In 2010 the first GoldenEar Technology tower speaker, the Triton Two, arrived. A $3,000/pair tower with a folded ribbon tweeter (called HFVR), two bass/midranges, two subwoofers, two passives, and 1200 watts built into each tower, it was an immediate sensation, getting twenty five rave reviews/awards, most of whom compared its performance to speakers costing up to $20,000. (All Triton reviews and awards are at http://www.goldenear.com/products/triton-series?gktab=6)
A year later the $2,000/pair Triton Three came out, essentially a smaller version of the Triton Two, with the HFVR tweeter, one bass/midrange, one subwoofer, and 800 watts. Its 4.5″ bass/mid benefited by some design refinement but the smaller overall size worked against it. It did not get the attention and adulation of its big brother, though its one reviewer preferred it to the Two when the bigger sound is not needed. To me it is the perfect blend of a monitor speaker and a subwoofer for full range performance in a smaller room.
In 2014 came the $1400/pair Triton Seven, with the HFVR tweeter, two new bass/midranges, one subwoofer, and two passives. (no powered subwoofer) This one hit the spot and got fourteen good reviews. As an illustration of the work GoldenEar spends refining its products, one of my customers so preferred the midrange of the Seven to that of his Triton Two that he traded in his Twos. Of course it must be mentioned that he has a larger SVS subwoofer and a smallish room so he didn’t need the bass of the Two. It has been mostly popular in smaller rooms and in home theaters with a subwoofer.
In 2015 the $2,000/pair Triton Five arrived, essentially a bigger and better version of the Seven. Bigger cabinet, bigger bass/midranges, four passives. And not just bigger, definitely better, because GoldenEar’s engineers had been working their magic of constant refinement and development. Most listeners said that the sound from the mid-bass to the top treble was a step above all the previous Tritons, as you can see the seven reviews at the link above.
But shortly later in 2015 the ultimate Triton arrived – the $5,000/pair Triton One. It’s bigger and better in every way than all the previous models, though admittedly the Five’s mids and highs are so similar that it could be a close debate. after all, both the Five and One were developed very closely in time and share many refinements. The Triton One is the latest and greatest achievement of GoldenEar’s design staff, and was named 2015 Speaker of the Year by three audiophile magazines.
But wait – while the Triton One is the greatest, it is no longer the latest. At CES 2016 GoldenEar will be showing two new models – the $3500/pair Triton Two+ and the $2500/pair Triton Three+. My first word of these new speakers came two days ago in an email from Sandy Gross. Here is what he says:
“The new Triton Two+ and Triton Three+ incorporate Triton One technology and voicing to dramatically upgrade their sonic performance into Triton One territory. In fact, within their dynamic range and bass capabilities, they sound almost virtually identical to the Triton Ones in terms of voicing, soundstage and imaging. The Triton Three+ is in stock and shipping, we expect the Triton Two+ in stock and shipping around January 20th.”
So now we have improved versions of the Two and Three, upgraded in sound quality to be comparable in sound to the One, though not as capable of the dynamics and bass of the One. This is exciting! I listened to the Two as my main speaker for four years and its dynamics and bass were always amazing. I am really excited about hearing these new Tritons.