Description
Monolith™ by Monoprice™
13″ THX® Certified Ultra 2000‑Watt Powered Subwoofer
Massive Output. Low Distortion. THX® Certified.
The Monolith™ 13″ THX® Certified Ultra 2000‑Watt Powered Subwoofer sets the standard for bass output, low distortion, and reference level bass. A newly designed 13″ driver, coupled with a DSP controlled 2000‑watt (RMS)/3800+‑watt (peak) power amplifier, brings a new dimension in low frequency bass performance to any home theater system.
THX® Certified Ultra: THX® engineers completed hundreds of different scientific tests to ensure the highest audio performance possible. The tests ensure the speaker can reach the high volumes necessary to achieve THX Reference Level, without creating audible distortion or artifacts. THX® Certified Ultra products are designed for large rooms, up to 3,000 cubic feet in size, with a 10~12 foot viewing distance from the screen.
13″ Woofer: The Monolith™ 13″ driver was developed from the ground up, with a design focus on achieving output, accuracy, dynamics, and linearity, while minimizing distortion. It is enclosed in a cabinet made from HDF material, with massive internal bracing, and outfitted with three ports that can use foam plugs to run the subwoofer in sealed, semi‑sealed, or ported mode, as you see fit.
2000 Watt Amplifier: The 2000‑watt (RMS) amplifier (3800+‑watt peak) is built around a Texas Instruments® 48‑bit data path, with 28‑bit filter coefficients, and DSP engine. Each amplifier’s transfer function, power output limiting, and thermal protection are monitored to the millisecond and are customized for each individual driver. The high efficiency Class D amplifier modules are based on a proven topology that has been continuously refined over the past 8 years. The amplifier has vast reserves of power for highly accurate, deep bass for your home theater or music system.
Performance Class
THX® Certified Ultra products bring the cinematic experience to large home theaters, up to 3,000 cubic feet in size, with a 10~12 foot viewing distance from the screen*.
*Previously known as Select2
ANATOMY OF A SUBWOOFER
Cabinet and Internal Bracing
The cabinet is made of HDF (High Density Fiberboard), not MDF, resulting in a sonically inert enclosure. Internal bracing has been strategically placed to increase overall cabinet strength and limit unwanted panel vibrations that would cause discoloration and distortion. The strong cabinet and bracing combine to ensure that you hear massive amounts of bass, not cabinet resonances.
Ports and Grille
This 13″ subwoofer uses three 100mm ports, with inner and outer flares. Multiple ports are used to ensure high SPL capability at low frequencies (fb=21Hz). The dual flares help reduce turbulence and asymmetrical distortions. Additional adjustments can be made by sealing the ports with the supplied plugs. The “floating” grille is made from non‑resonant MDF to provide rigidity, while the entire structure is offset from the cabinet to maximize air flow of the woofer and ports.
13″ DRIVER
Every part of this driver has been developed from the ground up and customized to deliver high output, low distortion, and accurate bass. Our unique hybrid cone combines long fiber pulp and fiberglass, taking advantage of the pulp’s superior stiffness with the additional rigidity and lightweight properties of fiberglass, to deliver a driver of massive durability and excursion. The result is a cone that achieves optimal motion at all frequencies it is asked to produce and beyond.
1. Lower Suspension
FEA (Finite Element Analysis) modeling and Klippel laser based optimizations were used to design a cone that is capable of astounding >90mm peak‑to‑peak excursions. The lower and upper suspensions are designed together with the motor structure. The lower suspension is critical for maintaining very low levels of distortion at high excursions, which are required for high SPL at low frequencies.
2. Spider and Cone Venting
The spider is made from multiple layers of NOMEX® with integrated tinsel leads hand stitched in place for low mass, yet high strength and durability. The purpose of these vents are twofold ‑‑ first, they allow convective air flow to cool the voice coil and, second, they reduce asymmetrical compliance due to air compression under the cone/spider, which would appear as unwanted distortions.
3. Woofer Surround
FEA (Finite Element Analysis) modeling and Klippel laser based optimization were utilized to create this durable, high profile surround that’s made from a unique formulation of NBR (nitrile butadiene rubber). This formulation was developed after months of modeling and prototyping to ensure the highest levels of excursion, without sacrificing linearity or distortion.
4. Motor Structure
The motor is made of CNC milled low carbon steel in the modified undercut “T” pole assembly to focus the magnetic flux. Dual aluminum shorting rings are used to cancel eddy currents, further stabilizing the magnetic flux and significantly lowering distortion. The precision wound, high temperature, all aluminum bobbin (which has a lower thermal compression than copper) enable the voice coil to remain cool. The motor and suspension design is extremely critical for maintaining control of the driver’s displacement over a very wide range of input signals, allowing the subwoofer to reach maximum performance and output levels, while keeping distortion to a minimum.
ALL AMP’D UP
This Monolith™ subwoofer amplifier has an extraordinarily high power output of 2000 watts RMS (over 3800 watts peak), which can deliver massive amounts of power when needed. Each Class D amplifier is built around a Texas Instruments® 48‑bit data path, with 28‑bit filter coefficients, and DSP engine, allowing virtually unlimited design flexibility, with the assurance of no signal degradation. Each amplifier’s transfer function, power output limiting, and thermal protection are monitored to the millisecond and are customized for each individual woofer and cabinet air volume combination. This state‑of‑the‑art Class D amplifier technology ensures maximum headroom capability, excellent transient response, high output, and very low distortion when driving the Monolith 13″ THX® Certified Ultra 2000‑Watt Powered Subwoofer.
AUDIOHOLICS REVIEW
“The Monolith 13″ produces a very strong set of measurements here, and that is what I was expecting based on its pedigree as well as the specs of the sub. This thing is ridiculously powerful all the way down to 16Hz. What is more is that its distortion numbers are terrific even when being pushed as hard as possible.”
James Larson | Audioholics
| Monolith 13″ THX® Certified Ultra CEA‑2010 Burst Test Measurements | |||
| Frequency (Hz) | SPL (dB) | THD + N (%) | Harmonic Limit |
| 12.5 | 91.0 | 30.9 | 2nd |
| 16.0 | 106.1 | 13.8 | 5th |
| 20.0 | 112.0 | 7.6 | |
| 25.0 | 115.0 | 10.6 | |
| 31.5 | 116.5 | 8.6 | |
| 40.0 | 117.3 | 3.4 | |
| 50.0 | 117.7 | 4.2 | |
| 63.0 | 118.4 | 2.5 | |
| 80.0 | 119.1 | 5.4 | |
| 100.0 | 119.7 | 9.0 | |
| 125.0 | 120.8 | 14.2 | |
Monoprice™, Monolith™, the Monolith logo, and all Monoprice logos are trademarks of Monoprice Inc.
THX® and the THX logo are the property of THX Ltd., registered in the U.S. and other countries.
Texas Instruments® is a registered trademark of Texas Instruments Incorporated.
DuPont™ and Nomex® are trademarks or registered trademarks of E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company or its affiliates.
Updated Mar 23, 2022
