RBH Sound MC-6CT Floorstanding Speaker First Look

RBH, long known in enthusiast's circles for accurate sound at reasonable prices, has upgraded their MC-6CT floorstanding tower speakers. The MC-6CT are the flagship of the MC line and have won numerous awards over the years. The MC-6CT stands 40" high on a brand new plinth added for additional stability. Rubber feet or carpet spikes are included. The Cherry finish has been dropped in favor of a Black Oak woodgrain. They also added a port to the front of the speaker. This allows for more bass output. For those interested in stability and bass, RBH Sound has already scored some points.

Original                     Redesign

The driver compliment is the same with three 6.5" aluminum cone woofers and a 1" aluminum dome tweeter. The difference is that the two bottom woofers have been moved up nearer the top woofer for a more integrated look. This also allows for a less universal grill which makes for a more interesting aesthetic. Because of the driver location and port addition, the crossover had to be redesigned. When all was said and done, RBH has eeked an additional 5Hz of bass extension over the previous incarnation of the MC-6CTs (down to 35Hz rather than 40Hz). We've always found that RBH is conservative with their ratings (especially in-room) so don't be surprised if you experience deeper, authoritative bass below that rating point.

The MC-6CT always had a Resonance Damping Alloy Baffle but now it is 220% larger allowing it to better damp cabinet vibrations and minimize tweeter diffraction. You'd think that the MC-6CTs wouldn't have much problem with cabinet vibrations with the 3/4" MDF construction but RBH Sound isn't taking any chances. 

The most exciting part of these changes is not that the speaker has been improved - that's to be expected. What's exciting is that RBH Sound isn't raising the price from the original 2008 level. The new speakers will retail for $1,369 a pair and are shipping now.

Conclusion

Upgrading without raising the price of the speaker? Apparently someone over at RBH Sound didn't go to the same business school most speaker manufacturers attended. With additional bass, a steadier speaker, upgraded front baffle, identical pricing, and a better all around aesthetic, the only thing you're missing from the original MC-6CTs is a Cherry veneer. Seems like a fair trade-off to us.

For more information, please visit www.rbhsound.com.

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