Full-range hand-built USA monitors for $1499: Holt Hill Audio's Cionnsaile Monitors

I've known Brian Salazar for several years through the AudioKarma forum. Brian, who uses the online handle "baco99," has established a reputation on AK and other audio forums for expertise in restoring and upgrading vintage hifi speakers. I've also had the pleasure of spending time with him at local Boston-area hifi meets and other events, and we've even done a few transactions over the years.

I knew that Brian was a LEED-certified sustainability consultant for architects, and it was pretty obvious that he is a well-educated, intelligent guy. So when I found out a few years ago that Brian had moved to the next step of designing his own speakers and forming a business to manufacture them, I was pretty excited to see what he'd developed, and had the opportunity last week to visit his workshop and showroom, located in a repurposed old brick mill building in Lawrence, MA.

The name of Brian's company is Holt Hill Audio. The Boston area has a long, celebrated tradition for innovation in hifi speaker design, and Brian hopes to tap into that tradition. His debut offering, the Cionnsaile monitor (named after a town in Ireland), is a very promising start.

The Cionnsaile is an oversized stand monitor, approximately equally as deep as it is tall, with a fabric dome tweeter and 6” Aluminum–Magnesium woofer. The reason for the substantial size of the cabinet is apparent when you consider the spec'd frequency response is an impressive 38–27,000 Hz (+/- 3dB). The speakers have a single set of terminals. I asked Brian to explain his decision to not make them bi-wirable, and he said that because the crossover is relatively simple, he felt that there was no benefit to bi-wiring.

Brian's background in sustainability is demonstrated by the materials he has chosen for the cabinet: 1"-thick MEDEX high-density recycled wood and soy composite board. Brian handles all of the manufacturing single-handedly, running a CNC machine for the cabinet, hardwiring the crossovers and components, and personally packing and shipping each set of speakers. Due to this hands-on approach, Brian commented to me that he has a personal relationship with each and every person who has purchased his speakers.

Each set of speakers is made-to-order, requiring an approximate two-week lead-time. This approach enables Holt Hill to offer bespoke options for a modest upcharge. The basic set in available in piano gloss black and he also offers a variety of other finish options (red, blue, white) for a modest up-charge. Brian told me that he is working with a local vendor to do the final finishing, which is done in multiple stages to ensure color consistency, durability, and a luxurious sheen. He is also experimenting with some additional custom finishes - he showed me one set of cabinets finished with a dark purple metal flake automotive finish, and another with a silver-grey satin finish. I presume that he will accept orders for whatever finish you want, as long as he has the means to produce it. (I also saw an incomplete prototype of a square-edged cabinet with a more traditional walnut veneer, so that may be in the works later on.)

These are very substantial speakers; each monitor weighs approximately 40 lbs, and each is double-packed in individual cartons.

I was able to listen to the Cionnsailes using a few different amps, mostly from digital sources. I initially auditioned them using a 100w solid state integrated in his showroom (I can't recall what it was), and my observation was that they can deftly navigate the fine line between being detailed and quick, while still being smooth and natural. My overall impression is that they are beautifully balanced throughout their rather extended frequency range, with no obvious coloration or distortion.

I immediately noticed how impressive the bass response was. These speakers go DEEP for standpoints, thanks to the 24" folded port that exits at the bottom face of the cabinet. Brian told me that these speakers can be positioned very close to the wall behind them. And I'm not talking one-note bass boom - there is texture, speed and impact to the bottom-end.

I also brought along my sweet little 1959 Fisher X-100 EL84 integrated amp, just to see how well they would do with tubes. The Cionnsailes aren't especially efficient (rated at 87dB sensitivity @ 6 ohms), and hooked up to the Fisher's 4 ohm taps, the soundstage expanded subbstantially, but the Fisher ran out of steam quickly when the volume turned up. At a lower listening level, it sounded lovely, but it wasn't anywhere near enough to fill the open space of the Holt Hill Audio showroom. That said, a more powerful tube amp than my approx. 14 wpc Fisher would likely be a fine pairing, particularly if used within a more modest-sized environment. (Brian mentioned that one of his customers got terrific results using a flea-watt tube amp with the Cionnsailes in a small room.)

I next had an opportunity to try them out with my 50 wpc Rega Brio-R. The Brio-R is a relatively warmish amp, and the Cionnsailes translated that into a very full-bodied yet clear presentation, with plenty of oomph.

Brian is still trying to expand the exposure for these wonderful speakers, and as such is primarily dealing them direct, rather then selling them through distributors at a marked up retail price. He is currently offering the basic black model for a VERY reasonable $1499, which is an astoundingly accessible price for a hand-built, full-range quality monitor handcrafted in the USA. Brian did mention that a price increase will be inevitable soon, so keep that in mind.

I think that the Holt Hill Audio Cionnsaile offers tremendous value, and I encourage you to consider these if you are in the market for a pair of full-range standmounts.

Holt Hill Audio – Bringing studio quality sound to the home
Holt Hill Audio Cionnsaile Monitors
An Introduction to Holt Hill Audio

 

...but no picture?!?! (Purple has always been my favorite color, since I was a kid, when it was not even on the radar as a favorite color). The gloss black looks nice though. Good luck to them!

P.S. re "Cionnsaile": (a) how the heck do you pronounce that? (b) where the heck is it, no map matches...

 

I bet that Brian would be happy to send you a photo!

Cionn tSáile is the Gaelic spelling for Kinsale.

 

Good deal. I'd love to hear them.

 

Nicely written, these look very interesting.

 

Thanks for posting. The smaller model looks interesting too. Added to my post-Covid investigation list!

 

I like the pro/studio look and slot style port. Not in the market for speakers but an interesting read thanks action pact!

 

I bet you could arrange a visit to the workshop/showroom if you get in touch with Brian...

 

Hi all! Thank you, Glenn ("action pact") for a fantastic write up. I am truly humbled. For anyone keeping score, Glenn has no financial ties to the company and this review came as a very welcome surprise!

As mentioned, I am happy to answer any questions about the Cionnsaile Monitor. I currently have a very limited supply of the first iteration of this design in the following colors: Gloss Black (ready to ship from Dreamonoids HiFi in San Antonio, TX), Gloss White, Gloss Red (x2), "Hot Rod Smoke" (which is like a satin metallic Pewter), and two sets that have not been painted their final color. After those pairs are gone, the product will enter into a Phase 2 of production, which will see some design changes.

The Cleghan Compact Monitor is not available for sale at the present moment. All prototype builds have sold are are installed in their respective locations. I anticipate the production run of CCMs will occur at the same time as Cionnsaile v2.

Finally, the web site is grossly out of date. My apologies. Expect a new and improved web site with additional information, pre-order information, and vintage audio availability by the end of summer.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

www.facebook.com/holthillaudio
www.instagram.com/holthillaudio

 

That's a great name! As additional upgrade, you could offer to rub the cabinets with recycled tire material and set on fire: the "burnout" option.

Now, if you can figure out how to make "Candy Apple Black" which once upon a time we were going to manufacture car subs in that color...didn't get that far as it turned out the company president was looting everything, and the checking account balance was like -352k, no I am not making this up.

 

lol! Unfortunately, the Hot Rod color pallet does not make the woofers any “faster.” It’s a unique color, sort of like a satin metallic pewter.

the likelihood of more painted finishes in the future would be very slim to zero. So if you like painted speakers , get the v1!

 

Hello everyone! I wanted to check in on this thread to see if anyone had additional questions.

I also want to invite folks to my newly designed web site which was just launched Sept 4. It’s a whole new look and explains all of the product and service offerings that we provide. We have also added a store for pre-owned receivers, turntables, speakers, and other equipment. This page is updated weekly.

The studio is open for demos with obvious COVID precautions in place.

Many thanks & be well!
Brian, Holt Hill Audio

www.holthill.com

 

I'd also like to add that @HoltHill is a great resource for vintage speaker refurbishing, if you have any classic speakers that need refreshing.

 

It’s pronounced approximately K-yun tie-l-yeh. As someone has pointed out above it is correctly spelled in Irish Cionn tSáile , so having gone to the trouble , it’s odd that he should drop the « t ».

It is regrettably anglicised as Kinsale, a town in Co Cork and it means « head of the saltwater » - in other words a promontory into the sea !

 

Huh!! Those speakers look fantastic -- about as far from DIY/cottage-industry as you can get!

Wish I could easily audition the Cleghan Compact Monitors -- I'm perennially interested in LS3/5A-size/type speakers (for voice and acoustic instrument reproduction.) Can those be set up near the wall? ...

Regardless, best wishes @HoltHill on your venture.

 

Thank you! I am hoping to place a larger production run of the Cleghan Compact Monitor next year. I was hoping for Q4 of this year, but 'Rona got in the way. And yes, the Cleghan are very placement-forgiving. Stay tuned! I just added a newsletter sign up at the bottom of the web site, so feel free to sign up and I will keep people informed of new product offerings as they are available.

www.holthill.com