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have either the purest soprano or
the noblest baritone. In fact, you
have both. I think this metaphor
may be getting a bit perverse.
The point I’m meandering
my way around to is that Infinity’s
new Cascade line reimagines every
aspect of the loudspeaker. The
newest feature is a reshaped
woofer, a flat, rectangluar diaphragm that’s not cone shaped.
The woofer and the tweeter
are both made of a proprietary
ceramic/aluminum blend not
unfamiliar to Infinity fans. The
look is as distinctive as a fingerprint, and the sound is superlative
Flat and fit.
How would you feel if you
woke up one day in a perfect body?
You’d pull back the blanket and
look down on a perfectly flat
tummy (something I haven’t seen in
years, although heaven knows I’m
trying). Combination skin is a thing
of the past—you seem to have been
remade in some wonderful material. Eager to check yourself out
in a mirror, you cross the room to
find yourself resculpted in new
and slimmer proportions. And,
when you open your mouth,
depending on your gender, you
in ways that correct ailments
common to most speakers.
Oh MoMA
The Cascades could be in an
exhibit at the Museum of Modern
Art. Their newly designed, flat,
rectangular woofers share the front
with a conventional dome tweeter.
Although they’re trimmed in plastic, the drivers actually attach to
the underlying wood. The Model
Seven floorstanding speaker presents an unbroken front surface;
the high-gloss black of the speaker
transitions to the stand’s gray
matte aluminum.
The top of the Model Seven
tapers back, making it appear
slightly smaller than it really is. This
tapering reappears on both ends of
the Model Five monitor, the Model
Three C center speaker, and the
Model Fifteen subwoofer. The sides
and the rear are constructed of
curved extruded aluminum in
matte black. When I knucklerapped the enclosures, I heard various pitches in various places, but
they were all muted compared with
the pitches of my fiberboardenclosed reference speakers. These
speakers are solid.
Conspicuous in its absence is
the cone-shaped woofer that 99 percent of speaker designs employ.
Round cones and sharp-cornered,
rectangular speaker enclosures are
easy to manufacture, but fitting
the former into the latter is a waste
of space. Boxy enclosures also
Cordero Studios
BY MARK FLEISCHMANN
Infinity Cascade Speaker System
ELECTRONICALLY REPRINTED FROM SEPTEMBER 2006
Page 2
encourage sound waves to bounce
between their parallel walls.
In contrast, Infinity’s newly
designed diaphragm and slim, irregular, acoustically hip enclosure are
tailor made for one another. The
flat (well, nearly flat) diaphragm
doesn’t require much depth in
the enclosure. Even the voice coils
that propel it into motion—a
pair of long loops of thin wire
behind the driver—take up little
space. Yet they have six times more
surface-contact area than the typical round-cone/coil combo, making
for better driver control.
Try to visualize this: When a
single round voice coil pushes and
pulls a cone woofer, motion is
greatest in the center, where the
moving coil is attached, and least
at the sides. The sound waves that
these different areas generate are
out of phase with one another,
resulting in time-domain smear.
When the Cascades’ two long loop
coils push and pull the woofer, the
surface moves in a more uniform
way, and the sound waves that this
surface generates are in phase.
Using computer-aided visualization, the Infinity people noticed
that some parts of the diaphragm
were reacting to the underlying
magnets in different ways. The
edges were not as well controlled.
To smooth out the differences,
they added ribs to the surface and
gussets to the sides. This strengthens the diaphragm and enables
it to move more like a single
piston, minimizing the uncontrolled motion, which is audible
at high volumes as breakup. And,
because the diaphragm more efficiently dissipates heat, the coil
temperature stays low and steady,
even with higher voltages. That
endows the speakers with
greater dynamic range and less
dynamic compression.
> L/R Sensitivity:
84 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz
> Center Sensitivity:
86 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz
> Surround Sensitivity:
83.5 dB from 500 Hz to 2 kHz
This graph shows the quasi-anechoic (employing closemiking of all woofers) frequency response of the Model
Seven L/R (purple trace), Model Fifteen subwoofer (blue
trace), Model Three C center channel (green trace), and
Model Five surround (red trace). All passive loudspeakers were measured with grilles at a distance of 1 meter
with a 2.83-volt input and scaled for display purposes.
The Model Seven’s listening-window response (a
five-point average of axial and +/–15-degree horizontal and vertical responses) measures +1.16/–1.47 decibels from 200 hertz to 10 kilohertz. The –3-dB point
is at 100 Hz, and the –6-dB point is at 89 Hz. Impedance reaches a minimum of 4.81 ohms at 314 Hz and a
phase angle of +45.23 degrees at 3.3 kHz.
The Model Three C’s listening-window response
measures +0.82/–3.62 dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz. An
average of axial and +/–15-degree horizontal responses
measures +0.78/–3.72 dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz. The
–3-dB point is at 247 Hz, and the –6-dB point is at
91 Hz. (Please note that, while there is no boundarycompensation switch, the response appears to be
intentionally tapered below 500 Hz to compensate for
typical center-channel placement anomalies, which
makes some of these results appear a bit unusual.)
Impedance reaches a minimum of 4.39 ohms at 1.1 kHz
and a phase angle of +55.17 degrees at 1.8 kHz.
The Model Five’s listening-window response measures +0.92/–2.32 dB from 200 Hz to 10 kHz. The –3-dB
point is at 79 Hz, and the –6-dB point is at 71 Hz. Impedance reaches a minimum of 4.79 ohms at 295 Hz and a
phase angle of +44.16 degrees at 3.3 kHz.
The Model Fifteen’s close-miked response, normalized to the level at 80 Hz, indicates that the lower –3-dB
point is at 37 Hz and the –6-dB point is at 33 Hz. The
upper –3dB point is at 183 Hz using the LFE input.—MJP
INFINITY CASCADE SPEAKER SYSTEM
AT A GLANCE
These listings are based on the
manufacturer’s stated specs; the HT
Labs box below indicates the gear’s
performance on our test bench.
HT Labs Measures: Infinity Cascade Speaker System
>SPEAKER: Model Seven Model Three C Model Five
Type: Two-way, floorstanding Two-way, center Two-way, monitor/
surround
Tweeter (size in inches, type): 1, ceramic/aluminum 1, ceramic/aluminum 1, ceramic/aluminum
dome dome dome
Woofer (size in inches, type): 7.75 x 3.4, ceramic/ 7.75 x 3.4, ceramic/ 7.75 x 3.4, ceramic/
aluminum panel (1) aluminum panel (2) aluminum panel (1)
Nominal Impedance (ohms): 8 8 8
Recommended Amp Power (watts): 10–100 10–150 10–100
Available Finishes: High-Gloss Black, High- High-Gloss Black, High- High-Gloss Black, High-
Gloss Silver, Cherry veneer Gloss Silver, Cherry veneer Gloss Silver, Cherry veneer
Dimensions (H x W x D, inches,
on stands): 47 x 10.5 x 11.5 5.5 x 30.75 x 6 30.25 x 7.75 x 8.5
Weight (pounds, no stands): 9 18 13.5
Price: $799/each $799 $699/each
> SUBWOOFER: MODEL FIFTEEN
Connections: Line-level stereo input and output
Enclosure Type: Vented
Woofer (size in inches, type): 6, ceramic/aluminum cone (4)
Power Rating (watts): 800
Crossover Bypass: No
Available Finishes: High-Gloss Black, High-Gloss Silver, Cherry
hardwood
Dimensions (H x W x D, inches): 13 x 37 x 8.5
Weight (pounds): 98
Price: $1,499
Taking a Stand
Like a nation that wins the war and
loses the peace, speaker makers in
search of friendlier forms often
design good speakers and mess up
the stands. The more of them I
review, the more I dread a floor full
of pieces waiting to be assembled.
from the test bench
INFINITY CASCADE SPEAKER SYSTEM
C
Page 3
Infinity immediately scored ergonomic points by reducing the
assembly instructions for the Model
Seven to one step: Put the speaker
on the stand. Assembly time: three
seconds. The smaller Model Five
required two screws to attach a triangular metal bracket that grips a
metal tongue at the top of the stand.
Assembly time: half a minute.
The stands are cast aluminum
and extremely heavy. They give the
speakers a nearly resonance-free
foundation and would make excellent murder weapons. Round goldnut binding posts face directly
downward in the Model Seven and
diagonally upward in the Model
Five, providing access for spade
lugs but not for banana plugs.
Blobs of plastic in the holes block
banana-plug insertion. These are a
requirement for sale in Europe and
are removable. I used an elderly
but reliable set of Monster THX
ribbon cables with bare tips.
Grilles come in the form of a
scroll-like object made of the
thinnest, softest, most lovely material ever used to cover a baffle.
Although it’s synthetic, it feels like
silk. The ends attach magnetically.
I tried one, and it was beautiful—
but not as interesting as the
unadorned speaker. I decided to
leave the grilles off.
The subwoofer has a unique hor-
izontal shape that’s designed to sit
close to a wall. Inside is a quartet of
6-inch, square, down-firing woofers
in an enclosure that’s tapered at the
sides, like the other speakers.
Equalizing the sub was part of
the setup process. Infinity calls this
R.A.B.O.S., the Room Adaptive
Bass Optimization System. Supplied R.A.B.O.S. accessories
include a test-tone CD, a sound
meter that specializes in bass, a
plastic overlay, and a set of instructions. The latter seems formidably
intricate at first glance, but the
process is fairly simple.
As each test tone plays, you plot
points on a frequency-response
graph. When the curve is complete,
connect the dots to determine the
correct settings for the sub’s volume
and crossover controls. To determine the width—that is, how much
of the audible spectrum the correction will affect—place the plastic
overlay atop the graph. A few
simple calculations are necessary. I
did them on scrap paper, but there’s
also an online calculator. Twist three
knobs, and you’re done.
Thus, reducing room interaction
soon paid dividends. The peak in
response at my room’s resonant frequency pretty much disappeared.
Eliminating this distraction freed me
to focus more intently on story lines
and musical moods. I was rarely
aware of the sub’s existence except
at peak bass moments (and that’s
how it should be). The handoff from
sub to speakers at the crossover frequency was seamless.
My reference gear, as usual,
included a Rotel RSX-1065 A/V
receiver. The Rotel combines
dynamically potent high-current
amplification with a scrupulously
defined top end—don’t use the
Cascades with anything less. Because
the speakers are so fond of high-rez
signal sources, my Integra DPS-10.5
universal disc player took on a more
prominent role than usual.
Strange Work if You Can
Get It
In search of something dynamically
taxing, I rented Get Rich or Die
Tryin’, based on the life of rapper
Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, and got
an unexpectedly nuanced drama
instead. As the movie started with
Jackson’s voiceover, I turned up the
volume. I wanted to catch the
softly but precisely enunciated consonants that are part of his signature vocal style, affected by the
bullet lodged in his tongue. At
some point, I figured, as the alltoo-realistic violence kicked in, I’d
have to engage the Dolby Digital
midnight-movie mode or at least
drop the volume. But the subsequent gunplay was dynamically
Cascade Model Seven Floorstanding Speaker, $799/each; Cascade Model Three C Center-Channel Speaker, $799
Cascade Model Five Monitor/On-Wall Speaker, $699/each; Cascade Model Fifteen Subwoofer, $1,499
Infinity Systems, (516) 674-4463, www.infinitysystems.com > Dealer Locator Code IFY
General information
Build Quality Value Features Performance Ergonomics
OVERALL RATING
95
95
95 90 96 98 93
INFINITY CASCADE SPEAKER SYSTEM
>Absolute solidity,
flawless detailing
>Ceramic/metal
woofers and titanium
tweeters
>Heavy aluminum
stands
>It’s impossible to
compare this to other
products
>New technology
doesn’t come cheap
>Infinity’s totally
redesigned woofer
makes its debut here
>R.A.B.O.S. equalizes
the big sub
>Gets the most out of
high-rez SACD releases
>Combination of wide
sweet spot and tight
image focus
> Low dynamic-
compression bass
>Plenty to catch the
eye, nothing to offend it
>Stand mounting is
very easy
Infinity’s Cascade Series uses a
newly designed flat diaphragm to
muster a large and well-defined
soundstage with exceptional
transparency, definitive detail,
and strong dynamics. For imaging, it is the reference against
which we will judge speakers in
future reviews. Add equalized
monster bass, and you’ve got a
product that amazes.
Page 4
proportional and not excessive. I
found myself with a growing
respect for both the star—whether
despite or because of his frosty
reserve, I’m not sure—and the
delicacy of the mix.
Munich, despite its heightened
moral complexity, came with an
extravagantly ultraviolent procession of explosions and gunshots
that tested the mettle of every
driver in the system. Right from
the opening frames, the Cascades
grabbed me with the soundtrack’s
mourning female vocal and string
orchestra, and they never let go.
The sub did well with minor
details, like the low ambient hum
of trains and buses, but also stood
up to the stiffer demands of the
hotel explosion—not a single detonation but an extended ballet of
destruction. It was convincing
enough to be unnerving, as a
movie on this subject should be.
The next thing I played after
Munich was the stereo SACD of
Bernard Herrmann: The Film Scores by
Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Los
Angeles Philharmonic. It includes
excerpts from six of the soundtracks Herrmann wrote for Alfred
Hitchcock, including a suite from
Psycho, a string-orchestra masterpiece that could outgun any heavy
metal band. Going from angstridden terrorism and assassination
to a soundtrack that evokes someone being stabbed in the shower
was a soft landing of sorts—I could
almost hear Sir Alfred saying,
“Don’t worry, dear. It’s just a
moooovie.” Even with no surround
mix and just two speakers operating, the Cascades could throw
out a convincing soundstage that
dominated every seat in the room.
I could sit directly in front of the
left speaker and still hear continuous imaging with no hole in the
middle. The voluptuously dissonant string-and-brass textures that
open the Vertigo suite billowed like
the sails of a clipper ship caressed
by the wind, the ostinatos evoking
the opening credits’ unforgettable
spiraling graphics.
An SACD surround mix of
Beethoven’s ninth symphony didn’t
fare as well. The 1977 analog
recording by Herbert von Karajan
and the Berlin Philharmonic was
mastered in 96/24 PCM before its
transfer to SACD. In my opinion,
the string sound is less refined than
that of a native or straight-fromanalog SACD, and the Cascades
didn’t hesitate to tell me how they
felt about that. Despite the skillful
performance, what should have
been a rich assortment of vocal and
instrumental tone color came out
monochromatic and lacking in spatiality. I wouldn’t call these speakers “ruthlessly revealing”—code
language for products that make a
large percentage of recordings
sound unpleasant—nor did they
add any sweetening of their own.
They were just finicky and truthful, as an audiophile should be. In
this case I think they were actually
disappointed in the recording.
They cheered up when I got to
Sinatra at the Sands on DVD-Audio.
I could hear the effect of cigarettes
on Sinatra’s lungs and throat, the
precision of the consonants that
flowed delicately and precisely
through his teeth and lips, the way
all of this interacted with the
microphone and the acoustics of the
club, and individual voices in the
audience laughing at his awful
jokes. The focus couldn’t have been
tighter or the spotlight brighter.
Of the dozens of CDs I played,
the most memorable was 10,000
Clowns on a Rainy Day by Jan
Akkerman. The former guitarist of
Focus has lived down his former
band’s 1971 yodeling hit “Hocus
Pocus” to pursue a lengthy solo
career. His trusty Les Paul is the
focal (sorry) point of this mainly
instrumental live double-CD set.
The Cascades brought it to the
front of the mix, slightly in front
of the speakers in Dolby Pro Logic
II, while the band lingered slightly
behind. It was like looking at
a richly colored object against
a black-and-white background.
Akkerman’s supple intonation was
a living, breathing, dancing sonic
creature. Although visual responses
to sounds are routine for me, in
this case, I also tasted the guitar: It
tasted like dark chocolate.
Like waves breaking on a beach,
reviewing these speakers was a long
and steady succession of favorable
impressions. They looked great.
They were easy to set up. There
was no screeching, no distancing,
and no sweetening. The equalized
subwoofer nimbly sidestepped my
room’s bass hump. Broad off-axis
response from the flat woofers and
waveguide-enhanced tweeters liberated me from the sweet spot. The
Cascades gave me an unparalleled
freedom to listen from any spot in
the room and with any kind of
material, and, for that, I am both
surprised and grateful.
* Audio editor Mark Fleischmann is
also the author of the annually updated
book Practical Home Theater
(www.quietriverpress.com).
[
HIGHLIGHTS
Innovative flat woofer diaphragm
Ceramic/metal driver materials
Best-looking Infinity speakers ever
Posted with permission from the September 2006 issue of
Home Theater
® www.hometheatermag.com. Copyright 2006, PRIMEDIA Inc. All rights reserved.
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