From the moment you enter Hall 4 at High End Munich 2025, the commanding presence of Stones Speakers’ towering monolithic columns demands your attention. Carved entirely by hand from Euganean Trachyte—an ancient volcanic stone sourced from Italy’s Euganean Hills—these sculptural loudspeakers are not just feats of acoustic engineering, but profound expressions of heritage craftsmanship.
In a conversation with Carlos Alves de Sousa of United Photo Press, CEO Giacomo Munari shared the philosophy behind the company’s boldest showcase to date. “We start with 500-kg blocks of Trachyte, hand-selected for tonal neutrality and structural integrity,” Munari explained. “This stone has been valued since Roman times, and working with it is a tribute to both history and sonic purity.” At a workshop outside Padua, Master Mason Michele and his team use traditional chisels alongside diamond-tipped routers to shape each speaker over several meticulous weeks.
Yet, what’s hidden inside these stone giants is just as impressive. “Stone can sing—but not always in a good way,” Munari joked. To tame unwanted resonances, each column is lined with a precisely engineered lattice of stainless-steel ribs and sorbothane pads, creating an enclosure that isolates the driver’s energy and eliminates coloration. A cutaway model reveals this intricate anatomy—proof of the team’s relentless pursuit of acoustic transparency.
Stones Speakers designs its own drivers in-house: paper-coned woofers provide warmth, ceramic-coated midranges offer pristine clarity, and ribbon tweeters are carefully recessed to reduce diffraction. Combined, they deliver an uncolored midrange and thunderous yet controlled bass that few wooden or metal cabinets can replicate. In demo sessions, listeners described an almost holographic soundstage—where the stone seemed to disappear, leaving only the music suspended in space.
But these speakers are more than just instruments of sound. “We see them as art pieces,” Munari said. Each pair is unique, with hand-finished textures ranging from honed matte to subtly polished surfaces, some adorned with marble inlays or integrated LED uplighting that reveals the stone’s natural grain at dusk. During the show, a display model with charcoal veins and mica highlights shimmered under the lights, drawing admiration from audiophiles and art lovers alike.
Installation is no small feat—each 300-kg column requires custom wheeled cradles and a two-man team. But the impact is undeniable. “It’s not just a speaker—it’s a presence,” Munari noted. “Our clients aren’t merely audiophiles; they’re collectors who understand that beauty and performance should coexist.”
Looking forward, Stones Speakers is preparing a limited “Heritage Series” crafted from lumachella limestone, a richly patterned stone from nearby quarries. Each pair will include a certificate of provenance and a booklet detailing the geological history of the material. There are also plans for compact stone-encased headphone amps and center channels, expanding the brand’s offerings without compromising its core ethos.
As our conversation closed, Munari reflected on what drives their mission. “We’re telling a story—of place, time, and the human touch,” he said. “In a world of carbon fiber and CNC-machined aluminum, rediscovering the soul of sound through ancient stone feels not just radical, but necessary.”
By the end of High End Munich’s opening day, Stones Speakers had transcended the role of product. They stood as a testament to what happens when centuries-old materials meet uncompromising modern design—where craftsmanship becomes resonance, and stone becomes song.
Carlos Alves de Sousa
United Photo Press
www.unitedphotopress.com
United Photo Press
www.unitedphotopress.com
