Monitor Audio Silver 500 7G
When I learned that I was to review the new seventh generation of Monitor Audio’s Silver 500 loudspeaker ($3200/pair), descendants of the original Silver-series products launched in 1999, I thought back on what I knew about the company and then refreshed my memory. Monitor Audio was founded, in 1972, in Teversham, England, a town bordered by farmland located some three miles from the epicenter of its more famous neighbor, Cambridge. The founder was businessman/sound engineer Mo Iqbal; Iqbal was assisted by Martin Colloms (before that venerable critic turned to writing about hi-fi) and Michael Bean. In 1997, Mo sold the company to a group of audiophiles, one of whom—Andrew Flatt—stays on today as the company’s sole owner.
In 1976, Monitor Audio moved its operations to Essex, home to Rega Research. Not long after that, they relocated again to larger digs in nearby Rayleigh (also in Essex). Today, Monitor Audio employs 100 people at that location, keeping the business running and designing and developing new products. The manufacture of Monitor Audio speakers was moved to China over a period of several years; Silver-series manufacture was moved to China in 2004—about which, more later.
I remembered reading a couple of favorable Stereophile reviews of Monitor Audio speakers, written by Kal Rubinson. I looked them up: Kal reviewed the $2000/pair Silver 8 speaker in 2014 and the similarly priced Silver 300 in 2018.1
In 2018, Monitor Audio bought Roksan, the British company behind 1985’s legendary Xerxes turntable; I’d lost track of the company rather quickly after. I mention this not because it’s directly relevant to this review but because I remember it fondly. Monitor + Roksan seemed like an auspicious marriage. It felt earthy, rootsy, principled.
“Phenomenal audio is more than the sum of its parts.” These words greet visitors to the “About” page on the Monitor Audio website. “Yes, it’s about the finest metals
