Sonus faber Minima Amator II Preview

See the complete review for the Sonus faber Minima Amator II Bookshelf Speaker.

When is the last time you saw a speaker that had a cabinet made of actual wood? Not MDF, aluminum, or some proprietary composite material but real wood? For me, it’s been a long time.

Sonus faber rose to fame on the quality and beauty of their speakers made with real wood cabinets. But as good as these speakers were, sonic limitations lead Sonus faber to abandon the use of solid wood for their cabinets many years ago. Fast forward to today and Sonus faber is giving wood another go. I recently received a pair of the new Minima Amator IIs. A member of Sonus faber’s new Heritage collection, the Minima Amator II is the direct descendant of the original wood-cabinet Minima Amator bookshelf speaker, which was released back in 1992. The Minima Amator II is meant as a re-introduction to the key principles that made Sonus faber so successful over the past few decades as well as to show just how far the company has come with their engineering and design capabilities. The Minima Amator II is a simple two-way bookshelf design, with a 1.1” soft dome tweeter and a single 6” mid-woofer, all housed in a stunning solid walnut cabinet.

Besides their incredible looks, the first thing that struck me was how solid the walnut cabinet is. It’s surprisingly heavy given its modest size and it feels built like a tank. Rap your knuckles on the cabinet and all you get is a dull thud. Then there is the sound. While break-in took a rather long time, the results have proven to be well worth it. So, will these new Minimas make fans of the old-school Sonus faber sound happy? Or are these just a modern-sounding speaker housed in a classic chassis? I’ll let you know in the full review in the coming weeks.

See the complete review for the Sonus faber Minima Amator II Bookshelf Speaker.

Tyler Stripko

Tyler’s interest in music started at a young age. He began instruction in classical guitar at the age of 7 and gradually progressed towards rock in his early teens. He expanded his musical horizons in college, earning extra cash as a DJ spinning house and trance music and learning the basics of sound reinforcement. Starting with a humble 27” Sony Trinitron CRT television, a Pioneer DVD player, and just two channels of sound, his home theater system has continued to evolve over the years in an effort to recreate the sense of energy and emotional excitement that comes from attending a live performance. Tyler holds a B.S. in Business Information Systems from Lehigh University and an M.B.A. from the University of Massachusetts. After spending almost 20 years working in healthcare IT, he made the switch to the “for profit” world and now delivers IT business solutions in the pharmaceutical sector.