In this review, we will be comparing Cello 40th and Quatuor 40th, two Passive Floor-standing speakers by Triangle.
Let's have a brief look at the main features
of Triangle Magellan Cello 40th and Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th first before getting into our more
detailed comparison.
| Key Specs | Triangle Magellan Cello 40th | Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th |
|---|
| Brand | Triangle
France · founded 1980 | Triangle
France · founded 1980 |
|---|
| Design | 3-way | 3-way |
|---|
| Tweeter | 1" Horn-Loaded | 1" Horn-Loaded |
|---|
| Midrange | 6.5" | 6.5" |
|---|
| Woofer | 2 x 6.5" Fibreglass sandwich | 3 x 6.5" Fibreglass sandwich |
|---|
| Frequency response | 35-30k Hz | 33-30k Hz |
|---|
| Sensitivity | 90 dB | 91 dB |
|---|
| Impedance | 8 ohms | 8 ohms |
|---|
| Power range | 60-500 watts | 80-500 watts |
|---|
| Weight | 38.80kg / 85.4lbs | 47.00kg / 103.4lbs |
|---|
| Dimensions (H x W x D) | 42-1/2" x 9-13/16" x 13-3/8"
1080.0 x 250.0 x 340.0mm | 50-3/8" x 9-13/16" x 13-3/8"
1280.0 x 250.0 x 340.0mm |
|---|
Cello 40th and Quatuor 40th are members of Triangle's Magellan series of speakers. Below you can find the loudspeakers from this series.
Triangle Magellan Series
History
What size room are the Triangle Magellan Cello 40th and Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th 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 Magellan Cello 40th |
Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th |
| Near-field |
Bad |
Are you nuts? |
| Small Room |
Poor |
Poor |
| Mid-size Room |
Average |
Average |
| Large Room |
Good |
Good |
| Very Large Room |
Average |
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.)
The sections below take each area in turn: drivers, frequency response, physical size and what you get in the box.
Drivers
Both Cello 40th and Quatuor 40th are 3-way speakers.
Triangle Magellan Cello 40thTriangle Magellan Quatuor 40th
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 Magellan Cello 40th |
Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th |
|
Driver Setup
|
3-way
|
3-way
|
|
Tweeter
|
1-inch
|
1-inch
|
|
Midrange
|
1 x 6.5-inch |
1 x 6.5-inch |
|
Woofer
|
2 x 6.5-inch
|
3 x 6.5-inch
|
Cello 40th features a 1" Magnesium dome Horn-Loaded Tweeter, a 6.5" Midrange and 2 x 6.5" Fibreglass sandwich Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 300Hz and 2600Hz. On the other hand, the Quatuor 40th features a 1" Magnesium dome Horn-Loaded Tweeter, a 6.5" Midrange and 3 x 6.5" Fibreglass sandwich Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 350Hz and 2500Hz.
Frequency Response
Cello 40th has a frequency range of 35-30k Hz whereas Quatuor 40th has a frequency range of 33-30k Hz. With a minimum frequency of 33Hz, the Quatuor 40th can go slightly deeper then the Cello 40th's min frequency of 35Hz.
The graph below depicts how these two speakers compare with the max, min and average Low Frequency values of other speakers in the Floor-standing class in our database.
Low Frequency
Floor-standing 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
Cello 40th and Quatuor 40th have the same Impedance of 8 ohms but where they differ is the sensitivity levels. Cello 40th sensitivity is rated at 90 dB and the Quatuor 40th's is at 91 dB. This 1 dB difference makes the Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th a more sensitive speaker compared to Triangle Magellan Cello 40th, 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. Staying
within that range gives nominal performance; driving the speaker beyond its maximum wattage can damage it.
Quatuor 40th can handle a max power of 260 watts RMS, whereas Cello 40th has a max power handling value of 200 watts RMS, 60 watts less than the Quatuor 40th.
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.
Triangle Magellan Cello 40th
Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th
Input Type and Bi-Amping / Bi-Wiring
Cello 40th features Binding post type posts and Quatuor 40th has a Binding post type posts. None of these speakers feature bi-amping/bi-wiring.
Cabinet Type and Port Position
Both Cello 40th and Quatuor 40th have front firing ports. front ported speakers offers more flexibility in placement in regards to proximity to walls&surfaces compared to rear ported speakers.
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 Magellan Cello 40th's and Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th's external dimensions. Triangle Magellan Cello 40th has external dimensions of 1080.0 x 250.0 x 340.0mm (42-1/2 x 9-13/16 x 13-3/8inch) whereas Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th has external dimensions of 1280.0 x 250.0 x 340.0mm (50-3/8 x 9-13/16 x 13-3/8inch).
Size, drawn to scale
Both speakers and both views share one scale, so everything here is directly comparable. Hover a box for its dimensions.
One scale for both, standing on the same surface and pushed back to the same wall, so the deeper one visibly sticks out further.
Near-identical footprints. Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th is 200mm taller.
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 Magellan Cello 40th is approximately 850.0cm2 / 131.8inch2 and base area of the Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th is approximately 850.0cm2 / 131.8inch2.
Weight Comparison The weight of a loudspeaker can become an important factor if you need to move and reposition the unit often. Weight of a speaker can also "sometimes" be an indicator of the rigidity of the enclosure and the quality of the internal components used. The Triangle Magellan Cello 40th weighs 38.80kg / 85.4lbs and the Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th weighs 47.00kg / 103.4lbs. This makes the Quatuor 40th 21% heavier than the Cello 40th.
Here is a comparison of how Cello 40th and Quatuor 40th's weights compare with the average, max and min weights in Passive Floor-standing class.
Weight
All Floor-standing Speakers
Triangle Magellan Cello 40th
Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th
 Height |
1080mm
vs
1280mm
|
Easier to fit in smaller spaces |
 Price per pair* |
16250USD
vs
22000USD
|
costs less (*prices may change depending on the seller, location and time) |
 Max Input Power |
260 watts
vs
200 watts
|
Handle more power from your amplifier |
 Sensitivity |
91 dB
vs
90 dB
|
Play louder with same amount of amplification power |
 Number of Woofers |
3
vs
2
|
More woofers |
|
Low Frequency Response |
33 Hz
vs
35 Hz
|
Generates deeper bass |
| General |
Triangle Magellan Cello 40th |
Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th |
| Brand |
Triangle |
Triangle |
| Speaker Type |
Floor-standing speaker |
Floor-standing speaker |
| Power Range |
60-500 watts |
80-500 watts |
| Sensitivity |
90 dB |
91 dB |
| Impedance |
8 ohms |
8 ohms |
| Impedance |
3.4 ohms |
3.4 ohms |
| Frequency Response |
35-30k Hz |
33-30k Hz |
Drivers |
|
|
| Woofer Quantity |
2 |
3 |
| Woofer Size |
6.5" |
6.5" |
| Woofer Composition |
Fibreglass sandwich |
Fibreglass sandwich |
| Tweeter Size |
1" |
1" |
| Tweeter Type |
Horn-Loaded |
Horn-Loaded |
| Aimable Tweeter |
No |
No |
| Midrange Driver |
6.5" |
6.5" |
| Crossover Frequency |
300Hz and 2600Hz |
350Hz and 2500Hz |
| Firing Direction |
front |
front |
Physical Specs |
|
|
| Height |
1080.0mm (42.5") |
1280.0mm (50.4") |
| Width |
250.0mm (9.8") |
250.0mm (9.8") |
| Depth |
340.0mm (13.4") |
340.0mm (13.4") |
| Weight |
38.80kg (85.4lbs) |
47.00kg (103.4lbs) |
| Enclosure |
Bass Reflex |
Bass Reflex |
| Grille |
Yes |
Yes |
| Moisture Resistancy |
No |
No |
Connections |
|
|
Other |
|
|
| Parts Warranty |
5 Years |
5 Years |
| Labor Warranty |
5 Years |
5 Years |
Siblings in Triangle's Magellan series, so they share a family sound. It comes down to size, output and price.
| Area | Better | Why |
|---|
| Bass | evenly matched | Much the same reach (35Hz vs 33Hz). |
| Amplifier needs | evenly matched | Similar sensitivity (90dB vs 91dB) - both want much the same power. |
| Headroom | B | Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th takes more power (260W vs 200W) - more in hand in a big room. |
| Size | depends | Similar cabinet size - neither is easier to fit. |
| Price | A | Triangle Magellan Cello 40th is cheaper - $16,250 against $22,000, about 26% less. |
A Triangle Magellan Cello 40th B Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th
depends neither is better in the abstract - it turns on your room, your system or how you will use them. Only specs published for both speakers are judged; anything missing on either side is left out rather than guessed.
Which should you choose?
Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th is ahead, but only on 1 of the measured areas, and it costs about 35% more. That is a lot of money for a narrow margin on paper - Triangle Magellan Cello 40th looks like the sensible buy unless something else about the Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th appeals to you. Match it to your room: we rate Triangle Magellan Quatuor 40th the better fit for a very large room; elsewhere the two are rated the same. Think about the whole system, not just the speakers: the roughly $5,750 saved by taking the cheaper pair would buy a subwoofer or a better amplifier, and either usually does more for the sound than the difference between these two.
And remember what a spec sheet cannot show: how each looks in your room and whether the finish suits it, what dealer support and warranty are like where you live, and how they actually sound to you. If you can hear them first - ideally with your own music - that will tell you more than any number above.