Pylon Audio Diamond Monitor 18 mkII

I had the opportunity to see that they succeeded, reviewing the Diamond 25 mkIIs. The slim floorstanders retained their character, adding something extra to the mix of neutrality, versatility, and pleasant warmth in the form of cranked-up dynamics, great transparency, and a three-dimensional soundstage. This was possible because nine years after the release of the first Diamonds, Pylon Audio is already a slightly different company. The factory from Jarocin (it's a small town that hosts one of the most famous music festivals in Poland) has moved to an impressive new hall, increased its staff, acquired new industry customers, appointed distributors, sourced a whole lot of instrumentation, and even built its own anechoic chamber. All this gives Polish designers opportunities they could only dream of less than a decade ago.

The second factor that enabled Pylon Audio to improve Diamonds was growing sales. This means increasing orders from suppliers, the most important of which are Scan-Speak and SEAS. For someone who buys not tens, not hundreds, but tens of thousands of speakers, Scandinavian specialists are happy to modify their drivers. For a loudspeaker manufacturer, this is a kind of social advancement, and for the designers working for them - a big convenience. Using off-the-shelf transducers, they had to match enclosures and crossovers to them, but they had no influence on a good portion of the parameters. It's a bit like wanting to build your dream house not from scratch, but on the basis of an existing building, where you can't move the walls or the roof. Now Pylon's engineers get what they need right away, and that translates into a better sound result.

The final aspect that not only made the introduction of the second generation of Diamonds possible, but forced such a step on the Polish company, was its market expansion to the East, and here I am mainly referring to China and India. Customers from those countries appreciated the design, workmanship, and sound of Pylon Audio's speakers, but complained about their dynamic capabilities. Apparently, music lovers there don't mess around with their equipment, and what is considered a high volume level in most countries, for them is just a quiet dinner-time hum. In order for these speakers to fully satisfy them, they had to remain roughly the same, but play bolder and endure heavy loads without breaking a sweat. This may be a bit strange to us, but one only has to look at the populations of the two countries to realize that it's worth the effort. If the new Diamonds turn up to be good enough to be ordered by one in ten thousand people in China and India, that would mean 285,000 pairs of speakers sold. Such figures speak for themselves.

Design and functionality

I had the opportunity to test the first Diamond series monitors in 2017. I remember that they made a very good impression on me, playing noticeably faster and bolder than the floorstanding models. I welcomed this fact, as stand-mounted sets should use their natural strengths and be able to work in smaller rooms, rather than charging with bass without restraint. Later there were minor changes in Pylon's most popular series, and in addition to monitors equipped with 18-cm woofers, a smaller model based on identical 15-cm woofers was introduced. This division was also retained in the second generation so that we can choose between two stand models - Diamond 15 mkII and Diamond 18 mkII. According to the manufacturer, the "18s" are suitable for rooms of 12 to 25 m². In the case of the "15s" the company does not specify such a range at all. It can be assumed that this is an option intended for small and very small listening rooms or as an effect channel in home theater systems. The Diamond series includes the Diamond Center center speaker and an active subwoofer with the 'unconventional' name Diamond Sub, so if you are a fan of multichannel in such a classic, even audiophile edition, with speakers standing in free space, rather than mounted in walls and ceilings, by all means, consider the new Pylons.

As usual, the build quality leaves no room for criticism. The class of the woodwork, the precision of the fit of the individual components, small details such as decent sockets protruding from the cabinet, nameplates with hand-lettered serial numbers, or magnetically attached grilles - all make a very good impression. If I were to complain about something, I would consider whether the introduction of the new generation of Diamonds wasn't a good time to change the type of veneer they were finished with. Previously, I didn't pay attention to it, because I usually got the speakers in a lacquered version. If varnish does not interest us, there is actually only one veneer to choose from - oak. Wait a minute - Pylon fans will say - after all, there are plenty of color versions to choose from, from black and dark brown to those very light, in tones of natural birch or maple. Yes, except that this coloring is achieved by the Polish company by coating the same oak veneer with oil-wax. In the photos, it kinda works, but up close it smacks a bit of chain store furniture. And yet we know that Pylon's carpentry shop makes cabinets for companies such as Audio Physic, for example. Couldn't the new Diamonds have received a veneer like the Classic 5? Surely they would be a bit more expensive then, but I would gladly pay extra for such a finish. However, since there is no such option, I would probably choose some kind of lacquer (black matte looks awesome), because any other version reeks of cheap furniture. Ten years ago, such a finish was cool and I remember very well how I liked the first Diamonds, especially considering their prices at the time. However, customers are demanding more and more, and I get the impression that today you have to try harder.

The most important thing from the audiophile's point of view remains the fact that the Polish manufactory used very, very good drivers. The treble is reproduced by an improved version of the tweeter known from the previous Diamonds, the D2010/852100, which is a soft dome with a neodymium magnetic system, a cellular rubber front, and a double resonance chamber. The 18-cm woofer is a SEAS design modified at the request of Pylon engineers. This driver is equipped with a fixed phase equalizer to ensure more faithful reproduction of the midrange while eliminating coloration of its upper range caused by resonances under the dome. The modifications don't end there, by the way, but we'll return to the technical issues later. At this point, I just wanted to point out that Pylon Audio is currently one of the few companies using drivers of this class in its loudspeakers. Just a dozen years ago, everyone marveled when loudspeaker manufacturers reached for the tall models of Vifa, Scan-Speak, Peerless, and SEAS. Later, many companies decided to take a different path, making or ordering transducers unavailable to others. Better, worse? Well,  the main thing was that they should be impossible to imitate. Pylon chose a proven solution, and kudos to them for that.

Diamond Monitor 18 mkIIs will be of interest to music lovers aware that, having a relatively small room, it is better not to exaggerate the size of loudspeakers, as well as those for whom placing floorstanders in a listening room, would be a challenge. There may be many reasons for this, but the key one is that often even a spacious living room has to serve multiple functions, occasionally turning into a dining room, children's playroom, gym, or even a bedroom. Monitors are smaller, plus you can always use existing furniture, such as the dresser under the TV, to set them up. It is known that audiophiles will rather seek to place the speakers on special stands, but I bet that no more than 10-15% of all manufactured pairs of the described speakers will work in such conditions. This is confirmed even by the included feet. Taken out of the box, the Diamond Monitors 18 mkII had small felt pads glued to the underside, and attached to the grilles was an envelope in which I found self-adhesive rubber discs. And although the company offers very designer stands, there is no way to connect the two components with screws. The center-cut, slightly slanted frames have no stabilizing pedestals. For most customers, however, such considerations will remain in the realm of pure theory, as the monitors will immediately land on the dresser under the TV and the matter will be considered closed.

If you're still of the opinion that I'm writing nonsense and that pictures with stand speakers standing on fireplaces, desks, and bookshelves are created solely for marketing campaigns, I suggest you take a look at the Facebook group of Pylon Audio fans. What you can see there, from the point of view of a hi-end player accustomed to the sight of cables meticulously arranged on ceramic absorbers, is unthinkable, while for the average music lover, it's simply a collection of cool systems for reasonable money, built in a way that doesn't even rub against audiophile absurdities. And that's a good thing because you don't have to be a world-famous chef to buy a decent knife or climb mountain peaks to stock up on a warm weatherproof jacket. From the pictures posted in this group, it is clear that regardless of the budget allocated for the speakers, two elements are practically certain. First, the speakers will be placed almost against the wall itself. 20-30 cm is, with a few exceptions - with the impression that these are mainly photos from stores and exhibitions - a luxury. Secondly, they are likely to be connected to equipment far weaker and cheaper than they deserve. On this second topic, I have the impression that the situation is steadily improving. Of course, some people still assume that it's enough to buy any amplifier or all-in-one system for €500, but more and more often one sees Pylons working with quite decent amplifiers from Atoll, Hegel, Yamaha, Roksan, or Fezz Audio. It is clear that users of the Polish company's speakers want to squeeze more out of them, but when it comes to the setup and acoustic adaptation of the listening room, some limitations apparently cannot be eliminated.

In this context, I am increasingly puzzled by the reluctance of the manufacturer to address this problem. It's not that speakers with a resonance tunnel on the rear panel are bad. It's a popular solution that has many advantages. However, seeing that this is the demand of customers, the Polish manufactory should make it easier for them and build more speakers so that they can stand close to the wall. Meanwhile, seeing a bass-reflex blowing backward, one might think that no one sees this problem. If the user still uses a minimum of common sense, moving the loudspeakers 20-30 cm away from the wall, and the wall itself is covered with foam, acoustic panels, or any other material acting as an absorber, the sound should be okay, but what good can happen when the sockets almost stick into the plaster? Why not try other solutions? It's as if the company from Jarocin in the enclosure design program had purchased a license only for bass-reflex in the rear, and had all other options blocked. How about experimenting with moving the resonance tunnel to the front panel, or taking advantage of cooperation with well-known driver suppliers and replacing the bass-reflex with a passive radiator? The manufacturer wasn't even tempted to add foam plugs to the set so that in case of problems with excitable bass, users of the Diamond Monitor 18 mkIIs could somehow save the day. But... The company's CEO, Mateusz Jujka, told me that no plugs would be needed, as the speakers in the new Diamond series were designed to handle such situations. The monitors have been given oversized bass-reflexes, which don't blow like crazy, but instead help reproduce low frequencies in a delicate, subtle way. Combined with other modifications, this is supposed to make placement near a wall not only possible but in some situations even desirable. Apparently, several setup variants were tested in the factory, with the distance reaching 15 cm, and all was well. Theoretically, then, a rear-facing bass-reflex is a mediocre idea in such conditions, but here they really applied some care to its tuning so that we don't experience any low-end problems. It's time to see if that's indeed what we're dealing with here.

Sound performance

For as long as I can remember, one element has been key in the sound of the Polish company's speakers - balance. Whether we're talking about the budget designs from its early days, the Sapphires and Diamonds introduced later, or the flagship Jaspers, the priorities remain the same. The lows, mids, and highs are supposed to live in harmony with, cooperate, competing for the listener's favor only in quality. No element must stand out in the foreground, overshadowing all the rest, and if the whole composition is adorned with something, it must be realized in a delicate, subtle, elegant way. Thus, some Pylon models boast a slightly stronger, deeper bass (Sapphire 31), exceptional resolution for their price range (Opal series), or a pleasantly warmed midrange (a characteristic of many models, with the Ruby series being the most interesting in my opinion), but in the end these are just additions to the main course, which is a well-balanced, natural and extremely versatile sound. Nowadays, such an approach may seem risky, as everyone wants to stand out from the crowd. If a customer decides to audition or - this is happening more and more often - rent several pairs of speakers and make a comparison at home, they will certainly remember those that show something interesting, unusual, intriguing, rather than boring, painfully correct packages that try to conjure something but do not want to cross any red line. Meanwhile, all indications are that this strategy is working. The models in the first Diamond series were perhaps the most neutral and linear of all Pylons, and yet they became a market hit. Representatives of the Polish company even claim that the first-generation Diamonds sold so well that if we were to look only at the numbers, the introduction of a new series was not necessary. Clearly, this policy bore fruit, and a huge proportion of music lovers, even if they appreciated other speakers for this or that, ultimately opted for those that offered the most consistent, balanced, and versatile sound. Such speakers are not afraid of any music, will not quarrel with any good amplifier, and will not have better or worse days. Diamond Monitor 18 mkIIs are a perfect case in point. Balance, neutrality, and homogeneity are what's crucial to them. A slight warming in the midrange can be heard, and it's also what we might expect from the Pylons. There are a few other elements that we can treat as cool extras, but the main course is the same as usual - a sound so natural and obvious that it's impossible to find any weak spot in it.

In my opinion, the characteristic features of the described monitors should be divided into two areas. The first contains everything I have already experienced during the test of the Diamond 25 mkIIs - dynamics, speed, tangibility, transparency, and three-dimensional, precise, perfectly organized space. The change of the tweeter to a newer one, the modifications made to the woofer, the improvement of the enclosure, and the use of high-quality components in the crossover - all this translated into clear qualitative progress. The overall character of the transmission has remained similar, but it is enough to treat the Polish monitors with more demanding recordings to see that where the Diamonds of the first generation fizzled out, clogged up, spitting out a series of cobbled-together sounds, the new models still manage perfectly well, keep their shape, and even laugh in our faces as if they wanted more and more. They are not easily thrown off balance, which is rare in speakers in this price range, and especially those offering natural, pleasant, colorful, and saturated sound. I'm used to the fact that outstanding dynamics and transparency are easier to squeeze out of speakers that play rather bright, fast, and even a bit cold. When I see coated paper or polypropylene cones, I assume it's going to be nice and musical, but without the athleticism. Meanwhile, in the new Diamonds we get both. Sensational stuff. I analyzed this in more detail in my review of the Diamond 25 mkIIs, so I won't repeat myself. If you are interested, you will know a lot more about the sound of the described monitors after reading that review.

The second interesting element is the bass. The most important thing from the point of view of future users of the Diamond Monitor mkIIs is that the manufacturer's assurances regarding bass-reflex tuning have proven to be correct. The support of bass reproduction by the port is audible, but it doesn't create major problems when we decide to move the speakers closer to the wall. 15 cm is perhaps a slight exaggeration, but at 25-30 cm it was really good. Let's remember that the enclosures of these monitors are relatively deep, so in such an arrangement you can get not only healthy bass but also free soundstage. The Diamonds not only met this challenge but even played as if such a situation was optimal for them as if they were made to work in such conditions. They are one of the few monitors I know with a bass-reflex at the back, for which moving them closer to the wall not only does not disturb but even helps. The character of the bass is also interesting. The designers seem to have given up on boosting the lowest frequencies, focusing their attention on what's happening a bit higher up, so maybe we won't get a subsonic belly massage here, but what we get is really great. The thick, meaty, juicy, tight, multicolored, swinging bass triggered my associations with British stereo equipment, and I mean both speakers and electronics. More than one audiophile would say that you can hear old-school Naim rhythm and punch here. The bass doesn't spill over the floor, but when it hits you, you can certainly feel it. Do you know when I last heard something similar? When I reviewed the Spendor Classic 2/3s. Of course, it's still not that quality or exactly the same character of presentation, but if you listen to both of these models, I guarantee that you will notice the spiritual bond that unites them. The very fact that during the test of the Pylons memories of listening to the almost five times more expensive Spendors came back seems to say a lot. Anyway, I don't think you'll be disappointed with the bass performance of these monitors, and if you are, or if you move and want to use them to amplify a larger room, it's a good thing, because the company has just introduced the powerful Diamond Sub, weighing 33 kg. I haven't had a chance to check it out, but I also have no reason to say that it will be Pylon's first truly unsuccessful product. After what the Diamond Monitor mkIIs showed, I'm slowly losing faith that one day I'll be able to complain so healthily about the brand's new speakers.

Since the monitors themselves didn't give me a reason to do so, I'll turn my nose up at something else. Many owners of the new Diamonds will be faced with a choice of accompanying equipment. Some will make use of the amplifiers they already own, while others will start looking around for electronics only when they get the long-ordered speakers (reportedly, with few exceptions, the waiting time can reach several months, which is perfectly understandable in the case of such highly sought-after products). And since the speakers in their basic version cost €1,580, many will want to lock in a similar amount with the purchase of an amplifier, source, and cabling. In my opinion, this will be a mistake, because the described monitors deserve something much, much better. Paradoxically, due to better dynamics and the fact that the Diamonds with the "mkII" suffix are more willing to "take off" to any music, they are easier to drive, and thus should also be a better partner for budget amplifiers, receivers, and all-in-one systems than their older counterparts. So if you're running something like the Audiolab 6000A Play or Yamaha R-N803D and don't plan to replace your entire system, you won't make the mistake of buying the new Diamonds. However, it would be much safer to treat them like the €2,000-2,500 speakers. Then it will be a little better to realize what level of quality we are talking about and what kind of company these speakers deserve. Suffice it to say that when experienced dealers give advice to their customers, they point out to them, for example, the Hegel H95 as the cheapest reasonably reasonable solution, the optimal amplifier might be, for example, the Audiolab 9000A, and if it is to be a tube, the first shot is the Fezz Audio Titania. And I would subscribe to that, and after all, there is still a source left, not to mention cabling and power supply. You can easily spend €5,000 on a system for the new Diamonds, and my bet is that this will still allow you to use their potential not one hundred, but eighty, maybe ninety percent. So if you were counting on the fact that to monitors for €1,580, you will add a network amplifier for €1,000 and the job will be done, then no, it is not so easy. Yes, I know, the life of an audiophile can be brutal, but I'm sure we'll all get over it somehow.

Build quality and technical parameters

The Pylon Audio Diamond Monitor 18 mkII is a ported, stand-mounted speaker. Although from the outside they differ only slightly from the older version, in fact, everything has been modified, including the change in the slope of the enclosure, its internal design, as well as the drivers. The woofer is a woofer redesigned by the Polish company's engineers from the Norwegian company SEAS (CA18RLY). Its strong magnetic circuit works with a lightweight aluminum-copper voice coil. This unit is equipped with an openwork aluminum basket. Low-frequency reproduction is also aided by a bass-reflex port with an enlarged cross-section. As a result, the lowest frequencies are supposed to be reproduced with better efficiency, eliminating audible turbulence. The manufacturer claims that the aluminum-copper voice coil wire is an ideal solution not only because of better optimization of the masses of the individual components of the vibration system but also the reduced effects of the so-called skin effect of the currents flowing in the voice coil. In addition, instead of a traditional dust dome, the woofer was equipped with a phase cone, which eliminates resonances associated with the volume of air under the dome. The coated lightweight cellulose diaphragm allows for a tonally balanced warm sound over a wide frequency range. The woofer's gentle drop in level at the upper end of the bandwidth also allows a smooth transition into the range reproduced by the tweeter. The upper frequency range is handled by Scan-Speak's iconic tweeter in the new D2010/852100 version. Thanks to the use of a stronger neodymium magnet, a reduction in voice coil mass, and the elimination of ferrofluid, this speaker is said to have exceptional microdynamics and detail. On top of that, it easily blends in with the woofer thanks to a dual resonance chamber, which made it possible to further reduce the resonance of the primary tweeter. For the crossover, Pylon used only linear components such as air coils and polypropylene capacitors. According to the manufacturer, the nominal impedance of 4 Ω means that the second-generation "18s" take full advantage of the power offered by the amplifier. This significantly increases dynamics, and the speakers can be used in larger rooms (12 - 25 m²). The Diamond Monitor 18 mkII features a higher front tilt (in the new Diamond series, its angle was changed from 4 to 7⁰) to improve the time coherence of the drivers. Enclosure vibrations were reduced thanks to internal strengthening beams. The cabinets were damped from the inside with sheep's wool and a new soundproofing material, which was selected during tests in an anechoic chamber with a laser vibrometer.

System configuration

Audiovector QR5, Equilibrium Nano, Unison Research Triode 25, Hegel H20, Auralic Aries G1, Auralic Vega G1, Marantz HD-DAC1, Clearaudio Concept, Cambridge Audio CP2, Cardas Clear Reflection, Tellurium Q Ultra Blue II, Albedo Geo, KBL Sound Red Corona, Enerr One 6S DCB, Enerr Tablette 6S, Enerr Transcenda Ultimate, Fidata HFU2, Melodika Purple Rain, Sennheiser HD 600, Beyerdynamic DT 990 PRO, Beyerdynamic DT 770 PRO, Meze 99 Classics, Bowers & Wilkins PX5, Pro-Ject Wallmount It 1, Custom Design RS 202, Silent Angel N8, Vicoustic VicWallpaper VMT, Vicoustic ViCloud VMT.

Verdict

I usually struggle to find flaws in Pylon Audio's loudspeakers, so I'm only left to cling to the grilles or stabilizing plinths. This time I had an even easier task because the monitors from the new Diamond series delivered to our editorial office were finished with a veneer that I would never choose. What's more, I think that when it comes to wood finishes, Pylon should finally jump to a higher level, and we know very well that the Polish company has the ability to do so, as it has long supplied enclosures for Audio Physic, among others. Fortunately, for a small extra charge, we can order a different version. In any RAL lacquer, these monitors cost only €1,900, which is a real treat. I don't know any other company realizing customers' boldest dreams for such money. And the rest? Well, the rest - the workmanship and sound quality - has been executed exemplarily, as usual. The new Diamonds sound bolder, faster, and simply better, but they have retained what customers have come to love Pylon Audio's speakers for - balance, consistency, maturity, and versatility, with a touch of pleasant warmth in the midrange and bass that can hit but doesn't hum even when you push the speakers hard against the wall. What more could you want? With speakers like these and the right electronics, one can only wish for more time to listen to music.

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The woofer in Diamond Monitor 18 mkIIs is a heavily modified SEAS CA18RLY.

1 / 10

Technical data

Speakers type: Stand-mounted, dynamic, ported
Sensitivity: 88 dB
Impedance: 4 Ω
Frequency response: 37 Hz - 20 kHz
Dimensions (H/W/D): 42/19.6/37.9 cm
Weight: 10 kg (piece)
Price: €1580 (base finish)
Manufacturer: Pylon Audio

Sound performance

Editor's rating

8.8Overall9Sound8Functionality9Design8Quality10Price