Active Speakers
Active Speakers
Back in 1976, Genelec, an electronics company from Finland set a goal to produce the first active monitor speaker. Their original intent was to make a speaker for the Finnish Broadcasting Company YLE. To be an active speaker, it would include the amplifier, which would be housed inside the speaker years later they were manufacturing the S30, their first active monitor speaker. Their first order actually went to Radiotelevisione Italiana, Italy’s national public broadcasting monitor speakers have the advantage of having a self-contained amplifier that’s perfectly matched to the speaker, so there’s no need to worry about the amplifier’s power output, the impedance, crossovers, or bi-amping. One disadvantage is that each speaker enclosure requires electrical power, so there needs to be an outlet near or behind each speaker if the wiring is to be different manufacturers now make active monitor speakers, and they’re used in recording studios, mastering houses, radio and television stations, sound reinforcement, and personal computers.
