In this review, we will be comparing Gold 500 6G and Triton Five, two Passive Floor-standing speakers from Monitor Audio and GoldenEar.
Let's have a brief look at the main features
of Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G and GoldenEar Triton Five first before getting into our more
detailed comparison.
Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G Key Specs
- 3-way Design
- 1" Tweeter
- 3" Midrange
- 2 x 8" HDT C-CAM Woofer
- 44 Hz – 60 kHz Frequency Response
- 88.5 dB Sensitivity
- Impedance: 4ohms
- Power Range:up to 300watts
- Weight:26.56kg
- Dimensions (H x W x D): 1156.0" x 15-1/16" x 18-11/16"( 383.0 x 1156.0 x 475.0mm )
GoldenEar Triton Five Key Specs
- 2-way Design
- " Folded Ribbon Tweeter
- 2 x 6" Polypropylene Woofer
- 26-35k Hz Frequency Response
- 90 dB Sensitivity
- Impedance: 8ohms
- Power Range:15-400watts
- Weight:18.18kg
- Dimensions (H x W x D): 1131.0" x 11-1/16" x 16-9/16"( 1131.0 x 281.0 x 421.0mm )
What size room are the Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G and GoldenEar Triton Five speakers good for?
The size of the room in which you are planning to use these loudspeakers is an important decision
factor. Here we have compared their suitability to various sizes of environments considering their size
and max power parameters:
| Listening Environment* |
Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G |
GoldenEar Triton Five |
| Near-field |
Are you nuts? |
Are you nuts? |
| Small Room |
Poor |
Poor |
| Mid-size Room |
Average |
Average |
| Large Room |
Good |
Good |
| Very Large Room |
Good |
Good |
(* Approximate Room sizes: Small < 100sq. ft / 9 m2,
Mid-size: 100-220 sq. ft / 9-20 m2, Large 220-400 sq. ft / 20-36 m2, Very Large: >
400 sq. ft / 36 m2.
Average Floor Height: 9" / 2.7m. Typical room sizes differ from country to country, and the actual
listening experience changes depending on floor height, room shape, surface materials, listening
position, speaker locations, etc.)
In the following sections, we will get into more detail in order to better understand how the Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G and GoldenEar Triton Five compare and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one of these loudspeakers is the better choice for you.
**This post contains affiliate links, and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking
through my links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Drivers
One of the fundamental differences between these two speakers is that Gold 500 6G is a 3-way design whereas the Triton Five is a 2-way speaker. 3-way designs utilize a midrange driver in addition to the tweeter and woofer on 2-way designs. Designing a crossover for a 3-way speaker is a complicated process and generally increases the overall cost of the speaker.
| Driver |
Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G |
GoldenEar Triton Five |
|
Driver Setup
|
3-way
|
2-way
|
|
Tweeter
|
1-inch
|
-inch
|
|
Midrange
|
1 x 3-inch |
- |
|
Woofer
|
2 x 8-inch
|
2 x 6-inch
|
Gold 500 6G features a 1" MPD III Tweeter , a 3" Midrange and 2 x 8" HDT C-CAM Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 700 Hz - 2600 Hz. On the other hand, the Triton Five features a " Folded Ribbon Tweeter and 2 x 6" Polypropylene Woofer .
Frequency Response
Gold 500 6G has a frequency range of 44 Hz – 60 kHz whereas Triton Five has a frequency range of 26-35k Hz. With a minimum frequency of 26Hz, the Triton Five can go significantly deeper on the low side and provide stronger bass compared to the Gold 500 6G's min frequency of 44Hz.
Below graphs depict how these two speakers compare with the max, min and average values of the Min and Max Frequencies of other speakers in the Floor-standing class in our database.
Low Frequency
Floor-standing Speakers
High Frequency
Floor-standing Speakers
Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G
None of these speakers achieves full range experience which is commonly agreed as 20Hz-20kHz. In order to achieve lower lows / deeper bass, we recommend you pair these with a subwoofer. Visit our Powered Subwoofers section to find out more about the available options.
Impedance and Sensitivity
Gold 500 6G is a 4 ohms speaker compared to the Triton Five which has a nominal impedance of 8 ohms. Lower impedance speakers, especially the ones that are rated at 4 ohms may put more pressure on the amplifier unit especially when played at high volume levels, so make sure the amp you pair with the Gold 500 6G can provide this impedance level.
These two speakers also have different sensitivity levels. Gold 500 6G sensitivity is rated at 88.5 dB and the Triton Five's is rated at 90 dB. This 1 dB difference makes the GoldenEar Triton Five a more sensitive speaker compared to Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G, hence will play louder with the same amount of watts.
Sensitivity
Floor-standing Speakers
Power Range
Power
range is the range of input power in watts RMS that a loudspeaker is designed to handle. While using
an amplifier within this range ensures the nominal performance , inputting a power that is higher than the
max wattage can result in a damaged speaker.
Gold 500 6G can handle a max power of 400 watts RMS from the amp the whereas Gold 500 6G has a max power handling value of 300 watts RMS , 100 watts less than the Triton Five.
Keep in mind that a higher max power handling value doesn't necessarily make that a louder speaker
compared to a lower max handling speaker. Loudness or the sound level is also impacted by parameters
such as Impedance, sensitivity and system efficiencies.
Input Type and Bi-Amping / Bi-Wiring
Gold 500 6G features Binding post posts which make bi-amping or bi-wiring possible. Triton Five has a 5-way Post which doesn't feature bi-amping/bi-wiring.
Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G's Binding post terminals allows Bi-amping or bi-wiring
Physical Specs
Size of a speaker can sometimes become an important decision factor due to space constraints or in some cases purely for esthetic reasons. In this section, we are going to compare Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G's and GoldenEar Triton Five's external dimensions. Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G has external dimensions of 383.0 x 1156.0 x 475.0mm ( 15-1/16 x 45-1/2 x 18-11/16) whereas GoldenEar Triton Five has external dimensions of 1131.0 x 281.0 x 421.0mm ( 44-1/2 x 11-1/16 x 16-9/16inch) .
Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G is clearly the larger of the two speakers. Its body is 102mm wider, 25mm taller and 54mm deeper than GoldenEar Triton Five.
Base Surface Area Comparison
Base surface area of a loudspeaker may become a determining factor when the space in your room or desk is limited.
The base surface area of the Monitor Audio Gold 500 6G is approximately 5491.0cm2 / 851.1inch2 and base area of the GoldenEar Triton Five is approximately 1183.0cm2 / 183.4inch2. The Gold 500 6G requires 364% more surface area than the Triton Five which gives it a small disadvantage on placement in tight spaces.