In this review, we will be comparing two different types of speakers by Triangle. Triangle Borea BR04 is a Bookshelf speaker whereas the Borea BR08 is a Floor-standing speaker.
Let's have a brief look at the main features
of Triangle Borea BR04 and Triangle Borea BR08 first before getting into our more
detailed comparison.
| Key Specs | Triangle Borea BR04 | Triangle Borea BR08 |
|---|
| Brand | Triangle
France · founded 1980 | Triangle
France · founded 1980 |
|---|
| Design | 2-way | 3-way |
|---|
| Tweeter | 1" Dome | 1" Break_in |
|---|
| Midrange | — | 6" |
|---|
| Woofer | 6" Paper Cone | 2 x 6" fiberglass |
|---|
| Frequency response | 44 - 22k Hz | 40 - 22k Hz |
|---|
| Sensitivity | 90 dB | 92 dB |
|---|
| Impedance | 8 ohms | 8 ohms |
|---|
| Power range | up to 110 watts | up to 150 watts |
|---|
| Weight | 8.64kg / 19lbs | 18.85kg / 41.5lbs |
|---|
| Dimensions (H x W x D) | 16.7" x 8.7" x 12.3"
425.0 x 220.0 x 314.0mm | 40.1" x 8.1" x 12.3"
1020.0 x 206.0 x 314.0mm |
|---|
Borea BR04 and Borea BR08 are members of Triangle's Borea series of speakers. Below you can find the loudspeakers from this series.
Triangle Borea Series
History
What size room are the Triangle Borea BR04 and Triangle Borea BR08 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* |
Triangle Borea BR04 |
Triangle Borea BR08 |
| Near-field |
Poor |
Bad |
| Small Room |
Average |
Poor |
| Mid-size Room |
Good |
Good |
| Large Room |
Average |
Good |
| Very Large Room |
Poor |
Poor |
(* 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.)
The sections below take each area in turn: drivers, frequency response, physical size and what you get in the box.
Drivers
One of the fundamental differences between these two speakers is that Borea BR04 is a 2-way design whereas the Borea BR08 is a 3-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.
Triangle Borea BR04Triangle Borea BR08
TweeterMidrangeWoofer
Front view, drawn to scale - cabinets and drivers share one scale, so sizes are directly comparable. Hover a driver for its size.
| Driver |
Triangle Borea BR04 |
Triangle Borea BR08 |
|
Driver Setup
|
2-way
|
3-way
|
|
Tweeter
|
1-inch
|
1-inch
|
|
Midrange
|
- |
1 x 6-inch |
|
Woofer
|
1 x 6-inch
|
2 x 6-inch
|
Borea BR04 features a 1" silk Dome Tweeter and 1 x 6" Paper Cone Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 3200Hz. On the other hand, the Borea BR08 features a 1" silk Break_in Tweeter, a 6" Midrange and 2 x 6" fiberglass Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 215Hz and 3500Hz.
Frequency Response
Borea BR04 has a frequency range of 44 - 22k Hz whereas Borea BR08 has a frequency range of 40 - 22k Hz. With a minimum frequency of 40Hz, the Borea BR08 can go slightly deeper then the Borea BR04's min frequency of 44Hz.
The graph below depicts how these two speakers compare with the max, min and average Low Frequency values of other speakers in the Bookshelf class in our database.
Low Frequency
Bookshelf Speakers
Neither pair reaches down to 20Hz, the usual definition of full-range, which is normal for speakers of this size. If you want the bottom octave for movies or bass-heavy music, add a subwoofer to whichever you choose. Visit our Powered Subwoofers section to find out more about the available options.
Impedance and Sensitivity
Borea BR04 and Borea BR08 have the same Impedance of 8 ohms but where they differ is the sensitivity levels. Borea BR04 sensitivity is rated at 90 dB and the Borea BR08's is at 92 dB. This 2 dB difference makes the Triangle Borea BR08 a more sensitive speaker compared to Triangle Borea BR04, hence will play louder with the same amount of watts.
Sensitivity
Bookshelf Speakers
Power Range
Power
range is the range of input power in watts RMS that a loudspeaker is designed to handle. Staying
within that range gives nominal performance; driving the speaker beyond its maximum wattage can damage it.
Borea BR08 can handle a max power of 150 watts RMS, whereas Borea BR04 has a max power handling value of 110 watts RMS, 40 watts less than the Borea BR08.
Note that higher power handling does not make a speaker louder: that depends mainly on
sensitivity and impedance. The calculator below shows how loud each of these actually plays
on a real amplifier.
Which plays louder on your amplifier?
Starting with a popular amplifier - change it to the one you own, or any you are
considering, and watch both numbers move.
Input Type and Bi-Amping / Bi-Wiring
Borea BR04 features Dual binding posts posts which make bi-amping or bi-wiring possible. Borea BR08 has a Binding post which doesn't feature bi-amping/bi-wiring.
Triangle Borea BR04's Dual binding posts terminals allows Bi-amping or bi-wiring
Triangle Borea BR08's Binding post terminals
Cabinet Type and Port Position
Both Borea BR04 and Borea BR08 have front firing ports. front ported speakers offers more flexibility in placement in regards to proximity to walls&surfaces compared to rear ported speakers.
Triangle Borea BR04 Port
Physical Specs
The size of a speaker can sometimes be an important decision factor due to space constraints or in some cases purely for esthetic reasons. In this section, we are going to compare Triangle Borea BR04's and Triangle Borea BR08's external dimensions. Triangle Borea BR04 has external dimensions of 425.0 x 220.0 x 314.0mm (16.7 x 8.7 x 12.3inch) whereas Triangle Borea BR08 has external dimensions of 1020.0 x 206.0 x 314.0mm (40.1 x 8.1 x 12.3inch).
Below you can see the front view size comparison of Triangle Borea BR04 and Triangle Borea BR08 in scale.
Comparison image of Triangle Borea BR04 and Triangle Borea BR08 Size and External Dimensions
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 Triangle Borea BR04 is approximately 690.8cm2 / 107.1inch2 and base area of the Triangle Borea BR08 is approximately 646.8cm2 / 100.3inch2. The Borea BR04 requires 7% more surface area than the Borea BR08 which gives it a small disadvantage on placement in tight spaces.
What's in the Box of Triangle Borea BR04?
Here are the items that are included inside the box of Borea BR04:
- 2 x Borea speakers
- 2 x protections grids
- 8 x adhesive rubber plots
- 1 x user manual
What's in the Box of Triangle Borea BR08?
Here are the items that come with the Borea BR08:
- 2 x Borea speakers
- 2 x protections grids
- 2 x pedestals
- 8 x screws
- 8 x adhesive rubber plots
- 8 x decoupling spikes
- 1 x user manual