PREMIERE

⌈ The RUBY 30 is the largest and latest model of the Ruby series from PYLON AUDIO. This is a large, floor-standing, three-way, four-driver loudspeaker, in which the material called Endumax, from which the membranes were made, was used. This is one of their larger speakers and it still look sleek. For this test we got the first pair that came off the production line. ⌋

arly August 2016 we received information about new Pylon Audio drivers:

We are one of the first manufacturers in the world to use this technologically new material. After many tests carried out by our engineers, the PSW 17.8 EXA driver based on an Endumax membrane promises a great performance for specialist audiophile designs. We can already inform you that the above-mentioned driver will be implemented in the new Ruby series. This line will be presented at this year's Audio Video Show.

source: „High Fidelity” News , accessed: 19.08.2019

This is the case in which the loudspeakers, and then the whole series, were built around the drivers developed by the manufacturer. Usually the opposite is true and the designer first has a loudspeaker concept and than he matches drivers to the concept. Since Endumax was back then a completely new material, the company's designers had to get used to it. The first speakers with these drivers, HE and HSE models, were presented - as prototypes - at the Munich High End Show 2016. They featured a characteristic shape and seemed to herald a new style in the manufacturer's lineup.

Ruby HS and HSE at High End Show 2016

Pretty soon the company decided to prepare a completely different series, in classic cabinets - the Ruby series, including the floor-standing Ruby 25 and 20 and the Ruby Monitor loudspeakers. They utilized still the same PSW 17.8 EXA drivers, the same tweeter PST-120.6 (modified SEAS), but in a different configuration, cabinet and with a slightly different tuning. Their characteristic feature are now the grids behind which the drivers are hidden, similar to those used by Accuton in their ceramic drivers. The first loudspeakers of this version of Ruby were introduced in 2017 during the Audio Video Show 2017 in Warsaw.

| RUBY 30

The Ruby 30 are large, really large floor-standing speakers. Despite their size, technically advanced transducers, solid cabinets, natural veneer, etc., they are inexpensive, meaning: they should be an affordable choice for a wide range of music lovers. But this is the hallmark of Pylon Audio. They have built up their position as a producer who can reduce their own costs, while still improving their products - mainly drivers - by constantly experimenting with different materials and technologies.

It is possible only because it is a company that manufactures almost all components of their loudspeakers in-house, except for some tweeters, cabling, crossovers and some elements of the drivers. It is a large company employing 45 people, carrying out orders for many European high-end loudspeaker manufacturers. And it is going to get even better because a large anechoic chamber has just been put into use, probably the only one that belongs to a loudspeaker manufacturer in this part of Europe. And immediately a long queue formed of producers wanting to make use of it.

The Ruby 30 were brought for this test to my place by Mateusz Jujka, CEO of Pylon, who participates in every stage of production on daily bases. Using his presence, I asked him some questions.

MATEUSZ JUJKA
CEO

WOJCIECH PACUŁA: Finally, you have your own anechoic chamber – that's w huge investment of more than 1 000 000 PLN…
MATEUSZ JUJKA: Yes, it was recently finished and indeed, it cost us over a million zlotys.

But it is not in Jarocin, as your factory, right?
Indeed, we built it near Bialystok, just out of Zambrów. Not only the chamber but the entire R&D department will operate there. Starting next month we are going to send our engineers there, including Marek Kostrzyński, the chief engineer, to work on new prototypes of loudspeakers and drivers.

Are you going to offer your services to other companies too?
We will definitely rent the chamber to others. There are few such facilities in Poland, and those we have in our country are usually affiliated to universities, which significantly limits the possibility of using them. We used one the belongs to the Wrocław University of Technology, for which we are very grateful, but it was inconvenient as we always had to wait for availability of the chamber, sometimes for quite a long time.

How big is your chamber?
It is the chamber inside a chamber - the outer one measures 8 x 8 m, and the inner chamber 5 x 5 x 5 m. The inner part sits on special springs that eliminate low-frequency vibrations. It has passed all measurements and has been certified.

But the Ruby line was developed before you had this chamber at your disposal.
Yes, we still had to go "old school" about it :) The first products that will benefit from the chamber will be the Jasper series, which is our top line, based on Scan-Speak drivers.

You brought the Ruby 30 for the test…
Yes, it is the top model in this series. We presented its prototype last year at the Audio Video Show 2018. Its most important elements are the midrange and low-midrange drivers with a braided Endumax material membranes, combining composite and fiberglass. It is lighter than cellulose and stiffer than fiberglass. Our engineers believe that this membrane allowed to express a completely different style of sound than before.

You got the first '30' pair for testing – it was used by our engineers to test subsequent changes. We didn't have prototype cabinets. A year and a half ago, we made the final cabinets and tested various solutions in them.

The drivers bear your designations, does this mean you have developed them?
Yes, it is our project. We buy membranes and upper suspensions from the German company Dr. Kurt Müller, one of the most important transducer designers who manufactures membranes for many other major companies. They make them based on our specification. We make pole shoes, coils, bottom suspension.

We've also partnered with Peter Larsen, the famous Danish designer. We are using his LOUDSOFT measuring system, and now he will work with us on all projects. Peter Larsen previously worked for Scan-Speak, Dynaudio, and now provides services for various companies. For us, it is to develop an entire prototype workshop for electroacoustic transducers.

What about your own tweeter?
This is a completely different story - it is much easier to make a woofer or midrange driver. But we're working on it. A year ago, we started the next “Fast Track” solution, which will help us hire more people.

It seems to me that you are a great example of an exemplary use of the EU's support - after all, all your investments were largely based on EU money, right?
(Laughing) It's true - there would be no Pylon if it wasn't for financial aid from EU projects. But everyone can use it, we use tools that are available to everyone. However, our advantage is that we create "something out of nothing", a complete production company. It is an effort, but it pays off 100 times. Thanks to this we have our own know-how and nobody will take it away from us. And this is only a beginning for us.

Marek (Marek Kostrzyński, chief engineer – ed.) must be pleased – he just got a new million zlotys toy at his disposal :)
Yes, he's really happy. Actually he is now in the chamber testing new things.

So what are you working on now?
It is something completely new - we want to launch a composing plant and prepare some composite enclosures. This must be 100% our, proprietary solution. In three years we will be ready :) We are talking about solutions similar to those used by Wilson Audio. I am aware of the fact that Pylon is not associated with expensive products, but if we stop advancing, we will not get anywhere - the solutions developed for the top lines will also be used for our basic series. Because advancement is the most important thing in this industry. Otherwise a company just vegetates. ▪

The Ruby 30 is the largest model in this series, launched in 2017. 1050 mm high, 350 mm deep and 190 mm wide they are a three-way, four-driver designs. They feature a soft dome tweeter with Pylon markings, the PST-120.6, which is a modified version of one of SEAS drivers. The medium and low tones were entrusted to 180 mm drivers with a characteristic white membrane.

This is a braid made of a material called Endumax, characterized by high rigidity and good internal damping. Pylon was one of the first companies in the world to start using this material. This element, as well as the upper suspension, are the only outsourced parts of these transducers. All the rest, i.e. the drive system, basket and lower suspension, are made by Pylon.

The speakers offer a characteristic appearance, given to them by a black grill with honeycomb holes. Mateusz said that the measurements do not show their impact on sound, so they assume that they are acoustically transparent. They are permanently mounted, but the company plans to introduce a version with magnets. The grill is used for all drivers, as well as for the bass-reflex outlet – it is the slot visible just above the floor. The loudspeakers are finished with with natural oak veneer, that is treated with oil wax.

These are well-made and finished, large speakers.

| HOW WE LISTENED TO IT

The Pylon Ruby 30 speakers were placed in the same spots as my own reference Harbeth M40.1s. The distance from the wall behind them was 70 cm (I mean distance from to the rear wall of the speakers), 200 cm from each other and 220 cm from me. They were placed on the supplied small feet, making the setup easy. You can replace them with spikes or - which I highly recommend - any specialized loudspeaker feet. I tried several different setups, but the best results - as usual with Pylon speakers - were obtained in a classic setting with the speakers pointing directly at me. The speakers were driven by the Soulution 710 power amplifier.

Recordings used for the test (a selec- tion)

• Charlie Haden, The Private Collection, Naim Label naimcd108, 2 x CD (2007)
• Count Basie, Count Basie and the Kansas City 7, Impulse!/Esoteric ESSI-90137, SACD/CD (1962/2015) w: Impulse! 6 Great Jazz, Impulse!/Esoteric ESSI-9013/8 (2015)
• Dua Lipa, Dua Lipa, Warner Music UK 0190295938482, CD (2017)
• Kylie, Step Back In Time (The Definitive Collection), Parlophone | BMG BMGCAT385DCDX/4050538484182, 2 x CD (2019)
• OMD, English Electric, 100% Records/Sony Music Japan SICP-3810, CD (2013);
• Pink Floyd, Wish You Were Here, EMI Records/Analogue Productions PFR25/19075810342, SACD (1975/2018)
• The Modern Jazz Quartet, European Concert. Volume One + Two, Atlantic/East West Japan AMCY-1186-7, „Atlantic Jazz Collection | 50 Years”, 2 x K2 CD (1960/1998).

The new Pylon speakers are this brand's products in every way, there is no doubt about that. I mean the characteristic for this company smoothness, class and something that can be described by the word "decency". Its individual series differ from each other in a way individual features are selected, in their intensity and distribution, but as a whole, as a "brand's sound" they can be placed in the same set.

But Ruby 30 also are - within these similarities - slightly different than all Pylon speakers that I have heard so far. Their special feature, the one that I immediately noticed, already on Count Basie's album, and then confirmed by the live recordings of Charlie Haden and The Modern Jazz Quartet, was neutrality. I am not 100% sure if it should be called that, but even after a few days of listening I did not find another better term - so let's leave it at that.

It is a neutrality, which causes the sound to change from disc to disc and we can hear that Basie's album is darker and more distant, and the MJQ concert has a close perspective, close-up microphones with a more emphasize foreground. They are also tonally neutral. The Ruby 30 are tonally well-balanced speakers and in some way they follow the large Harbeths M40.1, that I compared them to in the A / B / A comparison, in this regard. I'm not saying they sound the same, that's not the point. I will say, however, that this is a similar sensitivity, thanks to which nothing in this presentation breaks away.

Despite the neutrality Pylon present the sound with, I could hear that the high tones were sweet rather than emphatic, that the midrange was warm rather than dry, and the bass was slightly rounded, was not contoured (in the bad sense of this term). Therefore, the equalization of the band we are dealing with here is neither mechanical nor impersonal. These speakers give the played albums their own character, which have their own perspective.

I will get back to the tonality in a moment, but first I would like to say a few words about space. These are loudspeakers that build a large "bubble" of sound in our room, transfer the sound to us, not us to their space. It's neither good nor bad thing, it's just a feature of this presentation. They emphasize the foreground, showing the events on the axis stronger and clearer.

This was already audible with Basie's piano, which was close, almost on the percussion axis from the left channel and wind instruments from the right, but it was even clearer with OMD from the English Electric, which filled the space between the speakers tightly, focusing my attention on vocals, instruments, bass. This means that we receive an intense and exciting performance. Not always an insight into the stage will be sufficient, it is not this type of loudspeakers, but our attention will always be focused on what is happening in front of us.

And the sound itself will be big. This is the case when we see large speakers and hear a big sound. When playing music they disappear nicely from the equation, i.e. the sound comes from the space between them, not from the speakers themselves. Importantly, it will happen with both, sophisticated realizations and ones such as the aforementioned, but also with mainstream albums, such as Step Back In Time, the greatest hits collection with artists such as Kylie Minogue, or from the Dua Lipa album.

Because these are not speakers that will discriminate any recordings. They are not remarkably resolving, but we lack nothing in this sound. This is a mature, powerful sound and fans of jazz and classics, as well as rock and electronics will find something for themselves in it. Listen to the Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here album released by the Analogue Productions, and in particular the Welcome To The Machine, and you will hear soft pulsating bass, large space, dense midrange and proper scale of the sound.

| SUMMARY

It seems to me that with Ruby 30 the Pylon Audio wanted to offer its customers something of a "golden mean", the most versatile loudspeakers possible, which would not lose what this manufacturer got used to, but at the same time taking a slightly different direction than so far.

These are very well balanced loudspeakers with a big sound and a nice, "golden" treble. The bass is dense and strong, although it does not go as low as the size of the cabinet would suggest. But it's just a part of the Ruby 30 tuning, thanks to which you can put them in different rooms, listen to different music with them, quiet and loud, and they will never work against you and your music, they will always support your choices. Good job!

Ruby 30 are 3-way, 4-driver, floor-standing bass-reflex design.

Cabinet | The Ruby 30 cabinet is made of MDF and chipboard. it is reinforced with internal flanges, and additionally a crossbar that separates a closed chamber for the midrange driver. Cabinets are finished with natural oak veneer, which can be stained in one of eleven colors using varnish stains. From below one screws in small metal feet with glued felt discs, but one can also use spikes. On the back there is a single pair of gold-plated speaker terminals.

Drivers | Ruby 30 features four drivers. One of them is a modified SEAS textile dome which is called PST-120.6. The PSM 17.8 EXA midrange drivers and the two PSW 17.8 EXA low-midrange drivers have the same diameter: 170 mm, membranes made of Endumax material, the same solid cast baskets and a powerful motor systems. They differ in construction details that cannot be seen from the outside.

Technical specifications (according to manufacturer):

Nominal impedance: 4 Ω | Frequency range: 38 – 20 000 Hz
Nominal power: 100 W | Max power: 160 W
Sensitivity: 89 dB
Dimensions (W x H x D): 190 x 1050 x 350 mm
Weight: 20 kg/pc
Warranty: 3 years + 1 year (after registration of product)
Available finishes: natural veneer OAK, 11 different oil waxes