7 K

Canton has significant economies of scale, which gets passed on to the end user. Canton speakers provide incredible performance and value at every level, from small stand-mounts all the way up to the state-of-the-art Reference series-—which can compete with any speakers made. All Canton speakers are backed by the stability and resources of a well-established, major company, and every speaker is warranted for five years.

Canton loudspeakers have been reviewed in numerus respected publications. John Atkinson review the Ref 7K for Stereophile and said in part:

“As I have written before, piano is revealing of problems in the upper midrange due to the lack of masking and the fact that the frequencies of the notes in this region are spaced relatively far apart. In the months that have passed since I heard her play at a pre-pandemic recital in Manhattan’s Merkin Hall, Russian pianist Anna Gourari has become a favorite. During the recital, as she performed the Adagio from J.S. Bach’s Concerto in D Minor, the audience hardly breathed, so hypnotic was her left-hand chord ostinato. This work concludes her Elusive Affinity album (24/96 MQA, Tidal/ECM). Playing this track on the Canton speakers took me back to that magic night, the uncolored and stable image of Gourari’s piano hanging between the speakers.”

“Patricia Barber’s new single, “This Town,” was released on Tidal as I was writing this review. One of the last events I went to before the New York City pandemic lockdown took effect in March 2020 was a preview of Barber’s album Higher in surround sound, presented by engineer Jim Anderson and his producer partner Ulrike Kristina Schwarz. Jim also played some mixes from what would be a new album by Barber’s piano trio. “This Town” is the lead-off track on that album, called Clique, which was scheduled to be released around the time this issue of Stereophile hits newsstands and mailboxes.

I cued up “This Town” (24/352.8 MQA FLAC, unfolded to 24/88.2 by Roon) and took a listen. The highs on the Cantons seemed in good balance with the lower frequencies, neither the hi-hat cymbals nor the sibilance on Barber’s voice sounding exaggerated. Her piano was reproduced without coloration and, as with my Fender bass on Editor’s Choice, Peter Herbert’s bass on the Santa Fe album, and Ray Brown’s bass on Live at the Loa, the sound of the double bass on “This Town” had an excellent combination of leading-edge definition and weight.”

The Canton Reference 7K’s excellent measured performance belies its relatively affordable price.

Get more information and specs on the 7 K here.