Rethm

Explore Rethm

Rethm from India makes high efficiency speakers that use custom full range wide band drivers coupled to internally powered subwoofers. We think they sound great and are beautifully crafted. Prices are very good due to the India build. Run a small tube amp with them and prepare to be amazed. There is a magic to full range speakers with no crossovers that multi-driver speakers cannot match.
 
Call about our great Rethm deals and killer system deals with Ampsandsound, Black Ice,  Carver and Audio Space tube amps.
 


The Rethm story:

Rethm was started by two architects in Los Angeles. One of them, an ardent music-lover who was also trained in music, was looking for a good pair of high-efficiency speakers and was told about Lowther drivers. He bought a pair of them and began experimenting with them in his architect friends garage. One thing led to another, and soon it was felt that it might be possible to actually bring this pair to market.

Given their connections with India, manufacturing was set up offshore so that they could bring to the music-lover a series of components that were extremely high quality but bereft of the stratospheric prices that normally accompany high-end audio components. Rethm launched its first loudspeaker, the 2nd Rethm, in January 2000, at THE SHOW/ CES at Las Vegas. It launched its second model, the 3rd Rethm, at Home Entertainment 2002, in New York, and subsequently came out with the 4th Rethm and 5th Rethm in 2003 and 2005 respectively. While this line of pure full range single driver loudspeakers earned several positive reviews, they were refusing to become a commercial success. Much soul searching and lots of constructive feed back pointed to one fundamental shortcoming: a lack of bass. The designer decided to scrap the existing line, and re-invented the speaker to address this criticism. The new line was launched in January 2007 with 2 models: the Saadhana, and followed a year later by the Maarga. These speakers incorporated additional "powered bass modules" and were 2-box designs. However, in early 2010, we decided to do something we had been thinking about for a couple of years. To realize Rethms true potential, we would have to we would have to design our own wide-band drivers as the Lowthers were a compromise that we lived with by modifying them. And with this decision, Rethm went through its most difficult challenge, and most radical change.

However -- their own custom drivers lifted the Rethms to a new level entirely. And with this crucial and fundamental change, they decided to completely redesign the architecture of the enclosure from ground up. The first of this new line of speakers, the Trishna, was launched in 2011. The Maarga followed in 2012, and the Saadhana in 2013. These models have remained fundamentally unchanged for several years now, although certain critical internal components have been changed and improved over the years in the V2 and V3 models.

Rethm Design

There is one unifying conceptual thread that runs through all Rethm products, and that is: that they will bring a product to the market only if it is something uniquely different from the competition; and only of it can be sold at " real world" prices.

They are not interested in bringing out "more of the same".

Having been in the Audio Industry for 16 years, we know that it is impossible to get a consensus on what exactly is the "right" reproduction. Rightly or wrongly, this has become a matter of personal taste. But that having been said, we at Rethm go to great lengths to convert OUR aural convictions into audio products that can be enjoyed by music-lovers. Apart from all the usual audiophile boxes that need to be ticked, the most important factor for us is whether an audio system has the ablilty to connect emotionally with the listener.

Almost as important as the sonic performance is the aesthetics of each model. As architects, both form and function are given importance when we design anything. Yes, here again, we are dealing with an area of great subjectivity. But the fact remains -- that painstaking care is given to the way the loudspeakers are physically designed. It is often said that most people buy products with their eyes.

Being Architects, we start with a distinct advantage over the competition – as innovation and "looking at things differently" are ingrained in our psyche.

WIDE-BAND TECHNOLOGY

Rethm believes that all truly great design embodies an "elegance" – that comes from simplicity. A full range driver is such an example within the realm of music reproduction. Loudspeakers designed around this concept are capable of an aural magic like no other - IF done right.

“It sounds so real and natural…” …….is a comment we hear time and again from non-audiophile music lovers.

“it has everything -- tonal accuracy. detail, dynamics, transparency, imaging, -- and yet is totally relaxed and relaxing to listen to. …...is what we often hear from the more experienced listeners.

Fundamental and critical to getting closest to a live reproduction, Rethm believe, is the use of wideband drivers….which reproduce the frequencies from 60 hz to 20khz.

Multiple drivers create multiple problems.

Wave interaction anomalies between the drivers, like the comb effect.

Tonal anomalies as a result of different drivers of different sizes and different construction and materials trying to reproduce the same sounds

Disturbances resulting from the the same music coming from more than one source.

And the cross-over -- which creates its own set of problems, including phase shifts, a subtle veiling of the signal, and the robbing of drivers of some of its dynamic potential.

And these effects -- combined -- also create inaccuracies in imaging. We are great believers in the importance of imaging. This is because, in the absence of a "visual" ( a live concert, or a video ), it is accurate imaging that creates very important spacial cues that allow us to "see" the performance -- in our minds eye.

In a word, the crucial phenomenon wide-band driver based loudspeakers present the listener with, is "cohesion".

While some of these effects are audible, others are not. But -- they can be “felt”. Critical to good audio is the absence of these aberrations that the mind picks up subconsciously. This is part of “psychoacoustics”. The brain is an amazing thing -- highly flexible and adaptable. It can work around these anomalies and present the listener with a “listenable whole”. However, there is a price one pays. Just as a CPU gets hot when it is “processing”, the brain gets tired when it is asked to do this subconscious work of smoothing over the problems created by a loudspeaker. And this is the “fatigue” that is talked about in Audio circles.

Which ceases to exist when a good single source produces all the music.

But -- not all wide-banders are made equal.

Rethm designs and manufactures their own custom drivers which underwent several years of development. And this is at the heart of the “Rethm advantage”. They have a different custom driver for each model. They use only paper for their cones as they believe it sounds best. They use Neodymium magnets as all their drivers are high-efficiency drivers because they believe that the subtleties and nuances of the music is best revealed and communicated through high-efficiency loudspeakers. Even at low volumes. There is also the added advantage of being able to use even the least powerful valve amplification. High efficiency loudspeakers are extremely dynamic and transparent as a result of its ultra-fast reaction to the inputted signal.

THE ENCLOSURE

Any driver is only as good as the enclosure it inhabits:

Sealed or vented boxes, naturally, impart a "boxed-in" quality to the sound. It is also well known that because of the pressures these boxes are subjected to, it does add its own signature to the sound. The horn-loaded enclosure (one of the earliest enclosure designs) if designed well, can eliminate this problem as it provides the driver with an unrestricted free-breathing environment which, while extending bass response, also allows it to retain immediacy and naturality. Although they have chosen to adopt the horn-loaded enclosure as the basis for their loudspeakers, Rethm have broken with traditional horn-load design principles and geometries, and invented their own.

At ReTHM they believe that the flat-sided box favoured by most manufacturers (horn-loaded or otherwise) is anathema to good loudspeaker design because of the various "colourations" it induces. The use of bracing, damping/absorbing materials and massively heavy enclosures can only mollify these colourations, never eliminate them. They have chosen to take a fresh approach that enables them to circumvent these problems entirely:

The geometry of the enclosure eliminates standing waves, thereby removing the spectre of box colouration.

The curved surfaces of the enclosure eliminate performance – degrading baffle reflections and edge diffraction, thereby enabling the loudspeakers to image and reproduce soundstage depth and width with astounding clarity, scale and realism.

The curved sections minimize both standing waves and cabinet vibrations while simultaneously nullifying the detrimental effects of the propagation of any residual vibrations as these do not beam at the listener from a large flat surface congruent with the driver. They believe that attention to the smallest details do make a difference to the ultimate quality of our loudspeakers performance. They therefore do things "Their way" which is often a departure from what many would consider "the norm".

The compression chamber has been designed to eliminate, completely, any back-wave reflections re-impacting the driver. Driver colouration therefore does not exist.

The perforated driver surround rings: The diagonal patterned perforations break up upper-frequency reflections that typically come off the area surrounding the driver.

The phase plugs. With its unique shape ( a result of weeks of testing various geometries….) these were designed to smoothen out the frequency response. Each model has a different phase plug.

The internal wiring of the loudspeakers. Rethm believes in single-core wire. Splitting a signal at one end, allowing it to pass through multiple conductors and bringing it all together at the other end with absolute concurrence and coherence, we feel, is asking for a miracle. They therefore use a single flat copper tape; cryogenically treated (they could hear the difference the treatment made) .

THE BASS MODULE

The big question that is almost always asked about single-driver horn loaded loudspeakers: what about some REAL bass? This is because virtually ALL pure single driver loudspeakers do not have serious bass energy below 60 Hz. Rethm knows from the first hand experience of struggling to do this for 7 years.

They finally decided that the only way to achieve good bass – was to add a bass module to each speaker. Getting bass was not the problem. Any sub-woofer can do that. However, getting great bass that was capable of keeping up with the incredible speed and dynamics of the our wide band driver's blending in perfectly, seamlessly – was a BIG problem – and took several months of experimenting to solve.

The first decision was that each channel would have its own bass module – as they believe that even bass frequencies have to be reproduced in "stereo" to enable realistic reproduction of depth and texture.

The second was that it had to be powered – as there were NO bass drivers available that was 98 db efficient. They therefore have individual amplifier modules within each enclosure, driving a pair of bass drivers ( except for the Saadhana which has 3 drivers per enclosure ) in isobaric configuration, in sealed chambers. This they felt would produce the most accurate bass. It was decided that the drivers had to be small (similar in size to the wide-banders) so they could be light and quick. They also decided it had to be paper, to match the tonal characteristics of the wide-banders.

The greatest challenge? Getting the bass to integrate seamlessly with the high efficiency wide-band drivers. This is where most systems with “bass augmentation” tend to fall apart. And to help with this task, the bass modules are widely adjustable both in level and in its cross-over setting. They believe this is critical to getting the bass to suit the room acoustics, the front end equipment, or -- just personal taste. Each model also has different driver types, amplifier powers, and filter typologies and settings.

And this is where the story trifurcates into the 3 different models that we recommend.
 

Aarka powered monitors
$4750.00/pr
Add $500.00 for the matching stsnds

 



Rethm Aarka Monitor Loudspeaker Front.jpg

The Aarka is a fully powered monitor speaker system with excellent hi efficiency full range 5" driver driven by a 20 watt Class A internal amplifier with tube input stage. It is augmented by two 6" rear mounted powered subwoofers run by a 75 watt Class A/B power amp. Just run a source with a volume control into it for a full range system. It has the purity or tone that full range speakers offer wit the bass that they never have. These can also be done in a dark-stained wood where the white gloss acrylic on the front and back will become black gloss acrylic. And on either finish, Rethm can also do the front and back fascias in a metallic silver instead of the white or black acrylic.
 

  • Rethm  5" full-range whizzer cone driver 

  • 2 x 6" rear-firing custom woofers

  • Custom 75 W Class AB Bass amplifier module with level control in each enclosure

  • Custom 10 W Class A Full Range Driver amplifier module with 6922 Tube input stage

  • Class A amplifier stage is by-passable for use with your own amplifiers.

  • 96dB sensitivity - Full Range Driver

  • 8 ohm nominal impedance

  • Serviceability : Rethm has perfected a modular electronics system so that if ever there was an electronics failure, they will simply ship out an entire module to the customer who can swap out the unit very easily, making service a virtual non-issue. 

  • Available as Bookshelf Loudspeakers or as Monitors with Rethm's stunningly beautiful dedicated stands.




Bhaava  (Superb value in an entry hi efficiency speaker with superb high end sound & 95dB efficiency)
$4750.00 Pair
One perfect photo sample pair available for $3280.00 delivered

 


In Sanskrit Bhaava means emotion or feeling.

And that is exactly what Rethms entry level speaker is all about -- connecting listening to music at the emotional level.

It is designed around an 8 inch ferro – magnet paper cone wideband driver built in-house. This driver is augmented by a built in powered bass module in each enclosure that take the speakers all the way down to 28 hz with powerful and musical bass.

The Bhaava's are more forgiving of front end equipment than the more expensive Rethm models.

The salient distinguishing character that is common to all Rethm Loudspeakers..... is its ability to reproduce all the nuance of music with detail, dynamics, transparency – with ZERO listener fatigue.
 

Full range:

Horn loaded labyrinth: 2.2m ( 7" – 6.5") length
Full range driver: Custom designed
7 inch paper cone w/whizzer
Paper surround
Voice coil dia.: 25mm
Sensitivity: 94 db/w/m at 1khz, or mean averaged from 200hz to 2khz

 

Bass:
Sealed Isobaric chamber: 38 lit. volume
Bass drivers: 2 units per enclosure
8 inch paper cone
Rubber surround
Voice coil dia: 25 mm
Bass module amplification: one monobloc per enclosure
Custom designed class AB amplifiers
Max. output: 70 wpc @ 8 ohms
Level Control
Continuously variable active crossover filter controls


System:
Loudspeaker sensitivity: 95 db/w/m.
Nominal impedance: 8 ohms.
Frequency response: 30 Hz to 20 Khz.
Minimum amplification power: 5 wpc
Dimensions:
H x D x W : 952mm ( 3'-3 " ) x 523mm ( 1'-2 " ) x 238mm 9.4" )
Weight per enclosure: 35 kg ( 77 lbs )
Shipping weight ( 2 cartons plus palette ): 96kg ( 211 lbs )

Here are some recommended amps for the Rethm speakers
Audio Space Ref 3.1- (300B) 24wpc integrated amp with phono stage
Audio Space Galaxy 300- 21wpc Remote controlled 300B integrated amp
Quad VA-One+ - 15wpc remote integrated amp with DAC
Quad QII Classic- 15 watt mono tube amplifier
HifiMan EF-100- 4.5 watt hybrid tube amp that is also a headphone amp
Carver Crimson 275
- 75wpc stereo tube amplifier
Jolida Fusion 3502 and the new F11, F22 & F35- stereo integrated amplifiers
Audio Space 6M300BSE- 8wpc mono 300B tube amplifiers
Audio Space 6M300BPP- 21 watt 300 B mono amplifiers


Trishnaa

$6750.00 pair


 

Sanskrit: the desire to search ( for musical enlightenment )

The Trishna uses the smallest of our premium range of custom designed and manufactured widebanders that takes midrange and treble reproduction to a higher level of realism. The bass module uses a Hypex UCD digital amp module.

It is extremely compact and is therefore ideal for smaller spaces, providing the listener with a full spectrum, dynamic and realistic performance that belies its size.

The salient distinguishing character that is common to all Rethm Loudspeakers..... is its ability to reproduce all the nuance of music with detail, dynamics, transparency – with ZERO listener fatigue.

Full range:

Horn loaded labyrinth: 1.8m ( 6” 0" ) length
Full range driver: Custom designed
5 inch paper cone w/whizzer, Neodimium magnet
Foam surround
Voice coil dia.: 25mm
Sensitivity: 95 db/w/m at 1khz, or mean averaged from 200hz to 2khz

 

Bass:
Sealed Isobaric chamber: 15 lit. volume.
Bass drivers: Custom designed; 2 units per enclosure
6.5 inch paper cone
Rubber surround
Voice coil dia: 25 mm
Sensitivity ( of each driver ): 91 db/w/m
Bass module amplification: one monobloc per enclosure
Hypex UCD digital amps
Max. output: 180 wpc @ 8 ohms
Level Control
Continuously variable active crossover filter control

 
System:
Loudspeaker sensitivity: 96 db/w/m.
Nominal impedance: 8 ohms.
Frequency response: 36 Hz to 20 Khz.
Minimum amplification power: 3 wpc

 
Dimensions:
H x D x W : 1000mm ( 3'-3 1/2" ) x 420mm ( 1'- 4 1/2" ) x 170mm ( 6.7" )
Weight per enclosure: 22 kg ( 48 lbs )
Shipping weight ( 2 cartons plus palette ): 64kg ( 141 lbs )






 
Maargaa V2  (amazing full range performance and the best for the money with 98dB efficiency)
$10750.00 pair

 
 
Rethm Maargaa in Sanskrit means the path, the method ( to attaining musical bliss )

The bigger sibling to the Bhaava, it uses a bigger wide-band driver from their stable of custom drivers, and so too a more powerful Hypexbass amplifier module. Being bigger in every way, the Maarga produces a larger sense of scale and sounds that bit more "real" -- both dynamically and tonally.

The Maarga is the model at the sweet-spot if one is looking for a balance between performance, size, and price. Despite its high level of detail, transparency and dynamics, the Maarga is a great example of the Rethm Hallmark -- of being totally relaxed to listen to, with “zero fatigue”.
 


Soundstage summed with:
"The Rethm Maarga is a unique speaker with little competition. Yes, there are other speakers based on wideband drivers, but none that I know of that offer its combination of high efficiency, low-frequency performance, and value. The Maarga is an extraordinary combination of sound and vision. I found it well suited to music lovers such as I -- those whose stereos are in the living room, not tucked away in a dedicated listening space. When they weren’t turned on, they were lovely pieces of furniture with high Wife Acceptance Factor. When they were turned on, they provided lively, enthralling sound that was immersive, real, and completely nonfatiguing. Given the Maarga’s fantastic sound quality at low volumes, it should also be well suited to the music lover who wants to listen late at night as the family sleeps. The Maarga might also be the ideal speaker for the music lover already smitten with low-powered amplification and/or tubes and who seeks a high-efficiency speaker at a moderate price (for the high end). The Maarga positively bloomed on that first watt, and needed no more than that to fill my living room with sublime sound."

 
 
Read the entire review at:https://www.soundstageultra.com/index.php/equipment-menu/800-rethm-maarga-loudspeakers

Full range:

Horn loaded labyrinth: 2.0m ( 6’ 8" ) length
Full range driver: Custom designed
6 inch paper cone w/whizzer, Neodimium magnet
Foam surround Voice coil dia.: 25mm
Sensitivity: 96 db/w/m at 1khz, or mean averaged from 200hz to 2khz

 

Bass:

Sealed Isobaric chamber: 20 lit. volume.
Bass drivers: Custom designed; 2 units per enclosure
6” X 9” inch paper cone
Rubber surround Voice coil dia: 25 mm
Sensitivity ( of each driver ): 91 db/w/m
Bass module amplification: one monobloc per enclosure
Hypex UCD digital amps
Max. output: 400 wpc @ 8 ohms.
Level Control
Continuously variable active crossover filter controls

System:

Loudspeaker sensitivity: 98 db/w/m.
Nominal impedance: 8 ohms.
Frequency response: 28 Hz to 20 Khz.
Minimum amplification power: 2 wpc
Dimensions:

H x D x W : 1035mm ( 3'- 5" ) x 550mm ( 1'-9 5/8" ) x 190mm ( 7.5" )
Weight per enclosure: 28 kg ( 62 lbs )
Shipping weight ( 2 cartons plus palette ): 82kg ( 180 lbs )


 

Saadhanaa  (The best Rethm speaker with amazing performance & 100dB efficient)
$16,750 pair

 


Saadhanaa in Sanskrit means the devotion to practice ( to reach the pinnacle of musical attainment )

Currently our biggest model, it is "bigger" only because it has to be bigger to sound better. There is no getting around the laws of physics. It uses our biggest custom-made wideband driver. Again, bigger drivers just sound better and more natural.

The bass uses a 4-driver isobaric configuration that produces outstanding bass that is deep, precise, and powerful.

The Saadhana is a no-compromise loudspeaker and provides the demanding listener with the best that Rethm is capable of providing its music lovers with. Tonality, transparency, macro and micro dynamics, detail, imaging.....all within a relaxed naturalness that is seldom heard in audio. ”Zero fatigue” is the defining characteristic of all Rethms.
 

Stereomojo said:

"The Rethm Saadhaha loves you to listen to it. It will do everything in its power to caress you and seduce you for hours on end into thinking your listening to the most heavenly music on this planet. If you listen to a lot of vocals, the Saad's midrange is so pure and holographic...well, it just loves vocals. Strings, too. Small ensembles to the grandest Mahler is taken in stride and projected into a voluminous soundstage that is amazing - and you don't need to spend hours adjusting them "just right". The bass controls will let you tune the bottom to your room, though.

If you listen with a partner, the wide sweet spot is ideal for 2 or more. It will certainly rock, and do it loud. And it sips wattage like a Prius sips gasoline. At 98 db sensitivity, pick an amp. Any amp. There is no better speaker to use with small output SET amps, in our opinion. Give it 20 watts and the things will give you dynamics that will thrill even in large rooms while nerver being harsh. Good transparency, but some more expensive will give you more. Women seem to dig 'em. The smooth sound appeals to their more sensitive ears.

Be prepared for a long break in time. Designer Jacob George hasn't solved that problem yet. Made in India, but not sent offshore. Jacob is a native of India and commutes between there and the US when necessary. This speaker, we believe, would cost much more made almost anywhere else. The craftsmanship is beyond superb."
 

Full range:

Horn loaded labyrinth: 2.2m ( 7" – 4") length
Full range driver: Custom designed
7 inch paper cone w/whizzer
Foam surround
Voice coil dia.: 32mm
Sensitivity: 99 db/w/m at 1khz, or mean averaged from 200hz to 2khz

 

Bass:

Sealed Isobaric chamber: 50 lit. volume.
Bass drivers: Custom designed; 4 units per enclosure
7.5 inch paper cone
Rubber surround
Voice coil dia: 25 mm
Sensitivity ( of each driver ): 91 db/w/m
Bass module amplification: one monobloc per enclosure
Hypex UCD digital amp
Max. output: 400 wpc @ 8 ohms.
Level Control
Continuously variable active crossover filter controls
System:

Loudspeaker sensitivity: 100 db/w/m.
Nominal impedance: 8 ohms.
Frequency response: 22 Hz to 20 Khz.
Minimum amplification power: 2 wpc
Dimensions:

H x D x W : 1040mm ( 3'-5" ) x 700mm ( 2'-3 ½" ) x 215mm ( 8.5" )
Weight per enclosure: 56 kg ( 123 lbs )
Shipping weight ( cartons, plus palette ):145kg (319 lbs )