The new Opera Mezza monitor is one fantastic speaker! It looks great, sounds great, is very well made, and very well reviewed. Sam Tellig of Stereophile says, "they offer delicacy, detail, subtlety and...humanity. The Mezza has a soul." The Mezza images very well and has excellent timbre. Stereophile rates it a solid Class B Recommended Component.
"There's good news for the Opera Mezza, the new entry-level design from the Italian masters of indulgently built loudspeakers:the Mezzas are much more stylish than their immediate price-rivals. . .When you play music (any music, any genre), the Mezzas really sing. . .The Mezzas' great quality is that while they're transparent, they always value emotion before analysis. You get pride of ownership, too: the cabinets come in a choice of three real-wood veneers, or gloss black. We'd thought speakers at this price were either handsome or effective, not both. Then the Mezzas appeared - now we can't wait to get them into a Group Test" What Hi-Fi June 2007
Opera Mezza is the smallest model of the “Classic Series”, it is a two-way diffuser of about 8 internal litres with reflex load, constructed to be placed like a shelf or on a stand and characterised by a flat frequency response and an unexpected low frequencies reproduction.
The cabinet
The cabinet of the Opera Mezza is realised in finely-shaped MDF with rounded edges, veneered in real wood finely polished. The front panel is covered with synthetic hide that, beyond the aesthetic finish, also works as packing for the loudspeakers.
The size of the front panel, following Opera’s tradition, is large enough to hold the loudspeakers. In this case, being this diffuser created to be placed like a shelf, the two reflex ducts are located on the front panel. Inside the cabinet there is a good quantity of acrylic sound absorbent material that controls the reflex Q factor and minimize the internal reflections.
The Components
Also this model uses the same tweeter we find on other models of the Classical Series: it is a one inch tweeter (the same used in the Callas SP) with a silk dome, a wide rear decompression chamber and ferrofluid in the gap. The qualities of this SEAS tweeter are well known and appreciated. The woofer, also made by SEAS, come from the model ET15 developed for our Operetta Model. It is a 5 inches unit with 15cm chassis, 26mm voice coil on a Kapton former with a transparent polypropylene diaphragm, rubber outer surround suspension and a PVC dust cup. Two copper rings are fitted above and below the T-shaped pole piece: they reduce distortion and stabilize the magnetic flux. The cast chassis, of aerodynamic design, is fully open even beneath the inner suspension.
The Cross-Over Filter
In designing the “Classic Series”, particular attention has been paid to the electric impedance. In particular, we wanted to guarantee a load condition compatible with any type of amplifier. In order to do so, the impedance minimums have been kept within the limits allowed by the DIN regulation that provides that, for the nominal 8 ohm diffusers, the impedance does not go below 6.4 ohm. The electrical impedance modulus of Opera is always over 6.2 ohm.
We believe that the cost of a diffuser has to be assessed together with the cost of the amplifier more suited to guide it. Opera Prima is a nominal 8 ohm diffuser that can be easily driven by a wide range of amplifiers, either with valves, solid or digital (Class D). The cross-over of Opera Mezza uses a classic network with asymmetrical slopes. The cross-over frequency is at about 2800 Hz and the sensitivity is 86 dB (2.83 V at one metre).
Technical Specifications:
System Shelf or Stand – Bass Reflex
Driver Unit 1 woofer 5” with polypropylene cone
1 tweeter with a 1” dome – silk dome, ferrofluid,
decompression chamber
Number of Way Two ways
Frequency response 45 -20000 Hz
Cross-over Printed circuit
12 dB/octave for the woofer
18 dB/octave for the il tweeter
Cross-over frequency around 2800 Hz
Maximum power 70 watt RMS
Suggested amplifier From 10-15 Watt RMS
Sensibility 86 dB/2.83 Volt/1 metre
Nominal impedance 8 ohm (Zmin > 6.2 ohm)
Position within
surroundings
Shelf
At least 30 cm from side and rear walls
Dimensions 17 x 29 x 31,5 cm ( W x D x H ) 6,7 x 11,4 x 12,40 inch
