Prior to auditioning Libra at my place, I had no clue what to expect. My Munich experience in a semi-open noisy space wasn't enough. The ported design implied bloomy, thicker and probably calmer slower bass. Cellulose mid/woofers predicted textural density and tone over outline specificity and clarity. Twin tweeters suggested highly developed brilliance, openness, air and freshness but no guess at eventual costs in undesirable twitchiness, nervousness and glare. None of this was more than lazy guesswork. Monitors often pack surprises. Large boxes can produce intimate, innocent and delicate sound whilst some small stand mounts tuned to surprise with a big bold attitude can defy their tiny footprint. It didn't take long to notice that Libra had its own agenda beyond these two options.
The only factually correct part in the last paragraph was a well-pronounced treble. Benefits included clarity, freshness and shine to partially contribute to quickness and largely to openness. In my room Libra staged like a monster. Here it impressed to a point where I quickly started considering it a speaker that could well outgrow my space. I'm not saying that it would. I don't have another listening room. This was mere supposition. Not only did Libra cast impressive stage width and height but it also sounded effortlessly grand. Here composure and substance are essential. A speaker that stages enormous yet can't keep up with the beat is just a pretender. Libra had both and that made a world of difference. Ported bass is a broad subject. Some speakers do it better than others. Although Boenicke's W11 SE+ floorstanders feature narrow slot ports in the rear, you couldn't tell upon connecting them to a powerful amp with very low output impedance. Now they hit very hard, reach very low and develop enough grip and tautness to behave like a sealed box with a large woofer or two. My sound|kaos monitors with two small side-firing woofers and a slot port can't mimic that action. Without external assistance their bass won't scale up at high SPL. It's trivial to say but one compact enclosure can't fool Physics. Libra struck me as just on the fence on the subject. At reasonable volume its bass maintained an ideal ratio of heft, reach, speed and articulation. Upon engaging party mode I naturally expected excessive boom and room gain. That wasn't the case. When pushed hard, the Poles flexed their suspensions and kept developing extra torque and bite. This slammed ever harder without anything going pear-shaped.
It was a nice reminder. When an open zesty speaker lands energetic, powerful, elastic and controlled bass, it feels very much alive, moving and intense. Engagement and excitement with such finely tuned performers are very high. Libra was that. Instead of pretending, it handled my playlist without any hiccups. Its spatially liberated gutsy profile also packed an unexpected if highly desirable boon. By securing lots of points on substance, Libra didn't feel diffuse, distant or veiled. Au contraire. In my system it behaved direct, communicative and expressive. This was particularly useful on tracks where naturally enlarged vocals positioned near a microphone are the focal point. The surprise was because we don't expect high dosages of suchness, intimacy and sensuality from products groomed for radiant spatially majestic airs like today's.
The above portrays Libra as a do-it-all that caters to all. It doesn't. No speaker does. Each works within a specific tech context that defines boundaries. Today's Gemstone was a touch cooler and harder than the Vox so companion amps voiced similarly to my 55wpc class A monos are welcome. Although texturally gifted and radiant in the grand scheme, it wasn't quite as seductive, illuminated and color intense as the Swiss. Their augmented widebander also emerged as the more articulate and investigative and scored more points on image specificity, depth and accuracy. No surprises there. The Vox is quite fiendish in these regards but the Pole had its revenge. It delivered tighter, grander and more pressurized bass that reached lower and spanned wider dynamic contrasts which on brutal metal and rock meant more entertaining, elastic and adrenaline-infused fun. Libra's treble wasn't as fine yet also free of grain then weightier. At high SPL my daily driver's delicate widebander gets shouty, eventually. The local opponent did not. When pressed hard, it became more alert and ballsy instead of surrendering. Enthusiasts of heavy genres will find that appealing.
The wrap. Expensive monitors may seem like challenging investments because their size suggests performance second to floorstanders. This is plainly untrue in small rooms. Here other rules apply to turn such assumptions into outdated silly stereotypes. In spaces like mine, monitors reign supreme. Gemstone's Libra made that point. Highly gifted and sharply dressed, it's a luxurious artisanal effort. It sounded great across the board and excelled each time big-bore sonics were on rotation. My time with this expertly executed compact was pure joy. I encourage you to listen to it whenever the opportunity presents itself. It's really worth it!
