Morgan Plus, you ask? Yeah, listen.
No car manufacturer is like England’s Morgan Motor Company. Founded in 1910, the company has retained much of the aesthetic of the cars of its day. Including an ash wood frame, clad in aluminium.
Morgan makes true luxury sports cars, and only has the capacity to hand-build about 850 cars a year. In other words, getting your hands on one is no easy task.
Now the ride should be even better, as Morgan has teamed up with Sennheiser, who provide the sound system in the latest Plus Four and Plus Six.
We promise that the sound experience will surpass anything previously available in a Morgan model, with a unique sound image “that takes sound quality to the highest level”.
While Morgan has 112 years as a car manufacturer, Sennheiser, with 75 years of experience on the audio front, is no newcomer either.
“The result combines a clear focus on design with technological expertise in a system with Sennheiser’s distinctive sound that matches the sports car manufacturer’s unique blend of craftsmanship, adventure and analogue driving experience,” the press release states.
Ambeo technology for immersive sound
Sennheiser claims to create a magical illusion of a soundscape in front of passengers, with strikingly beautiful sound quality. An algorithm called Ambeo Contrabass is said to deliver a striking bass response, with definition, punch and depth – while keeping the system as compact and efficient as possible, in part to add the least amount of weight.
We’ve had good experience with Ambeo technology before, including the extreme Ambeo soundbar – which provides the best surround sound we’ve ever heard from a soundbar. But also from the new, more affordable Ambeo Plus, which we had the pleasure of hearing at its launch in Berlin in September. We imagine this technology could work wonders in a car cabin.
Eight drivers
The system includes eight audio drivers: four conventional loudspeakers in the door and rear panels, and four invisible loudspeakers, three of which are located behind the dashboard and one in the lower panel of the cabin for bass reproduction.
Without being specified, we can imagine that the four invisible speakers are so-called exciters. In other words, drivers without a diaphragm, which instead use the surface of the dashboard itself as speaker cones. It’s the same principle that Sony uses on its OLED TVs, where the whole screen acts as a speaker (yours truly has similar exciters on the wall behind the sofa to reproduce the surround channels in the TV room).
Such exciters require a good DSP to work, otherwise the frequency range would be disastrously poor. In the Morgan/Sennheiser case, all speaker units are controlled by a dedicated DSP with sound processing signed by Sennheiser.
The integration has been executed in line with Morgan’s philosophy of introducing modern technology appropriately into its vehicles. This results in a very discreet cabin, and the use of invisible speakers also ensures that extra weight is kept to a minimum. Obviously a must for a sports car.
Discreet Sennheiser brand
The Sennheiser brand can be spotted, but quite discreetly, as a logo on the door speaker grilles. The design of the grille itself is inspired by the iconic Morgan louvres embossed in the bonnet of the Plus model. Each speaker grille has a polished, satin finish, so they are perfectly coordinated with other visible decorations in the car’s cabin.
Prices
Although Morgan produces few cars, the prices are surprisingly affordable. We haven’t got Euro prices yet, but in the UK the Plus Four with 258bhp and 0-100mph in 4.8 seconds starts at £71,829.80. The more powerful Plus Six with 340bhp and 0-100 in 4.2 seconds costs from £90,389.90. This includes UK taxes.
We would, of course, like a test drive of the Sennheiser systems as soon as the opportunity arises.
