into the palatial listening room to hear the setup featuring electronics topping at about the 4000 euro range, no more than 20k for the whole system, and the Triton Ones fit the mold at 5900 euros. Before I sat down with the music playing I sensed something different, the degree of life and transparency hit me right away, music just pouring out of those speakers, filling the large room. The Triton Ones are quite narrow from the front and being black seemed not to be there. However the music was - big time.

We played some Vivaldi (sometimes difficult on original instruments) and played a couple of pieces I use as reference (Diana Krall, big orchestra, ear candy) and the difference from the Mementos was evident right away. Bass pronounced yet controlled, drums and cymbals realistic, especially one high hat strike that was appropriately tinny which I hadn't heard before. The strong points were transparency, holographic and wide sound stage, detail as every background instrument was clearly defined, and fullness and warmth in the strings. If I use one word, it is 'juicy' if that makes any sense. (Can music be juicy?) One of the big differences was that the Tritons are full range from 14 Hz (thanks to the built-in powered subwoofers) and this makes a difference even in a guitar as you can sense the overtones beyond hearing. No problem with room shape since the bass can be adjusted to fit the space. It was a different world, and I hope I don't regret this but this was no oh hum session. A jazz piece featuring Archie Shepp had the players absolutely standing there in the room occupying space, it was uncanny. You could hear the bell on the saxophone and no kidding. All senses working.

Now this performance was with electronics nowhere near mine in quality or price, and I am told that the Tritons are very revealing and show improvement with every upgrade in amps and source. Part of the performance came from the treated room, but the great sound I was hearing came from the speakers since other parts of the system were average high end. That is scary.

I love the Sonus Faber Mementos and could live with them for many more years, but the Triton Ones seem better on the basis of this one hearing, detail, tone colors, bass, musicality, and the Tritons cost a little more than 50% of the Mementos price, when they were new. Golden Ears has done a great job to produce outstanding speakers at a low price (low for audiophiles serious about music). The reviewer is in my position, very expensive system but let's try these bargains, and he was blown away, 'gobsmacked'. Not the best speakers he had ever heard, but close. Like him, I was gobsmacked.

However there is only one way to confirm my impression of these speakers, and that is a home demonstration. Then they will be in a real-world application playing the signals from a superior source and electronics, and we shall see. Will they still be juicy?